Step-By-Step Guide To Putting on A Lizard Skin Bat Grip

I’ve installed plenty of bat grips on previous bats I’ve owned, but I never had that much experience installing a Lizard Skin bat grip. I recently purchased a Lizard Skin bat grip so I could install it on my wood bat and I wanted to share my experience so others can know how to easily install a Lizard Skin grip on their own bat. How do you put on a Lizard Skin bat grip?

Install the Lizard Skin Bat Grip by removing your old bat grip, cleaning the bat handle, placing the thicker edge of the grip toward the bottom of the handle, and rotating your bat while applying the new grip. The bat grip should slightly overlap with itself so no part of the bat handle is visible.

It might seem fairly straightforward, but Lizard Skin bat grips are usually more expensive than other bat grips so it’s essential to get it right the first time to avoid paying for another grip. Keep reading to learn the exact step-by-step instructions on how to install your Lizard Skin bat grip.

Products Used in This Article

• Lizard Skin Bat Grip
  • I used this 1.8mm Lizard Skin bat grip you can find on Amazon
• Bat
  • I used this Marucci USA Pro-Cut Wood Bat you can find on Amazon
• Electrical Tape (optional)

Step-By-Step Instructions on How to Install Your Lizard Skin Bat Grip

If you’re more of a visual learner, below is a short video that covers how to install a Lizard Skin bat grip. Otherwise, keep scrolling to read my step-by-step instructions.

Step 1: Remove Your Old Bat Grip

If the bat you’re using doesn’t have an old grip, then you can skip this step. However, if you’re replacing a bat grip, the first step is removing the old bat grip from your bat.

This can be tricky if your old bat grip was very sticky, but you should be able to easily peel off the old grip once you free one of the ends of the grip.

On my bat, I was able to use my fingers to peel off the old bat grip and it came off very easily. But if your old bat grip is super sticky then you may need to use something sharper, like a knife, to get underneath the old grip.

After the old grip is off, you can clean the bat handle with a cloth and some water if you want, but the handle is usually good enough to wrap with the new bat grip without being cleaned.

Step 2: The Thicker End of the Grip Goes at the Bottom of the Bat Handle

Once you remove your Lizard Skin grip from its package and unwind it, you’ll notice one end of the grip is slightly thicker than the other end. That thicker end is the one that should go at the bottom of the bat handle, where the handle meets the knob.

Honestly, starting with either end of the grip would be fine (players won’t notice a difference when swinging), but the best way to begin installing the grip is by placing the thicker end right against the bat knob.

Pro Tip: instead of ripping off all the backing to reveal the stickiness of the grip, only rip off part of the back as you install the grip.

Step 3: Rotate the Bat and Use Tension To Apply Lizard Skin Bat Grip (Direction Doesn’t Matter)

Place the barrel of the bat on the ground and install your new grip by slowly rotating your bat.

Angle the grip down a little bit, so part of the adhesive covers the grip. You can use the one-dot or two-dot approach when applying the grip (covered in detail in the next step).

To prevent wrinkles in the grip, you’ll also want to apply a little tension by pulling the grip back while rotating the bat. You’ll most likely get a few small wrinkles while wrapping the grip but those tend to smooth themselves out after gripping the bat and pushing them down.

Keep rotating your bat until you’ve applied the entire 39 inches of Lizard Skin!

Pro Tip: if you accidentally created a wrinkle in the grip or don’t like the way the grip looks while wrapping, you can easily pull back the grip a bit and re-apply. The grip will not lose any of its stickiness to the handle of the bat.

It Doesn’t Matter Which Direction You Wrap the Grip Around the Handle

If you look up any videos on how to wrap a lizard skin bat grip, you’ll see the recommendation of how to wrap a bat for a right-handed hitter and how to wrap the bat for a left-handed hitter.

I can tell you from experience that no one cares in which direction the bat is wrapped. I’ve played baseball for over 30 years and I’ve never once thought about the direction of how my grip was installed and I’ve never heard any teammates mention it.

In fact, as I’m writing this article I’m also installing a new Lizard Skin bat grip and I have no idea which way I wrapped it.

But if you want to wrap your bat grip the “correct way”, then it’s recommended right-handed batters wrap from left to right (counterclockwise) and left-handed batters wrap from right to left (clockwise).

Step 4: Wrap Grip Using the One-Dot or Two-Dot Approach

You’ll notice little dots in a pattern that covers the entire outside of the Lizard Skin grip. Or in my case, the Independence Lizard Skin bat grip has stars instead of dots. Use these dots as a guide when rotating your bat to make sure the wrapping is consistent.

Most players will overlap using one dot, especially when using a thicker grip like the 1.8mm grip. However, you can overlap two dots if you like a thicker and spongier feeling handle.

Step 5: Put Electrical Tape Over the End (Optional)

After all 39 inches of the grip have been applied to your bat handle, Lizard Skin recommends applying a layer or two of electrical tape around the very end of your grip.

I don’t have electrical tape so I’m choosing to not use it. But if you’re worried about the grip getting loose and falling off, then adding electrical tape is a good countermeasure.

Step 6: Apply Finish Tape Over the End (Optional)

Each package of Lizard Skin comes with some “finish tape”, which is a shorter piece of grip that goes around the very end of your grip.

If you applied electrical tape to prevent your grip from falling off, then place the finish tape over the electrical tape. If you didn’t use electrical tape, then simply place the finish tape over the very end of your bat.

What Thickness of Lizard Skin Bat Grip Should I Use?

Lizard Skin bat grips come in three different thicknesses:

• 0.5mm (thinnest)
• 1.1mm
• 1.8mm (thickest)

If you go to Amazon for Lizard Skin grips you’ll see the price is the same for all three weights of Lizard Skin grips. So it really comes down to what you prefer.

I like the 1.8mm grip because I like the slightly thicker feel of my bat handle, but if you prefer a thinner handle then you can try either the 0.5mm or 1.1mm grip.