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[TheBiologist]

Hello all,

I am getting a bat from Red Ink soon and needed some advice on bat knocking in. I have never properly knocked in a cricket bat before and hence the Red Ink will be my first. I considered getting it knocked in at Red Ink itself but finding myself short of cash and hence thinking of doing it myself.

I saw Paul's video ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZkIV6jz8h4 ) on bat knocking in and mallet selection. He says that the GN deluxe mallet is the best in business but I could not find it in any of the online stores in the US. But I saw this Slazenger pro bat care kit with a mallet and bat oil (not sure if its linseed) ( http://www.cricketstoreonline.com/accessories/slazenger-pro-bat-care-kit/ )as available on cricketstoreonline. How does this compare to the GN deluxe mallet ? Any experience and advice for me ? :-)

I also happen to have a Kashmir willow which is a dud. A lot of vibration on hitting a ball, tiny sweet spot and very poor rebound. I have never knocked it in and never used it for practice or match. Should I practice some knocking in on this useless piece of willow before I try it on the Red Ink ? I really don't want to destroy the Red Ink with my inexperience as I won't be able to afford another bat for at least a year.

Thanks,

TheBiologist

[Chad]

Hi bud, has John from Red Ink shipped the bat out yet?

[Chad]

Oh, and that mallet is quite annoying to use IMO. I use the deluxe mallet, because the handle is a good short size, so you have much more control over the knocking in since the weight is closer to your hand.

The great thing about that mallet is that it doubles up as a grip cone, downside is that the head can often start to unscrew while knocking. Isn't dangerous or anything like that, as it takes a lot of turns to screw off the head, so you'd have to be knocking it in quite a funky way for the head to come loose! Another problem is that it can be quite tiring to knock in with that mallet, simply because of the longer handle! Also, the metal part on the bottom can cause dents in bats or wooden flooring! The grip cone functionality is pretty useful though, since the part you put at the top of the handle actually fits round the top of the handle nicely, so won't slip off during grip application.

All in all, it doesn't work amazingly well for a mallet IMO, but the grip cone feature is pretty handy! I would avoid it though, look for a different one.

[procricket]

http://www.prodirectcricket.com/Products/Puma-Bat-Mallet-Dark-Wood-Cricket-Bat-Accessories-4240.aspx

This is a half decent mallet mate.

Round the edges off so when you look down the bat you can see there rounded take car with the edge down near the toe gently tap around that area.

For the toe gently start to tap around and increase as you go along.

My theory with this mallet then is work up and down in straight lines till you can feel and sound knocked in but then have some throw downs or hit a few balls it the off centre ones you will be able to tell.

I have a Another  technique but this one involves something slightly different and can damage bats if not done correctly so if your a beginner just take it easy.

Too many people do not knock bats in correctly and blame bats for being poor yet don't knock them in as I have said I class a bat fully ready after quite a period.

[toenails97]

If John from red ink hasn't shipped the bat out yet, give him the money to buy you a gray nicolls deluxe one from IJC and he could include it in with the bat - he's a nice bloke so I'm sure he'd do this

[tejasapatel]

I couldn't find the same mallet but spartan short handle is exact replica or the GN Deluxe. I ordered the GN deluxe from cricmax.com here in US but they called me and emailed me some pics of spartan as they were out of GN.  Here is a pic of the spartan mallet I have.

[The Palmist]

I wanted to buy a mallet too but can't figure out the difference between delux and other lookalikes. The sportsdirect mallet/cone got a long handle so while it is difficult to aim but you can generate a lot of power due to handle being longer.

[i12breakfree]

2014 SS mallets are also like the deluxe ones
They are heavy duty with longer handle

[kal_m]

Hello all,

I am getting a bat from Red Ink soon and needed some advice on bat knocking in. I have never properly knocked in a cricket bat before and hence the Red Ink will be my first. I considered getting it knocked in at Red Ink itself but finding myself short of cash and hence thinking of doing it myself.

I saw Paul's video ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZkIV6jz8h4 ) on bat knocking in and mallet selection. He says that the GN deluxe mallet is the best in business but I could not find it in any of the online stores in the US. But I saw this Slazenger pro bat care kit with a mallet and bat oil (not sure if its linseed) ( http://www.cricketstoreonline.com/accessories/slazenger-pro-bat-care-kit/ )as available on cricketstoreonline. How does this compare to the GN deluxe mallet ? Any experience and advice for me ? :-)

I also happen to have a Kashmir willow which is a dud. A lot of vibration on hitting a ball, tiny sweet spot and very poor rebound. I have never knocked it in and never used it for practice or match. Should I practice some knocking in on this useless piece of willow before I try it on the Red Ink ? I really don't want to destroy the Red Ink with my inexperience as I won't be able to afford another bat for at least a year.

Thanks,

TheBiologist

Hey,
You can get it knocked in by Don Milroy (I think he plays for SriLankan in WCL).He charges $25 and does a good job.

[Vitas Cricket]

Red Ink offer a knocking in service ( and they use a VERY good company to do the knocking in )

I am sure for just a little more than you will end up paying for a mallet, you can get the bat knocked in before it is shipped.

[TheBiologist]

Hi bud, has John from Red Ink shipped the bat out yet?

Thanks Chad! Nope, not yet. Placed the order only a few days back. Never had a custom before, so I am kinda getting excited. :-)

http://www.prodirectcricket.com/Products/Puma-Bat-Mallet-Dark-Wood-Cricket-Bat-Accessories-4240.aspx

This is a half decent mallet mate. Round the edges off so when you look down the bat you can see there rounded take car with the edge down near the toe gently tap around that area. For the toe gently start to tap around and increase as you go along. My theory with this mallet then is work up and down in straight lines till you can feel and sound knocked in but then have some throw downs or hit a few balls it the off centre ones you will be able to tell. I have a Another  technique but this one involves something slightly different and can damage bats if not done correctly so if your a beginner just take it easy. Too many people do not knock bats in correctly and blame bats for being poor yet don't knock them in as I have said I class a bat fully ready after quite a period.

Thanks Dave! I will check if this mallet is available in the US stores. One question for you though. How do you know when to stop knocking in a bat ? Lets say that you knock in a particular part of the  bat for way too long, then won't that part of the bat be compressed a lot and will be dead ?

If John from red ink hasn't shipped the bat out yet, give him the money to buy you a gray nicolls deluxe one from IJC and he could include it in with the bat - he's a nice bloke so I'm sure he'd do this

Good option, I might go for this option as long as it doesn't increase the shipping cost.

I couldn't find the same mallet but spartan short handle is exact replica or the GN Deluxe. I ordered the GN deluxe from cricmax.com here in US but they called me and emailed me some pics of spartan as they were out of GN.  Here is a pic of the spartan mallet I have.

This looks good. But I couldn't find it on their online store. Can I ask how much it cost you (with shipping) ?

Hey,
You can get it knocked in by Don Milroy (I think he plays for SriLankan in WCL).He charges $25 and does a good job.

Thanks Kal. Good option. Have you used his service or know anyone who has ?

Red Ink offer a knocking in service ( and they use a VERY good company to do the knocking in )

I am sure for just a little more than you will end up paying for a mallet, you can get the bat knocked in before it is shipped.

I considered this, but 25 pounds (42 dollars) is a bit expensive for me. Barely scrapped enough money for the bat. :-)

[tejasapatel]

The spartan mallet cost me around 15 USD

Edit - I didn't get it shipped as one of their locations is 20 mins from me and I sometimes go there for indoor nets.

[kal_m]

Thanks Kal. Good option. Have you used his service or know anyone who has ?

Yes, a couple of my teammates got their bats knocked in by Don. And they sounded awesome and ball really flew.

[TheBiologist]

Thanks Kal! Getting it knocked in by Milroy looks like the best and easiest option given that mallet+oil+shipping is going to be pretty close to 25 USD.

Let me know when you get your B3. :-)

[mini998]

Hate knocking in bats, specially because I'm worried disturbing our neighbours and mrs hates it as well.