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Thread: Best way to rip a baseball bat in half

  1. #16
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    I would cut it on a bandsaw and than take a couple shallow passes on the jointer to flatten it up.

  2. #17
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    Turn the bat from a glueup

    glue two pieces of the wood you want the bat made from using the paper between the pieces. Turn the bat on the lathe and then split the pieces. furniture makers use this technique.

  3. #18
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    Hello Matt,
    Hey - any suggestions on the best way to rip a wood baseball bat in 1/2?
    I gotta cut 4 of them
    Regardless of the method you use (I used a bandsaw on something similar), you don't want to cut the bat exactly in half.
    You want to cut it maybe 60/40.
    One part - the 60 - is the presentation piece and the other - the 40 - is scrap.

    You know those maple and/or oak rails they sell at the borg for decoration? I got the bright idea of cutting one in half and mounting it as a decorative edge.
    It didn't turn out all that well.
    After the fact, I looked at some furniture pieces with faux legs mounted flush on a flat piece, and discovered my mistake.
    My granddad always said, :As one door closes, another opens".
    Wonderful man, terrible cabinet maker...

  4. #19
    Rich - Thanks for the advice. I didn't want to waste 1/2 a bat, but I like your idea and my client can get as many bats as he needs

  5. #20
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    45* slot in a blank large enough to support the bat. The fact that the bussiness end is large than the handle will not matter on this plane. Hot glue him in a few spots along the length and bandsaw him.
    "A hen is only an egg's way of making another egg".


    – Samuel Butler

  6. #21
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    I believe I received something from this company a short while ago that said they sold 1/2 baseball bats. I looked on their site, but didn't see anything listed. It would be worth an email as I'm almost positive it was these guys. www.gonebatty.net It would be the easiest and if I remember the cost was pretty good. If not, maybe they can do something for you reasonable as they are a bat/bat billet company. Good luck.

  7. #22
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    Quote Originally Posted by Matt Ocel View Post

    Oh by the way working on uploading pictures of church pews that have to be mitered together
    Hows that going? Photo buckets way faster than SMC if that's where / what your waiting for it / to load them.

  8. #23
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    Quote Originally Posted by Rich Engelhardt View Post
    Hello Matt,

    Regardless of the method you use (I used a bandsaw on something similar), you don't want to cut the bat exactly in half.
    You want to cut it maybe 60/40.
    One part - the 60 - is the presentation piece and the other - the 40 - is scrap.
    I think this is a great idea. The peice would look better on the wall that way allowing the shape of the bat to stand out.

    You could also joint it down to size.
    One good turn deserves another

  9. #24
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    I've been looking for cut baseball bats for some time now. Just found a source on Ebay.
    Last edited by Chris Padilla; 03-21-2013 at 11:50 AM. Reason: eBay links violate the TOS
    [/SIGPIC] Epilog Mini 24 - 45 watt, 3 Melco Amaya's with DesignShop, Roland PC-600 Printer/Plotter, Roland Camm-1 and 1050 plotter and a 6 color 4 station screen printing press. CorelDraw X3,X4 and X5 plus PhotoGrav 3.0

  10. #25
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    Quote Originally Posted by Charlie Plesums View Post
    I would use a table saw with blade at 45 degrees to cut a V groove in a block of wood like a 2x4, then set the bat in the groove and bandsaw away. You could tack a scrap of plywood on the bottom to reuse the jig (especially if you have lots of long narrow scraps of plywood like I do.)
    I'm thinking the key is to build a jig that will "clamp" the bat still, with the jig having a flat side to run on the saw's table.

    Like Charles, I'd use the V-groove technique except I'd use a 2x6 or 2x8 and I'd make 2 of them.

    I'd lay the bat on top of one and place the second atop the bat.

    I'd then screw a few wood screws on each side, placed near the outer edges of the 2x. If you pre-drill the hole through the top board a little bit larger than the screw, it'll slide right through and when you screw it into the bottom 2x, it'll tighten the clamp. I'd end up with something an inch or two thicker than the diameter of the bat (5"-6").

    I would then cut this with a bandsaw, with its ability to make a deep cut. I'd use my BS fence (aligned to compensate for blade wander).

    Just another approach.
    One can never have too many planes and chisels... or so I'm learning!!

  11. #26
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mike Heidrick View Post
    I would cut it on a bandsaw and than take a couple shallow passes on the jointer to flatten it up.
    I've done several just like Mike suggests. Free hand rip on the bandsaw and a pass or two on the jointer and BAM! Next project! I used Shaker Pegs to make hat racks. They are very popular. The bats I used I had picked up at garage / estate sales, and I chose ones with names of baseball legends.

    Todd

  12. #27
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    I've never done this but I did sleep at a Holiday Inn once..... Take a piece of scrap lumber with straight edges. Use a hot melt glue gun and glue the bat to the wood and the saw the bat on a band saw, An L shaped sled would work even better. Once the bat is sawed in half you can remove the hot melt glue.
    Lee Schierer
    USNA '71
    Go Navy!

    My advice, comments and suggestions are free, but it costs money to run the site. If you found something of value here please give a little something back by becoming a contributor! Please Contribute

  13. #28
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    So how would you cut a baseball in half?
    Wood: a fickle medium....

    Did you know SMC is user supported? Please help.

  14. #29
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    - After I ask a stranger if I can pet their dog and they say yes, I like to respond, "I'll keep that in mind" and walk off
    - It's above my pay grade. Mongo only pawn in game of life.

  15. #30
    You don't have to screw into the bat or glue it, although those methods will work too. I would cut a V notched piece of wood the length of the bat, the deeper the notch the easier it will be to keep true, you will waste this notched wood in the process so use something cheap. I would make sure the board has flat, parallel sides before cutting the notch as this will make it easier to keep things lined up while cutting.

    Mark a line down the center line of the bat, rip it on the bandsaw by eye, eating the line down the middle. Don't use the fence unless you're really confident in your blade/setup/machine, in which case you can use it and don't have to mark the bat. Clean up the band sawn sides on the jointer or carefully with a belt sander if you don't have a jointer or are worried about chipout on the end.

    I think that if you do it this way carefully you can lose 1/8" or less total on the bat, but you will lose some no matter what so you should do the 60/40 recommendation if that loss of perceived width will look wrong in your final application. If using the 60/40 line as a cut, my method would be harder to do since the blade will tend to want to wander more due to cutting into the bat at a side angle and not going through the center of the V-notch.

    hope this helps,
    Andy

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