Alright, let’s dig into this hardwood volleyball court project I tackled. It sounded fancy, but figuring out the best base under that rubber floor was a real journey.

First Steps – Gathering the Wood

I didn’t just take anyone’s word for it. I bought small batches of different woods sold for sports floors: my main contestant Hard Maple (all glued up in panels), some poplar boards, a bit of oak, and grabbed some standard pine plywood just to see. Also wanted to see if that fancy bamboo stuff folks talked about was any good.

Setting Up the Test Zone

Cleared out space in my workshop, like a mini court section. Important bit: laid the rubber flooring rollouts directly onto each wood sample. No underlayments yet, wanted to see the raw interaction.

• Hard Maple Assmbled: Felt incredibly solid putting it down. Tight seams, surface smooth as glass. Heavy!
• Poplar: Lighter wood, felt softer tapping it. Seemed okay laying it flat.
• Oak: Super hard stuff, splinters fighting you. Grain felt a bit rough under the rubber.
• Pine Plywood: Easy to handle, cheap feel. Saw some flex just carrying it.
• Bamboo: Looked cool, very hard surface. Weird clicking sound pushing pieces together.

The Bounce Test – Volleyballs Don’t Lie

Dropped a standard volleyball from shoulder height straight down onto each rubber-covered sample. Measured the bounce back height. Repeated ten times per spot.

• Maple: Boing! High, consistent bounce every single time. Satisfying thud sound.
• Poplar: Bounce okay, but kinda… soft? Less springy height than maple. Consistent though.
• Oak: Good height bounce, BUT the ball felt jumpy sometimes? Like it bounced off at slight angles once or twice.
• Pine Ply: Meh. Lower bounce, felt kinda dead. Thump noise was duller.
• Bamboo: High bounce, like maple, BUT noisy! That clicky sound came through the rubber when the ball hit. Weird.

Stomping and Dropping Stuff

No fancy lab gear here. Did what players do: stomped hard in different spots, jumped on it. Even pretended to trip and kicked the base (don’t tell my wife!). Then I dropped a heavy metal tool onto the rubber-covered samples from waist height.

• Maple: Felt immovable. Solid thump underfoot. Zero dent on the surface where the tool hit. Rubber stayed flat.
• Poplar: Felt the wood give slightly under heavy stomp. No huge dent, but the rubber pushed down with it. Tool drop made a small but visible depression in the wood.
• Oak: Took the stomping fine, super hard. Tool drop? Tiny dent in the oak, but that rough grain underneath showed as a slight ripple in the rubber surface.
• Pine Ply: Flexed easily. Stomping felt like walking on a slightly hollow floor. Tool drop went right through the plywood top layer! Big ugly dent.
• Bamboo: Felt solid underfoot. No give. Tool left a faint mark where it hit the seam. Still clicked sometimes under pressure.

The “What If” Spill Test

Players sweat. Things spill. Poured a small puddle of water on the rubber and left it for an hour on each base.

• Maple: No change. Wood didn’t swell. Rubber stayed put. Wiped up fine.
• Poplar: Edge swelled slightly near the seam! Could see it pushing the rubber up a tiny bit.
• Oak: Okay, didn’t swell, but the roughness… some moisture seemed to stain it darker where it met the rubber.
• Pine Ply: Disaster! Edges puffed up bad, rubber bubbled right over it. Top layer got flaky where wet.
• Bamboo: Held up surprisingly well. No swelling I could see. Seams stayed tight.

Conclusion – Was Maple Worth It?

Here’s the straight-up comparison after all that:

• Performance (Bounce): Maple nailed it. Bamboo bounced well but felt/sounded weird. Poplar/Oak inconsistent. Pine failed.
• Durability (Dents): Maple is a tank. Oak strong but grainy. Poplar okay-ish on dents. Pine awful. Bamboo good but seams weak.
• Moisture Stability: Maple laughs at water. Poplar worries me. Pine is a sponge. Oak stains. Bamboo solid.
• Install Feel: Maple heavy but smooth sailing. Oak is a fight. Pine flimsy. Poplar and Bamboo easier.
• Cost: Maple costs big bucks. Poplar cheaper. Pine cheapest but garbage. Oak/Bambuo pricy too.

So yeah, for a serious volleyball court under rubber? That Hard Maple Assembled stuff hurt the wallet, I won’t lie. But after actually putting everything side-by-side? Seeing it work, bounce right, not dent, ignore spills… it was clear why the pro places use it. Pine is junk. Poplar too soft long-term. Oak’s grain and bamboo’s noise/clicks bugged me. If you want the rubber to perform best and last, the maple base wins. Expensive lesson, but worth seeing the difference hands-on.