Alright, guys, let’s talk about my little project today – battening a basketball court with some oak timber. Sounds fancy, huh? It wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be, actually.

First things first, I gathered all my stuff. I had these beautiful oak planks I’d picked up, my trusty saw, a drill, a bunch of screws, measuring tape, a level (gotta keep things straight!), and of course, safety glasses. Don’t want any oak splinters in my eyes!

Preparation is Key

Then came the measuring. This was, I think, the most boring part. I measured the area where I wanted the battens, marked it all out, and then measured again, just to be super sure. You know the saying, “measure twice, cut once”? Yeah, I lived by that today.

Cutting and Drilling

Next up, I started cutting the oak. My saw worked really well, thank God. I’ve had some rough experiences with saws in the past. I cut all the planks to the sizes I needed, making sure they were all nice and even. I even get dust everywhere,I sweep it after cut.

• The first step is cut.
• The second step is measure.
• The last step is install.

Then, I drilled pilot holes in the battens. This is important, folks, because it stops the wood from splitting when you screw them in. Learned that the hard way a few years back!

The Installation

After the holes were drilled, it was time to get these battens up. I carefully positioned each one, checked it with the level (seriously, can’t stress that enough), and then screwed them into place. It was pretty straightforward, just a bit repetitive. But hey, that’s DIY for you!

And… that’s pretty much it! It actually turned out better than I expected. The oak looks really good, and the whole thing feels super solid. I’m pretty proud of myself, not gonna lie. Now I just need to finish the rest of the court… Wish me luck! Hope you can learn something in my process record, see you next time!