Rich - genuinely, thanks for getting hold of James and thanks to James for responding - interesting to hear how many of his signature bats have been sold (with most of them probably belonging to forum members), less than i expected.
I didnt intend for this thread to be malicious, is was out of curiousity over the level of willow that he deems worthy to warrant the 'signature' status, would be interesting if he could tell you rich what he looks for in particular (im guessing it's the equivalent of what most bat-makers would reserve for their pro's with regard to density and grains). He has marketed it well and for this very reason it is often held up as the holy grail of bats, I certainly wouldnt say no to one.