How to Paint a Batting Helmet

Painting a batting helmet can be important for safety reasons as well as aesthetic reasons. Old batting helmets can be prone to drying and cracking, which is dangerous if a helmet is struck by a ball thrown at high velocity. A nicely painted batting helmet looks good, and can even give a batter a mental edge against a pitcher.

Prep your old helmet

Prepare the batting helmet for painting by cleaning it thoroughly. Use a screwdriver to remove the face mask, and clean the areas where the face mask was attacked. Then, use a high-intensity cleaner to cleanse the exterior of the the helmet. Rinse it and dry it with a clean, dry towel.

Inspect the helmet for damage. If you see dents or cracks, fill them in. High-quality epoxy is good for small dings or cracks, and Super Glue works for bigger cracks. Let the epoxy or glue dry, and then use sandpaper to smooth it out. Use coarse sandpaper first and finish with fine sandpaper.

Paint the entire helmet white with primer paint. Be sure the paint coat is smooth.

Let the helmet dry in a cool, dry, dust-free place for at least three hours.

Add some character to it by painting on a design. You can make a flame-bearing lightning bolt, a teeth-baring bear, or whatever you would like to paint.

Finish with a coat of gloss to make it shine and make the paint job last longer.

Tips

To select suitable finishing paint for your batting helmet, speak with an expert at the paint store. Some helmets are made of plastic, and others are made of complicated alloys on which ordinary spray paint might not stick.