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[Hammer Cricket]

Does anyone have experience with Aus willow... Kinda like Kashmir willow I've heard it's just English willow grown in Australia ..... Is there anywhere in Aus wet and cold enough to replicate the conditions of English willow... Or will this willow be more like Kashmir willow?

Is there a chance GN Aus are using this in their cheaper bats?


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[Red Ink Cricket]

I think callen have been using their own. Doesn't look great but looks aren't everything. Also saw Lachlan from dingbats mention he has a couple of homegrown clefts. He may be able to shed a little more light on it.

[Hammer Cricket]

I saw JP Gavan using them in india... He posted pics on his Instagram so it's found its way into the Indian market as well..


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[FattusCattus]

Lachlan Fishers used to use some. I also hade a Matrixx bat made from Aussie willow. It was pretty ugly, but very, very pingy. Ironically it was also very soft and cracked and dented like nobodys business.

[Sam]

I seem to recall Millichamp had his own willow plantation?

[Over Gully]

I recall back in the mid-90s that Maddocks Sports in Melbourne were using Aussie grown willow in some models of their own branded bats. I think it was a pretty short-lived exercise. They were either grown in Tasmania or Southern Victoria, which would be areas that have climates more along the lines of England.

Whatever happened to the M&C bats? Maddocks Sports is still going around but I not sure they produce their own bats anymore, they did make some absolute beauties in the day...

[Lwesty143]

As someone else mentioned Callen cricket have their own plantation, towards the bottom of Tasmania would have the best chance of being near to English conditions, but would be very windy

[dingbatsports]

I have recently got my hands on some willow from a new plantation in country Victoria.... The Aussie Willow I had seen in the past was all over the shop in the cosmetics department, but this stuff is blemish free (so far, from the first tree) and performs very well. Promising signs from the initial tree, touch wood (pun intended ) the following fellings produce the same quality, if not better clefts!!

As far as I know Callens plantation is in Healsville (30min drive from my place), Fisher has a plantation in Gippsland, and JM had a plantation in Daylesford when he was in Victoria.

I sent that cleft to JPGavan so he could take it to Inida

I currently have 3 Aussie clefts in stock to use...

[MD2812]

When you say very very pingy, how does this compare to EW

[Overdrive]

I heard that the next biggest producers will be Ireland. Similar climate to ours so results should be similar.
Any truth in this? If it was true, we might see a longer term drop in prices with another quality supply line.

[uknsaunders]

I think you could say similar for  most of Europe to be honest.

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[ammo]

I think Tasmania has decent conditions for growing willow, possibly also alpine areas south NSW and North Victoria

[JPGavan]

I have recently got my hands on some willow from a new plantation in country Victoria.... The Aussie Willow I had seen in the past was all over the shop in the cosmetics department, but this stuff is blemish free (so far, from the first tree) and performs very well. Promising signs from the initial tree, touch wood (pun intended ) the following fellings produce the same quality, if not better clefts!!

As far as I know Callens plantation is in Healsville (30min drive from my place), Fisher has a plantation in Gippsland, and JM had a plantation in Daylesford when he was in Victoria.

I sent that cleft to JPGavan so he could take it to Inida

I currently have 3 Aussie clefts in stock to use...

I should add the test willow wasn't great...

[DRob]

Looks like there's another batmaker using Aussie grown willow.

http://www.dnbgippsland.com/

Not sure if he's using willow from a plantation already mentioned, or whether its his own exclusive plantation.

Its good to see a bit of increase in the use of Ausssie grown willow, and that there's a few more Aussie batmakers starting to emerge. It also looks like Dan Nichols (formerly of Vantage?) has found himself a new home.

[dingbatsports]

Since changing my pressing technique I have seen some pretty good results Josh. Only one bat from about 10 has been no good, and that was again due to early testing. Customers have been happy so far as well! I think cosmetically its really quite good, and although I don't believe it is on the exact same level as UK grown willow, I think it is so very close that unless you made it, the average Joe wouldn't know the difference.

Two sticks that I made recently from the Australian willow:










The slightly concaved bat came in at 2.9.6 (35mm edges), and the full shape weighed 2.12.1, (30mm edges and 57mm spine). So you can see that the weight of the willow is also close to the mark (both were 13% moisture content when tested before making). Will be interesting to see if it is marketable down-under, as i know people are resistant to change or variance, particularly with bats where the same wood has been used for generations. The way I look at it though, its the same wood, just a different country

I would love to send a cleft over to someone in the UK to get their thoughts on it