What kind of baseball bat is best for home defense?

[jberryhill]

I'm thinking like a little league bat or softball bat is best for close quarters.

Wood, or aluminum?

I have a NY Mets souvenir bat - but since it is authentic, it doesn't hit anything

11 votes, 1 pass | Time left: Unlimited
	Wood, standard
	6 (55%)
	Aluminum, standard
	3 (27%)
	Wood, softball
	0 (0%)
	Metal, softball
	0 (0%)
	Wood, little league
	1 (9%)
	Metal, little league
	1 (9%)
	Lacrosse stick (for the preppy crowd)
	0 (0%)
	Field hockey stick
	0 (0%)
	Those Jai Alai things
	0 (0%)
	Kayak paddle!
	0 (0%)
	1 DU member did not wish to select any of the options provided.
Show usernames Disclaimer: This is an Internet poll

[Fumesucker]

1. Is this some kind of inside baseball joke?

[pinboy3niner]

2. :)

[Control-Z]

7. Of course it is.

Though I'm guessing it's to prove that guns are really, truly needed in the home. Honestly. They are needed.

[SidDithers]

3. Metal Little League...

just make sure it complies with the 2012 Moratorium on Composite Bats

http://www.littleleague.org/learn/equipment/licensedcompositebats.htm

Sid

[flvegan]

4. The kind that says "don't be stupid"

Baseball bat for home defense, LOL. Nice. 1982 called and wants their home defense back.

[Major Nikon]

31. And yet it's still better than a gun

Just sayin'

[flvegan]

36. Laughable.

Just sayin'.

[Major Nikon]

52. It must be true that ignorance is bliss

Results show that regardless of storage practice, type of gun, or number of firearms in the home, having a gun in the home was associated with an increased risk of firearm homicide and firearm suicide in the home.
...
After they controlled for a number of potentially confounding factors, the presence of a gun in the home was associated with a nearly fivefold risk of suicide (adjusted odds ratio = 4.8) (13) and an almost threefold risk of homicide (adjusted odds ratio = 2.7) (14).

http://aje.oxfordjournals.org/content/160/10/929.full

[Lizzie Poppet]

81. This kind of bat:

[jberryhill]

35. I've been using a vampire bat!

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

66. +1

Creative.

[JVS]

5. Composite

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Composite_baseball_bat

[Buzz Clik]

13. +1

Bigger sweet spot. Easier to swing through. Less vibrations on impact. Will flex without breaking.

The poll is not particularly up to date.

[jberryhill]

32. I didn't even know there were composite bats!

Does anyone make an upscale titanium bat?

[Go Vols]

6. A

sharp stick would prolly be better.

[immoderate]

23. Yup. I always recommend a cane for close quarter defense.

The ones that conceal a sword are even better.

--imm

[ChazII]

69. My great uncle had one of those. n/t

[In_The_Wind]

8. A bowling pin might be better than a baseball bat.

[jberryhill]

39. But what if the intruder has a bowling ball?

[In_The_Wind]

48. Bring it on.

It's easier to swing a pin than a heavy ball.

I win!

[jberryhill]

50. But it's easier to spare a single!

[A HERETIC I AM]

9. The kind that's thicker and heavier at one end..

And not so thick and heavy at the other.

[tjwash]

10. What???!!!?? No love for us golfers? Nothing like a six iron by the front door.

[jberryhill]

26. A six?

Don't you think you might want something with a little more loft on it?

[jmowreader]

92. He should put the six back in the bag and put his 1 iron by the door

It isn't good for anything else.

[CherokeeDem]

11. I actually have...

a little Louisville Slugger wooden bat that my father gave to me when I was little. He played in the minor leagues but I am an only child and a girl...got a bat anyway. As an adult, I have always had that bat leaning against the nightstand next to my bed.

I wouldn't want to use it in case it damaged the bat, but if I had to, I would.

[jberryhill]

27. Just mind the splinters!

Wait... Use it for what?

[Scootaloo]

12. Cricket bat

But for some real bludgeon-porn, nothing beats the taiaha;

(Also? Excellent movie, i highly recommend it and the sequel)

[SidDithers]

25. Once Were Warriors...

replying to remind myself to watch this tomorrow. Too late tonight

Sid

[zappaman]

40. LOVE that movie!

But there is a sequel?
What is it???

[Scootaloo]

56. It's called "What Becomes of the Broken-Hearted"

[zappaman]

77. Thank you! N/t

[AnnieBW]

88. Aussie Cricket Low-Light Reel

When my husband and I were in Australia, we saw a clip of a cricket match on the news. The "pitcher" threw the ball, and the "batter" hit it perfectly into the pitchers family jewels. Now, I know that a cricket ball is solid wood. So, yeah, that sucker REALLY hurt!

[Betsy Ross]

14. Nerf? nt

[pinboy3niner]

15. Fully Automatic

Duh!

[Jenoch]

16. A golf club would be much more effective

than a bat. You can swing it faster and the club speed is much faster than bat speed.

[Spider Jerusalem]

17. Wood, sawn off, drilled, melted lead poured in the hole

[jberryhill]

28. Is that even LEGAL?

I am glad I did not play baseball in your neighborhood. Wow. Tough place.

[Spider Jerusalem]

34. You said "for home defence", not "for playing baseball"

[jberryhill]

41. I was thinking "dual use technology", lol

For baseball, I prefer a gun.

[ornotna]

18. DeMarini Fungodelic Wood Composite Fungo bat

for better control.

[Eleanors38]

72. Yuo. We had an infield Fungo by the door. Backed up by numerous

shotguns and revolvers (works better when you order those accessories).

[sarisataka]

19. A hockey stick

You can spear, slash, hook, trip, cross check... the opportunities are endless

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

21. And that's just within the first period.

[jberryhill]

29. I grew up near Philly...

...so I meant to refer to unconventional weapons made from sporting goods.

We were not raised to understand hockey sticks as a piece of game equipment.

[sarisataka]

43. The old Broad Street Bullies

never misunderstood the purpose of carrying a stick on the ice
I believe they are the only team that ever chased Central Red Army entirely off the ice

[jberryhill]

47. Yep

Some guy on my street had a bumper sticker that said:

"Only God says more than Bernie Parent"

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

20. Other. Coach's bat.

[Deep13]

22. A short, wooden one.

Clearance is restricted indoors. And you want something heavy. I have not picked up a bat in 20 years, but my recollection is that the wooden ones were heavier than aluminum.

[orbitgirl]

24. Gotta have a bat!

My weapon of choice is the aluminum bat beside my bed

[geomon666]

30. Aluminum

Wood can break plus it bends around the perp's skull. You want this guy to take the full force of the blow.

[Jim Warren]

33. sheleighleigh

one with a good robust root knob at the end.

[jberryhill]

44. Is that a piece of sporting equipment?

Or is "hitting on the head with sticks" otherwise a sport in Ireland?

[Jim Warren]

51. Yes, the original 4 wood in golf

the OP was referencing use for home defense wasn't he?

[jberryhill]

54. Ah, okay

Why not a wedge, though?

[hunter]

37. I prefer an axe, like Abe Lincoln.

Damned vampires.

[1StrongBlackMan]

38. Right next to my bed ...

I have the Louisville Slugger 32 (wood) that I used to strike out with bases load in the bottom of the ninth, on 3 straight curve-balls, in my Little League Championship game (1970).

On Mrs. 1StrongBlackMack's side of the bed is the Louisville Slugger 36 (wood) that I used to ding one on my first at bat in 1971. Yep, it was a curve ball.

[jberryhill]

46. His and hers?

If you have one on your side of the bed, why does she need one on her side of the bed?

Or is that one of those questions that answers itself?

[1StrongBlackMan]

53. LOL ...

I have no doubt that the Mrs. will grab her's just as quickly as I will ... and would be much more aggressive.

[mythology]

73. I was wondering that and then I started to think about

the fact that his bat is the one that struck out, while hers hit a home run. I'm sure Freud would have a lot to say about that.

[Ikonoklast]

42. None Of The Above.

Tire Billy.





I use a shot-filled three pound deadblow mallet, myself.

[UnrepentantLiberal]

45. Use what the pros use.

[spin]

49. It is wise not to bring a baseball bat to a gun fight. (n/t)

[JI7]

58. it's not wise to go to a gun fight in the first place

[spin]

64. True. I you go looking for trouble it will find you. (n/t)

[Rhythm]

55. I chose 'field hockey stick', but that's because 'broomball stick' wasn't listed...

Friggin' lethal in the right hands...

[DrewFlorida]

57. I'm going with alluminum standard bat, however, hockey sticks are quite handy tools.

[pansypoo53219]

59. i have an ice pick collection.....and a cow femur.

[world wide wally]

60. A dog that likes to bark works wonders. I've been able to save a ton on baseball bats

[a la izquierda]

61. Other:

Crowbar. And a big ass dog with two smaller sidekicks.

[B Calm]

62. Go with Ash, Hickory is

too brittle!

[RandiFan1290]

63. You'll need two

So you can beat off the hordes with both hands!

[rrneck]

65. Really any one is fine

as long as you have this guy swing it for you.

[TrogL]

67. I've got one by every door and my favourite axe in the hall

[guardian]

68. This one is mostly metal and makes for excellent home defense

After you have expended 9 shots use as a bat


Mossberg 590 SP 9 Shot Ghost Ring Sight

[slackmaster]

70. I have a traditional hickory Louisville Slugger but recommend the Cold Steel "Brooklyn Smasher"

http://www.coldsteelknivesdirect.com/brooklyn-smasher

[blue neen]

71. Wood.

I just don't know whether to go for the left-handed one or the right-handed one.

[LWolf]

74. Give me the stats

on how many people actually experience a home invasion that requires self-defense, as compared to other things that injure and kill people, and I'll pick a bat.

[spanone]

75. Louisville Slugger....

[panader0]

76. Got wood? I actually have a Louisville Slugger (wood) next to my front door

I live in the boonies. The bat is for the javelina that frequent the front porch. Once I went out after four or five , late at night, in my underwear, banging the bat on the ground. All of the javelina ran away except the big papa. He looked at me for a sec, then charged. I have never moved so fast. The bat is still by the door.

[-..__...]

78. Wood... just ask the "Bear Jew"

Teddy fuckin' Williams knocks it out of the park! Fenway Park on its feet for Teddy fuckin' Ballgame! He went yardo on that one, out to fuckin' Lansdowne Street!

[ileus]

90. great movie.

[Lint Head]

79. I prefer a crowbar.

[jberryhill]

91. .

[Jamaal510]

80. Caveman club.

[IMG][/IMG]

[-..__...]

82. Stay back... I have a table leg and table top and I'm not afraid to use it!!!

It is reported that 50% of people in London are worried about security and sleep with some form of self-defence to hand, for use against intruders.

The 'Safe Bedside Table' has a removable leg that acts as a club and a top that doubles as a shield for self-defence. This is for people who are willing to take on an intruder, providing an extra sense of security whilst in bed.

http://www.jamesmcadam.co.uk/portfolio_html/sb_table.html

[sakabatou]

83. Regular wood baseball bat, but I like my ice hockey stick too

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

84. Mjölnir.

The most fearsome of weapons, capable of leveling mountains.

[Siwsan]

85. I have a cricket bat - does that count?

I also have a Wilson baseball bat and a lead filled truncheon. It's a big house. Ah, yes, I am potentially deadly, if I can sneak up on the person breaking in to my house and get in a good swing, before they hear me.

[aikoaiko]

86. Heaviest bat possible while maintaining 40 mph swings 30 times in a row.

[NightWatcher]

87. wood. I hate the "ping" of aluminum when you whack a bad guy in the head

it takes all the tradition out of the game

[ileus]

89. I always choose speed over mass.

I like Tee ball bats, sure you'll give up a little mass and reach but I love the compactness of the 28" 16oz Tee Ball bat.

For CQB (close quarters batting) the shorter the better.

[bklyncowgirl]

94. I'm a fan of the good old fashioned Louisville Slugger for home defense

That and a golf club are sitting near my front door. I also have a Japanese sword my dad brought home from World War II. It's not very sharp but it's heavy and could do somoe damage. I suppose I could sharpen it but really it's greatest value is in intimidation.

[ileus]

95. I've taken just enough lessons with the sword in AIKIDO

to know I'd be basically useless trying to use it as a weapon with confidence.

If I had to use a non-firearm I'd rather use the jo.

That being said I can make a wicked sound slicing the air with a sword.

[jmowreader]

93. One with nails in it

Just get the cheapest wood bat you can find, drive about a half-dozen 60-penny nails in it so they stick out (predrilling is recommended), and set that by the door.

[Brickbat]

96. A brickbat.

[Berserker]

97. Bat swing

Speed is about 70 MPH and a 9mm round travels 886.36 MPH
Which one do you want to use against a bad guy with a gun?
I know what he would prefer you use. And if you feel crafty you could Decoupage a kitty picture on it.