Sheesh, this thread has taken tonnes of twists and turns, from questioning the credentials of batmakers, their grading system etc etc. As they say, proof is in the pudding - if they're making an excellent bat, does it matter if they've had 5 or 40 years of experience? Not really, but the experience definitely will help in the long run with the batmaker turning a below average piece of willow into a good bat - which will give me a bit more confidence if buying blind. If you're not sure, don't buy unless you're just curious. No doubt some of the info shared has both helped and also not helped you at all with deciding
@addu84 .
If you're set on either WCW or Keeley, I've not heard many bad things from either. One is quite a new player on the scene, who hasn't served any apprenticeships or anything like that, but can clearly make a pretty good bat. The other has a track record unlike any other really in the UK, and has been making bats for 40 odd years.
The WCW stickers are excellent, stand out and probably some of the best in the market - and they seem to be able to press very well too. However for me personally, I'd choose Keeley, but I have visited them and am biased to a degree, as I've really enjoyed my visits and they've always been good to me. I've just found the finish better, the overall product presentation is more to my taste in terms of shaping and finishing, and I guess since I've used one to some degree of success, I'd be more inclined to go with Keeley if I were to suddenly run out of bats and was picking between these two.
As with the selling point mentioned of WCW processing their own willow - Keeley, H4L, Kippax and others also do the same. Some companies like B3 buy in A LOT of willow, so naturally will be getting in a fair bit of really nice willow. If you're after a bat with a thicker handle, then the bats I've had from both Keeley and the one WCW I've had seem to have handles on the skinnier side - this is probably one of the most important things about picking a bat, so would recommend either going for another brand, or contacting the batmakers and telling them what you want if you're dead set on the 2 brands. Another thing I'd recommend is get it sorted now when things are quieter, and before the willow price increase comes into play!
Author
Topic: Keeley vs WCW (Read 8314 times)