Had a good rest now, and can keep going! (Bet you all thought I was finished!
)
Right, so Matt had a Cyber Monday deal with the G2 to G1 upgrade for medium weighted bats. Also had tons of bags and softs on sale, so I went for 2 pairs of NV Pro gloves and a Tempo stand up bag - I now wish I had gone for a pair of pads too! (Couldn't find any in Small Mens, but should have asked about Youths!)
So we'll start off with the bat:
Specs:
Weight - 2lb 10.14oz
Edge - 35mm after rounding
Spine - Approx 60-61mm
Shoulder - 14mm
Toe Edge - 18mm
Toe - 26mm
Concaving - Varied throughout the blade
Right, so I asked for a Hellfire which was as close to 2.10 as possible, and when I received it, it was 2lb 10.1oz. It actually ended up losing some of the weight, and as a result, is only 2lb 10.14oz with a scuff!
Onto the concaving, this one is a bit of a different one, in that it is fairly minimal at the toe, but as you go up the blade, it gets heavier, then reverts to minimal concaving about 6 inches from the handle. I'm actually not a big fan of concaving higher up the blade, as I feel it just affects the response further up more than if you concave a bit more towards the toe. As a result, the response is good, but isn't quite nearly as nice as my other 2 G2 H4Ls, which is a bit disappointing, but it is early doors right now, and you can never tell how much it will just get better with time! Also, these weren't low density clefts, as it was limited to the medium weights, so I can't expect weight not to be taken out some way or another with my request!
The profile of the Hellfire range is gorgeous, as with all the other H4L ranges. It has a lovely flow to it, and has pretty nice dimensions throughout. The handle is an oval one, touch on the thin side, but not overly thin. Aesthetics wise, I think the Hellfire stickers are my favourite from H4L, there's something about the red which stands out even more now. The finishing, as always, is superb, and the grains are lovely. Just a couple of specks probably put it down from being a Pro Grade in looks.
Onto the gloves:
Really top quality glove, I don't normally like splits as much, as often they can feel too bulky, but these are just right. The Pittard palms make the gloves feel nice and supple, and I am a big fan of the fit. They are MRH, but feel almost in between Mens and Small Mens, which is sort of the happy medium for me.
Top quality protection on all fingers, with reinforced thumb, index and middle finger for the bottom hand.
And finally the bag:
Let's try chucking in the biggest bat we can find:
Yup, still fits fine:
Standing up:
Side to side with a HUGE Island bag filled with bats, naturally:
Odd second deck, which could probably fit flat things like your whites?
Absolutely massive, and probably the best bag I've ever purchased. The materials used are of a high quality, giving the bag a robust feel. The bag itself is extremely spacious, I could probably fit in some keeping gear too if I wanted. The bat caves feel nicely padded, so no need to worry about bats getting damaged badly, and are also spacious, which I suspect a lot of people are going to want after their B3 80mm spined bat purchases.
All in all, really happy with the purchases. Looking forward to take the H4L out to the nets, it will probably be the one to get used first and get the most use, as I want to play it in the soonest! Big thanks to Matt and Adam for handling my questions, and sorting out the delivery! A few hiccups with the courier, but I managed to pick it up in the end!