Custom Bats Cricket Forum
Equipment => Bats => Topic started by: TheBiologist on April 18, 2014, 08:09:05 PM
-
Hello everyone,
I came across this forum a few months back while looking for reviews on cricket gear and this has been a great experience following it. Anyway, I am looking buy a new bat for this season. I have NOT used a lot of quality cricket bats before, as I am primarily a bowler and didn't have the money to buy a good bat. In the past I have used a low end BAS Vampire (with a traditional profile) and occasionally a Slazenger Hyper Blade Jacques Kallis bat (one of my team mates). My last bat was a crappy SS King Richards that broke after 2 months of use. The SS bat was a bit heavy without a good ping. On hitting higher up or around the toe of the SS bat it used to cause a jarring which I really hated. And this is what I don't want in my next bat. The BAS was a bit heavy but had a good ping. The Slazenger bat had a good pickup with a decent ping, traditional profile, no jarring (anything to do with the handle ?), but was a bit heavy. So in short I am looking for something better than any of the bats I have used so far. :-)
I have a low budget (perennial graduate student). I have noticed that the harrow sized bats are relatively much cheaper than full sized bats. I am considering buying a harrow sized bat to save some money. I have never held a harrow bat in my life before. And I am thinking that I can get away with it as I am only 5'7" and have small hands. Any comment on this ?
What I need in my bat -
1) A handle that is oval at the bottom and round at the top (like the Slazenger handle)
2) Preferably a traditional non concave profile
3) Slight bow
4) Light pickup
5) Lightweight (2.6 or below)
6) No jarring in the handle
7) Good ping (needless to say) :)
8) I don't care about monstrous edges, as long as the bat has a big hitting zone!
9) Price < 120 pounds (USD 200)
10) A bat that I can possibly use for two seasons, as I will not be able to afford another bat next season.
Here are some of the questions that I have. First of all, do you recommend the use of a harrow bat ? None of the stores in my area (northern Maryland, US) carry harrow sized bats. So I can't go and check it out. And do you recommend any bat or batmaker in particular ?
Any suggestion ?
Thanks in advance! :)
-
MSR sounds a good fit.
-
Try EBay list no 151269351263 (though I appreciate it is a SH)
-
Hey there,
I would recommend getting a SH around 2.7 or 2.8lbs. Get one that feels right to you.
- Kal
-
MSR sounds a good fit.
Are MSR bats coming with oval handle? MSR bats I have are all round handle.
-
It's amazing what you can do with a bit of lecky tape...
For that budget it's where you make compromises really.
-
At 5ft 7 you should be using a SH bat, try and get something with a mid/high middle as this will aid pickup ie make it feel light in the hands. Plenty of options in 2.6 or 2.7. Look at a couple of the forum makers like red ink, Aldred, RK they will be able to make you something custom for that budget I would imagine mate. Or if you want off the shelf Vitas & Uzi hand pick there bats and offer great service so they will be able to help you mate.
-
Due to me being 5ft 6 tall I brought what you have described with a short handle high middle from Paul Aldred. The bat is made from willow with stains and is known as butterfly the cost of the bat was £135.00 inc shipping in England.
-
I'd recommend Paul at IJC, he's got some Small men's Spartans in.
Failing that try Vitas - they are also quality.
-
we have GN Powebow LE in small Men and Oblivion 5 star.
We also have
Uzi Sports Black mamba in small Men or Academy size
BAS Shadow and Bow 20/20
In Men Size the lightest bat we have is 2.6
-
If you are looking for a harrow I believe Paul @IJC had some Hammer Fyree's in harrow grade 1 for around your budget
-
Check out Paul's video on the subject
Analysis on Harrow Cricket Bats & Comparison with SH Bats (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Hu8jxWrnfA#ws)
I would say definitely consider a harrow size or an academy size.
-
Try EBay list no 151269351263 (though I appreciate it is a SH)
Thank you Alvaro for the suggestion. But I am not planning on getting a round handled bat unless I absolutely can't find one with my specs.
At 5ft 7 you should be using a SH bat, try and get something with a mid/high middle as this will aid pickup ie make it feel light in the hands. Plenty of options in 2.6 or 2.7. Look at a couple of the forum makers like red ink, Aldred, RK they will be able to make you something custom for that budget I would imagine mate. Or if you want off the shelf Vitas & Uzi hand pick there bats and offer great service so they will be able to help you mate.
Thank you SOULMAN1012! I will send messages to them to find out if they have something that fits my bill. But aren't the custom made full sized short handle bats more expensive than harrow/academy/small mens size bats ? Correct me if I am wrong.
Check out Paul's video on the subject
Analysis on Harrow Cricket Bats & Comparison with SH Bats ([url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Hu8jxWrnfA#ws[/url])
I would say definitely consider a harrow size or an academy size.
Paul's video is what really got me thinking about a getting a bat that is not full sized. My thinking is that I can get the same quality wood as a full sized bat at a much lower price, at the cost of a slightly smaller size. And academy size is the something in between harrow or full sized short handle right ? And academy size is the same as super short handle. Correct me if I am wrong, you guys know a lot more than you do!
Due to me being 5ft 6 tall I brought what you have described with a short handle high middle from Paul Aldred. The bat is made from willow with stains and is known as butterfly the cost of the bat was £135.00 inc shipping in England.
Interesting. I had never heard of a butterfly cleft before. How much did the bat weight ? Can you please post a few pics of your bat, or the link to a thread where you have already posted them. :-)
we have GN Powebow LE in small Men and Oblivion 5 star.
We also have
Uzi Sports Black mamba in small Men or Academy size
BAS Shadow and Bow 20/20
In Men Size the lightest bat we have is 2.6
Asad, just sent you a PM. Thanks!
If you are looking for a harrow I believe Paul @IJC had some Hammer Fyree's in harrow grade 1 for around your budget
I'd recommend Paul at IJC, he's got some Small men's Spartans in.
Failing that try Vitas - they are also quality.
I will send a message to Paul to find out if he has anything. The small mens size is the same as academy size right ?
And out of curiosity, why don't we see the traditional non concave cricket bats as much from off the shelf companies ?
-
Not at all mate, I'm sure they will have something to suit you budget, may not have 12+ straight grains but those 3 produce good bats mate so you will be fine.
-
The weight of the Aldred bat I have is 2lb 7ounces. Just to clarify for you the willow is called butterfly due to a stain on the wood which forms the the shape of the butterfly wings, wing, or body.
-
I have a Slazenger which is just a touch under 2lb6oz and is SH size. Has been used for a few seasons but still has plenty of life left, can supply pics if you want.
Obviously as it is used it will cost less too.