Your Cricket Pre knocked in bats

[Punk_Sk8r]

i just play with my bats, stuff knocking them in it not like you really need to at my age anyway...

hahaah you tell em Wil!

Yeah I got some Ihsan bat from Pakistan its more curvey than Jessica Alba it was knocked in I think, I gave it a few minutes of knocking in befor I went to bat hasnt cracked or anything.

Wil's right theres not much need to knock in unless your facing Brett Lee or somting........If you did face him I doubt youd get much bat on ball anyway

 

[JamesyJames3]

Four hours at least needed on bats that are either ready-to-play or claim they are knocked in. Anyone that believes they are ready to use is an absolute mug.

I have a bat I have had since last Christmas that was "pre-knocked in". I have done around 5 hours on it so far. I am doing 8 hours before I use it.

 

[Almost_Austwick]

I used to work for County and we would always recommended the following:

For bats that have not been knocked in:

4-6 hours of knocking in with a bat mallet or old ball (place it in a sock)
Light coat of linseed oil (NOT the BOILED stuff), paying attention to the toe of the bat but avoiding the splice. However it is better to under oil than over!
1-4 hours of use in practice nets against old balls (40 overs old plus).

For pre-knocked in bats (remember that these bats have only been run through a press a few extra times)

1-2 hours knocking in with bat mallet or old ball (in a sock)
1-2 hours of use in a net against old balls (again 40 overs old plus).
Generally pre-knocked in bats will not require oiling as they will come with a toe guard and some kind of plastic cover on the face (oiling this will only cause it to come off).

If you do have a natural bat then I would recommend getting a cover fitted (should only cost around ?6-8 from most bat stockists) as it will help the life of the bat.

Care after that should be giving it a wipe down with a dry cloth after use (especially after playing in damp conditions) and storing it in a cool but dry place (not the boot of your car or next to the radiator). As a yearly thing you could always lightly sand a natural face bat (never sand one with a plastic face protector) and give it a fresh coat of oil but that's really personal choice.

This should ensure that you get the most life out of your bat but remember that it is a natural product and in its natural life it wouldn't normally have 5 1/2 ounces of cork and leather thrown at it at anything up to 90mph so cracks will and do occur.

Small cracks on the face of the bat are nothing to worry about but always pay closer attention to cracks on the toe or edge and keep them together with 1 or 2 inch fibre tape if needed.

 

[Chimp132]

i got a woodworm torch for christmas used it on friday in the nets and used it today in the nets, and i looked at the bat under the light just to check for cracks, and there wasnt any, then i just saw like seam marks tht looked like they were printed into the bat. i am going to hit it with a old cricket ball while i am playing ck2007. the ball comes off the bat excelent, just the seam marks are annoying me because you arnt suppost to get them

 

[rickyp]

every bat will get general wear and tear, like seam marks, you cant prevent those, you would need a far stronger wood/metal :P

 

[puddleduck]

Wil's right theres not much need to knock in unless your facing Brett Lee or somting........If you did face him I doubt youd get much bat on ball anyway

Just not true, well the second part of this sentence perhaps! My bat last year cracked against the slowest spinner you'll ever see of a thin leg glance.

As is also mentioned later on without knocking it in your bat will end up with nasty seam marks all over it. It may not crack the first time you use it, but you are massively reducing it's potential lifeline if you don't at the least follow some of the guidelines Austwick has posted.

 

[Simbazz]

I dont know why people dont like the knocking in process, its my favorite part of training. I must get to train at least 4-5 more hours in winter than in summer when the bats are nicely knocked in.

When i knock my bat in i use the old ball method, i dont have a "hammer" as my lil cousin calls it. Im lucky enough to have my cricket ground like 4 minutes walk away, with me being able to use both indoor and outdoor at any time, i just bring along my mate who couldnt do damage to glass with the speed he bowls at, and i just spend a good 4 hours a week for 4-5 weeks knocking it in

But i get a new bat near enough every year so i have a pile of 3-4 around the house, and i have given a few of my older ones to my cousin and my mate who started last season.

 

[Chimp132]

your lucky lol, if i had cricket practice places near me i would almost live there lol. So when its all knocked in proply, do u still get the seam marks like indentations on the bat ?

 

[puddleduck]

Nope not really Chimp. The point of knocking it in is to tighten up the wood and as such increase the power of the bat and it's strength and as such lastability.

 

[Chimp132]

ok, so it shouldnt get seam marks on it ? im going to play ck2007 tomurrow then in between overs i will nock it in all round the bat for 5mins thn rougly do 30mins a day, so i will want to be using it next friday, so 2hrs nd a half knocking in, is that long enough with a pre knocked in bat

 

[Almost_Austwick]

your lucky lol, if i had cricket practice places near me i would almost live there lol. So when its all knocked in proply, do u still get the seam marks like indentations on the bat ?

Yeah you will still get the odd seam mark from time to time.

The idea of knocking a bat in is too acheive a happy medium between a 'soft bat' and a 'hard bat'.

i.e in most of our cases we want to compress the wood of the bat enough so that we no longer see seam marks but so that it is still soft enough that the ball still comes off the bat at speed.

There is nothing wrong with the bat that still sees the odd seam mark but you may want to give the bat an hour or more knocking in to help life span.

I was once told that a truly knocked in bat no longer gather seam marks but over the year I know that it's down to personal choice and how much you bat.

Overall, the better the batsmen I am the softer the bat(i.e the less knocked in the bat) I'd want.

p.s i'm a little drunk but i think the abovemakes sense.

 

[puddleduck]

Overall, the better the batsmen I am the softer the bat(i.e the less knocked in the bat) I'd want.

That's a very good point, but not just because of ability. Someone like KP can afford to use bats that are not very knocked in because if one breaks Woodworm ship him another, however as a club cricketer you want your bat to ideally last because bat companies aren't exactly willing to send out a man with a selection every time one breaks

 

[Chimp132]

i would like this bat to last me a very long time, so i will knock it in for another hour because i dont really want seam marks

 

[Chimp132]

when you get cracks from hitting the ball right at the toe of the bat, whens the time to get it repaired, i have 2 little cracks (1 is about 2.5cms from the bottom and very thin, and the other one is about 1cm and thin from the bottom) and i have a seam marl right at the bottom near the cracks. when should i start to get worried/get a toe guard for the bat, it already has a yellow grip thing attached to the bottom of the bat, not sure why its there i dont know if i could fit a toe guard over it

 

[puddleduck]

No harm in getting a toe-guard anyway. Especially with the often damp conditions we get in England. Minor cracks aren't something to get too worried about, is it by any chance a kookaburra bat as they have a tendency to get a lot of surface cracks.