off topic bat question

Junker · #1 (**permalink**) Fri Sep 23, 2005, 02:48pm

I recently go ahold of a Nelson Fox model bat I used at my grandmother's to play when I was a kid. I'm guessing it's from the 50's or 60's I want to clean it up to put it on my fireplace. Does anyone have a trick to make it look decent. It was played with for years and has some old tape on the handle. I'm planning on using just good old soap and water, but I thought maybe someone here might have a better way of cleaning it up. Thanks.

bbump82 · #2 (**permalink**) Fri Sep 23, 2005, 04:33pm

Junker, there is an adhesive removal solution that is sold called "Goo Gone". I have used it on all kinds of stuff to remove gum, tar, glue, sticky labels, ...

It is made by the "Magic American Corp." out of Cleveland, Ohio (216-464-2353). You might want to give it a try, an 8 oz bottle generally runs $5-6.

DG · #3 (**permalink**) Fri Sep 23, 2005, 04:57pm

Why you want to clean it? It is what it is. Hang it and be proud of it.

Junker · #4 (**permalink**) Sat Sep 24, 2005, 01:07am

Thanks for the info. I'm pretty sure it's not broken or cracked anywhere. The only place that has a lot of tape is about 2 inches at the very end next to the knob. I'm not planning on sanding it or anything. I just want to get the reminants of the tape off. I thought it would look good sitting on top of my fireplace. As far as Nellie Fox, I recognize the name, but this was a bat my uncles used and Fox played before my time (I'm in my early 30's). I'm planning on doing a little research on him when I get a chance.

Junker · #5 (**permalink**) Sat Sep 24, 2005, 08:30am

It does help immensely. Thanks.

piaa_ump · #6 (**permalink**) Mon Sep 26, 2005, 10:04am

Just a few tips I have come up with in my efforts to preserve and restore wooden bats.....if the bat is in decent shape, I do not sand and restain...I prefer the oldtime patina that age has given the bat....I do clean the bat...

And to do that I tape over the identifying marks....trade mark, signitures etc.... with blue masking tape....and clean the bat with "soft scrub"....and a very soapy brillo pad...but gently.....you dont want to take off the finish, just the dirt......then remove the tape...it will protect the marks you want to keep.....

I have a "crackerjack" bat I found in a bucket at a yard sale....It was in horrible shape......so I sanded and refinished it.........now its the centerpiece of my bat display in my hallway at home......$.50 bat...$10 in finishing materials.......2 weekends of fun.......pretty cheap winter entertainment...

BretMan · #7 (**permalink**) Tue Sep 27, 2005, 01:45pm

Nice little off-topic thread...

I also collect old baseball equipment, but the majority of my collection is old gloves. Have about 300 dating from the early 1900's to present day.

I have a full-size Louisville Slugger "Nelson Fox" bat that feels like it weighs about 40 ounces! Picked it up at a flea market for a couple bucks.

I also have a "Crackerjack" bat. It isn't in the best of shape. There is a piece out of the knob, some grain separation and the wood is a faded gray color. The "Crackerjack" logo is in great shape and easily read. The logo seems to have a light bluish color (paint?).

A couple of questions for PIAA Ump:

Do you know if this coloring to the logo is original, or something that a previous owner might have added?

Even if a bat is faded gray, with no finish remaining, is sanding and re-finishing a good option? What kind of results could I expect?

Do you ever do anything to enhance logos that are faded? Can you add paint to these stampings, then sand over the "high spots" to get the logos looking more like new?

Here is a link for a guy I've dealt with before that does bat restoration. I've never had him do a bat for me, but both he and his son also restore and sell some great old gloves.

http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip...batrepair.html

piaa_ump · #8 (**permalink**) Tue Sep 27, 2005, 02:00pm

If you have a bat that has faded to grey and no original finish remains, by all means go ahead and sand it and refinish it.... I try and keep as much period look to a bat as possible...but if thats not possible I try and recreate it..

As far as trademarks and signatures are concerned, you can usually tell if they have been touched up. Most times someone has taken a "sharpie" and traced in the lines of the stamping...It will have a shine and a deep black finish that is illogical for the age of the bat...the trademark will stand out far more than it should.... It is a good tool to use if you have small flakes missing from letters or whole letter or two missing, but I dont reccomend using this method....just doesnt look period correct.

If I need to highlight a trademark or signatures, I do it with stain.....I sand the bat and apply a dark mahogany stain to the trademark and signature area, I immediately wipe off the excess leaving the stain in the recessed lines......let this dry completely and then finish the bat barrel.........this gives great results......

Try this on a cheap bat, before you tackle your 1965 store model Roger Maris bat......

BretMan · #9 (**permalink**) Wed Sep 28, 2005, 11:07am

Thanks for the help, guys.

That's the same approach I took years ago when I first started collecting gloves. I tried different cleaners and conditioners, different scrubbing tools and different lacing methods. I used cheap gloves, with little or no collectible value, picked up for a few bucks at garage sales to experiment.

Nowadays, it is nothing for me to tear apart a rare old glove, strip all the laces, rip into the interior padding, clean it all up and put it back together again good as new.

My bat collection is dwarfed by my glove collection. I do have a copy of the "Vintage Baseball Bat Price Guide". It has a lot of great info about bats, how to date them and identify them by their logos and which ones are the hardest to find.

Thanks again for the help!

sabattis · #10 (**permalink**) Wed Sep 28, 2005, 11:32am

I'm no antiquer, but if this bat is worth any $ and that's important to you, you might want to wait before doing any cleanup. From some of those ubiquitous antique TV shows around, they often applaud people for not doing anny "restoring" before any professional appraises/evaluates the item.

piaa_ump · #11 (**permalink**) Thu Sep 29, 2005, 03:10pm

Sabbatis...

You are quite correct in the fact that with certain items you should try and preserve as much of the original finish as possible....

You of course want to determine the value of the item....but they just cleaned the Sistine chapel and wow, what bright colors ol" Mikey used to paint it.... Cleaning in some cases can stop deteriation of the remaining finish...

You want to test out your cleaning solution on a unnoticed portion to see how it affects the item.....The method I use cleans the dirt off, but is not caustic enough to eat through the finish....

To your point though..........restoring or refinishing a bat definately lessens its value faced with comparison to an original finish example...

Stan