On the fourth day of Christmas the bat reviewed will be...
A DSC Intense 4000!
Model: Intense 4000
Willow Grade: G3
Weight: 2lb 9.7oz
Edge Max: 40mm
Spine Max: 67mm
Toe Edge: 27mm
Toe Centre: 32mm
Shoulder Edge: 14mm
Splice Depth: 38mm
Concaving: Very minimal
Width: 108mm
Face Camber: Semi-round (Around 4mm)
Handle: Medium oval tapering to round
Toe Shape: Rounded and angled
I don't think DSC get too much love here on the forum, they do seem to be churning out some excellent bats, and from what I remembered retailers saying, they seem to be quite popular amongst customers. Pretty large and attractive profiles, and plenty of different options at different price points, I do find them to be a rather fantastic offering,
especially in the lower range end of the spectrum. They do seem to offer a bit of variety in their profiles across the range, although there's some similarity between the profiles, there are noticeable differences when examining the range as a whole.
In terms of the DSC I saw at retailers, Romida, Eclipse All Sports and All Rounder seemed to hold stock, and the bats at Eclipse certainly were very good, generally very consistent, with some real standouts and some ridiculous Players Editions. I didn't take so much interest in them across other stores like Romida and All Rounder, perhaps because I was so preoccupied with Gray Nicolls, Gunn and Moore, Chase etc when at those chains. Having dealt with DSC for a number of years now, Hanif from EAS
mentioned that they were some of the most consistent in terms of producing performers regardless of grade. Some of the lower grades even have pretty much the same profile as the Players Editions, so definitely a brand worth looking into if you're going for retailer visits to pick out lower grades with a pretty ridiculous volume.This particular bat was purchased from Eclipse All Sports - I've dealt with Hanif there for many years, and he's always sent me up excellent bats, so it's always a treat to go down and pick out my own and also have a wee chin-wag about cricket equipment in general. As you can see, it boasts a rather large profile without much compromise anywhere volume wise. That very evenly distributed mass with a minimal amount of concaving throughout the blade to keep the weight down results in a nicely balanced pick up, but you can feel that you've got a fair chunk of wood low down. It's not too dissimilar to the GM Brava, and actually reminds me of one of my favourite GM profiles - the GM Argon. Looks wise, you've got 8 pretty straight grains, albeit 2 pretty much running along the edge, and quite a bit of speckle, you'd say a fair G3. Responsiveness wise out the packet, the ball absolutely flies off the bat. Crazy, as it most definitely needs knocking, and speaking with Hanif, his experience is that they just get better with knocking.
Branding wise, the DSC aesthetic can be a bit loud for some - however it really does stand out on television. I really like the stickers myself, and the classy white grip with the 2 main colourways is a bit of icing on top, giving what is a bit loud and garish a little bit of a refined and cohesive end product aesthetic. (At least for me) The subtle detailing, embossing and textures help with making the stickers stand out more. While the bold colours will probably mostly attract the younger generation (or
@FattusCattus ) - I feel there is also a good amount of wood shown to maybe sucker in some who prefer a slightly more minimalist look, especially without the old sticker that used to wrap round the back and edge.
Anyways, I had
@19reading87 message me earlier, asking how the ping was on the Brava - so I'm clearly typing out far too much and folks are probably getting a bit lost in the text - apologies. I have been doing this while a bit under the weather, but I'll try split out the sections a little more, and maybe not waffle so much...
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Topic: 12 Reviews of Christmas... (Read 4494 times)