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Equipment => Bats => Topic started by: Kulli on April 08, 2011, 01:55:30 PM

Title: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: Kulli on April 08, 2011, 01:55:30 PM
Right, Ignoring percieved performance and presuming all grains are gunbarrel straight and evenly spaced, what number of grains do you think looks the most attractive (and why if you like...)

I reckon somehwere in the mid teens as much higher than that and they tend to be less defined and almost congested looking.
Title: Re: Pretties number of grains
Post by: Talisman on April 08, 2011, 01:59:40 PM
13 - 18 or 30+ for purely looks
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: Colesy on April 08, 2011, 02:00:24 PM
11
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: slogsweep on April 08, 2011, 02:01:52 PM
10 - 12 grains and I'm happy
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: tommo256 on April 08, 2011, 02:08:28 PM
7 with heartwood
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: procricket on April 08, 2011, 02:10:15 PM
I used to like masses of grains but after a few mega grainers i like around 10 with no heartwood or any thing just white wood.
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: harry kovert on April 08, 2011, 02:13:14 PM
9-13 for me with no heartwood.
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: Mr Cricket on April 08, 2011, 02:14:48 PM
1 grain, just for a laugh
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: ProWannabe88 on April 08, 2011, 02:18:36 PM
10-14 with 2-3 heartwood on right hand outside edge. LUSH :)
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: Six Sixes Cricket on April 08, 2011, 02:21:30 PM
10-14 with no heartwood.
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: jimba101 on April 08, 2011, 03:05:33 PM
i love my first h4l with just 8 but I'd say 15-20 with 1/3 heartwood - bit like those salix grade 4's lol
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: peplow on April 08, 2011, 03:06:57 PM
9-13 for me with no heartwood.

bang on for me too, Not impartial to a tad of heartwood but nothing too dark or messy! prefer without though
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: Liam-SCCC on April 08, 2011, 03:12:30 PM
8 evenly spaced and ruler straight
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: Apple on April 08, 2011, 03:14:10 PM
12.
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: Maverick79 on April 08, 2011, 03:28:49 PM
Around 10-12 either all sapwood or with a small area of heartwood
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: johan95 on April 08, 2011, 03:49:28 PM
10 with Heartwood on the RHB's outside edge mmm :D
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: Canners on April 08, 2011, 05:08:50 PM
30 is definitely the prettiest i'l even post a pic to prove it
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: Canners on April 08, 2011, 05:15:37 PM
(http://i1215.photobucket.com/albums/cc517/canners1983/8eb63baf.jpg)

Not bad eh
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: jimba101 on April 08, 2011, 05:16:51 PM
([url]http://i1215.photobucket.com/albums/cc517/canners1983/8eb63baf.jpg[/url])

Not bad eh


:O whos is this beaut?
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: Howzat on April 08, 2011, 05:27:18 PM
Ewww reminds me of a kashmir willow bat to be honest!
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: Talisman on April 08, 2011, 05:42:50 PM
Leo are you a grumpy old man in secret???
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: Canners on April 08, 2011, 05:49:56 PM
:O whos is this beaut?

Apparently he's kind of a big deal ;)
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: roco on April 08, 2011, 05:52:40 PM
I heard he hold it the wrong way round ?
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: ProWannabe88 on April 08, 2011, 05:56:45 PM
I bet that goes like a bitch!!
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: procricket on April 08, 2011, 05:58:59 PM
May i ask why it will go like a bitch on a picture alone mate....
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: ProWannabe88 on April 08, 2011, 05:59:58 PM
The Structure of grains is very tight and the heartwood across the middle will help no end
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: pacman75cricket on April 08, 2011, 06:01:01 PM
10-12 grains for me
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: procricket on April 08, 2011, 06:01:31 PM
so your saying bats with that even structure and number will make the bat perform better and quicker ...

What does heartwood do to a bat to increase performance

Not being funny i'am interested mate
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: Talisman on April 08, 2011, 06:03:03 PM
More grains equal a stiffer blade with greater energy return and heartwood will be drier like your reserve giving a bigger bat for the dead weight.
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: ProWannabe88 on April 08, 2011, 06:04:53 PM
Only saying what I've been told in the past mate. Lots of tight straight grains should mean better response and heartwood is that bit harder so should go very well.
If I'm wrong someone please tell me, that's what I've always thought though.
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: Talisman on April 08, 2011, 06:05:38 PM
Heartwood is more brittle, not harder.
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: procricket on April 08, 2011, 06:07:20 PM
There no known evidence that heartwood increases performance

(No Swearing Please) i need to leave the forum my mind is working over time to much time reading about willow and stuff.

Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: ProWannabe88 on April 08, 2011, 06:07:40 PM
Ah right. Thanks mike
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: procricket on April 08, 2011, 06:09:32 PM
And are we saying that tight grains is a 100 per cent fool proof way of judging a way a bat will play
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: Howzat on April 08, 2011, 06:12:14 PM
Leo are you a grumpy old man in secret???
Just that it reminds me of a kashmir part made that I had... 25 grains 3/4 heartwood!
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: Cover_Drive on April 08, 2011, 06:20:29 PM
8-13, no heartwood, if there is any then it should be a small strip on outer edge (preferably)
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: Talisman on April 08, 2011, 06:26:29 PM
And are we saying that tight grains is a 100 per cent fool proof way of judging a way a bat will play

No, it is not 100% but it is a very good indicator if all the other aspects are equal, it can be pressed wrong just like 6 grains so as long as you get more components done well you increase the chances of a great bat.

One thing worth bearing in mind when someone who sells bats for a living tells you that "x" is the best number of grains is that "x" is almost certainly what they will have lots of in their workshop. If I had 1000 clefts with 8/9 grains and 1000 with 20+ grains I know which would be sought after. The trouble is that market pressure on the growers leads to them planting where the tree will grow fastest and give them a greater yield and thus profit. I would think most trees these days are harvested in 15 years and so 7 grains is going to be standard numbers wise.
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: Perkins17 on April 08, 2011, 06:34:11 PM
has to be around 8-9 grains with a nice butterfly stain near the toe :D
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: roco on April 08, 2011, 06:37:12 PM
You and your butterfly stains
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: Perkins17 on April 08, 2011, 06:42:15 PM
:D
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: Watsontotty on April 08, 2011, 07:41:45 PM
9 is what i like and never found any more gives a better performance than my bats with 9, lots of stuff regarding this and in my opinion no evidence bats with more grains will play any better than a bat with a few less. Ive had some bats with 15 grains and more but they haven't been any better than bats with 8 or 9.
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: procricket on April 08, 2011, 07:43:24 PM
9 is what i like and never found any more gives a better performance than my bats with 9, lots of stuff regarding this and in my opinion no evidence bats with more grains will play any better than a bat with a few less. Ive had some bats with 15 grains and more but they haven't been any better than bats with 8 or 9.

Rich i agree 100 per cent
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: Talisman on April 08, 2011, 08:03:53 PM
Ahh but you 2 haven't spent £300k like others have.... they found direct correlation between grains and performance.
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: procricket on April 08, 2011, 08:05:01 PM
Oh mike i have mate i had a 29 grain beast performance was good but not the best i have had.

Funny if they were the best why do not most pro not  use 25 grain bats

I have had 4 bats in my life all over 20 grains one was a peach the other 3 were good nothing special

And 2 of them were pressed at the best place according to most people
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: Watsontotty on April 08, 2011, 08:19:08 PM
Ahh but you 2 haven't spent £300k like others have.... they found direct correlation between grains and performance.

Fortunately many makers would disagree with your comments Mike and they have spent a fair bit more than 300k, some will agree with you while others disagree so unfortunately its an argument which cant be won either way. I have my opinions and you have yours and i believe certain people see multiple grains as an opportunity to ramp the price up and use it purely as a marketing tool. I have around 10 bats at the minute all with different number of grains from 15 down to 9 and if I'm honest very little difference at all between them.
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: Talisman on April 08, 2011, 08:30:37 PM
Rich, who has spent any money on purely investigating the properties of willow other than GM. You were there when they revealed a small part of what they know. Grains are just a factor, of course you could get a 35 grain bat to be dead and a 3 grain bat to pee all over it but my argument would be that more grains equals extra stiffness and more energy returned.

If you disagree then please give me your counter argument, what would you say was best and why? Give me the science behind 9 grains.

Maybe something worth bearing in mind is that finding plenty of tight grains is hard to do. And when I look at Pro bats I see plenty, maybe not 30 but near 20 often, very rarely low numbers.
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: Canners on April 08, 2011, 08:51:49 PM
I didn't mean to start a controversy I just think it looks a bloody pretty bat and by far the prettiest I've owned, although I've got one currently under the knife that's up there
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: procricket on April 08, 2011, 10:40:43 PM
I would love to see a maga grainer 25 plus no heartwood no that is a true rareity
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: cricketboy2010 on April 08, 2011, 11:28:05 PM
17-25 with 2-3 grains heartwood yummy! :D
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: 100 not out on April 08, 2011, 11:38:58 PM
minimum 9, but no more than 14
Title: Re: Prettiest number of grains
Post by: cricketer13 on April 09, 2011, 04:21:58 AM
http://custombats.co.uk/cbforum/index.php?topic=10922.0

this does it for me!