Topic: DIY blade modification and weight reduction (Read 4215 times)

WalkingWicket37 · « **on:** February 17, 2019, 03:35:32 PM »

Hi all

Some of you may remember by Sports Direct GM thread from a couple of winters ago.

http://custombats.co.uk/cbforum/index.php?topic=43034.0

I haven't used the bats all that much since stripping them down, and the butterfly bat was rather heavy coming in at just under 2lb14.

As I was unlikely to use it anyway, due to the weight I decided to have a practice with some of my bat shaping tools.
As SB, LH blades are in fashion at the moment I also decided I'd cut a bit off of the shoulders.

Pictures of my efforts and progress to follow.

WalkingWicket37 · « **Reply #1 on:** February 17, 2019, 03:48:02 PM »

I started off by removing the twine from the handle and marking a rough shape I wanted for the shoulders

I then hacked them off by hand with a saw (something I would do differently in hindsight).

I also added some more concaving to the back to hopefully get the weight down to something more user friendly

WalkingWicket37 · « **Reply #2 on:** February 17, 2019, 03:48:24 PM »

So far it looks almost promising. Now for the not so good!

The shoulders currently look like they were shaped by Stevie Wonder

And from the slight nicks in the back, and strips of willow that were ripped out rather than cut I think my tools need sharpening

(not sure the pictures do the state of the back justice)

WalkingWicket37 · « **Reply #3 on:** February 17, 2019, 03:55:36 PM »

And this is how I've left the bat for now

I need to tidy up the shoulders so they're even, and get at the back with some rough sandpaper to get it smooth again.

Once smooth I'll go through the grades of paper so the bat has a nice finish and apply a coat of oil.
I'll also have to re-bind the handle, then apply a grip and a new scuff sheet.

So far I've enjoyed hacking away with my tools, but I'll be the first to say I've not done a great job.

I'm looking forward to next weekend now when I can hopefully finish this off. I'm also curious how much weight this will have removed

Northern monkey · « **Reply #4 on:** February 17, 2019, 04:53:38 PM »

Cam, looking at them shoulders, if your still struggling, take em off altogether
Like that oar paddle thing I did.
It�ll lose a little weight, and might stop you stressing about squaring them shoulders up

Other than that, enjoy the process, the more you play with your tools, the easier it gets!

JK Lewis · « **Reply #5 on:** February 17, 2019, 08:05:55 PM »

I find that the shoulders can be neatened up quite easily with a sharp drawknife. If you clamp the bat into your bench vice at a comfortable height, then you can shave off the shoulder area nicely. Best of luck with it anyway!

WalkingWicket37 · « **Reply #6 on:** February 23, 2019, 05:37:36 PM »

Quick update on this little project I've got.

I've tidied the shoulders up a bit but they're still crap!
My mistake was I used a hand saw and butchered them. I should have used a jigsaw with more control.
Oh well, you live and learn, and it's only going to be used to hit hard balls anyway, it's not all that important!

I've added 2 strips of medical tape to the front and back of the handle to get a nice oval shape, then applied a layer of binding

And an overview of how far I've got with this.
I've finished the basic shaping of the shoulders, taken a bit of weight out the back and tidied up with some rough sandpaper.

Before binding I sanded all over with 12o and 240 grit on the orbital, then applied a light coat of linseed oil all over.

There are a couple of small nicks in the back still, but nothing noteworthy.
To finish this off I'll need to hand sand all over with some finer grades of paper (240, 320 and 400) which will remove the imperfections in the back and give a reasonable finish.
Lastly I'll need to apply a new scuff sheet and 1.5 grips, before weighing to see how much weight I've taken out.

Once finished I may put some stickers on to hide the knots in the back and edge, or I may just abuse it in the nets. I'm undecided on this

JK Lewis · « **Reply #7 on:** February 23, 2019, 07:10:20 PM »

Great effort mate! Looking much smarter now. Get in the nets!

WalkingWicket37 · « **Reply #8 on:** February 24, 2019, 04:05:36 PM »

So i said the shoulders didn't bother me, but guess what...
They did!

As such I did what i should have done in the first place, and got the jigsaw out.

Fist off I marked out the shape I wanted to cut

Then I got the workmate out and cut the shoulders off.
They're now neater and a lot closer to level (I think there may be around 1mm difference between the two sides, but it was done by hand!)

I re-bound the handle and applied 1 and a half chevron grips just to get a rough idea of the weight.

Not quite finished but almost there.
I still need to give it a hand sand all over, apply a final lick of oil and a scuff sheet to apply and it'll be ready for use.

I have to say, for a �40 sports direct painted job this bat has more than paid for itself in the hours of entertainment it's provided me with!

WalkingWicket37 · « **Reply #9 on:** February 24, 2019, 07:30:50 PM »

I forgot to say in my last update how much I'd actually taken off the shoulder.

To keep the theme going with the two Sports Direct bats, here it is next to the other one which is still "normal" short handle length

InternalTraining · « **Reply #10 on:** February 24, 2019, 07:42:38 PM »

^ Looks very nice!

What is the weight difference after lowering the shoulders?

WalkingWicket37 · « **Reply #11 on:** February 24, 2019, 08:04:43 PM »

It started off 2lb13 & 7/8 with a toe guard, scuff sheet and 1.5 grips.

When I weighed it today having just added new binding and 1.5 grips its now 2b11 & 1/4

I still need to finish sanding it and add apply a scuff sheet, and I've removed the toe guard but it's 2 & 5/8 of an ounce lighter now than when I started

InternalTraining · « **Reply #12 on:** February 24, 2019, 08:35:31 PM »

net-net what do you think the shoulders weighed?

I have an Amplus that weighs 2-13.4, beautiful bat but very heavy for regular use. I am think about reducing the weight by lowering the shoulders. The reduction ought to lower the balance point as well, I think.

dt-second-hand-cricket · « **Reply #13 on:** February 24, 2019, 09:02:58 PM »

excellent job @WalkingWicket37 !!!!

was it easy with the jigsaw to take off the shoulders? i ask because i have done it a couple of times and struggled to get as clean a cut as you did - any tips gratefully received!!!

i took the shoulders off of a bat before and the two pieces weighed about 4-5 grams each - they were about double the size of the bits marked for taking off on the GM

WalkingWicket37 · « **Reply #14 on:** February 24, 2019, 10:18:16 PM »

Quote from: InternalTraining on February 24, 2019, 08:35:31 PM

net-net what do you think the shoulders weighed?

Hard to say really as I added some concaving as well.
Maybe 1 to 1.5 ounces, but that's pure guesswork

Quote from: dt-second-hand-cricket on February 24, 2019, 09:02:58 PM

was it easy with the jigsaw to take off the shoulders? i ask because i have done it a couple of times and struggled to get as clean a cut as you did - any tips gratefully received!!!

The jigsaw was very easy, I wish I'd done it that way first time round. You live and learn though, eh?

The main tip I'd have is what @Northern monkey told me. Make sure you mark up and know exactly what you're doing to the shoulders before cutting. Cut the curve in first and tidy up with the drawknife after (if only I'd asked him before I started!)

Author Topic: DIY blade modification and weight reduction (Read 4215 times)

WalkingWicket37

DIY blade modification and weight reduction

WalkingWicket37

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WalkingWicket37

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WalkingWicket37

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Northern monkey

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JK Lewis

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JK Lewis

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WalkingWicket37

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InternalTraining

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WalkingWicket37

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InternalTraining

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dt-second-hand-cricket

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WalkingWicket37

Re: DIY blade modification and weight reduction