What Pushed Me to Try This Out
Alright so picture this. My backyard volleyball setup was driving me nuts. The regular plastic tiles I bought last year? Absolute garbage under bare feet – stubbed toes constantly, zero give when you dive. Plus, they warped like crazy in the sun, felt like playing on a washboard. Needed something proper.
Digging Around for Stuff
Started poking around online and at the local hardware haunt. Heard some folks talking up Hevea wood. Supposedly it’s rubberwood? Yeah, tough, kinda bouncy, and handles wet weather okay. Sounded promising. Then the hunt was on:
- The Wood: Took ages. Finally found untreated Hevea planks from some guy clearing out an old warehouse. Grabbed a load.
- Shock Absorption Stuff: This one was messy. Looked at cork sheets, recycled rubber mats… ended up scoring a thick roll of this dense rubber underlayment meant for gym floors off a local supplier.
- Joining Bits: Simple tongue-and-groove connectors? Nah. Decided on stainless steel decking screws and splurged on some heavy-duty marine-grade wood glue.
- Portable Idea: Scrapped the “built-in patio” dream early. Figured smaller sections I could lug around was smarter. Brainstormed simple clips.
Let’s Get Building (Chaos Included)
Cleared out the garage. That was step one. Then the real fun began:
- Cutting Down: Sawdust everywhere. Used a circular saw. Measured each plank to fit my “section” idea – about 4 feet by 6 feet per tile. Accuracy? We tried. Couple finger taps later. Oops.
- Groove Madness: Had to route grooves into the sides of every single plank. My wrist remembers this. Needed them deep enough for these steel joining brackets I found.
- Glue Attack: Slathered on that marine glue onto the top of the rubber underlay. Then just slapped the Hevea planks straight down onto it, lining them up tight. Clamped everything down good and proper. Sweated like a pig waiting for it to cure.
- Screw Time: After the glue was solid, flipped each section over. Countersunk stainless screws from the bottom up, right through the rubber and into the wood planks. Felt solid.
- Finishing: Sanded everything down rough as a bear. Didn’t want splinters ruining the game. Wiped it all down.
- Joining the Gang: This part got fiddly. Made these little metal clips using some scrap angle brackets. Hammered them flat-ish, drilled holes. Screwed these clips onto the sides of each section where the grooves were. Sliding them together clicks the sections into place. Took a few attempts.
How’d It Actually Hold Up?
Honestly? Better than I dared hope. Got the crew over yesterday.
- The give is real. Landed wrong after a block – just a dull thud, not that sharp “oof” feeling. Knees didn’t yell at me.
- Sections locked tight during play. No gaps swallowing ankles, no scary shifting.
- Portable? For sure. After we quit, popped the clips, dragged each piece into the shed no problem. Maybe 20 minutes solo. Looks beat-up already. Perfect.
Would I Do It Again? Yeah, But…
Thing eats gear? For sure. Worth every splinter and glued finger. Feels like a real court, not some cheap toy.
Next time? Might spring for pre-grooved wood. That routing job nearly finished me.
