Homemade bat racks Check em out.

[jon_8_us]

I decided today that as a carpenter(albeit i build houses not racks)) i was gonna try to make myself a nice bat rack for some of my Manny Ramirez bats.Though these are not as nice as some seen on here for sale i just thought making them myself would be pretty cool.I can't screw into my walls so i had to make a stand out of red cedar.I made the rack out of Alaskan yellow cedar then painted it as close to Red Sox red as i could get.Not to bad for jobsite trim scrap.
jon

[Qstick333]

That looks pretty cool - I like it. What did you use to cut the bat sections out - a jigsaw? Do you just attach the bat holding section to the decorative section on top with screws underneath?

Looks good,

Zach

[jon_8_us]

Thanks.Yes i used a jigsaw and some sandpaper to round the edges.The stand is put together with drywall screws and the rack is put together with stainless ring shank trim nails.
jon

[Qstick333]

For rounding the edges - do you mean the tops of the cutouts for the bat to rest in? Is that just for aesthetics? Could you use a router for that? I'm always looking for a reason to buy a tool or 3.....

Zach

[jon_8_us]

I had the router out while game planning this but decided to go the easy route with the jigsaw.Yes the sanding is for aesthetics.Looks much better sanded then it did right after i finished cutting.Routering something thats finished product is difficult unless your really handy with that particular tool.Most cabinet makers and fine wood workers(the kind of guys that always work in shops)could make really nice racks.
jon

[camarokids]

Hi , better than forking out over 1800.00 for a fancy replica bat rack , unless you can afford it and collect early 1900's bats . Looks good , good job . I have a sawed in half McGriff gamer I want to make a rack out of . I just need to find some pegs ......just curious why can't you screw into the walls ? my wife used to yell at me for putting too many holes in the walls when I had a sports room , then came the baby :), so I lost my sports room . any ideas on finding the pegs ? home depot or Michael's Crafts Store? thanks David

[jon_8_us]

Home Depot or Lowes should have just about any peg your looking for.If your looking for something real high end i couldn't tell you.And as for the holes in the wall i'm just trying to avoid it as long as i can.Thanks for the look!
jon

[Qstick333]

I was at Lowes the other night and noticed that they had a ton of various pegs. I was thinking of trying a rack using a coat rack as a start (from another thread I saw) - tons of choices...

[camarokids]

thanks for the tip! I don't want high end just some type of wood so I can stain as close to McGriffs bat color as possible..that way the pegs should blend in more and not so noticeable... thanks again, David

[soxbats]

As my collection grew I had difficulty displaying it, you can only lean bats against the wall for so long until they fall over. So I did something fairly simple. Using a 1 x 4 I drilled holes 2 2/3 inches apart and filled in with 3" long dowels. I then screwed it into the wall 3' 5" off the ground. It is almost like bat wainscotting for the walls. As I got more bats I added another row above that hangs slightly out from the wall. I have used this method in 3 different houses with great results. It also lets me put the bats in order so I can find them and they are easily accessible.

See my pics and if you want more details you can email me at soxbats@aol.com.

3322

3323

[camarokids]

Hey Soxbats ,
Nice collection , whats the theme ? Are there players from all teams or just White or Red Sox ? Nice idea with the racks . Thanks for posting ...

[soxbats]

Thanks. Red sox only, trying to get one from each position player from 1960 to the present. That's about 390 players and I need 21 to complete the collection.

[jon_8_us]

Thanks. Red sox only, trying to get one from each position player from 1960 to the present. That's about 390 players and I need 21 to complete the collection.

I am extremely impressed!Not only with the racks but with your collection.I'd love to pick your brain sometime as ultimately we have the same taste.How many Manny bats do you own?
jon

[camarokids]

Thanks. Red sox only, trying to get one from each position player from 1960 to the present. That's about 390 players and I need 21 to complete the collection.

Wow! that is an impressive collection !!! ... I am trying the same thing with Devil Rays, I am 56 short from 1998 thru 2006 . A lot of the ones I need are common unheard of players and still some bigger ones like Delmon , Rocco , etc. I have been collectin on this mission for almost 1 and a half years now . Used to collect in the 90's as well.

[soxbats]

Jon, I have only one Manny bat. Thanks for the interest, shoot me an email anytime you want to talk red sox bats.

Camero, the great thing about collecting lesser known players along with stars is that you can find bats for a very low price and still get a thrill from tracking down that obscure guy. Because bat collecting was hot in the 90s, it is likely that you will find all the bats you are looking for. My problem is that the 1960s non-star bats are really tough to find.