Wood Bat Repair--Gorilla Glue

[TallPaul]

My bat cracked (I believe it's ash) on the back of the handle (back relative to hitting) and it was not on an inside pitch. The crack is in an area that a previous owner had apparently torched or something because it is stained a darker color. Anyway, I figure it must be a compression fracture, that is the wood pushed together so much that it had to crack and the surface layer popped up a little (maybe 1/16").

The bat would not bend and was by no means cracked through. So I pulled the loose pieces out (maybe 3/4" long each) wedged the cracked area with a small screwdriver and put Gorilla glue all around the cracks then worked it in with a needle. Then I re-inserted the two pieces, that had lifted when it cracked, and clamped it tightly. When I removed the clamp and trimmed off the excess glue, the bat looked great. The area where the clamp was was slightly indented, and that seems a bonus as it will be tighter and stronger against future compression forces.

I taped it tightly with bat tape and took it to the batting cage. Hit maybe a dozen 45 mph of those funky dimpled balls then one good 70 mph hit off a regular baseball that smacked so good that my hand was buzzing for a couple minutes after. Pulled the tape and no visible re-cracking. So I am thinking that this bat is still good. Anyway, my kids don't want me to use it unless I re-tape it. They think I will kill someone unless it's taped so that if it breaks the pieces won't fly.

What do you all think? I'd like to keep using this bat, but maybe should just keep it for batting cages. I only paid $3 for it from Play-It-Again Sports and it was really hacked at that point. I had to power sand it and fill some dents. Nice feel though, 34 inch and about 33 oz.

[bats22]

I wouldn't trust it if it had a real crack. I don't think glue is a real comparison to the natural strength of a tree.

Let us know how it goes though...

[TallPaul]

Worse now. Part of the grain separated from the handle side of the trademark about halfway to the end of the barrel. If it went all the way it would take off about 1/3 the diameter of the barrel. So I was getting vibrations but still some good hits as it is solid otherwise (i.e., not cracked crosswise where it could break). I could not get that crack to expand, even stepping on the propped up bat, so I opened the crack with a big screwdriver to pry and filled it with the Gorilla Glue. Looks great now. Going to the batting cages with it and see how it hits. I would think that the right glue, and this might not be the right glue (?), would be as strong, if not stronger, than the original wood.

[tanel360]

i tried gorilla glue on a few bats. as soon as i didn't make solid contact, the glued area cracked again.

my own experience with cracked bats is that if it's not too bad, you can still use them for practice. solid contact will result in good results. not so solid contact & it make the crack worse and/or destroys what's left of the bat.

also, with a crack that isn't too bad, i've taped the cracked area and used it for practice with pretty good success.

in your case, i'd tape over the repaired cracked area as a matter of prolonging its use and safety.

[TallPaul]

Well a couple good smacks in the batting cage on the 60 mph machine and the bat was history.

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[Batman53]

Do not use gorilla glue to repair a bat. Gorilla Glue is a polyurethane glue that requires moisture to cure. It also does not have the strength or shock resistance that bats are subjected to. You would be better off with a regular alphatic resin wood glue like Titebond II. Better yet would be a 2 part epoxy made for wood. Believe me, I know as I manufacture laminated all wood bats. Check them out at www.MacDougallBats.com (http://www.macdougallbats.com);)

[tradosaurus]

To make a wooden bat (used for practice) last longer tape it with duct tape when new.

From http://baseballtips.com/woodspeed.html

"To ensure that the wood bats would last, all the bats were taped with duct tape from the handle to about 12 inches from the end of the barrel. The duct tape was covered with athletic tape to reinforce the bats. With constant use, including preseason indoor practices by 16 position players, most of the bats lasted through the season. The bats still cracked while the hitters were learning the proper way to swing the bat. Additional duct and athletic tape was applied until the bat handle broke off. At the end of the indoor practice, six of the original 12 bats survived the pounding of thousands of swings and are ready for next season. The cost of this experiment was approximately $20 per wood bat for a total of $240.00."

[KaganH]

Hopefully this helps others who wander into this forum looking for bat repair tips.

To repair a cracked bat:

Carefully separate the pieces with a knife or similar instrument and drip high quality wood glue into the wound. Quality in this case is NOT strength of bond, but rather a glue specifically made to fill the pores of wood. It should also have some flexibility. Monster glue, super glue, and the like will NOT work.

Clamp the bat at multiple points all along the crack and let it set overnight. Once the glue sets, it will feel solid again, but there is more work to do.

Find some fiberglass cloth or tape at your local hardware store. Use the kind that requires a resin to set. Follow the directions for preparing the cloth. Sand the bat down all along the length of the crack at a depth roughly equal the thickness of the cloth. Sand all the way around the bat. Cut the fiberglass cloth into tape like strips, prepare with the resin and wrap around the prepped portion of the bat. Wrap as tightly as you can. Let it set, then sand down to smooth out. You may paint the bat at this point.

For added strength, you may also spin nylon string (heavy fishing line) around the crack. Use a tight, secure knot at both ends. You may also coat with polyurethane to keep the line from unwinding with use.

This is the only true repair you can do to a bat and still use it competitively. It should also be completely legal in most all wood bat leagues as no metal is used, and the bat remains a single piece of wood.

The fiberglass and nylon string method may also be used on good bats to extend its life and guard against cracks. Unlike ordinary tape, fiberglass is much more rigid and acts as a cast around weak points of the wood, preventing splitting due to vibration.

Hope this helps someone.