Alright, so I’ve been wanting to experiment with rubber tree wood for ages. Found a gnarly chunk of it just sitting in my buddy’s scrap pile – said I could take it if I hauled it away. Figured this would be perfect for trying out that pad dancing technique I saw on YouTube. No clue what I’m doing, but hey, let’s roll.
Getting Started
First thing, I dragged the timber onto my garage floor. Thing weighed a ton! Grabbed my angle grinder with a sanding pad attachment. Started rubbing against the grain – holy splinters! Dust went everywhere even with the mask on. Realized quick I needed to seal the surface better, so I slapped on this wood conditioner I had from a bookshelf project ages ago.
Waited overnight like the can said. Next morning, I laid down painter’s plastic sheeting – learned that mess lesson the hard way last year. Put my sensor dance pads on top of that. The pads kept sliding around, so I taped the corners with duct tape. Kinda looked like a mad scientist setup at this point.
The Actual Pad Dancing
Strapped on my worn-out sneakers and turned on the beat tracker app. Stepped onto the first pad and started shuffling sideways. The timber underneath felt like dancing on a frozen lake – crazy slippery! Took three tries before I stayed upright more than 10 seconds. Wiped out hard when trying a spin move, knee slammed right into the wood edge. That bruised up nasty.
Decided the pads needed anchoring. Drilled four corner holes into the timber and bolted the pads through their grommets. Now we’re talking! Did a simple toe-heel routine:
- Right foot tap forward
- Shift weight left
- Quick two-step shuffle
- Half-turn jump
The rubber wood actually helped my momentum – felt springier than concrete. Sweated through my shirt doing 20 minutes of patterns. Timber started showing these cool polished streaks where my feet kept landing.
The Finish Line
Wrapped up with some freestyle stomping. Timber made this deep thump-thump rhythm that synced wild good with the electronic beats. When I hopped off, noticed the pad foam had compressed into permanent shoe shapes. Timber surface looked like it got attacked by a rabid squirrel – but in an artsy way? Took a pressure washer to it after, brought out the wood grain patterns something gorgeous.
So yeah, turns out rubber tree timber’s surprisingly good for this. Would I recommend? Only if you like looking like a sweaty maniac wrestling lumber in your garage. But man that combo of bass vibrating through your feet while the wood echoes? Pure magic.
