I emailed Roger about ordering a bat first of all and how would be the best way of doing it and as I live not far from Worcester, I went to his shop two weeks ago but unfortunately the person in the shop wasn't Roger - it was someone who was a lot younger which I'm guessing is his son.
Anyhow, as I had travelled to the shop I placed my order with his son - but I was hoping to speak to Roger directly about the bat as I could've placed the exact order over the internet/phone as he just wrote down on a piece of paper what sort of bat I wanted and he didn't give me any tips or anything. He just wasn't that helpful.
When I placed my order I was told that the bat would be ready for the week after it was ordered. I had left plenty of emails and tried to ring up a few times with no feedback about some slight changes and I didn't get any confirmation of these changes even though I sent an email as soon as I had got back home from placing the order. Anyhow I finally got through to them a couple of days after of which I spoke to Roger about these changes and he said it was no problem.
The specs of the bat that I ordered was;
- SH
- 2'11
- mid-low middle
- big edges
- straight grains
- light pick-up
- slight bow
- concaving
- octopus grip
- no knots
- oval handle
- toe guard
- knocked in
There was a 2'11 I picked up in the shop(with grip/stickers etc on(finished bat)), which was pretty much exactly what I wanted as it picked up very lightly much like a 2'9 or something along those lines which I said in the email to pretty much copy except make the sweetspot a tad lower.
The bat that I recieved was:
- SH
- 2'12 1/2
- mid-low middle
- big edges
- fairly-light pickup
- slight bow
- concaving
- octopus grip
- 12 staight grains
- no knots (on face)
- oval handle
- pink stickers
- heartwood on the inside edge
- pressed
Overall I'm pleased with the bat, but I was looking for something slightly lighter and as I stated for the bat to be a 2'11 just like the bat that they had in their shop already, I expected the bat to be nailed on a 2'11. I was a little disappointed to get heartwood on the inside edge instead of the outside (even though I didn't ask for it, he could've asked me if I was left/right handed). Whilst doing some light knocking in you can tell that this bat is going to fly, as it's slightly bigger than I expected. I cant wait to use it once it's fully knocked in...
The bat itself is a superb bat and especially for £100 you can't really go wrong. I didn't really need a new bat as my Warsop Venom(2'12, traditional shape) is still in good condition, but I thought I'm going to take them up on their offer at the moment as I'm sure that they will get more expensive in the future and it's good to give local businesses some trade. However I wasn't really impressed with their communication and overall customer service, as I would've liked to have had an invoice from them or some sort of confirmation about the specifications of what my bat will be and also I would've liked to have spoken to roger directly in the shop.
Customer Service: 4/10
Made to specifications: 8/10
Price: 10/10
Overall: 8/10
EDIT: Also when I picked it up, it felt/smelled as though the bat had been oiled. However it seems as though the bat has been oiled after the scuff sheet had gone on - so the face of the bat hasn't been oiled...
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Topic: My new Solitaire Bat (Read 7082 times)