Bat Juicing 101

What is a Bat Juicing?
A juiced bat is just another name for a bat that has been altered in some fashion. Typically a bat is juiced by either shaving or rolling. When you juice your bat you are improving the performance of the bat. Bat Shaving is done by thinning the inner walls out. By doing this you allow the barrel of the bat to flex more and this increases the trampoline effect which will increase the batted ball speed and open up the sweet spot. Bat Shaving on average will give you 30-50 additional distance. When rolling a bat you are breaking down the resin (glue) that binds the fiber together. In both cases the bat may exceed the design specifications of the bat and this could effect whether or not the bat is legal in your particular association. It is recommended that you contact your local association or league official to ensure you are not in violation of any rules. If you participate in any outlaw leagues or home run derbies then you most likely don't have to worry about this.

What type of results should I expect when juicing my bat?
When juicing your bat you can expect significant performance increase. Whether you choose to shave or roll your bat with a Composite Bat Roller you will see increases in distance ranging from 20-50 feet and the sweet spot will be much larger. I'm sure you've seen the 5' 6" guy hitting bombs. This is an example of what a juiced bat can do for you. Please keep in mind that when shaving your bat you'll drastically shorten the life of your bat and when it breaks you won't be able to send it back for warranty since most manufactures inspect the bats when they come in for warranty. You run the risk of being black listed by them as well. When rolling your bat you don't have worry about durability since rolling does not significantly effect the life span of your bat.

Things to consider before juicing your bat
Before making the decision to juice your bat you need to check with your association and league to ensure you won't violate any of their rules. All rolled or shaved bats will have a stickered applied to indicate they MAY exceed the design performance specifications. If you are choosing to have your bat shaved you need to find a qualified company that has the experience needed to get the job done properly. Choosing the wrong shop you will not see the expected results and they could damage your bat. They need the proper tools(such as a digital CNC Lathe) to do the job the right way. When choosing a shop that does rolling or shaving, you need to choose one that's been in business long enough to know the proper way and has pioneered most of the current techniques. It takes many years to really know what their doing. Any shop that's only been shaving or rolling for a couple years simply don't have enough knowledge and will most likely not be able to shave or roll your bat properly. You also see some people offering bat rolling for $10-$15. You can not properly roll a bat for that amount. What this tells you is that they are not spending enough time rolling your bat and you will not get the performance level you should. After you've juiced your bat you should not use it for batting practice and also ensure you limit the use of the bat in temperatures below 60%.

Learn more about Bat Rolling