Custom Bats Cricket Forum
Equipment => Bats => Topic started by: Vulcan Cricket on February 23, 2016, 11:14:13 AM
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Are you caught up in the great grain race ??? Do you go on grains how many or do you go on price or ping and shape and would you you pay £500 plus for a bat ??? If yes or no say why
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I think when you are buying a brands "premier" bat you expect grains and performance. If you just want performance you can buy a less pretty bat for less money. Would I pay £500 for bat - yes; why - because I am lucky enough to be able to. Does it perform any better or any worse than a cheaper bat - probably not. Does it make me happy - YES. And that's good enough for me.
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I like lots of grains. Or maybe the word is prefer.
If I'm choosing a cleft from someone o will request more grains.
But will I pay more for more grains? No.
A b3 3 stripe is a 3 stripe I'll pay the same for 8 straight grains as I will for 28.
Same with a h4l pro and any other manufacturers.
If some starts selling to g1's 7-12 grains at 300 and 12 grains plus at 350. I'd take the 300 one.
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No, it's about performance and to be honest I'm not good enough to need a £500 bat when a £150 will do. Not fussed by grains but like a bat to look big, more in the mind than anything.
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No, it's about performance and to be honest I'm not good enough to need a £500 bat when a £150 will do. Not fussed by grains but like a bat to look big, more in the mind than anything.
I agree. I'm no expert but I doubt there is much difference between a 150 and 500 bat. I think what you are buying is beauty, pleasure and the confidence it gives you. I suppose you could liken it to buying a skoda or a VW - they are both essentially the same car and do the same thing but the general perception is VW is better and more expensive. Its just a question of choice and resources - as long as people can they will! I don't think ability has anything to do with it.
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weirdly not fussed with grains even though 3 out of my last 4 bats have had 15+ grains
never asked for them as tend to say to the maker pick the best performing cleft you have and if I like it will keep it and go back for another when needed/wanted if I don't then I sell it and don't order again from that maker
I would never spend £500 on a bat as way too much when you can shop around and get better value somewhere else
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My bats generally have seven grains. Apart from a couple of top end treats that were gifts.
So it's probably ingrained in me to prefer that many now.
I look for a more pronounced grain if possible as I've found these go best for me.
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I think it's no to all questions for me.
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I prefer straight grains above lots of them. Lots of grains is always a bonus, but falls behind, ping, pick up and price in my priorities.
Mind you, I always have a soft spot for a right ugly munter, particularly butterflies.
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Love straight grains also Grainwise watched a bat making video where the head batmaker at Spartan states 10 to 14 straight grains make the best bats.
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Pick up and the size are my triggers in a bat. Mental and physical together
Would I pay 500 for a bat yes if I thought it was the one and I had complete control (however I did feck it up )
Grains are good to look at only but hey we all like
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Always on the lookout for pickup ping and straight grains happy to pay 500.00
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Some of the best pinging bats i have seen had 6-10 grains. Its better to have straight grains than more in number.
Shape and ping is the key and i don't want to pay more than 200/250 for a bat.
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Is it true that the bats with lots of grains open up quickly but are prone to breakage, and bats with less grains take time to open up but last longer?
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I prefer performance & price over the looks, however I'll be happy if I buy a bat within my budget & with superb performance & additionally has 40 grains. I doubt if I'll pay 500 quids for a bat in next 2-3 years.
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Is it true that the bats with lots of grains open up quickly but are prone to breakage, and bats with less grains take time to open up but last longer?
It's quite a loose rule I think, generally speaking, more grains = more stiffness so will tend to perform at peak sooner. However the wood is also older, while less grains means the tree was younger, so is more likely to last a bit longer. That's from what I've read, but there are ALWAYS exceptions to the rule, since it's a natural product, and you have to take into consideration other external factors, such as the conditions the willow was grown in, and the nutrients etc etc etc. Oh, also any major storms, and whether that specific tree was affected badly! :)
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Personally, I like straight and evenly spaced grains, be there 6 or 24! Purely aesthetic. As @Alvaro mentioned, I too have had good experiences with bats with pronounced grains, but that could be purely due to luck. I think Mike Hussey is the opposite side of the spectrum, in which he prefers a lighter grain, as he believes it's a sign of 'softer' timber. In the end though, a 6 grainer could outperform an 18 grainer, but all that doesn't matter if you can't hit the ball! :D
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Is it true that the bats with lots of grains open up quickly but are prone to breakage, and bats with less grains take time to open up but last longer?
Yes the willow is older in clefts with more grains and should open up the thought pattern is the bat won't last as long as a bat made from willow that is not as old there's also less sapwood in older willow.
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prefer more than 8 grains, however would never pay 500 quid for a bat!!!! crikey that is a lot of money for a piece of wood, i'd never use it through fear of breaking it!!!!
overall however pick up and balance is the key - if it looks like a piece of crap but goes like the clappers - then a sand and some sticker will cover the ugly bits and i am using it!!!!
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Are you caught up in the great grain race ??? Do you go on grains how many or do you go on price or ping and shape and would you you pay £500 plus for a bat ??? If yes or no say why
No.
I think grain/grading process is very confusing and bat makers have an upper hand over consumers in the bat pricing. I'd rather pay $200-$250 for an ugly bat that performs like a trampoline than $450 + for a pretty, straight grained bat with similar performance.
What determines bat's performance? Grains? Pressing? Both? Why are ugly bats not pressed like Player Grade bats? You see where this is headed.
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Surely if a 6 grain picks up and ping really well it doesn't matter about anything else? I just picked up a £70 Kook with 7 strain grains and it feels lovely and goes like the clappers!! Id only pay £500 for a bat if it magically transformed my ability and put me in the England lineup :D:D
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I do like to focus on number and appearance of grains, but mainly location of the middle and weight are important to me. There is no point buying a bat that I am barely going to be able to play a back foot shot with. I would definitely pay £500 for a bat if the right one came about, as they are objects you get attached to, use every week for months on end, and will then keep for years!
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Really not fussed by max grains, but really dont like heartwood, so that is my only thing. Generally buy bats on pick up, and never spent more than £200 on a bat!
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if someone mentioned to me they were planning to spend £500.00 on a bat at club level I would def try to dissuade them and spend the money on a £200.00 bat and the rest in sessions with someone qualified. No one I know of is good enough to use bats this highly priced.
Personally I was told choose a bat with 8-10 grains, but my current one has 6, and I bought that second hand.
The only thing I really do like is whiter willow as opposed to darker because someone once told me that would be softer and in my experience it is.
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No one I know of is good enough to use bats this highly priced.
I think we all agree that a 200 bat is probably as good as a 500 bat. Its not about if you are good enough to use a 500 bat its do you want one, are you prepared to pay for it and will it give you pleasure. If you do, you can and it will then why not have one. I think once you get above a certain price point we shouldn't try to equate cost to performance or skill its more about the pleasure you get from owning such a beast. Just a thought :)
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if someone mentioned to me they were planning to spend £500.00 on a bat at club level I would def try to dissuade them and spend the money on a £200.00 bat and the rest in sessions with someone qualified. No one I know of is good enough to use bats this highly priced.
Personally I was told choose a bat with 8-10 grains, but my current one has 6, and I bought that second hand.
The only thing I really do like is whiter willow as opposed to darker because someone once told me that would be softer and in my experience it is.
The whiter the willow the more sap therefore softer the darker the willow the less sap or pinkish sapwood in the willow is moving towards heartwood which we know has little or no sap and is harder.
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The only thing I really do like is whiter willow as opposed to darker because someone once told me that would be softer and in my experience it is.
Buuuuut... why do you want a softer bat?