Custom Bats Cricket Forum
Equipment => Bats => Topic started by: duelist83 on February 16, 2016, 05:28:24 PM
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Hi all, it's been a while since I last posted here. I am currently looking to go back to using a standard SH instead of my current LB bats. I don't want to go crazy and spend mega bucks and end up not liking the SH experience so I am currently looking at a few of the lower grade or butterfly bats. I need some help here though from you guys who have experience with these. I am looking at 3 UK bat makers (below) and would appreciate any feedback that will make my decision easier.
Aldred Butterfly £145
B3 Stripe 1 £140
H4L Devil £155
Please let me know how the below would rate performance wise and value for money wise. I currently have a H4L G1 so know a little about their performance.
Looking forward to all the many responses I get. ;)
Cheers
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Hi all, it's been a while since I last posted here. I am currently looking to go back to using a standard SH instead of my current LB bats. I don't want to go crazy and spend mega bucks and end up not liking the SH experience so I am currently looking at a few of the lower grade or butterfly bats. I need some help here though from you guys who have experience with these. I am looking at 3 UK bat makers (below) and would appreciate any feedback that will make my decision easier.
Aldred Butterfly £145
B3 Stripe 1 £140
H4L Devil £155
Please let me know how the below would rate performance wise and value for money wise. I currently have a H4L G1 so know a little about their performance.
Looking forward to all the many responses I get. ;)
Cheers
A devil is £135 from us if that helps.
Plenty of hand selected english willow bats in stock as cheap as £70, all with free delivery.
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I can vouch for a Devil bud, amazing value at £135 from Jake, do it...
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I have both an Aldred butterfly and a h4l devil. They are both pressed very well, finished very well and perform very well. Either way you will be pleased. Between the two I would go for the Aldred. The Aldreds tend to be heavier though pick up very well. If you prefer a 'light' dead weight you may have more options with h4l.
I have never had a B3 though the ones I have seen have little/no bow. That may or may not be an issue for you. It is for me, that is why I gave my 50% off voucher away. I'm sure they make an excellent bat too.
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With the H4L devils are they generally sold with pressing cracks etc?
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No. They are just grades 3 or 4
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Hmmm!! Thanks for the info guys. I was leaning more towards the Aldred and H4L tbh.
Vitas... Do you possibly have any pics of those Devils. I don't see them on your website. Looking for something in the 2"9-2"10 range in weight.
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Hmmm!! Thanks for the info guys. I was leaning more towards the Aldred and H4L tbh.
Vitas... Do you possibly have any pics of those Devils. I don't see them on your website. Looking for something in the 2"9-2"10 range in weight.
They are normally made in the hellfire shape I think just from lower grade willow however you get the odd one like mine in a duckbill warbird profile, I don't know whether this was a one off or if there is always the duckbills available however
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Grade 2 Fireball another option
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All options are excellent value but if you would like a custom shape B3 would be the way to go
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Hellfire shape, 2'10 +
We don't hold them in stock, but happy to tag one onto our next order
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Hi all, it's been a while since I last posted here. I am currently looking to go back to using a standard SH instead of my current LB bats. I don't want to go crazy and spend mega bucks and end up not liking the SH experience so I am currently looking at a few of the lower grade or butterfly bats. I need some help here though from you guys who have experience with these. I am looking at 3 UK bat makers (below) and would appreciate any feedback that will make my decision easier.
Aldred Butterfly £145
B3 Stripe 1 £140
H4L Devil £155
Please let me know how the below would rate performance wise and value for money wise. I currently have a H4L G1 so know a little about their performance.
Looking forward to all the many responses I get. ;)
Cheers
Anh specific reason you do not have Red Ink as an option? In my opinion they churn out as good bats as anyone for cheap as well. John is an absolute pleasure to work with as well from what I have heard.
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Red Ink... Dont really know much about them tbh. I'll have a look at them and reconsider my options. Looking at Affinity Carbine Sport as well as that was mentioned to me as well. Any opinions on them?
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With the H4L devils are they generally sold with pressing cracks etc?
no they stopped that some time go, the Devil is its own model/shape now, grade 3/4 based on the Hellfire I believe.
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Rob pack blueroom? I got a grade 3 as a net bat and it ended up proforming better than my grade 1 bats
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I've only heard good things about affinity bats...
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Don't discount John. Had two Red Ink bats made. A Custom X3 and X*
Quality and service on both bats were spot on. Both bats made by hand to the exact spec required
There's also Ryan Kelsall, Bellingham & Smith and Blank Bats
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Red Ink... Dont really know much about them tbh. I'll have a look at them and reconsider my options. Looking at Affinity Carbine Sport as well as that was mentioned to me as well. Any opinions on them?
Got an affinity carbine sport too. Might be a little out of your price range. I did a review of it against a h4l NV grade 2. It's on here.
http://custombats.co.uk/cbforum/index.php?topic=36928.0 (http://custombats.co.uk/cbforum/index.php?topic=36928.0)
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Actually I came across a retailer selling the Affinity at £160. Good review by the way. I own a H4L NV G1 and I think its an absolute belter of a bat. Probably along with my D&P the best 2 bats I've ever used. Quite drawn to B&S as well. Gosh this has now just made my quest even more difficult! lol
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Pick the stickers you like the best and then play it in properly. Whatever you choose should then work out okay.
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You won't go wrong with a Red Ink and as a forum member you may get a discount.
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Anyone familiar with niche cricket? My mate sourced his H4L from there. It was a grade 2 Hellfire and he got it for the same price that people here are discussing for the Devil (grade 3/4)
They seem to deal only in H4L, don't have a website only a relatively young Facebook page...
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Never heard of them but i think they will be gaining a few extra likes right about now
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Matt doesn't deal with them anymore after being mislead by them.
Their page hasn't been updated for nearly a year so i suspect they are a non starter for anyone looking to buy a bat from them.
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Last FB post may 2015, saying website coming soon??? Not that soon I see....
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My mate has just bought a H4L hellfire Grade 2 I think he paid £145. I'll have to ask him how he found them because I also noticed that they haven't been active on FB and they don't have a website... ebay possibly!!!! They only seem to deal in hellfire's. Vitas do you have any hatturi in stock what's your best price on a grade 2??
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I know all there is to know about Niche Cricket. They were 2 club players who were trying to get an online thing going. They had about 4/5 relatively large suppliers onboard including Matt at H4L but as far as I understand they had a slight fall out due to difference in opinion on the way forward. One wanted to sell stuff on a retail business ebay page and the other wanted to go more professional with the website. Matt was made aware of the whole ebay thing which he was happy with at the time as a temporary fix before the website was ready but then received complaints from some of his other retailers. As for buying a G2 for the price of a Devil... that will be inaccurate as that will mean they were selling it at a loss. They were retailing G2 at £190 which was within the 10% RRP price bracket that suppliers always request their retailers to sell in. It's possible that when things went haywire that they were trying to get rid of the remaining stock.
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IJC seem to sell some H4L gear on Ebay, or is this different?
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Think it would be more to do with the price that where it's being sold. When one "retailer" is selling something way under RRP others either have to hold firm or drop as well which causes havoc for everyone's margins.
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Think it would be more to do with the price that where it's being sold. When one "retailer" is selling something way under RRP others either have to hold firm or drop as well which causes havoc for everyone's margins.
Ah, I see. Thanks for the explanation @Ayrtek
Purely from a consumers point of view, this has to be a good thing. And if a certain retailer finds a way of offering a better price than others to the consumer, whether it is by buying gear in larger quantities or cutting down on certain overheads, then as long as everything is above board then isn't it sour grapes for other retailers to then complain??
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Ah, I see. Thanks for the explanation @Ayrtek
Purely from a consumers point of view, this has to be a good thing. And if a certain retailer finds a way of offering a better price than others to the consumer, whether it is by buying gear in larger quantities or cutting down on certain overheads, then as long as everything is above board then isn't it sour grapes for other retailers to then complain??
Perhaps but it's also the reason many small independent sports shops have closed due to not being able to compete with the sport super-stores who can afford to slash their margins. Cricket specialists are reliant on cricket sales to survive unlike General sports stores who sell a cross a range of sports throughout the year.
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Perhaps but it's also the reason many small independent sports shops have closed due to not being able to compete with the sport super-stores who can afford to slash their margins. Cricket specialists are reliant on cricket sales to survive unlike General sports stores who sell a cross a range of sports throughout the year.
No prize for guessing the retailer.
Brand new range for 2016, top of the range bat, "50% off RRP" from day one...
(http://i1206.photobucket.com/albums/bb450/CPye061194/IMG-20160221-WA0012_zpsoeiqzimm.jpg) (http://s1206.photobucket.com/user/CPye061194/media/IMG-20160221-WA0012_zpsoeiqzimm.jpg.html)
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I could understand it if it was the end of the season to clear stock in advance of new stuff arriving but as you say, brand new range just onto the shelves.
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Is that not illegal if it was never sold at 299.99??
Wasn't there an incident on the apprentice were a guy wrote 29.99 crossed out and 14.99 and both the woman that watches and sugar later said it was criminal?
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Is that not illegal if it was never sold at 299.99??
Wasn't there an incident on the apprentice were a guy wrote 29.99 crossed out and 14.99 and both the woman that watches and sugar later said it was criminal?
There was a channel 4 doc on SD I believe and this previously. Staff interviews etc about the mark em up to knock em down approach.
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I have nothing against a bat maker setting a price bracket for retailers to stay within. Otherwise no one will buy from the actual maker directly. The guys at Niche Cricket had the club cricketer in mind and their prices would have been better than the current market leaders but still staying within the makers 10% price bracket. I think the retailers that did complain was scared of the impact they might have if they actually got in the market. Anyway I think they should have left out the eBay business and stuck only with a legitimate website. I do believe that one of the blokes might try and revive it but possibly under a new name without his partner. He was the one who wanted to do the legitimate website and run it like a business instead of a eBay retailer. He was very upset at the break down in relationship with Matt so would hopefully try and build bridges at some point when his ready.
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Were you involved in the business at all @duelist83 ?
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Lol... No just knew one of the blokes very well. 😄
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@duelist83 I think you might have hit the nail on the head. My mate did buy a Grade 2 for £145 of that I am certain but you are probably right that they were selling off stock. I might message them... bargain opportunity...
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Karl, I am looking for a bat under £160 an hav already tried them. No stock left. Feel free to try though. Told me they sold their last G2 a few weeks back at 15% under their retail price of £190 which should be around £160.
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Karl, I am looking for a bat under £160 an hav already tried them. No stock left. Feel free to try though. Told me they sold their last G2 a few weeks back at 15% under their retail price of £190 which should be around £160.
For that money (£160) you could get something serious on ebay...
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Not quite a big fan of buying off eBay really. I'm sure u can probably get the odd bargain just wouldn't want to take the risk.
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Karl, I am looking for a bat under £160 an hav already tried them. No stock left. Feel free to try though. Told me they sold their last G2 a few weeks back at 15% under their retail price of £190 which should be around £160.
Yes, you're spot on. It was 160 I checked with him... You know far too much, you are niche cricket:) I believe he's been chasing you for a bag also...
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Lol!! As mentioned. I kno the Saffa bloke that started it well. If I was Niche Cricket I would have kept one of those H4L for myself. 😄
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Lol!! As mentioned. I kno the Saffa bloke that started it well. If I was Niche Cricket I would have kept one of those H4L for myself. 😄
I might be jumping to the wrong conclusions here but Niche cricket were advertising a H4L grade 1 and grade 2 on Facebook some 10 months ago.
My mate recently bought the Grade 2 for £160
duelist83 tells us he currently owns a H4L grade one and is looking for a new bat under... you guessed it £160 (He knows everything there is to know about Niche cricket.
My conclusion is you started a business it didn't go to plan due to differences in what direction the partners wanted to go. You were left with a H4L hellfire grade1 and grade2. You kept the grade 1 for personal use and sold the grade 2 because it was identical. Why would anybody want an identical bat of a lower grade. Now you are looking to re-invest the proceeds of your sale into a new piece of willow...
Sherlock Holmes over and out :D
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Lol, good theory. But I own a H4L bought from IJC over a year ago.
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Ha, ok.
This site is quite cool it's like compare the meerkats for cricket bats. Seem to have the custom manufacturers aswell
http://www.comparesportskit.com/index.php/cricket/view/manufactures2/ (http://www.comparesportskit.com/index.php/cricket/view/manufactures2/)