Custom Bats Cricket Forum
Equipment => Bats => Topic started by: six and out on February 10, 2017, 09:54:57 AM
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Hi all,
I think I am right in saying that the AOC Cricket Gear Test 2017 was yesterday?
Any news? Who sent bats? Etc....
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Testers were rob key Jim troughton graham thorpe and graham Napier
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Do the testers get to keep the bats?
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Do the testers get to keep the bats?
I think they are returned to the suppliers. I have one from the 2015 tests as my match bat which is fantastic. On the other hand I have no excuse.
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yeah they are returned to the suppliers in the main.
would be keen to hear what brands were tested?
any Asian brands?
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I noticed there was a bat claimed to have been used in last year's test on ebay, but it still had the edge stamps... anyone know if they make any effort to cover these?
Looks likes there's some meaty ol' bats in the test!
i would presume they ask for them to be supplied without, they seem to get stricter each year on these sort of things.
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AOC ran a competition to join the gear test, the winner got to test bats and keep their favourite I think. I entered but, alas, no invitation.
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I am aware of a few companies that have sent bats in for testing however I am sworn to secrecy at the moment. ;)
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A bat maker told me he once sent 2 bats to one of these gear tests exactly the same willow quality pickup weight etc one bat the testers rated highly the other one not at all. Strange that.
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A bat maker told me he once sent 2 bats to one of these gear tests exactly the same willow quality pickup weight etc one bat the testers rated highly the other one not at all. Strange that.
Not really, wood is a natural product, and despite what any of them say I'm sure 99% of grading is done on looks.
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A bat maker told me he once sent 2 bats to one of these gear tests exactly the same willow quality pickup weight etc one bat the testers rated highly the other one not at all. Strange that.
Exactly the same reason I stopped bothering with the AOC test - a very well known brand did the exact same and had the same outcome (both bats virtually identical in weight, grain structure, density and shape).
Personally I've always been a bit dubious of the AOC test, you can generally tell the bat maker regardless of the bat being blank (we all prove that!). Especially when certain brands which advertise heavily in AOC appear to consistently do rather well... (albeit that was a few years back, and I've rarely bought a copy since).
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I noticed there was a bat claimed to have been used in last year's test on ebay, but it still had the edge stamps... anyone know if they make any effort to cover these?
Looks likes there's some meaty ol' bats in the test!
(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C4Nf2syW8AAUki-.jpg)
That was on Affinitys Instagram, one of Marcus's possibly
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Minus 10 points for all those who have used black tape with a white grip?
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Minus 10 points for all those who have used black tape with a white grip?
AOC re-grip them if they're sent without a plain white grip - blame AOC! haha
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Minus 10 points for all those who have used black tape with a white grip?
Not sure it's tape, looks to be under the grip, so I'd assume grip grip at the bottom to hold the handles in place.
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Not really, wood is a natural product, and despite what any of them say I'm sure 99% of grading is done on looks.
Yes
Of course most. Grading is done on looks but in this instance I was told the ping density etc was exactly the same
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Not sure it's tape, looks to be under the grip, so I'd assume grip grip at the bottom to hold the handles in place.
Wonder what the odds of a gripgrip advert being included in the AOC gear test issue are? ha ;)
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I have A VERY VERY GOOD aoc bat off my good friends
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I have A VERY VERY GOOD aoc bat off my good friends
Which is a ..........?
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We decided not to submit any bats this year for the following reasons.
Last year we sent 6 bats to AOC.
I flew into London after the testing to pick up our bats from The Oval.
Despite having 3 bats make the top 20 it turned out that they did not choose the one bat that was far superior in balance and in particular "ping". The reason was it only had 8 grains. The bats with 12 plus grains all got to make the "cut".
We decided that this was a major flaw in the procedure in choosing good bats and was not worth the cost and effort in being involved anymore.
The "missed" bat ended up in a sponsored player's hands scoring over 1000 runs in County 2nd XI cricket last season. The consignment of protective gear, including a pair of Exception gloves, made from cabretta leather, was delivered before testing and left unopened in an office.
So, no Bradbury gear submitted this season.
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We decided not to submit any bats this year for the following reasons.
Last year we sent 6 bats to AOC.
I flew into London after the testing to pick up our bats from The Oval.
Despite having 3 bats make the top 20 it turned out that they did not choose the one bat that was far superior in balance and in particular "ping". The reason was it only had 8 grains. The bats with 12 plus grains all got to make the "cut".
We decided that this was a major flaw in the procedure in choosing good bats and was not worth the cost and effort in being involved anymore.
The "missed" bat ended up in a sponsored player's hands scoring over 1000 runs in County 2nd XI cricket last season. The consignment of protective gear, including a pair of Exception gloves, made from cabretta leather, was delivered before testing and left unopened in an office.
So, no Bradbury gear submitted this season.
Seems counter intuitive, it should not be based on looks. its disappointing to hear these things.
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We decided not to submit any bats this year for the following reasons.
Last year we sent 6 bats to AOC.
I flew into London after the testing to pick up our bats from The Oval.
Despite having 3 bats make the top 20 it turned out that they did not choose the one bat that was far superior in balance and in particular "ping". The reason was it only had 8 grains. The bats with 12 plus grains all got to make the "cut".
We decided that this was a major flaw in the procedure in choosing good bats and was not worth the cost and effort in being involved anymore.
The "missed" bat ended up in a sponsored player's hands scoring over 1000 runs in County 2nd XI cricket last season. The consignment of protective gear, including a pair of Exception gloves, made from cabretta leather, was delivered before testing and left unopened in an office.
So, no Bradbury gear submitted this season.
Sad to hear that mate. Though not surprising, considering that attitude regarding bats seems for the most part, echoed in places like this. Weather its a true reflection of their own values or flat out pandering to the market i dunno, maybe a bit of both. Need a home for those gloves??? ;)
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Unless there is a weight specification that all sent bats need to confirm to, they are not really comparing apples to apples. I dont see how they can compare a 2-8 from one brand with 2-11 from another and decide which one pings better..
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We decided not to submit any bats this year for the following reasons.
Last year we sent 6 bats to AOC.
I flew into London after the testing to pick up our bats from The Oval.
Despite having 3 bats make the top 20 it turned out that they did not choose the one bat that was far superior in balance and in particular "ping". The reason was it only had 8 grains. The bats with 12 plus grains all got to make the "cut".
We decided that this was a major flaw in the procedure in choosing good bats and was not worth the cost and effort in being involved anymore.
The "missed" bat ended up in a sponsored player's hands scoring over 1000 runs in County 2nd XI cricket last season. The consignment of protective gear, including a pair of Exception gloves, made from cabretta leather, was delivered before testing and left unopened in an office.
So, no Bradbury gear submitted this season.
Good decision I say as we allknow how good these sticks are 😎
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Just flicked through the magazine and B3 came out on top with a weird bat, B3 Series LE?
It even had LE stickers on it which I found strange.
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Just flicked through the magazine and B3 came out on top with a weird bat, B3 Series LE?
It even had LE stickers on it which I found strange.
New Grade for this year - have you any pics of the magazine???
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New Grade for this year - have you any pics of the magazine???
No but I can get one later, I bet someone else will beat me to it though.
Well done guys
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No but I can get one later, I bet someone else will beat me to it though.
Well done guys
Come on chaps put me out of my misery
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No but I can get one later, I bet someone else will beat me to it though.
Well done guys
What was the top five this year
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I can remember the NB DC 1080 came third, that's about it.
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(http://i997.photobucket.com/albums/af94/btk66/IMG_3099%201.jpg) (http://s997.photobucket.com/user/btk66/media/IMG_3099%201.jpg.html)
(http://i997.photobucket.com/albums/af94/btk66/IMG_3100%201.jpg) (http://s997.photobucket.com/user/btk66/media/IMG_3100%201.jpg.html)
(http://i997.photobucket.com/albums/af94/btk66/IMG_3103%201.jpg) (http://s997.photobucket.com/user/btk66/media/IMG_3103%201.jpg.html)
(http://i997.photobucket.com/albums/af94/btk66/IMG_3104%201.jpg) (http://s997.photobucket.com/user/btk66/media/IMG_3104%201.jpg.html)
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Hunts review;
"Only the wideness of the grains prevented it from scoring higher - pros, used to a high turnover of blades, tend to prefer tighter grains, which can improve performance but limit a bats lifespan"
*Rolls eyes*
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Imagine GM will be really made up about being described as 'generically modified'.
Good work B3 @thedoctor , which shapes were the two bats?
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Hunts review;
"Only the wideness of the grains prevented it from scoring higher - pros, used to a high turnover of blades, tend to prefer tighter grains, which can improve performance but limit a bats lifespan"
*Rolls eyes*
And that's why I don't take these reviews seriously.
That paired with the fact the magazine sponsors always score very well... ;)
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Mighty Willow.. interesting those guys. Not heard about them much. Have done well to make the list. Who makes their bats... ?
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The number 2 bat sounds interesting never heard of them previously.
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Wait do the bat in 20th was marked down for "wide grains" but the 2nd placed bat only has 6 grains..
Shouldn't that have been marked down too? ???
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Wait do the bat in 20th was marked down for "wide grains" but the 2nd placed bat only has 6 grains..
Shouldn't that have been marked down too? ???
Seems very strange they moan about wide grain but like you say the bat finished second only had 6 grains but even more interesting they sponsor the magazine as well just for me how much of a blind test is it 🤔
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Mighty Willow.. interesting those guys. Not heard about them much. Have done well to make the list. Who makes their bats... ?
TK made. IJC had them for a while. Brett D'Olivera uses them.
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Judging by the photo of the Mighty Willow with its' 'six' grains, I'd say counting isn't the strong point of someone over at AOC.
Just spotted, H4L pro grades are rrp £235 now?! No wonder they thought it was good value. Anyone got Matt's phone number? ;)
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Imagine GM will be really made up about being described as 'generically modified'.
Good work B3 @thedoctor , which shapes were the two bats?
the #1 is a Series DB1
the #7 is a Players shape CDX 31.2 (Shan Masood)
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All these tests are a bit of a farce IMO, cricket bats are such a subjective item that it's almost impossible to have a fair test
Literally the only way I can suggest would be if all brands had to submit bats at the exact same weight, but even then the grain structure would just get pulled apart instead...
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The article say "batmaker John Newsome".
So yeah, TK made ;)
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The Hunts is an Indian made bat?
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The Hunts is an Indian made bat?
I would seriously doubt that, the 700 is the top model in the Tekton range
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I would seriously doubt that, the 700 is the top model in the Tekton range
A G2, I think.
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All these tests are a bit of a farce IMO, cricket bats are such a subjective item that it's almost impossible to have a fair test
Literally the only way I can suggest would be if all brands had to submit bats at the exact same weight, but even then the grain structure would just get pulled apart instead...
Right. Also, the tests should not factor in value for money, looks, first impressions etc etc, these are silly and highly subjective. They should not have a lower performing bat at lower price, ranked higher than a better performing bat at higher price on basis of value for money as many folks are only interested in performance/pickup and they dont like to see a top performing bat ranked lower as it got low marks on value for money etc.
The ranking can be really simple and effective if they strictly test bats at same weight and have ratings only for performance and pickup, nothing else. Based on these two, the reader can decide which is value to him or not himself considering the other factors such as price , looks etc. Alternatively, if they want to include price, then they should have separate rankings for each of the price ranges, but that should be it.
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The B3 that came 7th is 80mm at its thickest point! Is that right?
And the pictures don't seem to tie up with the comments. I'm assuming pictures were supplied by the manufacturers. Bit sloppy from AOC all round.
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A G2, I think.
http://www.cricketdirect.co.uk/Catalogue/Cricket-Bats/Hunts-County-Cricket-Bats/Hunts-County-Tekton-Cricket-Bats/Hunts-County-Tekton-700-Cricket-Bat-701117 (http://www.cricketdirect.co.uk/Catalogue/Cricket-Bats/Hunts-County-Cricket-Bats/Hunts-County-Tekton-Cricket-Bats/Hunts-County-Tekton-700-Cricket-Bat-701117)
Top grade...
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Another joke test
Total con
I'm sure all the bats are crackers in their own right, but the comments are just drivel from the testers/magazine.
Take out a big advert and you get a higher place finish
What was wrong with the kippax? Did they not advertise or something?
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[url]http://www.cricketdirect.co.uk/Catalogue/Cricket-Bats/Hunts-County-Cricket-Bats/Hunts-County-Tekton-Cricket-Bats/Hunts-County-Tekton-700-Cricket-Bat-701117[/url] ([url]http://www.cricketdirect.co.uk/Catalogue/Cricket-Bats/Hunts-County-Cricket-Bats/Hunts-County-Tekton-Cricket-Bats/Hunts-County-Tekton-700-Cricket-Bat-701117[/url])
Top grade...
and made in India would have thought
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[url]http://www.cricketdirect.co.uk/Catalogue/Cricket-Bats/Hunts-County-Cricket-Bats/Hunts-County-Tekton-Cricket-Bats/Hunts-County-Tekton-700-Cricket-Bat-701117[/url] ([url]http://www.cricketdirect.co.uk/Catalogue/Cricket-Bats/Hunts-County-Cricket-Bats/Hunts-County-Tekton-Cricket-Bats/Hunts-County-Tekton-700-Cricket-Bat-701117[/url])
Top grade...
It's top in that range. But still a g2 according to Talent Cricket and other retailers. I'm sure Vitas will clarify.
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Out of interest are B3 magazine sponsors and have a stand at the roadshow?
Fair play to them....
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Just for perspective lots of people the people on this forum talking about ping and how great bats are wouldn't know one end to the other what's the difference.
I say well done good to have another forum winner like we had before I say
Opinions published in reputable cricket magazines are a bit different to those casually expressed on an internet forum, are they not?
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Opinions published in reputable cricket magazines are a bit different to those casually expressed on an internet forum, are they not?
i would surely have hoped so, i mean it one thing tapping a bat up and another actual using however some on the forum are serial tappers but would know one end to tother
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Out of interest are B3 magazine sponsors and have a stand at the roadshow?
Fair play to them....
thanks Chris
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Firstly just wanted to say that we are incredibly pleased with coming out on top.
For a small manufacture that is relatively new to the game - this is a great accolade no matter what you think of the test or marking criteria. Especially when you consider how many in the top 20 actually make bats.
I am sure all of the bats in the top 20 were descent sticks mind but what is especially pleasing to me is that this test doesn't take into account why we are really different - the custom made experience - getting a bat exactly how you want it,made to measure, whereas this bat in this test was just a bat off the shelf.
Well chuffed and just sat down with a beer to celebrate.
Hope you all have a great 2017 season - we cant wait, its going to be a good one!
Streaky
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thanks Chris
You are welcome Streaky - can't knock your bats
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Firstly just wanted to say that we are incredibly pleased with coming out on top.
For a small manufacture that is relatively new to the game - this is a great accolade no matter what you think of the test or marking criteria. Especially when you consider how many in the top 20 actually make bats.
I am sure all of the bats in the top 20 were descent sticks mind but what is especially pleasing to me is that this test doesn't take into account why we are really different - the custom made experience - getting a bat exactly how you want it,made to measure, whereas this bat in this test was just a bat off the shelf.
Well chuffed and just sat down with a beer to celebrate.
Hope you all have a great 2017 season - we cant wait, its going to be a good one!
Streaky
can I swap the aoc bat from last year for the winner please!!!!!
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2 forum sponsors in the top 10 and people are still knocking the test? I for one am happy for them both and feel lucky that we get such close access to these fantastic manufacturers through this forum.
Congrats @The Doctor & @hell4leather cricket .
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You are welcome Streaky - can't knock your bats
@e4sby - is that a technique issue?
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Think I need to make a new sale thread with my 2lb9 DB1 ;)
Much as I thinknk these tests are stupid, always pleasing to see small British companies and particularly forum sponsors do well.
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Any idea on the 3 stripe LE, better than a 3 stripe but not quite a crown? Always nice to be rocking a test winning brand out in the middle
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@e4sby - is that a technique issue?
I scored a few runs last year with my B3, it's retired now
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Every year the accuracy of the specs in the magazine is botched.
Well done to B3, H4L and all the other smaller brands. Btw, that Airsteam keeps on making the top 20 year after year, someone should tell Woodstock not to keep entering the same bat.
Don't get too hung up on the process.
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2 forum sponsors in the top 10 and people are still knocking the test? I for one am happy for them both and feel lucky that we get such close access to these fantastic manufacturers through this forum.
Congrats @The Doctor & @hell4leather cricket .
Commenting on the utility of the test takes nothing away from the quality of the bats of the sponsors here or for that matter any of the bats listed..Kudos to the ones who came in the list, they wouldnt be there if they werent something special..
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Any idea on the 3 stripe LE, better than a 3 stripe but not quite a crown? Always nice to be rocking a test winning brand out in the middle
The 3 stripe LE was developed after comments from the forum, where people were comparing differences in their 3 stripes which were all grade 1's. After a lot of discussions we decided to split the very nice ones and call these LE's. The crown hasn't changed and is still ultra low density G1.
Would point out the AOC got the price wrong 3 stripe Series is £330 / 3 Stripe LE Series is £380 - this pricing has been live in the showroom for the past month and will be coming online soon as we are launching a new website which will see the launch of the new Custom bat range (CDX) as well.
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Just reading the test, the copy writers can't even get the right bat and description together for the GMs tested, surely that is just basic publishing technique. It really has gone downhill
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Personally don't take much interest in the test as one year After reading the reviews i got sucked in went on line ordered a copy of the winning bat paid top price waited with anticIpation for the bat to arrived first time I used it realised I had made another bat buying mistake ended up selling it to a formite.
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Woodstock by any chance? @Seniorplayer
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I scored a few runs last year with my B3, it's retired now
Keep using it!