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Learn how to make an inexpensive DIY tumbler turner in two different ways — the low tech super cheap method of a cardboard box and PVC pipes, or the still inexpensive rotisserie turner method! Both are easy ways to make cup turners for your glitter tumblers!

I just made a batch of super pretty glitter tumblers (check out the post to see the full process!). I’m already getting questions about the exact methods we used to create our two tumbler turners (also known as cup turners), so this tutorial shows you exactly how we made them. The low-tech cardboard tumbler turner was less than $10 and the rotisserie tumbler turner was about $35.

See the tumbler turners in action in this step-by-step video below:

So let me show you how to make these tumbler turners! This post contains some affiliate links for your convenience (which means if you make a purchase after clicking a link I will earn a small commission but it won’t cost you a penny more)! Read my full disclosure policy.

Materials for DIY Glitter Tumbler Turners

Cardboard (Unpowered) Tumbler Turner Method:

Rotisserie Turner (Powered) Tumbler Turner Method:

How to Make the DIY Tumbler Turner Wands

Your first step is to make the “wands” for your tumblers or cups. You’ll use these for either DIY tumbler turner. Here’s how we did it:

Buy some foam football rockets from the dollar store. The kinds with these tails (the “rockets”) work best. If you can’t find those, get the normal kind and cut out a hole.

A foam football with a tail from the dollar store is used to make a DIY tumbler turner

Remove the fins from the tail of the foam football rocket. They will tear right off.

Removing the fins from the tail to make a tumbler turner wand

Now cut some PVC pipe to at least 18″ long, or longer if you want to make them double-ended (more like 30″). I recommend having them be double-ended so they are balanced. But if you want each wand to be separate, you can cut them shorter and use PVC couplings to join them as we have.

Cutting PVC pipe to make DIY tumbler turners

Insert the tail of the foam football into the PVC pipe.

 Foam football being put into a PVC pipe to make a DIY tumbler turner

Now just duct tape the pipe to the football to keep it in place.

A pipe and PVC pipe to make a tumbler turner wand

We made six of these for our cardboard tumbler turner!

Tumbler wands with foam footballs and duct tape ready for the DIY tumbler turner

How to Make a Cardboard (Unpowered) DIY Tumbler Turner

Find yourself a cardboard box that is short and wide, then cut off the top. Ours is about 3 feet long by 1 foot wide by 1 foot high. A 1′ x 1′ x 1′ box (or thereabouts) would be fine if you plan to have just two wands.

Cutting the top off a cardboard box to make a DIY tumbler turner

This is what our box looked like with the top cut off.

A cardboard box with its top cut off to make a DIY tumbler turner

Mark the spot you’d like your wands to go into the box. You’ll probably want them in the middle so they aren’t too low or too high.

Marking the PVC pipe on the cardboard box to make a DIY tumbler turner

Now cut out the hole with a knife.

Cutting a cardboard box to make a DIY cup turner

Insert your tumbler turner wand you already made into the hole, push it through to the other side of the box, and mark the spot again. Take special care to keep your pipe level.

Inserting the PVC pipe into the cardboard box to make the DIY tumbler turner

We decided we wanted our wands to be removable, so we joined two with a coupler.

Joining two tumbler wands with a PVC coupler to make a DIY cup turner

So here’s what that looks like in our DIY tumbler turner:

A PVC pipe and foam footballs make a DIY epoxy tumbler turner

And here’s me using the DIY tumbler turner with six tumblers at once!

 Jennifer rotating her epoxied tumblers on the homemade DIY tumbler turner made from a cardboard box

In retrospect, it would have been better if the box had been a bit shorter — 30″ would have been fine for six tumblers. But we used what we had!

How to Make a Rotisserie Turner (Powered) Tumbler Turner

If you’d like to make a wand that attaches right to the rotisserie, here’s how to do that:

Removing the center from a foam football insert to make a DIY tumbler turner

A foam football and rotisserie turner to make a DIY tumbler turner

Removing the center from a foam football insert to make a DIY tumbler turner

A foam football and rotisserie turner to make a DIY tumbler turner

Here’s what you’ll need to make your DIY tumbler turner with power!

 
Separate the electric rotisserie motor and base plate (motor bracket). Ours simply slid apart.
 
Turn a rotisserie turner into a tumbler or cup turner
 
Please the base plate (motor bracket) onto the end of a piece of board.
 
Attaching a rotisserie turner to a board to make a DIY tumbler turner
 
Screw the base plate (motor bracket) of the rotisserie turner onto the board.
 
Turn a rotisserie turner into a tumbler or cup turner
 
Here’s the base plate (motor bracket) screwed onto the board.
 
Turn a rotisserie turner into a tumbler or cup turner
 
Slide the electric rotisserie unit into the base plate (motor bracket).
 
Turn a rotisserie turner into a tumbler or cup turner
 
Now just put the tumbler wand you made right into the rotisserie unit, plug it in, and power it on! Easy peasy!
 
Turn a rotisserie turner into a tumbler or cup turner
 
Now take the rotisserie support bracket (aka spit rod bracket) and bend it like this:
Bending the rotisserie support bracket to make a diy tumbler turner
 
It should look about like this, with a 90 degree bend.
 
Bending the rotisserie support bracket to make a diy tumbler turner
 
Now screw that support bracket to the center of your board, making sure it is in line with your turning wand.
 
Screws holding down the DIY Tumbler turner bracket
 
Screws holding down the DIY Tumbler turner bracket
 
Now just put the collar and thumb screw on the turning wand so it lines up with the support bracket.
 
The finished DIY tumbler turner plugged in and ready to go!  
 
And that’s it! Your DIY tumbler turner is finished! In the photo below we are supporting it with a clamp, but it turns out that is not necessary. It will sit on the end of a desk or table without the clamp.
 
Yes, you could get fancier with creating a DIY tumbler turner, but we felt this was the simplest way to do it that required the fewest tools. We want as many people to be able to make one of these as possible, not just the people with the fancy power tools!
 
 

If you make your own tumbler turner, please share a photo in our Amazing Cricut Facebook group, email it to me at [email protected], or tag me on social media with #makershowandtell.

Love,

JenniferMaker.com

Want to remember this? Save the DIY Tumbler Turner Tutorial to Your Favorite DIY Pinterest Board!

 DIY Tumbler Turner (Cup Turner) Made Two Ways - Cardboard Method and Rotisserie Turner Method -- Both Inexpensive! Complete instructions and tutorial #tumblers #diygifts #tutorial

Learn how to make an inexpensive DIY tumbler turner in two different ways -- the low tech super cheap method of a cardboard box and PVC pipes, or the still inexpensive rotisserie turner method! Both are easy ways to make cup turners for your glitter tumblers!  #diy #tutorial #craftprojects

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