It has been a little while since an impromptu, completely unnecessary bat purchase, but having watched Joe Root's ton in the first Ashes test, I was drawn to the updated New Balance stickers so decided to take the plunge.
I opted to go for a slightly lower grade model as I am a firm believer that you get can some absolute belters in the lower grades and having looked through a few different bats that were in stock with the seller, I opted for this one.
Unboxing the bat, there was two immediate wow factors:
Firstly, the visuals. There is some subtle detailing on these stickers with the blue and red sections having a hexagon design and the "NB" carrying a silver glitter effect. The new colourway really works and it only gets better when they catch natural sunlight, which based on recent weeks, has been a rarity. The finish on the bat is also extremely good with a really clean, shiny finishing on the face, back, edges & toe.
Secondly, its a chunky piece of willow! The bat weighs 2lb 10.2oz according to my scales and this particular NB comes with 41mm edges and a 65mm spine. I feared that the handle on this bat would be super thin which I have seen with the likes of SS, however, it is not the case. It isn't GM thick, but by no means Keeley thin! With the thicker handle, and the addition of a second grip, it picks up nicely and feels very solid in the hands.
My only bugbear, and it is minor point in the grand scheme of things, is the bottom of the sticker on the back which, due to the profile, does not sit snug on the willow. The sticker is not coming off but there are some areas where it has clearly lifted. By no means an issue but it is all I can notice when I look at it up close.
For a bat in the £150 price range, I cannot really complain. The new 2023 NB stickers look great, it feels nice in the hands and it seems to tap up nicely with a relatively new league ball.
Will I ever use the bat? I doubt it...
Will I enjoy owning it, thinking that I have the elegance of Joe Root when shadow batting with it - most probably...
Enjoy some photos and Happy Friday!
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Topic: New Balance TC640 (Read 1590 times)