Need to cut down a wooden baseball bat to turn it into a practise bat (i.e.
make it thinner, so more difficult to hit accurately with).
Its 28" (710mm) long and 2.2" (56mm) in diameter at the wide end. Would like
to turn it down at the wide end to about 40mm.
Might there be anyway to do this reasonably well without the use of a lathe?
(which we don't have).
Alternatively might there be a woodworking hobbyist in the North London Area
with a lathe who might be able to help out? Grateful for any advice.
Thanks.
On Jul 26, 12:59=A0pm, Leon <lcb11211@swbelldotnet> wrote:
> On 7/26/2011 6:43 AM, john thompson wrote:
>
> > Need to cut down a wooden baseball bat to turn it into a practise bat (=
i.e.
> > make it thinner, so more difficult to hit accurately with).
>
> > Its 28" (710mm) long and 2.2" (56mm) in diameter at the wide end. Would=
like
> > to turn it down at the wide end to about 40mm.
>
> > Might there be anyway to do this reasonably well without the use of a l=
athe?
> > (which we don't have).
>
> > Alternatively might there be a woodworking hobbyist in the North London=
Area
> > with a lathe who might be able to help out? =A0Grateful for any advice.
> > Thanks.
>
> How about just buying a bigger ball! =A0;~)
I would have thought a *smaller* ball would be more to the point. The
OP wants it to be *more* difficult to hit the ball with the bat.
On Jul 26, 12:43=A0pm, "john thompson" <[email protected]> wrote:
> Need to cut down a wooden baseball bat to turn it into a practise bat (i.=
e.
> make it thinner, so more difficult to hit accurately with).
>
> Its 28" (710mm) long and 2.2" (56mm) in diameter at the wide end. Would l=
ike
> to turn it down at the wide end to about 40mm.
>
> Might there be anyway to do this reasonably well without the use of a lat=
he?
> (which we don't have).
>
> Alternatively might there be a woodworking hobbyist in the North London A=
rea
> with a lathe who might be able to help out? =A0Grateful for any advice.
> Thanks.
pole lathe, drill & bearing & angle grinder, etc
NT
> Might there be anyway to do this reasonably well without the use of a lathe?
> (which we don't have).
Requires a fair bit of skill, but could be done with a drawknife and
handplane. Alternatively power plane, and lots of sandpaper (use the
stuff on a long roll, mount the bat in the vice, end of a long strip
in each hand and draw the strip back and forth.
Have a google on "sparmaking". As oars/spars/masts are too long to be
turned (and often need a precise taper), other traditional techniques
have been developed
On 7/26/2011 7:25 AM, Martin Bonner wrote:
> On Jul 26, 12:59 pm, Leon<lcb11211@swbelldotnet> wrote:
>> On 7/26/2011 6:43 AM, john thompson wrote:
>>
>>> Need to cut down a wooden baseball bat to turn it into a practise bat (i.e.
>>> make it thinner, so more difficult to hit accurately with).
>>
>>> Its 28" (710mm) long and 2.2" (56mm) in diameter at the wide end. Would like
>>> to turn it down at the wide end to about 40mm.
>>
>>> Might there be anyway to do this reasonably well without the use of a lathe?
>>> (which we don't have).
>>
>>> Alternatively might there be a woodworking hobbyist in the North London Area
>>> with a lathe who might be able to help out? Grateful for any advice.
>>> Thanks.
>>
>> How about just buying a bigger ball! ;~)
>
> I would have thought a *smaller* ball would be more to the point. The
> OP wants it to be *more* difficult to hit the ball with the bat.
Yeah,,,, He wants to make the bat smaller compared to the ball being
hit. A smaller ball would make the bat even larger to the ball. Using
a larger ball would make the bat seem smaller to the ball.
The OP wants the ball to be "more" difficult to hit "accurately", not
just more difficult to hit.
john thompson wrote the following:
> Need to cut down a wooden baseball bat to turn it into a practise bat (i.e.
> make it thinner, so more difficult to hit accurately with).
>
> Its 28" (710mm) long and 2.2" (56mm) in diameter at the wide end. Would like
> to turn it down at the wide end to about 40mm.
>
> Might there be anyway to do this reasonably well without the use of a lathe?
> (which we don't have).
>
> Alternatively might there be a woodworking hobbyist in the North London Area
> with a lathe who might be able to help out? Grateful for any advice.
> Thanks.
>
>
>
So you want to thin out a baseball bat for training, which will also
make it lighter. Then, after the training is complete, you'll play
baseball with a bat that is larger in diameter and also heavier?
Sounds like a plan. Do you ever notice that the on-deck batter puts
weights on the bat and takes practice swings with that heavier bat
before he steps into the batter's box?
--
Bill
In Hamptonburgh, NY
In the original Orange County. Est. 1683
To email, remove the double zeroes after @
On 7/26/2011 6:43 AM, john thompson wrote:
> Need to cut down a wooden baseball bat to turn it into a practise bat (i.e.
> make it thinner, so more difficult to hit accurately with).
>
> Its 28" (710mm) long and 2.2" (56mm) in diameter at the wide end. Would like
> to turn it down at the wide end to about 40mm.
>
> Might there be anyway to do this reasonably well without the use of a lathe?
> (which we don't have).
>
> Alternatively might there be a woodworking hobbyist in the North London Area
> with a lathe who might be able to help out? Grateful for any advice.
> Thanks.
>
>
How about just buying a bigger ball! ;~)
On Jul 26, 4:11=A0pm, <[email protected]> wrote:
> Make a box long enough for the bat to fit into leave the top (a long side=
)
> open. =A0Drive nails or screws in the center of each end. Center the bat =
in
> the box. =A0Make a platform that your router will fit onto useing a strai=
ght
> bit lower to the bat you should have enough room to rotate the bat by han=
d
> move the router for each pass.
> Just my thoughts
'Ol Norm did that one for the 3 legged table. He did a turning on the
lathe, then built a box right there on the lathe for the router to
ride on and put some dovetailed slots in the end of the blank for legs
for a small table. Maybe the "Candlestick Table"? Actually, I don't
think I'd turn down a bat ~too~ much and whack it with a normal size
baseball. Might poke an eye out.
RP
"john thompson" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Need to cut down a wooden baseball bat to turn it into a practise bat
> (i.e. make it thinner, so more difficult to hit accurately with).
>
> Its 28" (710mm) long and 2.2" (56mm) in diameter at the wide end. Would
> like to turn it down at the wide end to about 40mm.
>
> Might there be anyway to do this reasonably well without the use of a
> lathe? (which we don't have).
>
> Alternatively might there be a woodworking hobbyist in the North London
> Area with a lathe who might be able to help out? Grateful for any advice.
> Thanks.
It will weigh about half its original weight at the business end, is that
any good?
>
>
john thompson wrote:
> Need to cut down a wooden baseball bat to turn it into a practise bat (i.e.
> make it thinner, so more difficult to hit accurately with).
>
> Its 28" (710mm) long and 2.2" (56mm) in diameter at the wide end. Would like
> to turn it down at the wide end to about 40mm.
>
> Might there be anyway to do this reasonably well without the use of a lathe?
> (which we don't have).
>
> Alternatively might there be a woodworking hobbyist in the North London Area
> with a lathe who might be able to help out? Grateful for any advice.
> Thanks.
>
>
A lathe is really the only practical way to do this easily.
Try contacting this lot http://www.nlwoodturners.org/
You will possibly have them fighting over who does it although the
length will mean the perpetual pen turners and bowl boys possibly won't
be able to cope.
Bob
On 7/26/11 6:43 AM, john thompson wrote:
> Need to cut down a wooden baseball bat to turn it into a practise bat (i.e.
> make it thinner, so more difficult to hit accurately with).
>
> Its 28" (710mm) long and 2.2" (56mm) in diameter at the wide end. Would like
> to turn it down at the wide end to about 40mm.
>
> Might there be anyway to do this reasonably well without the use of a lathe?
> (which we don't have).
>
> Alternatively might there be a woodworking hobbyist in the North London Area
> with a lathe who might be able to help out? Grateful for any advice.
> Thanks.
>
I suggest going another route. They already make practice bats and they
are pretty cheap. If you can't find them in your area, go old school and
use broom/rake handles or metal conduit. All of this is a moot point if
you're using baseballs, because they will bend/break after ten hits...
but then again, so will the bat you are turning down.
All this to say, I hope you are using tennis balls or racket balls
rather than baseballs. :-)
--
-MIKE-
"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
http://mikedrums.com
[email protected]
---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply
On 7/27/11 11:12 AM, willshak wrote:
> john thompson wrote the following:
>> Need to cut down a wooden baseball bat to turn it into a practise bat
>> (i.e. make it thinner, so more difficult to hit accurately with).
>>
>> Its 28" (710mm) long and 2.2" (56mm) in diameter at the wide end.
>> Would like to turn it down at the wide end to about 40mm.
>>
>> Might there be anyway to do this reasonably well without the use of a
>> lathe? (which we don't have).
>>
>> Alternatively might there be a woodworking hobbyist in the North
>> London Area with a lathe who might be able to help out? Grateful for
>> any advice. Thanks.
>>
> So you want to thin out a baseball bat for training, which will also
> make it lighter. Then, after the training is complete, you'll play
> baseball with a bat that is larger in diameter and also heavier?
> Sounds like a plan. Do you ever notice that the on-deck batter puts
> weights on the bat and takes practice swings with that heavier bat
> before he steps into the batter's box?
>
>
Exactly, let them keep the bat, but have someone, probably not the
regular pitcher, throw golf balls.
--
Froz...
The system will be down for 10 days for preventive maintenance.
On 7/27/11 10:12 AM, willshak wrote:
> So you want to thin out a baseball bat for training, which will also
> make it lighter. Then, after the training is complete, you'll play
> baseball with a bat that is larger in diameter and also heavier?
It won't be lighter. The composite bats used today are mush lighter
than wood.
> Sounds like a plan. Do you ever notice that the on-deck batter puts
> weights on the bat and takes practice swings with that heavier bat
> before he steps into the batter's box?
>
That's yet another tradition in baseball that's stood the test of time,
but not the test of science. Scientific studies have shown that a
heavier bat messes up your timing and a batter who uses the same bat in
the on-deck circle gets better results.
Here's another. Corked bats don't hit as far as un-corked bats. And
another, sliding into first base is a lot slower than running through.
There are a bunch of these.
However, you will never convince the baseball player of this, because
his two strongest and most convincing training tools for baseball are
ritual and superstition. Players have been hogtied by these two for as
long as the game has been played. You'll never convince the fan of this
because they say, "Well, they've been doing it as long as I can remember
and they're the ones playing professional baseball so they must know
wheat they're doing."
--
-MIKE-
"Playing is not something I do at night, it's my function in life"
--Elvin Jones (1927-2004)
--
http://mikedrums.com
[email protected]
---remove "DOT" ^^^^ to reply
Make a box long enough for the bat to fit into leave the top (a long side)
open. Drive nails or screws in the center of each end. Center the bat in
the box. Make a platform that your router will fit onto useing a straight
bit lower to the bat you should have enough room to rotate the bat by hand
move the router for each pass.
Just my thoughts
"john thompson" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Need to cut down a wooden baseball bat to turn it into a practise bat
> (i.e. make it thinner, so more difficult to hit accurately with).
>
> Its 28" (710mm) long and 2.2" (56mm) in diameter at the wide end. Would
> like to turn it down at the wide end to about 40mm.
>
> Might there be anyway to do this reasonably well without the use of a
> lathe? (which we don't have).
>
> Alternatively might there be a woodworking hobbyist in the North London
> Area with a lathe who might be able to help out? Grateful for any advice.
> Thanks.
>
On Tue, 26 Jul 2011 12:43:15 +0100, "john thompson"
<[email protected]> wrote:
>Need to cut down a wooden baseball bat to turn it into a practise bat (i.e.
>make it thinner, so more difficult to hit accurately with).
>
>Its 28" (710mm) long and 2.2" (56mm) in diameter at the wide end. Would like
>to turn it down at the wide end to about 40mm.
>
>Might there be anyway to do this reasonably well without the use of a lathe?
>(which we don't have).
>
>Alternatively might there be a woodworking hobbyist in the North London Area
>with a lathe who might be able to help out? Grateful for any advice.
>Thanks.
>
Rather than turning down the bat what about cutting off the handle,
drill out the center of the handle and glue in an approximate size
dowel. (Our just use the dowel for the bat).
--
Jack Novak
Buffalo, NY - USA