Custom Bats Cricket Forum

Companies => Custom companies => Warsop => Topic started by: norbs on October 19, 2010, 09:21:42 AM

Title: Warsop and the perception
Post by: norbs on October 19, 2010, 09:21:42 AM
All

I'd thought I would voice my opinion on Warsop as I've just seen the result against the kooks and a few people saying stuff about them....

In my opinion Warsop [Tony et-al] are one of the best bat makers in the UK and have been producing quality bats for decades.  It pains me to see them getting the brush off and some of the comments about them compared to other bats
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: RoCo Da Pixie on October 19, 2010, 09:25:08 AM
I personally would rate any bat which is handmade by an individual to be a candidate to be best bat over than those that are imported and stickered up,

I have not used a Warsop but have used Kookaburra, And was never that impressed with them.
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: tim2000s on October 19, 2010, 09:31:23 AM
My experience of Kooks is not great. My experience of Warsops isn't either. I haven't got on with any of either that I've borrowed. One of my team mates has been particularly unlucky with his Warsops and has had to have two replaced due to them splitting.

I didn't vote in this round.
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: Perkins17 on October 19, 2010, 09:34:46 AM
A lad at my club has one of Mark Pettini's bats and when i first saw it i thought nothing of it because it was so small but it just showed how well made they are as it is like a rocket. He is not even a big hitter but the power i the blade has allowed him to hit some massive 6's !!!
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: Talisman on October 19, 2010, 09:39:11 AM
I was not surprised by the closeness of the vote, Kookaburra are able to spend a lot of money on player endorsements as they know it works in influencing people to buy their kit, They buy their kit at the lowest possible price due to their size and choice of manufacturer and therefore make great profit margins, even at trade prices, there is nothing wrong with this, it is a great business model.

This is a popularity contest and I'm sure no one here on the forum could have voted for more than the odd round with knowledge of both brands so there is no slight on any of the losing brands.

I think if we were talking about the reasons why we would buy a bat then not many would say because Ricky Ponting uses one, we are mostly intelligent enough to know that he is paid very well to associate himself with any brand and will use the finest product he can find to score runs. Warsop only sell direct, they only make what they can and they put heart, soul and a lot of hard work into their kit. I'm lucky enough to know them and I've nothing but respect for what they do. They have carved out a long standing reputation for quality and I find it gratifying that they are not chasing the impressionable punter for their pound.

But this is just a fun topic so lets see who wins, for it carries no prize.
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: mdl_1979 on October 19, 2010, 09:40:19 AM
Have seen some brilliant Warsop bats around, and have been down to their workshop myself - enormously impressed.  Having said that, a couple of the Kookaburras I picked up this year were brilliant.  One SH lower model Kahuna that one of the colts I coach had, possessed the most responsive middle of anything I picked up all year.
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: norbs on October 19, 2010, 09:44:24 AM
A lad at my club has one of Mark Pettini's bats and when i first saw it i thought nothing of it because it was so small but it just showed how well made they are as it is like a rocket. He is not even a big hitter but the power i the blade has allowed him to hit some massive 6's !!!

I was speaking to Pete at the weekend and we discussed small looking bats....  The thing people forget is the wood mass is there on classic shape bats because there is no concaving.  This obsession with large edges is just a current fashion there is no technical benefit with regards to "ping"
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: Perkins17 on October 19, 2010, 09:49:54 AM
I did not mind the size of the bat before i came on this forum :P that bat did remind me a small bat can pack a big punch !
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: norbs on October 19, 2010, 09:55:44 AM
I was not surprised by the closeness of the vote, Kookaburra are able to spend a lot of money on player endorsements as they know it works in influencing people to buy their kit, They buy their kit at the lowest possible price due to their size and choice of manufacturer and therefore make great profit margins, even at trade prices, there is nothing wrong with this, it is a great business model.

This is a popularity contest and I'm sure no one here on the forum could have voted for more than the odd round with knowledge of both brands so there is no slight on any of the losing brands.

I think if we were talking about the reasons why we would buy a bat then not many would say because Ricky Ponting uses one, we are mostly intelligent enough to know that he is paid very well to associate himself with any brand and will use the finest product he can find to score runs. Warsop only sell direct, they only make what they can and they put heart, soul and a lot of hard work into their kit. I'm lucky enough to know them and I've nothing but respect for what they do. They have carved out a long standing reputation for quality and I find it gratifying that they are not chasing the impressionable punter for their pound.

But this is just a fun topic so lets see who wins, for it carries no prize.

Not just the CBWC - for example there was a Reback or SAF or Warsop thread and they hardly got a look in!!  I was disappointed to see that  :(
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: Canners on October 19, 2010, 10:16:54 AM

I voted Warsop simply because they hand make there own bats unlike kooks, also being an Essex lad i have to stay faithful to my own..... also i remember my bro having a top of the range kook that was an absolute plank (although im sure there are some pretty fantastic kookaburra's out there)

Like all brands i guess there's a chance you could get a bad one or a good one, so if someones had a bad experience with that particular batmaker the chances are theyre not going to vote for them
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: roco on October 19, 2010, 10:21:30 AM
not a fan of most kooks but voted them as only one i have owned was the graphite backed kahuna which was a very good bat

Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: Buzz on October 19, 2010, 10:22:04 AM
Cheer up Norbs - most people who know about bats know that Warsop make tremendous bats. People who don't know about bats will think that the more expensive a bat is the better it will be - Kookaburra make very well branded bats which are expensive and therefore those not in the know will buy them. That is how the likes of Fordham Sports stay in business - sorry for stating the obvious.

The fact that a huge number of Pro's use bats with Kookaburra stickers on means that they are able to give the perception that they make the most bats for the best players. It comes down to knowledge providing power. If you buy a Burberry coat will it be any better than a smaller brand coat - maybe, but probably it wont be. The principle is the same, when you are in the know you can get the best deal.

I am sure you will remember in a blind bat test, done by pro's, it was a smaller brand who won the day...(!) There is hope for the likes of Redback, Warsop and SAF... plus would the likes of SAF and Redback want to be able to make the number of units sold by Kookaburra as when you get to that size, compromises have to be made...
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: ProWannabe88 on October 19, 2010, 10:29:49 AM
I've had 2 kooks and both had to be sent back more than once!! Their softs are awesome though. I haven't had a Warsop but a lad at our club got 1 this season and it goes better than any kookaburra I've used or seen and it's not even a top of the range.
You can't really compare machine made to handmade. The quality will never be as good in my opinion.
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: Tom on October 19, 2010, 10:31:57 AM
Not just the CBWC - for example there was a Reback or SAF or Warsop thread and they hardly got a look in!!  I was disappointed to see that  :(
They're just not in fashion at the moment.

We've had the Fusion trend, MB Malik, Warsop, Laver, Redback, Solitaire. As soon as someone on here buys a new Warsop which looks big with nice grains they'll begin to get more mentions.
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: Canners on October 19, 2010, 10:33:07 AM
Maybe people voted Kookaburra, voted them on the overall perception of all their equipment i.e softs, luggage etc and are forgetting that its just a bat world cup........ i think that anyone that knows there bats would have voted Warsop down to the fact that they make their own and like many have said dont pump all their money into paying players to put stickers on their bats made by proper bat makers. However they may have just had a Kook that was an incredibly good blade
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: Howzat on October 19, 2010, 10:34:28 AM
Have we now entered the SAF trend?!
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: tim2000s on October 19, 2010, 10:37:27 AM
Glad to see the comments about not requrieing massive edges. I own one bat with concaviing and big edges. That's the Laver. All of my others are much more traditionally shaped (well maybe not the Xiphos). I'm not too bothered about the "sub-continent" shape as I don't ever play there and I don't think it helps my batting particularly.

Big edges are theoretically nice, but are far more effective if combined with a bat weiging 3lb+... At least then when you slash hard, it has mass behind it as well...
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: SAF Bats on October 19, 2010, 10:45:19 AM
Have we now entered the SAF trend?!

yep it is nice to get mentioned but I hope not as that isn't what SAF is all about. I like to think that I just do my thing and do it to the best of my ability
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: mattw on October 19, 2010, 11:06:41 AM
I've had a Kooka Kahuna and I currently own a customised Warsop Venom.

The kahuna had such a small sweetspot on the bat and to be honest I brought it when I possibly didn't know that much about bats.

However my Warsop is a beautiful bat and it's a more of a traditional profile and still picks up beautifully for the weight. I still haven't used the Warsop in a game, but the times I've used it in the nets it has been superb and from what I've heard about Warsops is the more they get used the better they become...
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: 100 not out on October 19, 2010, 11:16:32 AM
We live in times where we are told that size matters, constant innovations are taking place. 100% extra free, new and improved, bigger and better etc etc etc . . . . .We buy with our eyes (to quote Mr Talisman).

I have a bat that was classical shaped, not the biggest edges, but boy did it go. Prob the best bat i ever had.

It is all about wood volume.

It has to be said though. when you put a bat with thick edges and concaving alongside a classical shaped bat. . . .same weight, pick up etc, which one would you choose.

Back on topic, never had a warsop, but spoken to Tony a few times ( what a nice chap), they are highly regarded by people in the know for a reason. 
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: Coach on October 19, 2010, 01:39:35 PM
I have had two Kookaburra Kahuna bats both of which were hand selected in the factory and were and one still is, fantastic, big chunky profile backed by a serious punch and the pick up on the kookaburras is far far better than on the '2'9' warsop that i have owned...its a personal thing all of us have had different experiences with both of these bat makers and we have our own opinions
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: jonpinson on October 19, 2010, 02:03:53 PM
I think there is a less negative answer to this. Just by pure numbers, more of us are likely to have had experience with a kook than a warsop. I've had two and used many more kooks, but I can honestly say I've never used a warsop. I don't vote in this game unless I have used both brands in question, but if I had, I'd have voted kookaburra for the above reason. FWIW, of the two I've owned, one was 'ok', and the other was probably my favourite bat of all time. It's about perception yes, but also about experience.
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: Colesy on October 19, 2010, 03:21:37 PM
I was very tempted to put Kookaburra but reminded myself that it was about the bats themselves which is why I voted Warsop
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: uknsaunders on October 19, 2010, 04:20:19 PM
I didn't vote as I haven't had either bat. I have tried Kooks in shops and they always felt "wrong" pickup wise. It's got to the point where I just ignore them!. Since I've never seen a Warsop I couldn't offer an opinion.

Maybe we should have an abstain vote as well? I'd rather people voted based on relevant experience. Judging by the age of some forum members I'd be surprised if they have experience on every bat voted for.
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: bat repairs on October 19, 2010, 05:07:56 PM
agree with that 100%, if you haven't used one, seen one or owned one you don't vote.
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: jonpinson on October 19, 2010, 06:21:47 PM
agree with that 100%, if you haven't used one, seen one or owned one you don't vote.

I would normally agree, but I somehow think very few people here or indeed anywhere will have in depth experience with both brands in each vote. I know I'm older than most here and to be honest, going by your parameters, could have voted in only a couple of rounds. It's fun at the end of the day, a way of working through the long off season we now face.
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: peplow on October 19, 2010, 10:00:29 PM
i have had a little experience of each, and think that warsop wins hands down most of the time, 9 out of ten warsops and kooks you pick up warsop would win, but that one specialy kook is usually very very good!
Title: Re: Warsop and the perception
Post by: tim2000s on October 19, 2010, 11:23:18 PM
I think this comes back to the whole point of this. Most people arevexpressing an opinion with no experience of many bats, and those who have that experience can't be distinguished without some research...