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Redback Paradox LE Review

STR8DRIVE

STR8DRIVE

Debutant
Joined
Sep 17, 2010
Runs
184
This is my first review of my first online bat purchase.

I ordered this bat after analyzing and comparing various Asian and English bats. I waited for months and got lucky when Pro Direct Cricket had their Christmas sale.

Since I have never purchased a bat online, this was a leap of faith for me, order process was full of anxiety, as this bat was back-ordered and the status did not update for a week. I emailed the bat maker himself (Gary Day). Gary responded to my email within 15 minutes and advised me that he has sent a new shipment to PDC. Order took around 12 days to arrive.

I was impressed by numerous positive reviews on different forums, everyone had nothing but praise for this bat. Consideration was also given to the fact that this bat won the best bat of the year 2011 award.

This Redback Paradox L.E is Grade 1 E/W. Weighing 2.9, the pickup of this bat is actually better than my 2.7 GN Xyphos.

This bat does not have massive edges, Spine is longer than any other bat I have seen. Finishing and craftsmanship from Gary is exemplary.

This bat has the biggest sweet spot of any bat I have come across in my 15 years of playing club cricket. It will require a fair amount of knocking in.


I dont prefer massive edges nor I care about the number of grains, I go for the feel, performance and value. I would rate this bat 10/10.
 

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Congratulations that bat looks lovely. Never seen a bad Redback to be honest.

Hope it serves you well.
 
Awesome bat Str8drive!! Looks nice and the spine is just neverending :D

I heard from a friend that these do take some knocking in. Paradox overall has better balance than Allegiance and both of them won Wisden awards (2009 and 2011).

So let us hope this one serves you well.

Could you do a comparison between this and some of the other bats you have?--points of interests being a) pick up b) ping c) balance d) finishing

Again thanks for those lovely pictures :)
 
zeusky said:
Awesome bat Str8drive!! Looks nice and the spine is just neverending :D

I heard from a friend that these do take some knocking in. Paradox overall has better balance than Allegiance and both of them won Wisden awards (2009 and 2011).

So let us hope this one serves you well.

Could you do a comparison between this and some of the other bats you have?--points of interests being a) pick up b) ping c) balance d) finishing

Again thanks for those lovely pictures :)
Click to expand...

Thanks for the feedback Zeusky.

Its hard to compare since the Redback is not fully knocked in yet. Altough, I must say that the Redback is in a league of its own.

BAT#1: MB SHER AMIN - 2.14, sent by my cousin from Pakistan around 4 years ago. I only played one full season with it since I didnt have any other bat. Its way too heavy for me and hurts my wrists. Ping is good and its a typical MB profile with sub-par Asian finish. Its used by sloggers in my team and they hit the ball out of the park even after 3 years of use.

BAT#2: GN Xyphos 4 Star - My first English bat and I fell in love with it immediately, it took a season and a half to open up and I have had it for 2 years now.Weighs 2.7. Has a good Ping but limited sweet spot (Mid-Middle).

BAT#3: REDBACK PARADOX LE - You can see the profile and quality, based on the old ball test, I can confidently say that even the toe area has a good ping, middle is exceptional with a long sweet-spot. I will update once I am done with the knocking process.

CD will probably be able to describe the attributes better than I can, I hope he will do a mini review himself later on.
 
Thanks Boss. You guys have fun with that beauty :D

Keep us posted on the developments :))
 
So I was fortunate enough to see this Redback, before I talk about the bat I would like to thank STR8DRIVE bhai for coming to my house from a different city just to show me the bats, it was very kind of him and I was touched by his actions so thank you bhai :).

I was very tempted to post earlier but as soon I found out I will get to see the bat today I was excited and was anxiously waiting for STR8DRIVE bhai to show it to me :)).

Now coming onto the bat :D

I saw all of the bats STR8DRIVE bhai has and tested each and every one.

MB Malik Sher Amin: As mentioned earlier it was definitely on heavier side but to me it had a good pick up and handle felt good (as it was thick :)) ) and ping of the bat was quite good too! Since it is few years old it has different Sher Amin profile compared to ones we see today.

Gray Nicolls Xyphos: It was lighter than Sher Amin but picked up very nice and pinged quite well off the middle. Again it was also from 2009 year and my Powerbow is from that year too so the bat was brilliant.

Now coming to main bat which is Redback Paradox Limited Edition :D

This bat has amazing feel, it felt extremely well! For me it was love at first sight :))). To me it felt lighter than Gray Nicolls Xyphos and the pickup and balance was perfect, I don't think nor I can imagine pick up or balance getting better than what it already has. I also took old ball to check its ping and I would say below the stickers the whole face was pinging quite nicely and it seem to have a long and extended sweetspot. The toe was pinging quite nice as well. It does not have massive edges but it has extended sweetspot and meat is brilliant distributed and bat is extremely well balanced. What surprised me was that if the bat was pinging so well right now then I wonder how it would ping after it is fully knocked?

Finishing as described by STR8DRIVE bhai is second to none, it felt so nice and smooth that I was feeling like hugging it and didn't feel to take my hands off the bat :)).

I found the handle to be on thin side but thats me, STR8DRIVE bhai likes thin handles so its good he has a thin handle which he will like. I was surprised that if the bat with one grip was feeling so well then I wonder how it will feel if another grip was added?

In my opinion the bat has everything and it was a complete bat, I don't see where Gary could have made this bat better, I seriously don't find anything that would have made this bat even more better really.

The willow and bat itself looks much much better in real life. Pictures don't do any justice to the bat, really it is shame we can't show the bats to each other in real life :(.

For the price STR8DRIVE bhai paid I firmly believe this is the best bat I have seen in my life, it is a complete bat as I said earlier and bat was made to perfection.

I now understand how Gary won two best bats of the year award in past three years!
 
WoW!!! Im speechless :)

Jazaak Allah khair Cover Drive for all the kind words and the feedback.

I really appreciate it, thanks for being a kind host, your SCAT is impeccable, I will need a whole day to go over your complete collection :)

God Bless.
 
Whatever I said was what the bat deserved so really bat deserved that praise :)

Enjoy the knocking process, you might want few pair of ear plugs for your family :))
 
I can't wait to see this - amazing bat at an unbelievable price. You have officially been affected with the bat bug - ill take responsibility
Remember when you were going to buy a gm from tornado or ss from magit and I said just wait
 
Cd are PDC selling these at full price again - when does the sale come back on ?
 
ca_gold said:
I can't wait to see this - amazing bat at an unbelievable price. You have officially been affected with the bat bug - ill take responsibility
Remember when you were going to buy a gm from tornado or ss from magit and I said just wait
Click to expand...

I am glad you like the bat. I give you the credit for infecting me with the bug.

I clearly remember your recommendations and advice. I appreciate that.

Looking forward to meet you, I am sure you will not be disappointed with the bat.

PDC had a 12 days of XMass sale, everyday they revealed a deal that lasted 24 hours. I got lucky with this one.
 
ca_gold said:
Cd are PDC selling these at full price again - when does the sale come back on ?
Click to expand...

Yes, they are.

At the moment they are selling for £216 which is £24 cheaper than the RRP and after VAT extemption it comes to £180 plus shipping to Canada.

The sale where STR8DRIVE bhai got his bat was for 24 hours as he mentioned above.
 
Looks a lovey bat, for an absolute steal. I was in 2 minds whether to get one or not. Decided not to as Gary is about 1hr 20 mins away from me so I'm planning on visiting instead as some stage.

Hope it plays well for you.
 
You guys are so lucky Rob!! I clicked on that custom bat maker finder link and the nearest one was over 5000 miles away :(
 
We are lucky Zeusky, M&H are around 45-50 mins away from me as well but they want around £360 for a bespoke bat. Not sure what Gary charges but I expect it will be a lot less.
 
Gary charges a lot of paraphernalia: so the cost of the bat + money transfer + money transfer cost (30 pounds) + shipping (courier) + customs on declared value :(

I wish he accepted paypal.
 
This bat looks very nice, probably one of the best bats we have seen here lately.

What grip does it have? It looks nice? How is the ping, did you knock the bat yet?

Mr. STR8DRIVE did you personally meet Mr. Cover Drive? How is he as a person? Did you see his bats too?

Thank you very much
 
Silencer said:
This bat looks very nice, probably one of the best bats we have seen here lately.

What grip does it have? It looks nice? How is the ping, did you knock the bat yet?

Mr. STR8DRIVE did you personally meet Mr. Cover Drive? How is he as a person? Did you see his bats too?

Thank you very much
Click to expand...


Thank You for your kind remarks Silencer.

I believe the bat has a normal (chevron ) rubber grip. Ping is Fantastic, much better than any other bat I have owned or played with.

I have oiled the bat and knocked it for about 30 minutes so far. Its not easy to find time to knock, my family doesnt approve of it indoors. So, the only time I get to knock is when no one is home. Can't do it outside since its like - 15 with snow/ice outdoors :)

Yes, I have personally met the real Mr. Cover Drive. He is a "Top Bloke",very respectful and courteous.One of the best people you will ever meet :) I saw some of his bats, I would need a lot of time to go over all the bats and oher cricket equipment.
 
So how is the paradoxical arachnid treating you? :D

Still caught in its web I am sure.....
 
I can not comprehend with words how amazing this bat has been. It did require a lot of time to knock in, and I only used it against bowling machines until 2 weeks ago.

It was already pinging really nicely, until I decided or convinced to put an extra grip (I have always batted with one grip since I like thin handles). I was awe-struck by the balance, feel, and ping after I applied the extra grip.

This Redback has entangled me into an elaborate paradox of range, confidence and performance. I am extremely satisfied.

I highly recommend, 6 out of 5, three thumbs up :)
 
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