Okay so today I wanna share how I fixed that wobbly basketball pad thing behind my garage. You know the one – base was all cracked up from years of rust and those crazy Midwest storms. Couldn’t shoot hoops without worrying the whole contraption might just fall over on my old truck! Figured I could do better than that flimsy stuff, so oak timber came to mind. Tough stuff, right?
The Starting Mess
First off, I grabbed my crowbar and just yanked the old pad off its pole. Man, that metal bracket looked worse than I thought. Crumbled in my hand! Scrapped the whole base – it was trash. Went inside and sketched a real simple bracket design on the back of a pizza box. Didn’t need fancy, just needed strong.
Grabbing Stuff & Measuring Wrong… Twice
Rummaged through my scrap pile – found a decently thick slab of oak. It had some character marks, but hey, adds charm. Measured twice? Nah, measured once, sawed, then realized I screwed up the angle for the bracket bend. Classic me. Went back, did the measurements properly this time, sweating my socks off already.
Cutting the oak:
- Hacked away with my trusty handsaw. Smooth cuts? Not even close.
- Marked the lines for the bracket shape. Drew a slight curve where the backboard pole would sit.
- Used a chisel and mallet to bang out that curved notch. Took forever. Got sawdust up my nose.
- Sanded the whole piece like crazy. First coarse paper, then smoother. Wanted to avoid splinters later.
Building the Bracket
Figured I needed to reinforce it. Found some leftover metal corner braces in the shed. Made a template from cardboard to position them right. Drilled pilot holes through the oak – didn’t want splits. Then I sunk heavy bolts through the oak and into those braces, tightening them down hard with my ratchet. Took some muscle!
For weatherproofing, I drowned the whole oak bracket in boiled linseed oil. Slapped on two thick coats with a rag, letting it soak in between. Stuff smells funny but works great. Watched the oak darken up real nice while it dried.
Hanging the Pad & A Little Panic
Finally ready. Dragged the bracket out, held it up to the pole. Called over my neighbor Joe to help, ’cause no way I could bolt it solo. Used big U-bolts I bought at the hardware store to clamp the oak bracket tight around the pole. Me and Joe took turns cranking those nuts down. Thing felt solid as a rock already.
Then came the moment – lifted the actual basketball pad onto the bracket. Aligned the bolt holes… dropped one bolt! Crawled around in the grass for five minutes looking for it. Found it next to a worm. Got the pad bolted down tight to the oak. Gave it a solid shove. Nothin’. Didn’t budge an inch.
The First Shot & Celebration
Grabbed my worn-out ball. Took a shot from way out near the driveway. Missed completely. Duh. Took another from free throw line. Heard that beautiful swish sound. Pad barely shook. Perfect. That oak bracket held firm. Felt fantastic knowing I made something tough enough to handle airballs and slam dunks (okay, maybe just airballs from me). Worth the sweat and measuring screw-up. Might stain it darker later. For now? Time to shoot some more hoops before dinner.
