Not such a daft answer,some batmakers in India soak they cletfs in baths or tubs before they press them.

Bill

with water in the bath or without ?

hehe

A good trick is to run the bat face along a smooth hard surface eg the edge of bath . If you press down quite firmly this helps to compact the wood fibres and will speed up the process

i think the best way to knock your bat in is on a bowling machine or if you dont have one get someone to give you throwdowns with old balls

ronnie 

Originally posted by Warne in making Stealing from empire there crick!

well he did post it on a forum, and im just trying to spread the knowledge!

Well my bat was supposedly 'pre knocked-in' but i oiled it and knocked it in for another 2 hours but it still broke after 4 shots in the nets.

grrr

About Knocking in the bats , when you knock it in , it strenghtens the grain of the willow and thus giving your bat longer life which means it won't split or crack that easily. It would also hit the ball further and have less shocking on your hands as well.

You can tell when a bat is knocked in because when you drop a ball on it , you hardly hear the noise and it feels soft compared to when it is dropped on a bat that isn't knocked in properly that sounds a bit louder and more shocking so the less shocking the less chances of the bat getting crack or split.

I know this because I expereenced it allready before with school bats that weren't knocked in by hand that crack in less than a year.

or go to this http://www.vks.com/cricket_bat_care.htm

http://www.assports.co.uk/BatCare.doc

that tells you everything you need to know about bat care.

hm great post...

i decided against knocking in my current bat as i always find my bat breaking mid season Very funny, pob dwn to bad technique.....anyway the bat i currently have is starting to show cracks in the 'sweet spot' sp to speak...this has not affected the shot making capability at all..in fact im sure its made it ping more. the crak is following the grain,

i have a anti scruff sheet on and all seems good. as to knocking in i would pre season, and oil it before hand. i tend to concentrate on the middle/bottom sections of the bat. but i always find that the toe cracks and leads to total KO.

What is knocking in?

i think this is to strengthen the fibres of willow on a bat, and compact them more together, it reduces cracks as your making the willow a bit denser, compacted?(im guessing there)

What constitutes factory knocked in ?

I think factory knocked in is when they have 'done most of the hard work for you' spent the intial process knocking in the bat, but still requires small knocking and playing in, concentrating on knocking in the toe a and edges, and when you have a first net with it, not to go at the bal hard, just try to find the middle of the bat and check for seam marks regulary etc indicating if it has been knocked in?

How long should you knock your bat in for ?

If the bat has not been factory knocked in at all, then i reckon 4 hours, if it has i think one hour

And with what instrument should you use ?

A bat mallet is the easiest way, you can use a old cricket ball in a sock, but i personally think that is useless, and very annoying on the hand!

Where on the bat should you knock in ?

edges and toe, but i tend give a bat knocking in everywhere, except near the splice,

Does different grades require different knocking in ?

Yer defiantely i think, the top grades tend to be softer with the overall mix of properties in the willow being better, thats why you can make bigger profile bats out of the top grade willow, so a top grade bat would need more knocking in if you wanted it for durability, the low grades like indian willow etc are much more dense so the willow is compacted more reducing a chance of a dent or crack.

Does different willow require different knocking in ?

point above

Does soft or hard pressed bats need different knocking in ?

yer a hard pressed bat like a baronet or hawk made by bernie facer ( you know who im talking about bill) these bats are very hardly pressed, and i did not need to give mine any knocking in at all, the inly problem is, yes it provides good durability, but takes a while for the bat to perform at its best

And how can you tell if your bat has been knocked in ?

if you have not knocked in the at, you will proabably see seam marks and maybe slight surface cracks.

i reckon that is all wrong!

Hi clobber,

             Teach a wiseman smothing new,then he is a little wiser

    Anyway you guys come on and give us your veiws on this very important item!

  Bill

i would put a lot of effort to knock in the edges and toe of my bat, put a clear sheet over it, oild the back and toe, and used it in nets.

i always leave the middle untouch as i believe as you gradually use it in nets or game, it will be compacted by the balls itself. i will only knock in the middle a bit if the first knock of the mallet shows a deep dent on the face. the only places which tends to crack more on my bat are the edges and toes and this too is only due to BAD SHOT. you are not suppose to middle the ball here! hahaha

i find that i cracked a lot of my bat at the edges and toe when i was younger but has not faces that for the last few year. batting technique?