Alright so I finally got around to that weird project idea I scribbled down last month: Pad Basketball Maple Timber. Basically, I thought, why not try making a kinda decorative panel, like a little wall hanging thing, with a basketball theme… but carved into a piece of wood? Sounds simple, right? Ha!
The Great Hunt for Maple
First thing, gotta find the wood. I ain’t buying some fancy expensive plank for this experiment. Scoured my shed, my neighbour’s scrap pile (after asking!), and finally dug up this slightly beat-up maple offcut under an old tarp. It ain’t perfect – got a few knicks, surface felt rough like sandpaper dipped in dirt – but free timber is good timber! Dragged it inside.
Plonked it down on the workbench. Yeah, needs serious cleaning. Grabbed my sandpaper block, started scrubbing. 80 grit first, scraping off the grime and the fuzzy bits. Man, this stuff splintered easy. Had to go slow, kept changing sandpaper fingers. Went through 120 grit, then 180. Felt smoother, but still showed those dings and scratches like battle scars. “Character,” I told myself, “it’s character.”
Design Mess & Transfer Trouble
Time for the basketball part. How hard can a simple ball design be? Grabbed a pencil and paper. Drew a circle. Tried to draw the curved lines for the sections… looked more like a deflated soccer ball someone sat on. Scrapped that. Printed a basic basketball vector outline instead. Okay, better.
Now, how to get this onto the wood? Carbon paper? Didn’t have any. Tried holding the paper tight and tracing hard with a pencil – left a super faint line I could barely see. Ugh. Pulled out a ballpoint pen and pressed really hard, indenting the design into the wood. Success! Sorta. Now it looked vaguely basketball-shaped, kinda like a lumpy potato with lines.
The Nerve-Wracking Carve
Okay, deep breath. Got my little detail carving knife – the one I sometimes use for whittling. Nervous doesn’t begin to cover it. Maple is tough! Started gently, just trying to follow those indented lines. Applying pressure felt scary; too little and nothing happened, too much and the wood chunked out.
- Tip snapped. Yep. First slip, and the little corner piece near one of the curved lines just popped off. Great. Had to sand it smooth again, losing a chunk of the design. Frustration level rising.
- Sweaty palms. Seriously! Had to keep wiping my hands on my jeans. Didn’t want the knife slipping again.
- Progress slow. Like, watching paint dry slow. Tiny little cuts, little scrapes, trying to deepen the lines a fraction of a millimeter at a time. Back and fingers started cramping after an hour.
Eventually, mostly carved out the panel sections on the ball. Looked… rough. Very rustic. More like an alien fruit than a basketball, but hey, you could tell the intent was there!
Finishing Touches (Mostly Just Staining)
Wanted the ball to pop more. Found this dark walnut wood stain in the garage. Dabbed it carefully only into the carved lines and sections of the “ball.” Wiped off the excess like mad. Left the rest of the wood, the “background” of the panel, natural with just a clear coat to seal it. Actually made the design stand out way more than I expected! Was starting to feel kinda proud.
Drilled two small holes at the top. Threw in some metal hanging hooks. Done!
The Verdict?
It hangs in the shed now. It ain’t perfect. That snapped-off corner bugs me every time I see it. The lines wobble like I had the shakes. Calling it “basketball” might be generous.
But you know what? I started with scrap wood and a dumb idea. I wrestled with it. Messed up plenty. Learned that carving maple requires patience I often lack. Ended up with something kinda unique, full of its own little flaws and story. That’s the fun of these projects for me. It started as “Pad Basketball Maple Timber” and ended up as “My Wonky Shed Ball.” Good enough for me.
