Help me saving a relic (blade)

necax007 · Dec 6, 2015

Hello guys!

I have an old bat that is very important to me. It was given to me by a friend (the one that taught me to play TT) that died very young. Besides that it was the bat that i played in school and trough college. It's been with me for more than 20 years and recently my wife made a dent in the blade (yes, we still play with it, even if it's rubbers are slippery as ice).

How can i repare the blade?

Also, the rubbers are very, very old and i was thinking of change them by new one just for fun. Nothing good or expensive because the bat is an old Slazenger bought probably in a supermarket or something like that.

Can i glue new rubbers to pre-made bats? Well, i know i can, but can i take the old ones without damaging the blade? If yes, can you advise me in some very cheap rubbers and where to buy them in EU?

I'll put picture of de damaged blade in a few hours.

bobpuls · Dec 6, 2015

Yes you can remove the old rubbers... It will take some time but it is possible.

Anders · Dec 6, 2015

Start removing the rubbers carefully, use time, a little force and sandpaper.. They will go off

Suga D · Dec 7, 2015

I totally understand. You should post pictures of the dent, though. Maybe one of the blade makers on this forum got some good advice for you or if you know a blade maker, you should ask him if he can repair it.
For the rubbers i used a q-tip drenched with nailpolish remover, and try put it under a corner, let the sponge soak it up and slowly & carefully pull off the rubber, if you feel too much resistance drench the q-tip again and put it where the sponge doesn't come off for a minute. It should be coming off much easier.
This has helped me with most glues, except some factory-pre made rackets. On a few of these ones only sandpaper worked. But for most rackets it worked out.

UpSideDownCarl · Dec 7, 2015

Where is Liten when you need him. He loved resurrecting old blades. I will PM him and see if he can come back and give some advice. It has been a while since he posted to TTDaily. But he resurrected many old blades.

Sent from the Oracle of Delphi by the Pythia

necax007 · Dec 8, 2015

This is the picture of the dent. It's quite big.

Thanks Suga D. I will try to do that way.

Thank you Carl. The bat is really dear to me.

bobpuls · Dec 8, 2015

Try to remove rubbers first. Then we can see the dent better.
When im removing older rubbers i always use only fingers and small knife... But be carefull to not tuch the woood veneers.

UpSideDownCarl · Dec 8, 2015

Oh boy. That is big. When you take the rubber off you are going to have to be careful not to cause more damage to the top plies in the damaged area. I have a feeling that any of the blade making players on the forum like bobpuls should be able to help you.

If you are able to successfully get the rubber off, then you will likely have to glue the damaged area and put the wood in a press of some kind while the glue dries. One of the blade makers should also be able to recommend what kind of glue would be best for this purpose.

necax007 · Dec 8, 2015

Ok Carl. I will take the rubbers of, and post another photo so that you guys can see it better.

To any of the blade makers, i don't mind send you the blade! I'll pay what i need to pay, of course!

necax007 · Dec 8, 2015

Yes bobpuls. I will do that. I'm in work now but when i get home i take them off and take another picture.

Liten · Dec 8, 2015

Youll run into trouble sooner or later with a dent like that. Best to take the advice above and remove the rubbers gently.
Post a pick when the blade is naked.
The dent van be glued, or rebuilt with ceramic wood. But thats hard work. Depending on the value (as the old beegee's song: how deep is your love) id send it to a professional blademaker.

necax007 · Dec 8, 2015

Liten said:
Youll run into trouble sooner or later with a dent like that. Best to take the advice above and remove the rubbers gently.
Post a pick when the blade is naked.
The dent van be glued, or rebuilt with ceramic wood. But thats hard work. Depending on the value (as the old beegee's song: how deep is your love) id send it to a professional blademaker.

Hello Liten.

As i said, the bat doesn´t worth much. It's an old pre-made bat. But it's very important to me. I would like to save the blade. If i can´t then i'll just keep it as it is.

Also, i don't know any blade maker. I don't even know if there is one in Portugal. But i don't mind to ship the blade for repare!

I will post pictures of the blade without the rubber later.

Liten · Dec 8, 2015

The cut seems to have split the plys a little. As carl said, you will have to apply glue and then put the blade in some sort of press. The shape may have to be sanded a bit. We will see.

Good luck!

UpSideDownCarl · Dec 8, 2015

necax007 said:
Yes bobpuls. I will do that. I'm in work now but when i get home i take them off and take another picture.

Take the rubbers off very slowly and very carefully. This might take several days to get the rubbers off without damaging the wood. Good luck.

Richie · Dec 8, 2015

Do you really want to play with it again? If I were you I'd keep it as a memory somewhere and not take the risk of damaging it. Of course you can do as you please, if it's really important to you to play with it again then you should go for it.

necax007 · Dec 8, 2015

It was very easy to remove the rubbers! Here is how it looks.

If possible i would like to keep playing with it. My wife also learn how to play in this bat!

bobpuls · Dec 9, 2015

Hmmmm this was a really hard smash..... Can you do the first photo once more but focused right .. ? and please once more the third one ... so it could be better seen from the second side.

Liten · Dec 9, 2015

Some wood-filler, sandpaper and a lot of patience will get you far. But.
Seems to be some sort of Stiga Hand Alser-knockoff.. You could do worse, looking up that sort of blade on the second hand market..

necax007 · Dec 10, 2015

Yup, i gonna take new pictures. Thank you bobpuls

necax007 · Dec 10, 2015

Liten said:
Some wood-filler, sandpaper and a lot of patience will get you far. But.
Seems to be some sort of Stiga Hand Alser-knockoff.. You could do worse, looking up that sort of blade on the second hand market..

I didn't get it Liten. Looking for the same blade? But what i want is to save this one. Not replacing it.

Help me saving a relic (blade)

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