Ring Bat ? pickup
 

Hey guys,

My dad picked up 2 older bats at out of a very old estate this weekend, and wanted to get some opinions here.
The first bat appears to to have a black and red ring. I cannot find a makers mark anywhere on the bat, but the bat is pretty worn and beat up. The bat measures in at about 31 inches long, and has alot of taping on the handle end.

The second bat, is smaller at 30 inches, and has no markings at all. It has a lathe mark in the handle, and has a crack/break repaired by nails in one area. The bat is also very worn, and has chipping on the handle.

My questions are:
Is the first bat in fact a ring bat?
If so, does the red and black ring give a clue to anyone as to a possible maker - and age?
And the smaller bat, is this likely a 19th century bat, or later than that?

thanks for any help.

http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n...c/ringbat1.jpg
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n...c/ringbat2.jpg
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n...c/ringbat3.jpg
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n...c/ringbat4.jpg

The first looks like it could of been an Reach Red Band ring bat. Click the link for a picture:
http://www.sports-memorabilia-museum...ring-bat.shtml

And I'd say the smaller bat is likely a 19th century youth sized bat but could date to the early 1900s. The shape of the knob looks similair to other 19th century bats.

Ring Bat
 

Thanks alot Brock,
I think you are right on the ring bat. It looks like the other side of the ring, and the logo has worn off, but otherwise, the rings look identical.

thanks again

Happy to help Keith. Even in that condition the ring bat is a pretty nice find.

Hey Keith...

I think this one may be even a closer match than Brock's. Note the photo showing the more gently tapered handle/knob... looks quite similar to yours. Not sure if this is a slightly more recent or older Reach model, but the two are very close.

The other key difference is in the Reach center brand stenciling.... Mine has the Reach "Keystone" logo (rather than spelling out Reach), and it lacks the "Red Band" wording. Hope this is helpful...

Reach Ring Bat
 

Thanks as well Mark. I see Hunts had a very similar Reach ring bat to yours a few years ago. I am going to study mine a little closer, to see if there are any faint remnants of either the keystone logo, or Reach markings, but I think they were worn off long ago.

thanks again