Alright, back at it again with another hands-on project. This time, I got myself deep into this whole cushioned flooring thing for basketball courts. Specifically, comparing those LVL Larch assembly models everyone keeps asking about. Seems simple, right? Pick one. Ha. Turned into a whole thing. Let me tell ya how it went down.

Getting Started: Buying the Samples

First step, obviously, gotta see and feel these things. Found a couple suppliers selling these specific LVL Larch models claiming good shock absorption – that’s the cushioning part. Ordered a few different sample packs. Man, shipping costs on actual wood chunks? Killed me a bit inside.

When the boxes finally landed on my doorstep, I hauled ’em into the garage. Heavy little buggers. Cracked them open – tons of smaller pieces of wood and different types of padding layers. Some looked smooth, others kinda rough-cut. Felt dense. Honestly, just looking at the pile made me wonder what mess I signed up for.

Playing Garage Scientist

Right, time to stop staring and start testing. Didn’t have a full court handy, obviously. Built a simple platform base instead. Needed to simulate how these things connect and feel when put together, bounce a ball, all that jazz.

Started assembling the samples piece by piece. Some clicked together smooth as butter, almost like fancy puzzle pieces. Others? Man, felt like forcing bricks together. Needed a rubber mallet and some choice words to get ’em locked in. Not exactly a fun time, especially on your knees in a cold garage.

Here’s what I really wrestled with:

• The ‘Click’: How easy does it actually snap together? Big difference between the models. One type practically begged to be assembled, super satisfying click. Another felt flimsy, like you might break the tongue part.
• The Top Layer: This Larch wood stuff they use on top? Some samples had a really thick, luxurious feel, super smooth finish. Others felt thinner, cheaper, almost plasticky. Definitely affected how the ball bounced.
• The Padding Squish: The cushion! The whole point! Dropped the same basketball from the same height on each assembled section. Different rebounds! Big time. Some gave that nice, deep bounce-back feeling. Others felt almost hard, kinda dead. Honestly shocked how different they performed.
• Surface Check: Scuffed a few with my shoe sole. Looked for marks. The really smooth ones showed everything. Others with a bit more texture hid minor scratches better. Important for a high-traffic court.

Real Talk: The Annoying Bits

Okay, hitting some bumps. Literally and figuratively. One assembly system? Forget it if your base isn’t perfectly flat. Saw minor gaps opening up when I tested on my slightly uneven garage floor. Other types seemed more forgiving. Seriously, check your subfloor folks!

And here’s the kicker: The bounce felt totally different on a concrete base compared to the super-firm OSB base I made! Not what I expected at all. The ‘best’ cushion on one felt kinda mediocre on the other. That tells me the underlay matters big time with these systems.

Also found some pad layers seemed tougher, thicker rubber. Others felt flimsier. You can guess which ones worried me about lasting more than a few pickup games.

Pulling It Together: What Clicked?

After a weekend lost in wood shavings and bouncing balls in my garage, here’s where I landed:

• Easy Assembly = Happy Me: If clicking it together sucks while kneeling on concrete, imagine doing a whole court! Feel matters.
• Ping vs Thud: Listen to that basketball bounce. You want that deep “thud” sound and feel. Hard “ping” means less cushion, probably.
• Thickness Counts (Sorta): Thicker larch top felt nicer, but the rubber pad underneath was way more important for the cushioning bounce.
• Texture is Tricky: Smooth looks beautiful, shows every mark. Textured hides stuff better. Pick your poison.
• Subfloor Matters: Don’t skimp here! A bad base ruins everything, made the gaps show and messed with the bounce.
• Durability Vibes: Some pad layers just felt cheap and thin. Others felt like they could take a beating. Hard to know for sure without years of testing, but you kinda get a gut feeling holding them.

So, which one won? Honestly? Depends! Shocking, I know. If you got a killer flat base already, maybe go super premium larch with the thick pad. Budget tighter? Maybe a decent textured top with that forgiving assembly system and a solid pad is smarter than the prettiest one that needs perfect conditions.

Figure out what matters most to you: easy install? Amazing bounce? Scratch hiding? Don’t get blinded by the fancy pictures online. Get samples. Kneel in your garage. Drop a ball. It’s messy, yeah, but it beats guessing wrong. Learned that the hard way!