Last month I took on this gym floor refinishing project at a local rec center here in Oakland, NJ. The basketball court looked absolutely terrible – deep scratches everywhere, nasty black scuff marks all over, and bare patches where the finish completely wore off. Looked like it hadn’t been touched in twenty years.

Getting Ready for the Job

First thing I did was clear everything out of that gym. Took me three hours just moving bleachers and equipment carts. Swept up decades of dust bunnies until my back hurt. Wore my respirator mask ’cause that dust gets everywhere – nose, throat, clothes, you name it.

Rented a drum sander from Taylor Rental over on Ramapo Valley Road. Guy there showed me how to adjust the drum height properly. Remember kids – start too aggressive and you’ll ruin the wood.

The Sanding Grind

Started with 36-grit paper for the first pass. That machine tried to walk away from me when I hit those warped sections near the free throw line. Had to wrestle it back on track while that motor screamed like a banshee. Sawdust piled up like snowdrifts – filled ten bags before lunch.

After the coarse grit did its job, switched to 60-grit. Kept overlapping my passes like I was mowing some demon lawn. Almost messed up big time near the baseline – drifted into the wall and put a gnarly scratch on the maple. Had to sand that area by hand with a palm sander to fix my stupidity.

Finishing Touches

Final passes with 100-grit felt like glass. Used my shop vac to suck up every speck – even crawled around on my knees checking for missed spots. Applied that gym-grade finish with a roller pole. Sweating buckets in that humid gym, watching the clock between coats.

Biggest pain? Waiting for it to fully cure. Three days later I’m buffing it out when some kid runs across shouting his head off. Nearly had a heart attack – fresh finish dents if you breathe on it wrong.

Final Thoughts

End result shines like a hockey rink now. Rec director actually hugged me when she saw it. Would I do another one? Yeah, but never in July heat again. Oh – and always lock your sander’s wheels tighter than you think necessary.