From Maple Tree to Baseball Bat
By: Preston Farrell
Introduction
Do you like baseball if you do you would enjoy reading this.I will tell you how baseball bats are made and sold I will also tell you some fun facts to at the end.
Farm
Maple and ash trees from pennsylvania and upstate new york are marked if they have a14-16 inch diameter the marked trees are cut down with a chainsaw.Then the bark is cut off and the tree trunk is cut into lengths of 10-16 feet then the trunk is put onto a truck and is brought to the mill.
Factory
In the mill the wood is considered green wood because it still contains sap and gum. the wood goes through a process to remove the sap and gum the process is called seasoning. In the the process of seasoning the wood is hung to dry this process takes 6 months to 2 years to be complete.The wood is sanded and is cut into 4 by 36 inch splits called billets the billets are inspected if the billets are inspected and they have no knots of weak spots they pass and are sorted according to weight. Next the billet is inspected again if it passes it is sent to an animatic lathe and is cut to the correct model.The bat goes through a grain check if it passes. Then the bat is put on a lathe and is cut with a chisel to the exact model.Next the bat is compressed by two 350 degree compressing wheels this makes the hitting surface harder.The bat is then dipped into a staining vat and the edges of the bat are stained. Finally the company’s name (and the team’s and player’s name if ordered) is printed with a ink press,the bat is inspected once more, put in a box of the same model and loaded in a truck for shipping to the stores.
Store
Baseball bats are sold at sporting stores like Dicks Sporting Goods,Bass Pro shop,Sheels and on many shopping websites.Baseball bats are bought to play baseball.Baseball bats are usually sold at prices from 30-300 dollars.
Fun Facts
:Did you know that only half the wood that is cut down in the forest turns out as a baseball bat
:Did you know Bud Hillerich made the first louisville slugger
Conclusion
Now you know how a baseball bat is made,sold,what a baseball bat is made of and some fun facts too.