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[Buzz]

Its probably one of the biggest differences between us and professionals, they time the ball so sweetly and are able to find the middle so much more often compared to most of us.

no the main difference between us and professionals is that their bats are far better than ours.

isn't that right??? 

[tim2000s]

Here's another conundrum. What happens if the lighter bat is bigger(more wood) than the heavier bat? I believe(maybe falsely) the more wood the more power.

Take a look at this thread: http://custombats.co.uk/cbforum/index.php?topic=23698.0

Well, you've seen the pictures of the two bats. There is a noticeable difference in the volume of willow that each contains, although the masses are just 0.2oz apart.

But what of using them? In three parts:

Knocking in/tapping up with a mallet
Quite honestly, I couldn't feel a difference. Both have decent, long middles, both rebounded very nicely off the mallet. At this stage of the test, it's made next to no difference.

Use against a Bola
Again, both are good bats, both pressed slightly differently, but to me and the others who used them, no discernible difference when middling one, and very little difference in sweet spot coverage, only down towards the toe, where shape will make the difference.

Use against real cricket balls
This is the one that everyone really wants to know. How do the two bats compare against real cricket balls. This has been done in two ways. Hitting thrown balls and facing bowlers. In neither was I able to categorically state that one performed better than the other. There felt like no difference between the two. Both are decent grade willow, both are pressed well according to the characteristics of the cleft, and both hit cricket balls in a way that, if you're a good batsman, will score you runs.

Conclusion
Here's what you've all been waiting for.

The size of the bat doesn't matter!

While this may be very disappointing to many people, the basic physics of it are that, for properly pressed willow, a mass is moving in one direction, impacting a mass moving in the opposite direction. The change in force is related for the most part to the speed and the mass directly, followed by the characteristics of the material.

As the mass and bat speed play the greatest part, whether the willow is high or low density makes next to no difference, as the physical characteristics of willow are common. If it is pressed sub-optimally, I have no doubt that there will be an impact on performance, and likewise, a laminate is changing the physical characteristics of willow, so may change the performance. Density, though, really makes no physical difference to what you wield.

The only good reason I can give for people hitting better with larger bats is that they inspire confidence in a different way.

[cleanbowled]

Yep that's the thread I was referring to in one of my earlier posts, that pretty much sums it all up. Its what I have found in my experience as well.

Agree with you Buzz, I think the difference between us and the pros is definitely the quality of those bats  Now if I could only source an ultra special pro cleft Grade G1+++++ bat lol!! I'd be making my test debut anyday now!!

[Nespresco]

Unfortunately the physics of bat hitting ball is far more complicated than has been touched on and the actual maths behind it gets quite complicated. You cannot simply take two bats hit some balls and then, because you can't discern a difference, conclude that properties of the wood are negligible. If we were to try and develop a bat performance index there would be a huge number of calculations. Which is probably why no-one has done it. The key factors will be;

The moment of inertia of the bat; this is the torque required to alter the angular velocity of the bat, it's more relevant than dead weight,

Node locations and center of percussion; This is essentially the sweet spot, the area where maximum energy is imparted to the ball due to less energy being dissipated as vibrations. The bigger the sweet spot the better.

The stiffness of the bat face; Something to quantify the rebound characteristics of the bat, We could use the Coefficient of restitution however I'm pretty sure that would be relative to velocity.  I imagine low density willow would allow the bat to have greater structural rigidity, carbon backing/inserts would have done a similar thing before they were banned.


This would allow us to create an index which quantifies performance by relating the force required to swing the bat to the resultant velocity of the ball. We could determine how often a junior, club player, semi pro and professional player would hit the sweet spot and then assign weightings accordingly.  Equating the three would give us a figure quantifying performance.

[mk_chappo]

I think in general a heavier bat will hit the ball better. When I'm selecting a bat I try to go for the heaviest / biggest bat I can that still 'feels' light in the hand. (i.e. all about pick up).

[ProCricketer1982]

2lb 12 game bat and I hit the ball far further with a 2lb 9oz one.. Go figure

[procricket]

The pro's used to use tiny bats in a big weight and it used to travel big..

Interesting the trade weight or bat speed

[Chad]

Pretty near impossible and pointless to quantitatively measure performance, as it varies for everyone as everyone has a different preference. Find a bat that you like the weight, pick up and feel of which taps up well. If you can score plenty runs with it, then what's the point in going for something that may perform better? There are many factors which make a bat perform, but in the end, it has to suit the user!

[Northern monkey]

no the main difference between us and professionals is that their bats are far better than ours.

isn't that right??? 

That's my excuse sorted for this season,
Nowt to do with me being crap! Ho hum

[Gingerbusiness]

Both Gayle and Pollard use 2lb 9oz.

Lance Klusner used to use 3lb 6oz

Who hits it further? Matter of opinion!

"It's not the size of the bat, more the size of the player whelding it and his relative bat speed"

[WalkingWicket37]

Both Gayle and Pollard use 2lb 9oz.

Lance Klusner used to use 3lb 6oz

Who hits it further? Matter of opinion!

"It's not the size of the bat, more the size of the player whelding it and his relative bat speed"

I don't buy into this size of the bat vs size of the player stuff, it's still all down to timing in my mind...

[Gingerbusiness]

I don't buy into this size of the bat vs size of the player stuff, it's still all down to timing in my mind...

Then why can't 5ft6 James Taylor hit the ball as far a 6ft6 Gayle or Pollard.

I don't want to sound like a know-it-all but it is pure physics at that level. Don't get me wrong, timing is VERY important, but force is a key variable, it is why "Power Hitting" is now a key topic in the cricketing world.

[Chad]

Both Gayle and Pollard use 2lb 9oz.

Lance Klusner used to use 3lb 6oz

Who hits it further? Matter of opinion!

"It's not the size of the bat, more the size of the player whelding it and his relative bat speed"

I thought Gayle used something around 3lb?

[Gingerbusiness]

In the last IPL they both admitted they use 2lb9

[WalkingWicket37]

Then why can't 5ft6 James Taylor hit the ball as far a 6ft6 Gayle or Pollard.

I don't want to sound like a know-it-all but it is pure physics at that level. Don't get me wrong, timing is VERY important, but force is a key variable, it is why "Power Hitting" is now a key topic in the cricketing world.

You've answered your own question there - physics! By default, being a foot taller they'll have longer arms (leavers), so a ball timed equally well by both players is going to behave differently. Longer leavers = more bat speed from the same swing distance at the top of the leaver (shoulders), like you said, pure physics and probably a different topic again...