Okay, let me break down how I pulled off that basketball pad project using hard maple timber. Total headache at times, but here’s exactly how it went down.
Grabbing the Stuff
Saw leftover planks from my old maple flooring job piled in the garage. Timber pieces were thick – like 1.5 inches solid – but shorter than I wanted. Figured maple’s tough enough for basketball pounding, so hauled ’em out. Measured the area where I planned to put it. Realized the planks covered half the space. Ran to the lumberyard, pointed at more maple. Guy raised his eyebrow: “Playing basketball on this? It’s rock-hard!” Paid way more than for regular pine.
Cutting & Sanding Chaos
Laid all timber pieces in the driveway. Made marks with a carpenter pencil. Tried my circular saw – it jammed three times. Maple laughs at weak blades. Switched to a carbide-tip blade, worked but slow. Sawdust piled like snow. Then sanding… oh man. My orbital sander overheated twice. Did three rounds:
- Started with 60-grit to flatten gashes
- Moved to 120-grit to smooth edges
- Finished with 220 so it wouldn’t splinter fingers
Cleared half my garage just for sawdust mountain.
Fitting Pieces Together
Lined up timber pieces on the lawn. Noticed gaps between ’em – some warped over time. Couldn’t nail together since boards shifted when jumped on. Solution? Cut scrap plywood strips as connectors. Screwed plywood strips underneath, joining maple planks like a spine. Added extra bracing where I expected jumps. Dropped the whole frame onto crushed gravel base, tamped it flat. Test-jumped – creaked like old stairs but held. Good sign.
Finishing Touches (Literally)
Worried about rain warping maple again. Brushed on deck sealant – thick goop that smelled nasty for days. Kid next door ran over: “When can we play?” Slapped three coats total, drying between each. On final day, measured hoop height and sunk posts into concrete-filled holes. Drilled bolts through timber edges into posts. Done.
Ball bounces crazy high off maple. Kid complained it’s too bouncy at first. Took two days to get used to it. Last week saw his friends lining up to play. Yeah, maple cost triple regular wood, and my arms ached for days from sanding. But no splinters. No cracks. Just that satisfying THWACK when ball hits pure hardwood timber.
