After seeing some pictures of Paul's butterfly bats, I decided to order one. I contacted Paul and discussed the specifications of my bat and he was very helpful. Within a day, Paul emailed me a picture of a butterfly cleft which had the stain right in the spot that I wanted it.
I had shared with Paul how I play, how I hold the bat and where I like the sweet spot. Paul suggested that I try a supershort handle bat. My specs were a super short handle butterfly, in the weight of 2:12 (fully dressed) or 2:13(1.5 grips and fully dressed) bat with a high swell (with butterfly stain located high) with a big bow.
Here is what bat looked like during the shaping process:
18 days after my first email to Paul, this is what I received in mail:
Pickup: When I pulled the bat out of the sleeve, it picked up very light. In my opinion, it feels like it 2:9 bat although it weighs 2:12/2:13. The bat also has a big bow which is supposed to help with the pick up.
Ping: There's a spot 6 inches from the toe that pings extremely well. For a bat that is brand-new, this is a highly responsive bat. It looks like there are a couple of hard bars on the face - one at the butterfly stain and the second one three inches below. Pressing of the bat is just terrific and it will be match ready in no time!
Handle: very comfortable, slightly wider than what I had spec'ed but it complements the weight of the blade. It has 1-1/2 grips per my specs and feels very good.
Finishing: It is beautiful. I don't care about the stickers but they look very classy.
Weight: TBD.
Overall, it is one of those bats that you immediately want to take to the nets and start playing with it. It feels that good in my hands. It also looks very good. I have some nice bats and this is one of the very best. I just cannot wait to try this out.