Arrived in Taunton on time - for once, there were no delays on the train!
Travelling by train meant that we couldn't take any bats back with us though...
Taunton is quite a nice little town I think - always nice to get out of the big smoke every so often!
These were on the walk from the station to M&H...
And five minutes later, I was there. The dogs provided a warm welcome, as always!
After a tea and a coffee, and a bit of talking shop, it was time to pick some bats! The bat makers had kindly put aside some for me that matched the specs of our pre-orders, and other bats we wanted in stock. To be honest, most of what they'd set aside was really top drawer, and the CK22s really stood out for me (ruler straight grains, no heartwood and very thick edges), and as for the stickers, well, I can't get enough of them. You need to see them in the flesh!
I asked about the thinking behind these stickers, as I've heard feedback from some that they are a bit radical for M&H and not in keeping with their traditional branding and image, but they said that they had actually evolved naturally from the original stickers, and seeing the two bats side-by-side, I could certainly see what they meant! Incidentally, we decided to take the retro one, which is the same shape as the Solution/Original Low, but with those "old school" stickers!
This was a (rather special) Harlequin, that I first saw at the Lord's Trade Show (as a sample bat). The day after the show, I asked our M&H rep if he could reserve that bat for us and he kindly agreed to it. 24 grains, no less, and it tipped the scales at 2lb 7.5oz!
And a couple of individual shots of that retro Original bat - I do really love the stickers on this...
I was told that they had some very grainy bats in a heavier weight, so asked to see a few such bats despite them not being on our original order, and amongst them was this Amplus, which is 2.13 and a monster off the mallet, so I felt we should add it to our bounty!
We then went downstairs and I had a look through all the bats in the shop, not wanting to miss out on any gems that may be lurking there! I felt that what was left in there wasn't quite on a par with what the guys had set aside for us upstairs, and to be fair they had warned me of this, but I still ended up adding this Harlequin and Solution, both of which are 2.8...
And then, having finished picking all the bats, it was time for a wander around the rest of the shop. I learnt that the CK22 softs aren't available yet, but will be in mid January. I tried them on and was very impressed. The wicket keeping gloves, in particular, felt extremely comfortable and very supple, and I can see why CK likes them! Can't wait to get these in stock in the new year!
This is the (infamous) clearance bin, with all bats suffering from a defect of some description, often storm damage - still looked to be some lovely looking sticks in there though, and possibly some bargains to be had!
I had a train to catch and, unfortunately, ran out of time, so didn't get round to seeing the workshop, but did take photos in there the last time I visited, and I believe these are up on a previous thread (and our Facebook page), if anyone wants to take a look...
All in all, a very fun afternoon, and I highly recommend a visit should anyone be in the Taunton area.
Finally, I apologise for the image quality - all these pics were taken on my BlackBerry, which really is on its last legs now!!
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Topic: My Afternoon at Millichamp & Hall (Read 21891 times)