How to care & prepare your cricket bat | Kookaburra Sport UK (2024)

FAQs

How to care & prepare your cricket bat | Kookaburra Sport UK? ›

Using either your finger or a piece of cloth, rub the oil into the front, back, sides and toe of the bat, ensuring none of the oil comes into contact with any of the stickers. DO NOT PUT ANY OIL ON THE SPLICE. Leave the bat lying horizontal (blade up) overnight.

Using either your finger or a piece of cloth, rub the oil into the front, back, sides and toe of the bat, ensuring none of the oil comes into contact with any of the stickers. DO NOT PUT ANY OIL ON THE SPLICE. Leave the bat lying horizontal (blade up) overnight.

Removing the cover should be done slowly and across the grain then sanded with light sandpaper. If your bat has a natural face, it should be oiled every month to maintain high-performance levels. Small cracks on the face of a cricket bat are considered natural wear and tear.

The power of cricket bat oil

Make sure you buy raw linseed or a cricket bat oil from a recognised brand. Don't be tempted to experiment with olive oil, motor oil or peanut oil, your cricket bat is a run machine not a bar snack.

Wipe off any excess oil and knock in your bat with a cricket bat mallet for approximately 4 hours. These mallets have rounded edges. The edges and toe of the blade require particular attention using glancing blows off the face to harden and round these areas.

Try to oil your bat twice a year to keep the fibres of the wood supple and prevent the bat from cracking. If your cricket bat already has an anti-scruff cover, the face of the bat will not need oiling but the back will once a year.

All natural faced bats must be treated using raw linseed or a specialist cricket bat oil. The main purpose of oiling is to maintain moisture levels within the blade, and hence reduce the chances of cracking and splitting.

There is no standard amount of time or use that determines when it is time to buy a new cricket bat. A bat can last many years. Some say it will last roughly 1000-1500 runs.

Cricket bats are prone to cracking, especially if they aren't strengthened properly before use. To harden your cricket bat, you'll need to apply linseed oil to the bat first. Then, you can harden, or knock the bat in, by flattening out the wood fibers in the bat with a wooden mallet.

Bat oil. The commonly used oil is linseed oil. You can shop for Bat oils online from brands like Z-bat, AEROPLANE, DSC, SS, Camlin, and many more across the e-stores.

How do you dry a cricket bat after oiling it? ›

Apply Oil lightly to the Face, Edges, Toe & Blade avoiding the splice & any labels. Generally, 3-4 initial coats are sufficient & one coat every 8-12 weeks thereafter (providing your bat is natural). Each coat must be left to dry in the horizontal position for around 24 hours before the next coat.

Start by knocking in your bat to strengthen the fibres in the willow. Use a mallet or a specialised bat mallet to gently tap the face and edges of the bat, gradually increasing the force. This process helps prevent cracking and enhances the durability of the bat.

We'll remove the anti-scuff and edge tape from the bat, and any underlying cracks are repaired and then sanded down. Then, we'll apply a light coating of oil to help hydrate the willow, fit a new toe guard (if needed) and add some new anti-scuff and edge tape. Finally, we'll replace the grip of the bat.

DO NOT: Make sure you do not use your new cricket bat straight away in a game or practice session unless it is a pre-prepared cricket bat (although some knocking in is still recommended). If you do not knock it in properly then the cricket bat will have a high risk of breaking.

Cricket bats are prone to cracking, especially if they aren't strengthened properly before use. To harden your cricket bat, you'll need to apply linseed oil to the bat first. Then, you can harden, or knock the bat in, by flattening out the wood fibers in the bat with a wooden mallet.