Custom Bats Cricket Forum
Companies => Off-the-shelf companies => Black Cat Cricket => Topic started by: Black Cat Cricket on May 27, 2010, 12:55:36 PM
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http://wisdencricketer.com/blogs/blog/2010/05/27/twc-reviews-black-cat-the-shadow/#more-3750
TWC reviews: Black Cat The Shadow
May 27th, 2010 by TWC in Equipment review
Black Cat The Shadow *****
£240 www.blackcatcricket.com
For more equipment reviews see TWC’s Good Gear Guide 2010 here
This bat just blew the reviewers away. Four players tried it and every single one gave it five stars out of five. Here’s what they said:
“It’s quite easily the best bat I’ve used – even slightly mis-timed shots flew.”
“Having always used bats from the bigger brands using this has made me think again”
“When you look at this bat and pick it up it looks and feels fantastic. When I batted with it, it felt even better.”
“WOW. I love my Kookaburra and use nothing else. This bat did make me think that a change could be made. I loved the pick up and balance. The middle was out of this world.”
TWC will review kit regularly throughout the season. Is there any equipment you’d like to see reviewed? Do you have any queries about kit? Do you want us to look at your new product? Please email here or leave a comment. Star ratings are out of five.
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Looks like a fight needed between Black Cat and SAF for the title of best bat then!!!
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Looks like a fight needed between Black Cat and SAF for the title of best bat then!!!
Nope Wisden tests, that would be Black Cat and Piri Piri and that is a bit of a no contest. Black Cat all the way!
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Nice little review - seems the Shadow is a popular shape! I wonder what type of testing takes place on these reviews??? Little net, match play, hit with mallet in office? Be genuinely interested to see how they put a bat through it's paces
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SAF had AOC, Black Cat have Wisden....
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And they shall do battle for the ultimate title...Custombats.co.uk!
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Yeah send me over the freebies and Ill get testing ;)
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Agreed SS all this talk of big edges concaving etc etc and you still really cant beat a well balanced, updated classic shaped bat
SAF had AOC - SAF probably had a Cider and a Porterhouse steak for Oscar
Well done Charlie 4 out of 4 at Five stars is excellent whoever is reviewing it
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I'd be interested to see the level that some of the guys play when testing the bats. It could just be a case of a 5 minute net with the bat and not really testing it properly.
Giving it to a Uni is probably 1st team is probably the best way, that way you get different types of players using the bat and not a biased test.
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I can't imagine there is a lot of difference in BC and SAF? maybe I am wrong?
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I can't imagine there is a lot of difference in BC and SAF? maybe I am wrong?
Yep you are
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I wasnt doubting the validity of the tests, just genuinely interested as to how the tests are conducted. 20 stars out of 20 stars suggests the bat can be bad :D
Norb - i agree, edge size counts for nothing (at least thats what i tell the missus :D ) - classic shapes are hard to beat, as shown in many of the bat review winners over the years.
Uni testing isnt as bad as it sounds - good market oppurtunity.
There is a massive difference between SAF and BC - one drinks cider, the other is a lager man.
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Wisden pick upto 6 club cricketers that are not sponsored or affiliated with a cricket company in any way and invite them to come up to the london studios to review the gear. Then they are given the whole day to play around, usually that means netting and mallets are also used. At the end of the day, the testers sit down with the TWC team and write reviews - i say reviews; all they do is write down what the testers think and then call it a day.
After that the thoughts and opinions are gathered and organised into reviews. Pictures, ratings and awards are sorted and the reviews are initially inserted into the magazine and put up online later.
This testing method ensures that testing is unbiased and is much better than AOC, who do the same thing but their testers are pros like tudor and butcher who may have their sponsors and contracts to look after.
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This testing method ensures that testing is unbiased and is much better than AOC, who do the same thing but their testers are pros like tudor and butcher who may have their sponsors and contracts to look after.
Not trying to detract from Black Cats review here but I cant let the insightful wisdom of umz_786 pass!
So how comes SAF won & Hell4Leather got Butcher favourite bat?
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Because you both gave them a massive bribe, stuck a horses head in their beds and then swapped all the other bats in the competition for kashmir look-alikes......at least thats what i heard :D
I think that both reviews have their pro's and con's - however, the point we are perhaps mising is that Blackcat, SAF and H4L have all done something pretty special with their bats, hence the accolades!
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Not trying to detract from Black Cats review here but I cant let the insightful wisdom of umz_786 pass!
So how comes SAF won & Hell4Leather got Butcher favourite bat?
just because someone is sponsored by x, doesnt mean it will be his favourite bat. It could be that he says x performs better than it actually does. Hey, its all food for thought. I havent been to these but knew someone who was invited to the wisden one.
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This testing method ensures that testing is unbiased and is much better than AOC, who do the same thing but their testers are pros like tudor and butcher who may have their sponsors and contracts to look after.
The testers are mostly former pros for AOC and the bats are blank so it's hard for them to know which is which and just go with their sponsor/the company they are affiliated with.
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Not trying to detract from Black Cats review here but I cant let the insightful wisdom of umz_786 pass!
So how comes SAF won & Hell4Leather got Butcher favourite bat?
Umz_786, AOC do blank bats which prevents any brand bias and pre-conceptions.
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Umz_786, AOC do blank bats which prevents any brand bias and pre-conceptions.
Really, hard when they allow Puma grips to remain and also Mongoose grip tape too on their easy to spot shape, they were not the only ones but the easiest 2 to spot from a mile away, yet alone in the hands.
It would be very hard to conduct a true unbiased test.
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It prevents brand bias more so than a stickered bat. The Mongoose is an exception as it is instantly recognisable by shape but the majority of people wouldn't know the difference between a blank Adidas, SAF, Puma and Hell4Leather if they were positioned next to each other.
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just because someone is sponsored by x, doesnt mean it will be his favourite bat. It could be that he says x performs better than it actually does. Hey, its all food for thought. I havent been to these but knew someone who was invited to the wisden one.
that isn't food for thought it is more nonsense but based on your math x = big brand & should have been in the top 5 at least
It prevents brand bias more so than a stickered bat. The Mongoose is an exception as it is instantly recognisable by shape but the majority of people wouldn't know the difference between a blank Adidas, SAF, Puma and Hell4Leather if they were positioned next to each other.
Cider stains?
Talisman I'd bet the testers aren't that geeky and like Tom says you would have had to have lived in a cricketing cave not to be able to spot a mongoose..
Black Cat did very well and they [wisden] seem to have grown up a bit, as no were does it imply they liked the stickers and therefore the bat which is some of the comments you got for Piri Piri who won the gear test!
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The bat came back to me the other day and it looked pretty used, so they did more than have a tap with a mallet.
Not that TWC would be swayed by these things, but I'd like to point out that I've not taken out any advertising with them, nor to I know any of the people testing or anyone there.
Oh, and I'm sending them a Joker in the next few days, at their request. Let's hope they are as kind about that as they were the Shadow!
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Great result!