When we’re attaching a piece of mesh to a stick for the
first time it can be a little intimidating, but don’t get discouraged, it’s a
lot easier than it looks. To start, we’ll need four pieces of nylon cord and a
piece of mesh. Two of the pieces of cord should be at least 22 inches long,
these will be for the sides. One piece of cord should be at least 24 inches
long, this will be the top string. The last piece of cord should be at least 12
inches long, this will be the bottom string. Make sure to melt the tips(to keep
it from fraying) with a lighter AND A PARENT! Be careful, melting nylon can
burn you! So to start off, I like to temporarily anchor the mesh to the 2nd
hole from the top on either side of the head. After your mesh is WELL
stretched, notice that the mesh looks and feels slightly different on each
side. We want the ball to come in contact with the side with more texture. With
that side facing you, fold back the top row or so of mesh until you have 9
diamonds along the top row. Tie a knot on one end of each 22 inch cord and thread one through the 2nd hole
from the top on each side of the head with the knot staying on the outside. As
you are looking at the front of your stick, use the cord on the left and run it
through the top left diamond in the folded over mesh. Now stick the cord back
in the plastic hole(2nd from the top) and pull it tight. You can now
do the same to the other side. Once both sides are held on, it’s time to focus
on the top string.
We’ll use the 24 inch cord and tie a knot in one end and
feed the other through the top hole(above the one you just did) on the top left
side(looking at the BACK of the stick). Run that end towards you through the
top left(still looking at the BACK of the stick) diamond in the mesh and loop
it around the plastic and feed it back into the hole the same way you
started. Pull it tight and now you’re
ready to attach the mesh to the top of the head. It’s important to keep each of
these knots as tight as possible and remove any slack in the cord. Looking at the FRONT of the stick, feed the
cord in through the top left mesh diamond and weave it back out towards you
through the 2nd hole from the left in the top row of mesh. Now feed it through the first plastic hole on
the top of the head, pull it down to the left and bring it back(toward you)
through the gap between the plastic and the mesh. Loop it around(to the
right)and through the same gap so the cord is hanging in the back side. Now
feed it through(toward you) the back side of the hole in the plastic that we
just used and drop it through the loop we just made. Pull everything tight and
you’re ready to move on!
Once the knot is tight(looking at the FRONT), feed the
cord through the 3rd diamond in the mesh and pull it back out
through the 4th diamond. Now tie the same knot you just learned in
the 2nd plastic hole along the top and feed the cord back into the 4th
diamond hole in the mesh. Now pull it over the top of the mesh and feed it
through(away from you) the 5th diamond in the mesh. Next, pull the
cord through(towards you) the 6th diamond in the mesh and tie that
knot again. Once it is tight, feed the cord back through(away from you) the 6th
diamond in the mesh. Now pull it through(toward you) the 7th diamond
in the mesh and tie that knot again! Once it is tight, feed the cord through(away
from you) the 8th diamond in the mesh. Almost done!
Now pull the
cord back through(toward you) the 9th diamond in the mesh and into
the plastic top side hole on the right side of the stick. Just wrap it around
the back of the plastic and back into the same hole and tie it off. It’s
important to have all of the slack out of the spaces between those knots. The
top string is the most important part and if it’s goofy, it’s better to redo it
and have a more accurate end result. Your stick is your personal tool to your
success on the field. Take pride in what you are doing and don’t be afraid to
make mistakes. Feel free to try out different knots and placement of the mesh,
in the end, it’s all about what feels right to YOU.
