Custom Bats Cricket Forum
Equipment => Bats => Topic started by: rhoVsquared on July 31, 2022, 02:49:38 PM
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I am looking for a custom made (SSh/short blade) bat that comes blank (unstickered). What are my best options to get one?
I have looked at DKP custom bats, does anyone have any experience with these?
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Scott Cricket, Red Ink or Oxfordshire Cricket Bats. All will give you phenomenal customer service, a fair price and a bat made to your specifications.
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Better off going direct to a manufacturer than through a retailer in most cases - there are exceptions like if you're dealing with bigger brands like Gray Nics, or in the past, when Hunts G1 bats were £165 from Vitas - I do regret not taking advantage of that! The only thing I'd say is that there is no real best option - weight, budget and shape are probably the most important pieces of info to pass to the batmaker.
You want the bat to have a super short handle AND a short blade? Or is it either a SSH or a SB? Personally had customs made by H4L, Scott, RPC, Oxfordshire as of recent times, all of whom provided excellent quality bats.
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I have noticed a couple of batmakers rescinding the offer of a warranty if supplied unstickered. I think the reasoning is, they have made it, they would like people to know it - it's part of how smaller brands get noticed. So, take the stickers or lose the warranty.
I can understand where they're coming from, even if it doesn't sit wholly well with me.
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For me it's the fact I've had people ask because they want to put fake Kookaburra or SS stickers on etc. I used to not really mind it, but since i started making bats my views have changed obviously and now just wouldn't want to feel i was enabling the selling of fake stickers
I saw someone had recently ripped a forum sponsors stickers off and they'd been put on a refurbed bat. Really frustrating once you've spent time, effort and money getting your stickers done. Only to see them end up on potentially an old plank.
That said, I get that people sometimes like blank bats and if they're genuine, then I'll provide them. They can easily be removed anyway tbf.
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I am surprised several reputable brands actually sell their stickers now. Why would they want them going on sub-standard bats?
I like unstickered bats - I generally like little branding on anything - but attempting to take stickers off yourself can end up in you making a right mess.
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I think wanting to sticker your bat as something it is not is a little odd.
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when Hunts G1 bats were £165 from Vitas - I do regret not taking advantage of that! The only thing I'd say is that there is no real best option - weight, budget and shape are probably the most important pieces of info to pass to the batmaker.
£270 via Talent probably compares favourably, taking inflation into account?
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£270 via Talent probably compares favourably, taking inflation into account?
I can beat that :)
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I think wanting to sticker your bat as something it is not is a little odd.
I can understand liking someone's branding without liking their price structure or the quality of their bats. WCW a great example - their stickers are brilliant but I just can't bring myself to pay their prices.
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I can beat that :)
Great.
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I think wanting to sticker your bat as something it is not is a little odd.
I don't mind brands selling their stickers, or people buying them through the brands if possible. After all, most will refurb and sticker them. I just don't like the amount of fake stickers doing the rounds, as the brand doesn't really benefit and has zero control over what bat they end up on.
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I'm sure SS and Kookaburra will survive!
If I bought some Kippax or Jedi (for example)stickers, how would they have any control over the bat I chose to put them on?
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I'm sure SS and Kookaburra will survive!
If I bought some Kippax or Jedi (for example)stickers, how would they have any control over the bat I chose to put them on?
How is that different than stickers being applied being part of a refurb? Which many companies offer. They have no control over the bats they get sent in. Yes, they could decide not to apply stickers but I really don’t think it would be a good idea for a company to start being pretentious enough to say “that bat isn’t good enough for our stickers” when someone has paid for a refurb. So, it ultimately is the same, the stickers get applied to any bat the company has no control over it.
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The problem arises when someone put stickers on an inferior bat and then sells it as the brand it now appears to be to the buyer.
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How is that different than stickers being applied being part of a refurb? Which many companies offer. They have no control over the bats they get sent in. Yes, they could decide not to apply stickers but I really don’t think it would be a good idea for a company to start being pretentious enough to say “that bat isn’t good enough for our stickers” when someone has paid for a refurb. So, it ultimately is the same, the stickers get applied to any bat the company has no control over it.
Not being pretentious - companies have every right to not apply their own stickers onto bats they've not made - from what I know, quite a lot of brands don't. It is why not too many sell their stickers - just not worth the risk of them being put on a low quality bat and their brand image being damaged. Some have their own refurbishment specific stickers, like Gray Nicolls.
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I generally won’t resticker if it’s not a Red Inker. I’ve done a couple for friends who I know and know the source of the bat they are going on. I don’t sell stickers to remove the chance my stickers end up on poor bats.
Whilst I’d prefer to provide my stickers on a bat, once it’s with the owner they can do what they wish so could easily remove them if they wanted. If you want it without stickers then happy to accommodate
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There's a whole host of issues. I'll apply mine to refurbs if it's a decent bat and isn't in too bad a condition, as most people ask me too addmy stickers. I have refused in some cases, with bats which are already breaking up early on which people have asked me to fix up, or ones with huge knots in etc
As with the original post, its up to the batmaker/brand to determine their policy
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I'm sure SS and Kookaburra will survive!
If I bought some Kippax or Jedi (for example)stickers, how would they have any control over the bat I chose to put them on?
They will, but doesn't make it right imo people are ripping off their stickers.
If brands are willing to sell their stickers to you, then they're obviously happy for you to put them on any bat. But at least they've made that call and at least probably made something off the stickers
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The problem arises when someone put stickers on an inferior bat and then sells it as the brand it now appears to be to the buyer.
Agree, if the bats decent then I don't think its much of an issue. But if its just a plank...
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Not being pretentious - companies have every right to not apply their own stickers onto bats they've not made - from what I know, quite a lot of brands don't. It is why not too many sell their stickers - just not worth the risk of them being put on a low quality bat and their brand image being damaged. Some have their own refurbishment specific stickers, like Gray Nicolls.
That depends on what they’re offering. Many brands explicitly state they apply their stickers after a refurb. It’s up to the company to offer that or not.
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TBH the Gray-Nicolls model is probably the best one... bat maker gets to show of their work on the refurb but doesn't give a sticker for an official model.. official refurb stickers are the way to go I think...
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I have noticed a couple of batmakers rescinding the offer of a warranty if supplied unstickered. I think the reasoning is, they have made it, they would like people to know it - it's part of how smaller brands get noticed. So, take the stickers or lose the warranty.
I can understand where they're coming from, even if it doesn't sit wholly well with me.
They are on fairly precarious ground doing this. For the most part, the warranty only reflects the statutory position in terms of the recourse a retail customer has under the Sale of Goods Act if a product is faulty.
A product isn't covered if specifically advertised as having faults e.g. storm damage, but supplying the bat without stickers wouldn't amount to a fault