Wood Bat

-Spend at least $60 (quality)

-Get one that feels good to him when he swings it (confidence)

-Consider getting one that feels similar in balance, weight and size of barrel to whatever metal bat he is going to use (familiarity, consistency)

-ash will feel softer than maple (matter of preference)

-if he likes skinny handles, expect to go through more bats

-consider some composite version (durability) although if you don't mind going through a few bats, all-wood will have more feel

We have been using wood bats for years, even when he could use metal. We recently got a LS maple (says Hard Maple on the barrel.) 40$ bat and he loves it. We also use a lot of the Pro Stock ash.

cabbagedad is spot on. Go to the store and swing them. The choices will be limited, but you can get a good idea and adjust from there. There are some good threads on the net with discussions of characteristics of individual models. A lot of information.

Also cold weather is a wood bat killer.

We usually get ours from cheapbats

As a coach I agree 100% with go to the store and swing it. You can get 2 different bats that are the same length and weight but do to balance, handle, knob size they can feel completely different. I work with a JC program during the summer time and they use wood. There was one particular player who had a 29 oz bat and it felt well over 31. I had a woody that was the same size and felt under 29 oz. I gave him that bat to use and he was able to start hitting.

Obviously not sure about finances so I will also throw this one out there. There are some companies who will sell unfinished blemished bats. These bats are blemished for a few reasons. Log screwed up, a little to heavy/light long/short...i.e. 29 oz bat and when it was weighed it came out 28 oz. I have had players buy these bats that could not afford to spend $$$ on wooden bats. All you need to do is lightly sand and spray with lacquer and they worked great.

"It ain't the arrow, it's the Indian"- Ted Williams

It's not the bat, it's the guy holding it. There is one pattern that works in wood bat MLB. Of course, a good bat can help. I prefer Black Hills Bat Company's Nellie Fox model (34.5 in, 36 oz). It's listed as being 35 inches, but it isn't. Now that's a bat! Nice and thick handle. When you can hear the woosh start behind you with that, it's really impressive.

Louisville Slugger isn't bad either. I prefer ash because I can't find bats made of hickory...

So we went out yesterday afternoon and swung quite a few bats. All different sizes, makes and models. He ended up selecting a 32 inch, Mizuno MZM110 (Maple). I couldn't believe how hard it was to find a bat that was weighted properly. We put several bats through the swing test and had all of them weighed. Most of the 32's we swung were 26-27 ounces and a few were 25 (these were all adult bats, not youth). It took a while to finally find a 32 inch, 29.3 ounce bat that he liked.

We took it to the batting cage after bringing it home a taping it up. Had a great time and had some really nice hits off of it.

Don't forget to bone it.

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/bl...ne-i?urn=mlb-wp18962

Got to rub the hits into it...

NDD thanks for the clarification.

No problem. Glad you find one he likes. But keep experimenting. There's always one better. LOL.

Oh, and keep a spare handy.

Don't forget to bury the bone when you're done with it in about 20 years...

Bats and Billets, has some of the best bats I have ever seen. A large selection and very good prices.
http://www.batsandbillets.com/..._page=index&cPath=66

As a mater of fact, don't let the price fool you. These are very high quality bats. My kid and most the players on his team love the Large Flared Knob bat.

I think the Legend Model maybe "Unbreakable".

I too was skeptical at first. I ordered the C271 just to see. I have since ordered at least 30 for other players (they did not have a credit card), plus a few more for my son. I will probably never buy a wood bat from any where else. Well maybe from FONZA bats or Bear Vally Bats but that is about it.

Baum bats Just don't break and they are bbcor.50 leagal in 2012
I own Northwest Independent Baseball League (nwibl.org) a wood bat summer league in Portland OR and also Wood Bats 4 Sale (woodbats4sale.com) over 80 players on 17 teams use Baum Bats BBCOR.50, next is demarini composite wood, then Mizuno wood composite (which seem to be replaced the most) Baum bats have out hit for average and power with those who use them and none have broke during the three years the league has been in play. woodbats4sale.com sales them for $177 plus usps priority mail shipping anywhere in the USA

quote:

Originally posted by bballdad2016:
So we went out yesterday afternoon and swung quite a few bats. All different sizes, makes and models. He ended up selecting a 32 inch, Mizuno MZM110 (Maple). I couldn't believe how hard it was to find a bat that was weighted properly. We put several bats through the swing test and had all of them weighed. Most of the 32's we swung were 26-27 ounces and a few were 25 (these were all adult bats, not youth). It took a while to finally find a 32 inch, 29.3 ounce bat that he liked.

We took it to the batting cage after bringing it home a taping it up. Had a great time and had some really nice hits off of it.

Well that lasted 3 and a half months. He was screwing around in the cage and trying to switch hit... got sawed off and "SNAP", thats all folks. LOL. Why is it kids think it is soooo cool to break their bat. They hear that "dead thud" and think it is cool, i hear that "dead thud" and hear CHA-CHING ... dang it. Ironically the National Baseball Expo is this weekend, so i guess we have a reason to actually go now. Maybe we will find a new bat at a decent price.

Dad,
We've been using a Baum for a couple of months now. It was well worth the investment.

I bought a bunch of wood bats this past Christmas...this company (link) is the same people who make Viper and SplitRock branded bats...the unbranded, natural finish bats (that is to say, no brand-name and no paint or lacquer) are the same quality as the branded versions as far as I can tell and they come in all of the models and sizes...but, at about half the usual price:

http://www.woodbillets.com/products.asp?cat=16

Ash is cheapest at $28, and they offer birch and maple as well, for a few more bucks. Shipping cost to the SF Bay Area was slightly less than $30 for a dozen 34" bats, 6 birch and 6 maple. This can really make wood a reasonable option.

NDD & laflippin,

Thanks for the recommendations. We went out and found a new bat today. Nothing earth shattering, especially because i know there will be more broken bats to come, and he rarely uses it in games. When the wood becomes his bat of choice, i will probably invest in a Baum, or something similar. For the link that la provided, i will bookmark that and keep it in mind for the future.

Side note - Naturally he had to hit the new bat. It sounds like it has a much louder pop than the mizuno? Could that be due to the paint on the mizuno compared to the natural finish of his new bat (rawlings). Also, the natural finished rawlings is ash, the mizuno was maple and completely painted. Just wondering...They sound completely different!

quote:

bballdad2016

Hey bball, the finishing should not have anything to do with the sound of the bat. It's probably the species of wood. Density and stiffness also are playing a factor.

In reply to the wood billets site. That is most likely their **** wood that they are selling under a different site. I recommend checking out www.annexbaseball.com for your wood bats. About average price and free shipping.

Low Finish...That a heavy bat!

Triple Threat,

I recommended to folks here to check out the wood billets site precisely because I personally bought a half dozen birch and a half dozen maple from them this past Christmas--the wood is very good, judging by straightness of grain along the long axis of the bat and the fact that they are perfectly sanded down and unblemished.

As I said, I ordered all 34" and my son and I actually measured every one of them--they are all exactly 34", to within less than 1/4" tolerance. That is much better sizing than you will get from some branded-bat makers. Believe it or not, but some branded 34's I've seen vary by more than 1/2".

I've bought branded wood from SplitRock (good maple bat maker) and a couple other co.'s (from very good to not-so-good) in the past--in my experience, the unfinished bats at woodbillets.com are a very good bargain...about 1/2 the price you would need to pay for the same exact wood with somebody's brand and a nice lacquer job on it.

I'm not going to trash your recommendation without thinking about it or checking into it...but your off-the-cuff dismissal of the bats from the woodbillets site is quite unwarranted and naive.

If you were to call the Viper Bat folks personally and talk for awhile about the wood they sell, you might very well change your mind.

On the other hand, if you actually had some past experience with their unbranded line, then you could even speak with authority about it.

quote:

Originally posted by bballdad2016:

quote:

Originally posted by bballdad2016:
So we went out yesterday afternoon and swung quite a few bats. All different sizes, makes and models. He ended up selecting a 32 inch, Mizuno MZM110 (Maple). I couldn't believe how hard it was to find a bat that was weighted properly. We put several bats through the swing test and had all of them weighed. Most of the 32's we swung were 26-27 ounces and a few were 25 (these were all adult bats, not youth). It took a while to finally find a 32 inch, 29.3 ounce bat that he liked.

We took it to the batting cage after bringing it home a taping it up. Had a great time and had some really nice hits off of it.

Well that lasted 3 and a half months. He was screwing around in the cage and trying to switch hit... got sawed off and "SNAP", thats all folks. LOL. Why is it kids think it is soooo cool to break their bat. They hear that "dead thud" and think it is cool, i hear that "dead thud" and hear CHA-CHING ... dang it. Ironically the National Baseball Expo is this weekend, so i guess we have a reason to actually go now. Maybe we will find a new bat at a decent price.

I've heard you can duct tape the bottom half of a wood bat used for practice to make it last longer. I've personally taped two wooden bats.

My son uses a Demarin DX243. Thing is almost bulletproof and he likes the end weighting. It has worked well as a cage/practice bat. We bought it relatively cheap on e-bay (70 bucks) and he has used it A LOT. It isn't exactly pretty anymore but it is perfect for what he needs it for.

bats & Billets offer bats similar to the site laflippin suggested, plus you caan get them personalized for $1 a line. they offer marked model comparisons to thier bats ....gonna try them when we snap off the bats we already have

I may buy a bat for my son and get it personalized.

My favorite one liner on the bat would either be:
1) Rosebud
2) Wonderboy

You should try one of our HICKORY bats that are far and away better that maple or ash. We have high school teams using them this year instead of BBCOR. for info, email me at scbats5@yahoo.com

Aren't properly weighted hickory billets harder to come by? Why would it be better than maple or ash? I suppose with the density of Hickory they would be just as good as a Maple, but Maple seems to be easier to come by.