Custom Bats Cricket Forum
Forum News and Suggestions => Old Advertisers => Admin Board => Vitas Cricket => Topic started by: WalkingWicket37 on January 31, 2017, 10:31:31 PM
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Evening all
As mentioned a couple of days ago, last Thursday @simonmay5 and I went to Hunts County, to get a bat made using the @Vitas Cricket custom offer.
http://custombats.co.uk/cbforum/index.php?topic=41369.0 (http://custombats.co.uk/cbforum/index.php?topic=41369.0)
Now I've given the bat a couple of coats of oil I have finally got round to taking a few pictures.
When Tony asked what I'd like, I simply asked for a mid-low sweet spot and a full profile, with a finished weight of about 2lb10.
I think it's easier to let the pictures do the talking here:
(http://i1206.photobucket.com/albums/bb450/CPye061194/20170131_204652_zpsnhdbdaa1.jpg) (http://s1206.photobucket.com/user/CPye061194/media/20170131_204652_zpsnhdbdaa1.jpg.html)
(http://i1206.photobucket.com/albums/bb450/CPye061194/20170131_204857_zpshlxdbgkl.jpg) (http://s1206.photobucket.com/user/CPye061194/media/20170131_204857_zpshlxdbgkl.jpg.html)
(http://i1206.photobucket.com/albums/bb450/CPye061194/20170131_222034_zpswjt9twlh.jpg) (http://s1206.photobucket.com/user/CPye061194/media/20170131_222034_zpswjt9twlh.jpg.html)
(http://i1206.photobucket.com/albums/bb450/CPye061194/20170131_222115_zpskvquhtdh.jpg) (http://s1206.photobucket.com/user/CPye061194/media/20170131_222115_zpskvquhtdh.jpg.html)
(http://i1206.photobucket.com/albums/bb450/CPye061194/20170131_204930_zpsnhqpq7fx.jpg) (http://s1206.photobucket.com/user/CPye061194/media/20170131_204930_zpsnhqpq7fx.jpg.html)
As you can see the edges aren't huge, but there is absolutely zero concaving!
The bat has 8 straight grains, with a couple of small patches of graping. These grains go through the toe with a slight wobble, but I definitely won't complain about a couple of degrees.
Now for the vital stats:
Edge peak - 29mm
Edges at shoulder - 15mm
Edges at toe - 20mm
Toe at centre - 27mm
Spine peak - 61mm
Considering the sweet spot is lower down the blade, the pickup is very good. Because there is still plenty of wood in the shoulders to help the balance, the bat doesn't feel bottom heavy at all. I'm impressed with how well balanced it feels. If I had to guess a weight from just waving it round I'd have said "about 2lb9".
Ping can be a fairly subjective thing, but I have tried to measure the "sweetspot" and "middle" of the bat.
As you'd expect, the toe of the bat doesn't ping all that well!
About 55mm from the toe the mallet starts to rebound off the face of the bat. The mallet continues to rebound up to roughly the base of the 1000 sticker, so about 340mm from the toe of the bat. This gives the bat a "sweetspot" of about 285mm
The best response comes fairly central up the blade, with the "middle" being the area roughly 170mm from the toe up to about 255mm from the toe. This gives an area of 85mm, which I would say is a fairly forgiving area.
You may have noticed that I have not mentioned the actual deadweight of the bat yet. Tony uses a set of old school scales, where you put metal weights on one side and the bat on the other. Before binding or stickers were applied I thought the bat was around 2lb8, which would have given a finished weight of roughly 2lb10.
This is the weight of the bat with 1.5 grips applied, after 2 coats of oil.
(http://i1206.photobucket.com/albums/bb450/CPye061194/20170131_205406_zpsxynaulh3.jpg) (http://s1206.photobucket.com/user/CPye061194/media/20170131_205406_zpsxynaulh3.jpg.html)
At 2lb 12.125oz it just goes to show how much of a mental thing pickup is. I believed it would be around 2b10, and had I not put the bat on the scales I wouldn't have questioned this. There is a lot to be said for picking a bat on feel, rather than deadweight (within reason).
And lastly, just for @InternalTraining I have tried to get some pictures that show that there is a moderate bow in the blade :)
(http://i1206.photobucket.com/albums/bb450/CPye061194/20170131_221734_zpszntxd8xl.jpg) (http://s1206.photobucket.com/user/CPye061194/media/20170131_221734_zpszntxd8xl.jpg.html)
(http://i1206.photobucket.com/albums/bb450/CPye061194/20170131_221659_zpstfhjo2fw.jpg) (http://s1206.photobucket.com/user/CPye061194/media/20170131_221659_zpstfhjo2fw.jpg.html)
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What a great looking bat, really nice profile.
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Very nice profile indeed! Look forward to seeing it in next Southern net! ;)
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Looks lovely that Cam, nice long middle. Not massive as you say but looks forgiving!
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Nice profile and lovely grains. A bit on the heavier side though.
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Nice timber you've got there Cam, hope it goes well :)
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Evening all
As mentioned a couple of days ago, last Thursday @simonmay5 and I went to Hunts County, to get a bat made using the @Vitas Cricket custom offer.
[url]http://custombats.co.uk/cbforum/index.php?topic=41369.0[/url] ([url]http://custombats.co.uk/cbforum/index.php?topic=41369.0[/url])
Now I've given the bat a couple of coats of oil I have finally got round to taking a few pictures.
When Tony asked what I'd like, I simply asked for a mid-low sweet spot and a full profile, with a finished weight of about 2lb10.
As you can see the edges aren't huge, but there is absolutely zero concaving!
The bat has 8 straight grains, with a couple of small patches of graping. These grains go through the toe with a slight wobble, but I definitely won't complain about a couple of degrees.
Now for the vital stats:
Edge peak - 29mm
Edges at shoulder - 15mm
Edges at toe - 20mm
Toe at centre - 27mm
Spine peak - 61mm
Considering the sweet spot is lower down the blade, the pickup is very good. Because there is still plenty of wood in the shoulders to help the balance, the bat doesn't feel bottom heavy at all. I'm impressed with how well balanced it feels. If I had to guess a weight from just waving it round I'd have said "about 2lb9".
Ping can be a fairly subjective thing, but I have tried to measure the "sweetspot" and "middle" of the bat.
As you'd expect, the toe of the bat doesn't ping all that well!
About 55mm from the toe the mallet starts to rebound off the face of the bat. The mallet continues to rebound up to roughly the base of the 1000 sticker, so about 340mm from the toe of the bat. This gives the bat a "sweetspot" of about 285mm
The best response comes fairly central up the blade, with the "middle" being the area roughly 170mm from the toe up to about 255mm from the toe. This gives an area of 85mm, which I would say is a fairly forgiving area.
You may have noticed that I have not mentioned the actual deadweight of the bat yet. Tony uses a set of old school scales, where you put metal weights on one side and the bat on the other. Before binding or stickers were applied I thought the bat was around 2lb8, which would have given a finished weight of roughly 2lb10.
This is the weight of the bat with 1.5 grips applied, after 2 coats of oil.
([url]http://i1206.photobucket.com/albums/bb450/CPye061194/20170131_205406_zpsxynaulh3.jpg[/url]) ([url]http://s1206.photobucket.com/user/CPye061194/media/20170131_205406_zpsxynaulh3.jpg.html[/url])
At 2lb 12.125oz it just goes to show how much of a mental thing pickup is. I believed it would be around 2b10, and had I not put the bat on the scales I wouldn't have questioned this. There is a lot to be said for picking a bat on feel, rather than deadweight (within reason).
And lastly, just for @InternalTraining I have tried to get some pictures that show that there is a moderate bow in the blade :)
([url]http://i1206.photobucket.com/albums/bb450/CPye061194/20170131_221659_zpstfhjo2fw.jpg[/url]) ([url]http://s1206.photobucket.com/user/CPye061194/media/20170131_221659_zpstfhjo2fw.jpg.html[/url])
Nice profile. Hope it goes well. Fuller profile is the way to go....
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Nice looking bat. Remind me, how much does the offer currently stand at?
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As of Jan 1st a G1 is £200 and G1+ £245. Other grades priced by request, we have never really done anything except G1 and G1+
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Love that profile cam
Looks a lovely addition to your collection
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Does 'fuller profile' just mean no concaving?
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Your soft furnishings are unrivalled.
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Does 'fuller profile' just mean no concaving?
Not always
Tend to asked for fully convexed If no concaving is required
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Not always
Tend to asked for fully convexed If no concaving is required
So what does it mean?
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As of Jan 1st a G1 is £200 and G1+ £245. Other grades priced by request, we have never really done anything except G1 and G1+
Does G1+ mean light density cleft ?
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And you thought a lot of questions were being asked in Parliament today?
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Does G1+ mean light density cleft ?
No
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Is it like Division 1 now being called the Premiership?
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Thats a very nice shape. Like kook instinct. Long middle, light pickup, clean willow lot of ticks there.
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Reminds me of the Gilly shape, with a slightly less pronounced spine
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nice profile!
So is this one G1 or G1+
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I would love to have one like this.
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nice profile!
So is this one G1 or G1+
If it's g1 it's a bargain if it's g1 + happy days
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Does 'fuller profile' just mean no concaving?
Yes mate. A convex profile is sort of domed at the back.
I found these pictures/diagrams on the M&H website, these explain the difference between a full or a concave profile much better than I can!
(http://i1206.photobucket.com/albums/bb450/CPye061194/Profile_Fuller_zpsmd5frpw5.png) (http://s1206.photobucket.com/user/CPye061194/media/Profile_Fuller_zpsmd5frpw5.png.html) (http://i1206.photobucket.com/albums/bb450/CPye061194/Profile_Concave_zpskw2bktln.png) (http://s1206.photobucket.com/user/CPye061194/media/Profile_Concave_zpskw2bktln.png.html)
Does G1+ mean light density cleft ?
No, I believe it just means it looks prettier than Grade 1.
Hunts do sometimes have low density clefts in, but these are pretty rate and are more expensive again as far as I know.
nice profile!
So is this one G1 or G1+
As a few people have mentioned the profile, I didn't actually have anything specific in mind when I went in.
I just asked Tony for "a mid to low sweet spot, nice and full please" and let Tony work his magic. I'm more than happy with the result
If it's g1 it's a bargain if it's g1 + happy days
I paid for a Grade 1 custom, so I guess that makes it a Grade 1 bargain! :)
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Surely this is where everyone should be heading?
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Not for me been there very good bats but limited clefts and if you use light weights.
Tony is great and so are his bats but your limited with what clefts he has if that floats your boat.
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Not for me been there very good bats but limited clefts and if you use light weights.
Tony is great and so are his bats but your limited with what clefts he has if that floats your boat.
Just out of interest but what is it that limits your cleft choice? Simply the (presumably limited) volume he is able to buy from willow suppliers?
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He doesn't have that many in most Hunts bats are pre-made like most, nothing wrong in that if your after a mid weight bat and custom made its a cheap as it can be and in truth Tony does make a good bat and they are great people as most will attest to who go there.
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Surely this is where everyone should be heading?
Grade 1+ at £245.00 certainly blows me out the Water but then again Competiton is always Healthy in my View
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Grade 1+ at £245.00 certainly blows me out the Water but then again Competiton is always Healthy in my View
It's certainly refreshing to see someone arresting this trend towards bats being more and more expensive. Does anyone else feel like the quality of the willow in general everywhere isn't as good as it once was and therefore these huge increases in price seem to be inverse to the quality of the product? I could be wrong but I just feel like I don't see as many bats that really blow my mind these days. You might still get the performance but you don't get the whole package with looks or lower density anything like as commonly. Not that they were ten a penny 6-7 years ago but there certainly seemed to be more around that caught my eye and my wallet.
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He doesn't have that many in most Hunts bats are pre-made like most, nothing wrong in that if your after a mid weight bat and custom made its a cheap as it can be and in truth Tony does make a good bat and they are great people as most will attest to who go there.
Yes and no to the part mades.
Yes we got to pick from a selection of part mades, but Hunts make these themselves. If you didn't find any you like I'm sure you could pick a raw cleft instead.
Tony kindly showed us the room where they store their raw clefts, and even fired up the copy lathe to show us the start of the process. Hunts are one of the few brands who genuinely do go from a raw cleft into a usable bat :)
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([url]http://i1206.photobucket.com/albums/bb450/CPye061194/Profile_Concave_zpskw2bktln.png[/url]) ([url]http://s1206.photobucket.com/user/CPye061194/media/Profile_Concave_zpskw2bktln.png.html[/url])
Concave.....that goes beyond concave, it's the M&H verssion of a double sscoop 😉
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Concave.....that goes beyond concave, it's the M&H verssion of a double sscoop 😉
It's more exaggerated than that in real life!
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Yes and no to the part mades.
Yes we got to pick from a selection of part mades, but Hunts make these themselves. If you didn't find any you like I'm sure you could pick a raw cleft instead.
Tony kindly showed us the room where they store their raw clefts, and even fired up the copy lathe to show us the start of the process. Hunts are one of the few brands who genuinely do go from a raw cleft into a usable bat :)
Pre made mate I was saying like your others bats... No the custom bats there price wise is excellent just not as many clefts as some choice wise..
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I've only just got round to doing this, here's a quick "ping test" video of my new stick
https://youtu.be/xHk3M7lE8Hw
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Going off various you tube video's I've seen, if you are making in volume then the process is rough material removal with copy lathe to a specific profile starting point, handle and finish as required. Looks like a Hunts maybe my next not needed purchase.
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Going off various you tube video's I've seen, if you are making in volume then the process is rough material removal with copy lathe to a specific profile starting point, handle and finish as required. Looks like a Hunts maybe my next not needed purchase.
Or brought in from India via SF quantity copy lathe your on about.
Cams bat does look good and tiny can make some special stuff shame they don't make most there
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Do they make their g1 and g2 stuff here in the UK?
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Most off the shelf hunts bats are imported, they are honest about this unlike some brands. The Careulex Insignia and Turbo models are made in the UK.
You can have any grade made by Tony or Matt at the factory in Huntingdon.
@WalkingWicket37 and @simonmay5 recently had G1+ bats as part of a visit we arranged for them. The bats were made in front of them, the boys chose these blades from a large selection of part mades that were handled and pressed in advance by Hunts themselves. Simon and Cam also chose some Raw butterfly clefts to be made into bats and sent at a later date, those finished butterfly bats are currently in my office.
Hopefully clears up any confusion.
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I saw the two butterfly bats last Tuesday at Vitas, looked very good indeed.