So you've tried every single bat that's ever come out of the factory have you and none have picked up well? From your experience you may have not held a ton or SS that picks up well but I have and I'm sure many others on this forum have too. My friend also has a SM pintu that's very big for the weight admittedly the build quality isn't the best but for the money it's never going to be
There MAY be a few very, very, very small number of exceptional cases but SS is way too much over rated IMO.
I have analyzed 100's of SS Bats in various weight categories, and found none that was anything special. ALL awkwardly stiff in maneuverability!!
Up till recently all SS models were in the same exact shape - only with a different sticker. No innovation - no exploration.
I don't even know what differentiates an SS orange vs SS Viru vs SS Gold vs SS Yuvi vs Mater vs platinum vs SS Special Edition vs SS Limited Edition vs SS 369 vs SS Matrix vs SS This vs SS That ?? I mean, what the heck ??
No SS Bat out 100's that I picked had a dream pick up. In contrast, small English boutiques like Redback cricket, Warsop etc regularly produce bats that are much higher in class, quality, performance, pickup, looks and handle stability. And DEFINITELY better looking stickers!
I do; however, except that the best bat I have ever owned is an SS. It is one of Saurav Ganguly's personal bat, BUT BUT BUT - I am 100% sure that it's only the SS stickers placed on his bat because the profile is totally different than the cookie cutter shape of SS.
So SS goes out of the window again.
And those Pintu Shintu, I don't even wanna waste my time on it.