Buying a new bat for the season - Toronto people help

[Amir]

Alright, so I have decided to buy a new bat for this season. The number 11, needs to fight a way to a number 10 promotion

Anyways, today I used the Kookaburra Blade 950 (Morgan) and it is an amazing bat. But the best part of it was the light weight and I think I decided then this is the bat I want. Well, its kinda out of my price range but I want something of similar weight.

http://www.kookaburra.biz/osb/itemdetails.cfm/ID/733

Another bat I am looking at is the Powerbow: http://www.gray-nicolls.co.uk/ranges/powerbow/

Similar weight of Grey Nichols felt real good. More affordable.

I was at Qasra and they priced the Blade at 495 and the Grey Nichols at 240-260. Does anyone know if any of the other dealers got these bat cheapers? And if any similar bats you can recommend (the weight of the Blade is 2.1 lbs)?

 

[Cover Drive]

Rehan Bhai, it's all your fault and I wouldn't have expected this from your teammate

Anyways, on a serious note was it Blade 950 which you saw at Qasra for $495?

I am assuming that Gray Nicolls to be 5 Star which is Grade 2.

I think you made a slight typo regarding bat weight. I am pretty sure it wasn't 2.1 lbs as I don't think any brand make such weight bat.

Few questions;

What is the exact amount you are looking to spend on a bat? Do you only want Kookaburra Blade or Gray Nicolls Powerbow or any other brand would do the trick?

 

[Amir]

Rehan Bhai, it's all your fault and I wouldn't have expected this from your teammate

I haven't spoken to Rehan yet, but will soon. Just in the research stage of things.

Yes Blade 950 (or 1000) for 495 at Qasra.

No typo, talked to my friend. He said 2.07. And it looks like that, real flat and thin bat but still strong. On Kookaburra's website, it says "up to 2 lbs" Check the link I posted.

Amount, well hopefully under 300 is my budget right now. And it can be any company, most important thing is weight cause I just want that degree of flexibility. I am not a strong person, the lighter the better.

 

[Cover Drive]

I was just playing around. I hope you didn't mind.

It is Blade 950 as there is no Blade 1000 (Only Kahuna 1000 exist).

Hmm it sounds interesting as I have never seen any bat around 2.07 lbs mark. However, the Kookaburra link says 2 lbs 8 1/2.

Pickup usually make a bat feel lighter in your hand as well. And pickup principle is that the further the mass from your hands (handle) the heavier it will feel. For example, a low sweetspot bat (Gray Nicolls Powerbow) in 2.6 lbs weight range will not feel around 2.6 mark in your hand and the pickup will be slightly heavy making the bat feel heavier in your hand. And vice vers for higher sweetspot bats (Blade for example). So pickup is a vital component as well.

The golden rule basically is to select a bat yourself by going to the stores and feeling it in your hand. Personally I will not recommend you to buy the $495 Blade 950 or $260 Powerbow as you can get much better quality bats near your budget.

In fact, the company I would recommend would be Newbery. They are one of finest batmakers in the world and they have made many international player bats. One of the bat which I would say is on lighter side in Newbery's catalogue would be Thruxton. I am not sure if you have seen Rehan Bhai's Newbery or Imran Bhai's Newbery but if you look at them you can see how good those bats are made and how skilled the craftsmanship is. If you have ever held Imran Bhai's Newbery you will find it heavy as it is bottom heavy although weightwise it doesn't look heavy. Whereas Rehan Bhai's Thruxton is much lighter bat as it has higher positioned sweetspot. As I earlier mentioned golden rule is to feel a bat in your hand. So have a look at Rehan Bhai's Thruxton and see how it feels in your hand. It might be tad heavy for you but if it feels good then you can get a lighter bat in that weight range (you can get around 2.6 mark as well). Rehan Bhai's Newbery is SPS which is top of the line, however, you can buy Players which will cost around £200 posted to Canada from UK. Players is as good as SPS model.

If you don't like Newbery or don't want to get bats shipped from UK then let me know we will discuss and look into local factors.

Also would you be interested in Pakistani bats?

Bare me if I made any typo or any mistakes as I was writing from my phone.

If you have anymore question(s) please don't hesitate to ask me

 

[Amir]

I was just playing around. I hope you didn't mind.

I mind. I mind so much, I expect a 30% contribution from you towards my bat. Nothing less.

Yeah I probs had the weight wrong lol. My friend originally said 2.7, and then 2.07! But I remember once talking to Rehan about this but he told me there is no such thing and Imran told me the same. I think my friend has it wrong, so then 2.6-2.7 is fine.

Yeah I seen their Newberry. I didn't know you can get different weights of that model. Will need to take a closer look at his bat. The reason I liked the Kookaburra a lot is cause I found the bat itself very squarish and to me, the blade looked a bit longer than regular bats. Maybe its just my eyes playing tricks but I liked the shape of the bat. I never been a big fan of these flat bats these guys make but today I was definitely impressed.

Thing I like about Grey Nichols (I have Rehan's old one), is that their sweet spot shapes a little outward so if you hit it there, it goes. The thing is, as of right now, I am leaning towards Kookaburra because that is the bat I batted with today and yielded positive results. I didn't feel any vibration as I usually do in my hands.

The sweet spot part is very interesting, it does make a lot of sense now. I like using Rehan's old bat he gave me, but I find sometimes when I am even practicing in my basement (with ball tied to rope hanging from roof lol), my muscles feel little strain after a while or I can feel it in my wrists. I can get some good strokes from the bat but I sometimes find myself getting beat by medium fast bowlers and the pick-up principle makes a lot of sense (cause the bat he gave me is not that heavy at all). Today that was not an issue with this Kookaburra.

Food for thought. Hmm.

 

[Amir]

I was just playing around. I hope you didn't mind.

I mind. I mind so much, I expect a 30% contribution from you towards my bat. Nothing less.

Yeah I probs had the weight wrong lol. My friend originally said 2.7, and then 2.07! But I remember once talking to Rehan about this but he told me there is no such thing and Imran told me the same. I think my friend has it wrong, so then 2.6-2.7 is fine.

Yeah I seen their Newberry. I didn't know you can get different weights of that model. Will need to take a closer look at his bat. The reason I liked the Kookaburra a lot is cause I found the bat itself very squarish and to me, the blade looked a bit longer than regular bats. Maybe its just my eyes playing tricks but I liked the shape of the bat. I never been a big fan of these flat bats these guys make but today I was definitely impressed.

Thing I like about Grey Nichols (I have Rehan's old one), is that their sweet spot shapes a little outward so if you hit it there, it goes. The thing is, as of right now, I am leaning towards Kookaburra because that is the bat I batted with today and yielded positive results. I didn't feel any vibration as I usually do in my hands.

The sweet spot part is very interesting, it does make a lot of sense now. I like using Rehan's old bat he gave me, but I find sometimes when I am even practicing in my basement (with ball tied to rope hanging from roof lol), my muscles feel little strain after a while or I can feel it in my wrists. I can get some good strokes from the bat but I sometimes find myself getting beat by medium fast bowlers and the pick-up principle makes a lot of sense (cause the bat he gave me is not that heavy at all). Today that was not an issue with this Kookaburra.

Food for thought. Hmm.

 

[Cover Drive]

I mind. I mind so much, I expect a 30% contribution from you towards my bat. Nothing less.

(I guess these smiley tell you everything )

Back in the days there were bat weighing around 2.3/2.4 etc whereas now the minimum weight you can come across is 2.6. Thats the lightest I have seen around. As I told you earlier the position of sweetspot plays a role in weight. I have same Newbery as the one Imran Bhai has and mine weighs 2.7 lbs but it feels around 2.10 due to it's low sweetspot. The rule is that the further away the mass from your hands the heavier it will feel. I once saw a baseball training bat and it was skinny (lol) and it was low sweetspot but it weighed like he'll although it looked light.

You can for sure get there models in lighter weight range . The blade length is pretty much standard and for some bats it differs around .25-.50 inches and this is for standard regular bat (not T20s). So the blade is definitely not long compared to other bats.

Rehan Bhai's old Gray Nicolls Predator kinda has low sweetspot, hence, you feel it in your wrist. Whereas on the other handle Blade has higher sweetspot compared to the Gray Nicolls you have right now. Basically if you like to drive (or play off front foot) the ball then low sweetspot bats are made for you and vice versa.

There are few factors why I don't recommend Kookaburra's, Gray Nicolls's etc to anyone now because these brands are big. So when they are making bats they make them at very large scale whereas other companies like Newbery, Salix etc (these are big brands as well but not as big as Kookaburra, Gray Nicolls etc) mainly focus on quality. Kookaburra, Gray Nicolls etc overlook the quality factor as there primary aim is to make certain amount of bats whereas the smaller brands don't produce as muchs bats as Kookaburra, Gray Nicolls etc do.

Second reason why I don't recommend anyone buying Gray Nicolls or Kookaburra is because they are made in India and Asian bats seriously don't deserve a hefty $500 price tag. I mean to me those look expensive as I would never pay $500 for a Asian made bat. I rather buy a Laver & Wood for similar price.

So these are two major factors why I don't prefer big brands bat as you can get similar or better quality bat in a much lower price. I am not saying that Kookaburra, GN etc don't make good bats no they make very good bats but the hefty price tag draws me away from them. I was reason yesterday that someone visited to Robert Pack's factory (batmaker of top of the line Puma bats) and he himself said that most big brands grade there top of the line bats on look rather than performance. He stated that since most people buy stuff online they can not test the performance so they want a bat which will look very good. So the hefty price tag also have a big mark up just because of the stickers as well. As you pay for the stickers.

I believe vibration basically occurs when the ball is not being middled properly. So from your post I get a feeling that you prefer higher sweetspot bats.

But I am still confused that how were you able to like both Gray Nicolls Powerbow and Blade because they have compelely different profiles.

PS: I am not trying to pull you away from Kookaburra etc i was just shedding light on them and what I think regarding there bats. If you have bucks in your pocket and can afford to buy those hefty price tag Asian made bats then go for them as it is your money and your choice at the end.

Again bare me for any mistakes as I was posting from my phone

Feel free to ask any question

 

[Amir]

I agree on the price tag, I want something affordable as well. I understand your quality argument but right now, I just want something that I feel good with, comfortable with and reasonably price. That is the most important thing. I don't think I have ever bought a bat, all my others were from cousins in Pak but this time its about comfort.

I will definitely look at the Newberry's but I think after your posts, I am preferring higher sweet spot bat. As to why I like both well the GN is still pretty light. But like you said, the lower sweet spot making it feel heavier than it is. And hence, I am losing a bit of sharpness. While driving is great, I think most important I first just am able to make contact with the ball. With the Blade, it was my first time using it but I noticed an immediate increase to my bat speed. And more importantly, I was able to adjust my shots at the last minute if the ball happened to move.

But your right about the driving bit. When I batted with the blade and I drove the ball, I felt it did not have the power of the GN. I am probs gonna practice again this Sunday, so I am going to use the Blade again.

 

[ca_gold]

but we dont have practice on sunday. have you joined the icl?

 

[Cover Drive]

I agree on the price tag, I want something affordable as well. I understand your quality argument but right now, I just want something that I feel good with, comfortable with and reasonably price. That is the most important thing. I don't think I have ever bought a bat, all my others were from cousins in Pak but this time its about comfort.

I will definitely look at the Newberry's but I think after your posts, I am preferring higher sweet spot bat. As to why I like both well the GN is still pretty light. But like you said, the lower sweet spot making it feel heavier than it is. And hence, I am losing a bit of sharpness. While driving is great, I think most important I first just am able to make contact with the ball. With the Blade, it was my first time using it but I noticed an immediate increase to my bat speed. And more importantly, I was able to adjust my shots at the last minute if the ball happened to move.

But your right about the driving bit. When I batted with the blade and I drove the ball, I felt it did not have the power of the GN. I am probs gonna practice again this Sunday, so I am going to use the Blade again.

To be honest, Newbery bats are one of the best bat in cricket. So I am sure you will never regret if you opt out for a Newbery.

The Newbery Rehan Bhai has (Thruxton) has a higher sweetspot, hence, you will feel a lighter pickup and weight would be good for you. On the other hand, Imran Bhai's Newbery (Krakatoa) would be slightly heavy for you.

Blade does have a higher sweetspot and I believe your bat speed increased because in past you were using heavy bats by which your game was affected.

low sweetspot bats are usually good for low pitches but pitches in T&D, EDCL etc are not that low so I am sure a higher sweetspot bat will go well for you.

I am not sure if Rehan Bhai will be there on SUnday but if he is there then you might want to check out his Newbery and see how it feels.

If you wish to buy a Pakistani bat then CA would be ideal for you as they have higher sweetspot compare to other Pakistani brands.

Personally if I were to buy a $500 then I don't think I would buy a Gray Nicolls or Kookaburra although Gray Nicolls is my favourite brand. I would rather buy smaller companies bat which would be much better than those in terms of quality and performance.

Of course comfort is one of the first thing you look. Don't get carried away by posts or by my recommendations.

Feel free to ask any question(s) you have.

 

[Amir]

but we dont have practice on sunday. have you joined the icl?

A practice you don't know about. Its Pathan sponsored.

CD, I won't see his Newberry on Sunday cause its a practice with my other team. They are like my local gymkhana, like how plays at one right now.

But Rehan will be proud to know I played his favourite cricketer's best shot with the Blade. The Imran Nazir uppercut over point with the wristy follow through.

 

[Cover Drive]

Yeah I seen their Newberry. I didn't know you can get different weights of that model. Will need to take a closer look at his bat. The reason I liked the Kookaburra a lot is cause I found the bat itself very squarish and to me, the blade looked a bit longer than regular bats. Maybe its just my eyes playing tricks but I liked the shape of the bat. I never been a big fan of these flat bats these guys make but today I was definitely impressed.

I was sitting and suddenly wondered that I overlooked two facts (which I realized couple of minutes ago) that was that bat a long blade bat? Some bats are usually long blades compare to normal ones and they are basically made for tall players.

Secondly I think it might be concaving (bow) of the bat playing trick. I am not too sure about this but I took all of my bats out and also noticed that some of my bats are tad longer compare to others. For example, Gray Nicolls Powerbow looks slightly longer than my Bubber Sher. Since Bubber Sher have a bow whereas Powerbow's bow is not even noticeable and is pretty much flat so I am not sure if that plays a role in bat length in any way.

 

[ca_gold]

i have a kookaburra ice 850. the hussey bat - in really good condition. its very light as well. take a look at it when nets start. i will be selling it for $100. fraction of what you'd pay for a new one.

 

[SempreSami]

The Ice was always my favourite Kookaburra bat of recent times, I hope the Rogue isn't much different.

 

[Cover Drive]

I never liked Kookaburra bats but saw couple of them the last time I was practicing and the Kahuna profile looked very decent with a good pick up.

 

[Silencer]

i have a kookaburra ice 850. the hussey bat - in really good condition. its very light as well. take a look at it when nets start. i will be selling it for $100. fraction of what you'd pay for a new one.

Did Micheal Hussey himself used the Kookaburra ICE you have got?

 

[Cover Drive]

i have a kookaburra ice 850. the hussey bat - in really good condition. its very light as well. take a look at it when nets start. i will be selling it for $100. fraction of what you'd pay for a new one.

Didn't you buy this bat solely for nets? Will you be using NB or BAS in nets or another bat is making its way?

 

[ca_gold]

Did Micheal Hussey himself used the Kookaburra ICE you have got?

no - but it did belong to a county pro. i bought it from a respected bat maker in the UK who supplies that pro with his own bats.

it's been used for a good season - however its in great condition & the middle has plenty of life. CD has seen the pics. CD do you mind posting the Kook pics on to here?

 

[Cover Drive]

no - but it did belong to a county pro. i bought it from a respected bat maker in the UK who supplies that pro with his own bats.

it's been used for a good season - however its in great condition & the middle has plenty of life. CD has seen the pics. CD do you mind posting the Kook pics on to here?

InshAllah, I'll post them in the evenings once I get home and have access to a computer.

 

[ca_gold]

feel free to post the BAS/CA /NB's as well if you'd like

 

[Cover Drive]

feel free to post the bas/ca /nb's as well if you'd like

?

 

[ca_gold]

in my original kraktoa review - you will see a pic of a ca gold/evo etc in that.

 

[Cover Drive]

Pictures are now up

 

[SempreSami]

Mmmm grains.

 

[ca_gold]

thanks for that CD! and yes sami - the grains are fantastic on this - as is the pickup. its featherweight.

 

[Silencer]

no - but it did belong to a county pro. i bought it from a respected bat maker in the UK who supplies that pro with his own bats.

it's been used for a good season - however its in great condition & the middle has plenty of life. CD has seen the pics. CD do you mind posting the Kook pics on to here?

Okay, sounds fair.

May I ask why does the willow colour looks a bit wired? Have the bat undergone any repair or anything like that?

 

[ca_gold]

yeah. it was refurbed. sanded in the front - and a new scruff sheet was applied. hence the color difference.

 

[Cover Drive]

ca_gold Bhai, how is this thick spiral grip? Are they any good?

 

[Silencer]

yeah. it was refurbed. sanded in the front - and a new scruff sheet was applied. hence the color difference.

Cheers fella.

I must add that it looks a very good bat. Good luck to whoever will be using it.

 

[ca_gold]

im not sure how thick it is, but it has a weighty feel to it. i like these kinda of grips - have one one on my bas too.
on my thruxton i actually have two grips - octopus on top. i liked the octopus grips on my gn too. guess it depends on the bat.

 

[Cover Drive]

im not sure how thick it is, but it has a weighty feel to it. i like these kinda of grips - have one one on my bas too.
on my thruxton i actually have two grips - octopus on top. i liked the octopus grips on my gn too. guess it depends on the bat.

I like Octopus grips but I read somewhere that it is not gloves friendly as it damages the palm.

Personally I am not fan of grips or anything but I like Chveron grip (the one on Krakatoa) as it is straightforward grip.

I have also found Lekka Xtrax grip to be good ones for gloves and they feel nice as well.

 

[Amir]

That kookaburra looks nice. Bring it practice next time, going to use it. Good job ca_gold

 

[Cover Drive]

So Amir Bhai do you mind if I ask which bat did you opt out for?