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Thread: Cricket Bat

  1. #1
    Join Date
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    Default Cricket Bat

    For nearly two years (since this thread in fact) I've had a couple of scraps of really crappy crapiata that looked as though they had a few toy cricket (or rounders!) bats in them, and since I decided today I'd clean up, the best way of doing that was to throw out the bits that didn't look like bat.

    I reckon all that swirly grain looks heaps better for the kids than a bit of plain old willow anyway!

    It's easier to make six than one, and that's exactly how much timber I had so that's what I did!

    1) Mark out the lot. For those interested, the bats are for little people, 400 long overall, the handle is 150 to the point where the shoulder starts, the blade width is a tad under 100 and the thickness a tad under 25. (Yep, it came out of a bit of rough sawn 4x1)

    2) You can saw the shoulders if you wish, but a 38mm forstner bit makes quick work of them.

    3) Run about 20° off the back face on the tablesaw, or if you are only building one you can use a hand plane, it's not much work.

    4) Cut the handles and the straight bit of the shoulders

    5) Round the handles, I popped them on the mini lathe to save a bit of time, but the spokeshave or rasp will do the same (see the link above), and cut a bit of a curve and taper on the bottoms. I used the diameter of a honey pail but there's no right or wrong!

    6) Plane, shave and sand to taste, then for a little bit of panache, bind the handle with packaging twine.

    I'll shellac them to a dark yellow colour because that's a bit of a family joke, and then wax them after carving the initial of the recipent in the back.

    So that's another two and half hours I'll never get back, and what worries me is that I've got lots more timber to clean up, but it all looks like a boat!


    Cheers,

    P

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  3. #2
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    Nice work midge, thanks for sharing.


    Cheers......................Sean


    The beatings will continue until morale improves.

  4. #3
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    Little canoe paddles.
    Cliff.
    If you find a post of mine that is missing a pic that you'd like to see, let me know & I'll see if I can find a copy.

  5. #4
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    Quote Originally Posted by Cliff Rogers View Post
    Little canoe paddles.
    Big ones are next... I've got to clear all the other crap err, other unfinished projects off my bench first!

    cheers,

    P

  6. #5
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    Yonnee is offline Trailer Bloke & Mild Mannered Moderator
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    Nice...
    Too many projects, so little time, even less money!
    Are you a registered member? Why not? click here to register. It's free and only takes 37 seconds! Doing work around the home? Wander over to our sister site, Renovate Forum, for all your renovation queries.

  7. #6
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    Yellow shellac huh!! So what's the family joke then.

    Nice bats by the way.
    anne-maria.
    T
    ea Lady

    (White with none)
    Follow my little workshop/gallery on facebook. things of clay and wood.

  8. #7
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    Midge that brings back a lot of good memories for me. In the early eighties, my uncle (Dad's youngest brother) from Croatia came here to work with my father for while. He was pretty generous and would buy me anything I wanted.

    Anyway, my uncle and I agreed that he would buy me the cricket bat I wanted from K-mart. We all went to the shopping centre and I picked out the bat of my dreams, a Gray Nicholls. My mother (who was so concerned about my uncle's finances) promptly put an end to the purchase. At $130 it went back on the shelf. Cricket was not an sport understood by many Europeans. My parents were no exception.

    When we got back home, my uncle made me a bat from Oregon and promptly painted it Mission Brown. It was the best bat for tennis ball cricket I have ever had. It was just the right weight, remembering I was only 10 years old at the time, and my bat of choice for most games of backyard cricket at my cousin's house.

    Now I don't want you to get the wrong impression about my mum, as she has spent more on my sporting pursuits than I could have hoped for. And yes, that included a few cricket bats as well. When I think about it now, I realise just how expensive that bat was back then.

    Thanks for that Midge.

  9. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by tea lady View Post
    Yellow shellac huh!! So what's the family joke then. :
    Changed my mind! (so now I don't have to explain that my old man was frugal to say the least, and had a thousand year supply of old shellac that had gone off, so every thing he made was yellow for years, till he ran out, then he used the varnish he must have bought at the same time!)

    Anyway, here they are, a bit of electrical tape to brighten up the handles, twine binding has been soaked with Hard Shellac, and the bats have two coats of sanding sealer.

    As originally planned I'll wax them after carving the initials of the recipents in the backs.

    The Daggy pine actually looks better in real life for some reason, but I couldn't be bothered tweaking the photos!

    Cheers,

    P

  10. #9
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    Te he he! They look great. Will have to some one for a few little boys that I know.
    anne-maria.
    T
    ea Lady

    (White with none)
    Follow my little workshop/gallery on facebook. things of clay and wood.

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