A couple of months back I was after trying out a 2-8 bat. Tai (Managing Director) of BlankBats said I could try one of there's. Unfortunately for me, good business by them they sold it. Anyway around a month ago Tai sent me his bat through to try out, to compare against my Laver signature, and report back. While waiting for the bat to turn up James from Lekka posted asking for a review of one of his bats. I emailed him to say I would review against my laver, tais BB and possibly my GM players. He was happy with this and sent the bat to me. I managed to pick up a SAF Hades and decided to test this instead of the GM.
So here's the line up
Laver Signature, 2-12
Lekka RDX big hitter 2-7.5 ( shorter blade, longer handle )
SAF Hades 2-10
BB Signature 2-10
This review is based on 3 sessions against a bola bowling machine.
Not much to say about my Laver as I rate it as probably the best bat I've had, and a few bats have passed through my hands
First up the BlankBat, based on a series1 screaming cat, a lovely looking stick, nice grainage, minimal stickers which look better in flesh and work well giving it the desired minimal look. Bat picks up lovely, balance is good, even with Tai's unusual grip set up. He had used it in his last 3 or 4 games of this season. The noise off the bat when hitting the ball is lovely, like a fire cracker going off. In all out slog mode this bat is stunning, the ball just flies. A large middle/coverage, Performance is easily on par with my Laver so 10 out of 10 for me
Next the Lekka RDX, James said this bat is dog ugly but pings beautifully. No problem as this will be a review on performance. So the bat itself is SH in size although the blade is shorter, handle longer and the width is Harrow size. Width size not really noticeable until you hold it next to a standard short handled bat. The bat has 40mm edges and around 50mm spine so still a big bat for the weight, and as James as stated yep ugly. The performance of this bat was very good, although defending shots and non fully commited shots did give some vibration back into my top hand that did sting on a few occasions. In full out slog mode it went well, and maybe the lighter weight( as it felt and picked up like a feather) the performance wasn't as good as the BB so for me it was an easy 8 out of 10. I must also mention that this bat hadn't been knocked in so it should improve with use.
Finally the SAF Hades, with the offset edges it is an usual looking shape looking side on. This bat has nice straight grains with heartwood on the edge. I like the handle on this, nice and oval for the bottom hand, pick up is good with a good balance. The middle/sweet spot on this bat felt low, and with this I didn't find the middle very often. When it did it went ok, think it needs a lot more knocking in so performance compared to the others was around 6 out of 10.
So what I found from this review is that just under 2-10 is probably by ideal weight, and I found myself going back to the BB as that gave me the biggest smile. Not sure what the current cost is of a BB is but I'm sure Tai or Mike will add to this. I found James at Lekka good to deal with and I think theses bats are around the £180 mark so outstanding value. I'm sure this Hades will improve with more knocking in and will hopefully go to a good home as these have had some great reviews. As for Lavers i rate them very highly, the service and after care is exceptional, and i still have 2 in the garage yet to be used!!
So a big thanks for Tai and James for the bats to review
Thanks for reading
Rob
Author
Topic: A one man, 4 bat, brizzle Bat Off (Read 4111 times)