Custom Bats Cricket Forum
Companies => Off-the-shelf companies => Bellingham & Smith UK => Topic started by: Sivlar13 on August 02, 2017, 06:57:54 PM
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As you guys are probably all aware, I have a fair bit of B&S gear and I thought my purchase yesterday was worth a review.
My search for big bats continues and thankfully, as I'm pretty big myself, I usually use weights around 2.13/2.14.
I found this bat and knew I had to get it. Gary told me it was something slightly different to normal. He said he was trailing some willow that had been from Serbia. Basically, English Willow trees had been found in Serbia and chopped down into clefts to ship back to the UK.
Now, the bat. It's big. 45mm edges with around a 70mm spine. It weighs 2.13 dead on but picks up well. The ping is fantastic, something I wasn't expecting to be honest as I was unsure what Serbian Willow would be like. Would be happy to do a ping video if people want to see. Not the nicest of faces, but the response from a cricket ball is super.
A bat that I thought was worth sharing as I'd never heard of Serbian Willow until this week!
(https://i.imgur.com/CKGwqtB.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/fWuD0aZ.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/h7JfU5f.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/duGHxAe.jpg)
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What did you pay for the Serbian willow bat?
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£100 bud as Gary isn't sure how they'll hold up so just wanted to cover costs first.
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£100 bud as Gary isn't sure how they'll hold up so just wanted to cover costs first.
Start the queues now!
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Isn't this the same sort of thing as English Willow Nurtured in India?
If these are the next big thing, perhaps we need to change our views on where Willow is grown.
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Will be really interesting to see how it performs and holds up.
Does beg the question is English willow grown in England the best wood for the job or is it just what has always been done?
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Probably the latter, but without experimentation which is costly and hugely time consuming we will never know for sure.
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Just a few facts I would like to put out there
1) Admin I am not trying to sell on here or promote B&S in anyway on here
2) B&S South Africa and various other Bat manufacturers were contacted by the owners of the Willow and there Terms and Conditions were set out to them one being an initial order of a 1000 Clefts to be ordered and various Grade would be supplied in certain numbers . B&S asked me to look into this which I did .
3) long story short I negotiated to purchase 10 Clefts 5 Grade 1 5 Grade 2 these have now all been made into bats and 5 of them are being used and put through there paces by three of my sponsored players
4) initial feed back from bat maker was the Willow good to work with but did seem to be on the Dry side the grains are not as pronounced as what we are used too
5) Two sponsored players have had a hit with them all be it not for too long a time but they found no difference in feel or performance over the next 2 weeks these players will be using them to the max in net sessions games bowling machine work and when they not using them they will be available to colleagues to have a go
6) This could very well turn out to be a damp squid and the wood may not perform and break down very quickly only time will tell once we feel these 5 bats had enough usage I will get the bat maker to asses and give his feed back and thoughts which I will pass on to any interested parties
Sorry for the long winded post and admin if you feel this should not be on here please delete
Regards
Gary
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Thanks Gary for the explanation.
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It's an interesting one, I presume it'll all come down to the climate. We obviously know that Indian nurtured 'English' willow comes out too brittle due to the harsh heat, however I don't think anyone has really tried it with willow grown in a severe cold climate? (Canadian perhaps?).
Either way, looking forward to seeing the outcome - I imagine the Serbian clefts would end up a damn sight cheaper than JS Wrights which can only be good for the market if they are indeed OK!
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@GDP1964 I look forward to seeing you use one of these on Saturday mate. Not sure I'd be overly comfortable using a bat with a face that resembles Freddy Kruger's, but I'll try anything once (within reason).
Good experiment nonetheless.
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I am sure that the different minerals in the ground make a difference, hence why there are some Iron stains on some bats. Maybe why the Laverwood bats sound different and change weight.
Maybe we could plant a few trees in different areas of the UK with different Mineral sources and then compare in 6 years :-).
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I am sure that the different minerals in the ground make a difference, hence why there are some Iron stains on some bats. Maybe why the Laverwood bats sound different and change weight.
Maybe we could plant a few trees in different areas of the UK with different Mineral sources and then compare in 6 years :-).
Pretty sure all Lavers start life at Wrights.
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@Kulli I didn't think about that.....
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Hopefully, this performs as good as it looks and lasts really long. This will open a new avenue at lower cost for players worldwide.
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Hopefully, this performs as good as it looks and lasts really long. This will open a new avenue at lower cost for players worldwide.
Going to use it Saturday and see how it goes! Fingers crossed I get a few!
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Seems a cool experiment ....
I can't wait for their local batmaking market to explode ! :
Grown in Srbija by S.J Ivanovic and Sons . Handcrafted in Beograd by master craftsman Igor Dragovic .
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Quick update all 5 Serbian Willow Bats currently on Test have all been very well received no difference in Performance and no un due wear and tear reported still only 2 weeks in so maybe a bit too soon to pass judgment I will keep you updated
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'alternative willow' (as Kookaburra call it) from eastern europe has been offered by Kookaburra and GN for a few years now. Both have only offered it on kids bats due to durability issues I believe.
I saw a GN adult sized prototype last year that was admittedly a rather freakish example, it was huge and weighed 2lb 2oz. The face suffered horrenous dents and cracking jsut when tapping a ball up with it though. Denser/weighter bats might fare better but i'm still fairly confident to say English Willow is best.
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Time will tell George Munsey used his one yesterday against Gloucestershire 2 Made 70 with it and said it went very well and showed very little facial marks I don't dispute English Willow being First Choice but nothing ventured nothing gained
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Agreed :)
Hope they go well
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I'm knocking one of these bats in at the moment for someone else. So far so good. I haven't noticed any issues. The response is excellent off the mallet. It's a big piece of willow for the weight.
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'alternative willow' (as Kookaburra call it) from eastern europe has been offered by Kookaburra and GN for a few years now. Both have only offered it on kids bats due to durability issues I believe.
I saw a GN adult sized prototype last year that was admittedly a rather freakish example, it was huge and weighed 2lb 2oz. The face suffered horrenous dents and cracking jsut when tapping a ball up with it though. Denser/weighter bats might fare better but i'm still fairly confident to say English Willow is best.
I passed this information on to the Willow Supplier and he has come back with the Following
Their Willow has only come on stream this Year
They have not sold any Willow to Kookabura
They bielieve the Willow in Question may be from Romania their Willow is from Serbia
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I would have thought there's no reason why any willow grown in a temperate climate like the UK won't perform just as well as any English-grown willow.
Just wondering - has willow been grown and used as bats in the USA? Somewhere like Boston?
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A ping test video will be really helpful to see..
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A ping test video will be really helpful to see..
I'll try and find a cricket ball!
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https://youtu.be/QEAuN5toafc
Ping video.
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Any updates on the Serbian willow @GDP1964 / @Sivlar13 ??
How did it perform/hold up over a longer period?
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Any updates on the Serbian willow @GDP1964 / @Sivlar13 ??
How did it perform/hold up over a longer period?
3 Bats are coming back on Monday for inspection I will update then.So Far on performance feed back no problem whatsoever
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Like the look of those stickers w/ that willow.
Deffo in the que.
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Calzehbhoy not sure if you have made a little purchase (not from me ) very recently . If you have and it's a S B Willow origin you won't be disappointed it's ping and weight is exceptional if it's not you then you will be disappointed 😂
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Just a quick update on this one - have been using it in the nets recently and it is coming off very nicely. Been very useful as I've been working on my range hitting!