Willow grades question

[Spiderlounge]

Willow grades question

Can someone tell me exactly how much difference there is between Grade 2 and Grade 1 willow? When the bat makers divide up their stocks what do they look for to differentiate between the grades and why, and when you're playing, what is the difference then?

I'm looking to buy a bat sometime soon (as soon as I've had some net practice with various borrowed bats to nail down what weight I need) and I want to treat myself to a very nice bat. I've narrowed it down to either a Slazenger V1 or a Millichamp & Hall Original, both of which have a Grade 2 variant at about £140 and Grade 1 at about £175. Any comments about the two bats would be welcome but mainly I want to know whether the extra £35 is worthwhile.

 

[someblokecalleddave]

Re: Willow grades question

Can someone tell me exactly how much difference there is between Grade 2 and Grade 1 willow? When the bat makers divide up their stocks what do they look for to differentiate between the grades and why, and when you're playing, what is the difference then?

I'm looking to buy a bat sometime soon (as soon as I've had some net practice with various borrowed bats to nail down what weight I need) and I want to treat myself to a very nice bat. I've narrowed it down to either a Slazenger V1 or a Millichamp & Hall Original, both of which have a Grade 2 variant at about £140 and Grade 1 at about £175. Any comments about the two bats would be welcome but mainly I want to know whether the extra £35 is worthwhile.

This is where most of the best bats in the world come from, virtually every professional batsman you see on the tele with have a bat that started out here. Grown in Essex - shaped eleswhere in the world.

http://www.cricketbatwillow.com/

 

[mas cambios]

Re: Willow grades question

This is a pretty good guide -http://www.cricketbatwillow.com/blades.php

We have many different grades, each one suitable for a particular market. Here we have outlined some details of the most popular.

A Grade 1 Blade

A Grade 1 is the best looking blade money can buy, though it will not necessarily play the best. There may be some red wood evident on the edge of the bat. The grain on the face will be straight and there will be at least 4 grains visible. There may be the odd small knot in the edge or back but the playing area should be clean.

A Grade 2 Blade

A Grade 2 blade is also very good quality and normally a larger amount of red wood can be seen on the edge of a bat, this has no effect on the playing ability of the bat it is purely cosmetic. Again there will be at least 4 straight grains on the face of the bat with maybe some blemishes, pin knots or "speck" visible.

A Grade 3 Blade

This is the grade we produce and sell most of and it offers very good value for money. A Grade 3 Blade has up to half colour across the bat and is sometimes bleached, again this has no direct relation to the playing ability of the wood, it just has less visual attraction. There will be a minimum of 4 grains on the face of the bat which may not always be perfectly straight. Again some small knots or a little 'butterfly' stain may be present with perhaps more prominent "speck".

A Grade 4 Blade

A Grade 4 Blade is normally over half colour or contains butterfly stain (see our page on Imperfections in Willow). This wood is also normally bleached just to make it "look better", it will still play as well as the other grades. Any number of grains are possible and the willow containing 'butterfly' stain is very strong, there could also be more "speck".

However there is more to it, so check out the link.

 

[evo]

Re: Willow grades question

Willow is graded on looks, so you can easily have a better playing G4 than a G1.

Btw JS Wright's have a different grading system for willow buyers than the one on their site.

 

[mas cambios]

Re: Willow grades question

The guy at Screaming Cat is one of the makers who rates the willow on playability rather than looks. Screaming Cat-Finest Hand Made Cricket Bats

Screaming Cat is the only brand in the world where every single bat is graded on its performance and not on its cosmetic appearance. This ensures the customer gets full value for money and does not end up paying for a top quality bat and end up with a good-looking plank. This is often the danger when buying off the shelf. If you look carefully at your Screaming Cat bat, you will notice a slight indentation on the face of every bat; this is the result of the grading with a specially crafted mallet that ensures your quality.

 

[evo]

Re: Willow grades question

Yeh Julian does, although he buys it on appearance. Place I used to work use to have a top grade which was done on cleft density.

 

[someblokecalleddave]

Re: Willow grades question

I'm surprised that bats are as cheap as they are considering the haphazrd manner in which they're grown. I've looked for examples of 'Industrial approaches' to producing Willow and there doesn't seem to be any as such. One of the factors that seems to be important is that the trees are grown next to rivers and flood plains, but to be honest we're not that over-whelmed with them here in Essex so growing willow as a business looks like a very small operation.