To perform this, you need to have the following required materials. You need lumber that is about 4″ in diameter by 37″ long, a wood lathe, a bucking tool, a roughing gouge, a gouge spindle, sandpaper, measuring gauges, a wood burning tool, varnish and finishing wax. Getting started on a project to make a custom wood bat requires spending your time finding the fundamental woodturning tools needed to get the job done.

The manufacture of a baseball bat requires adherence to established industry standards that govern the production and subsequent use of the product. For example, the international softball baseball federation has established minimum requirements that any bat must meet. To start the whole process of turning a baseball bat, you need to have wood blanks that can be turned and still achieve a 3-inch diameter, especially on the barrel.

Having met this minimum requirement, you now need to place your piece of wood on the wood lathe and begin the process of obtaining a raw wood bat. Now it’s time to calibrate the bat blank at 4″ length intervals. You need to be careful in the woodturning process; have your face mask in place and where it’s needed where your shop gloves. Now you need to do your blank bat Carefully use the roughing gouge to make the bat round.

Turning, sanding and finishing

Here, your starting point should be the barrel. Keeping bat standards in mind, make sure your bat’s target diameter meets your diameter requirements. The parting off tool is useful to help you make this diameter cut. It is important to note that in order for you to figure out the diameter you want, you need to re-measure it with a caliper while turning. You can use the roughing gouge to excavate the surface until you achieve the required size of the bottom of the groove. Having done that, you need to measure and calibrate the handle of the bat. Use the roughing gouge to remove all unnecessary material from the handle. Be careful not to make the handle too thin or too large. Make sure you get the desired shank diameter.

The other important feature of this bat is the knob. To get the correct knob distance from the barrel of the bat, measure the length of the bat, as far as where you want the handle to reach. Then use a bias to mark this point as the starting point of the bat’s knob. Usually the diameter of the knob is about 2″. Here, you need to use a skew chisel to round off the knob.

Having done most of the work, now it’s time to make the bat more attractive. To do this, you need to use sandpaper to smooth it out. The cardinal rule in sanding is that when sanding you should start with 50 or 60 grit sandpaper, gradually working your way up to 220 grit or higher.

Apply the finish while the lathe is still running; use a damp rag so the finish stays on the bat and not on you. Here you can apply Vanish in two coats and then let the bat dry before removing it from the lathe. After drying, you need to separate the bat from the lathe. At both ends, make a visible mark or grove using a parting tool. Cut the tendons from both ends, and then wax the exposed areas after cutting the tendons. You now have your custom wood bat thanks to tools purchased through the http://www.yourwoodturningtools.com website.