Willow Grading Process

Laver & Wood – Our Willow Grading Explained

Here at Laver & Wood we only make our bats out of the very finest English willow sourced from the world’s top willow merchants, J.S. Wright & Sons. We only use the best grades we can source. This policy protects Laver & Wood customers and ensures the highest quality finish and performance when choosing Laver & Wood cricket bats. Below we explain the differences in willow grades. Please note, Signature Grade is limited and therefore subject to availability.

Standard Grades

Reserve

Our Reserve bats are made from the finest Grade 1 English willow available and come from the top 10% of genuine English willow.

A Reserve blade will have 6 or more principally straight grains and have minimum blemishes. It may also contain colour (heartwood) on one side.

Each Reserve is tested for performance by our expert bat makers. We have a unique pressing system that is more traditional and tends to give the bat a longer than average life whilst still holding a good performance.

Private Bin / Butterfly Gold

Our Private Bin bats are made from high quality Grade 1 English willow, which comes from the top 10% to 20% of genuine English willow.

A Private Bin blade will have 6 or more grains, but these may not be perfectly straight. The blade may also contain some blemishes, but these won’t affect the performance of the bat.

Our Private Bin bats are all tested for performance by our expert bat makers. We have a unique pressing system that is more traditional and tends to give the bat a longer than average life whilst still holding a good performance. The Private Bin bat is great value for money when getting into the higher grades.

Special Reserve / Butterfly

Our Special Reserve grade blades are graded and tested in our workshop by the L&W expert bat makers based upon performance. As such our Special Reserve bats may have some imperfections aesthetically and tend to perform above expectations. Sometimes this can take time and often the Special Reserve Grade is bought as a net bat for a Reserve or Signature grade bat to help give the match bat a longer life.

Legend

Our entry level Legend bats are made from Grade 3 English willow. Each bat will contain at least 5 grains but may not be straight in every case and will usually contain more cosmetic blemishes than the higher grades. However, these are all completely natural and only affect the bats appearance and not performance. The Legend is a good work horse bat and can still perform well to give good value for money. 

Exclusive Signature Grade

The Signature Grade is limited and only made personally by Master Bat Maker James Laver. Each bat carries a serial number and details are logged. If you are looking for something a little different and want to put your stamp on the bat with very specific grain requirements, talk to us, as even though it may take time James will make every effort to help.

Signature

Signature represents some of the rarest and finest (top 1%) of the Grade 1 English willow available.

A Signature blade will have 7 or more good, straight, and even grains with very minor blemishes in the playing area and sometimes contain colour (heartwood) on one side. These bats simply look beautiful and in the 22 years since 1999, when L&W was established in New Zealand, James has only made 380 of these blades. Each Signature is made and tested personally by James. We have a unique pressing system that is more traditional and tends to give the bat a longer than average life whilst still holding a good performance.

 

See the Laver & Wood Difference

Check Out Our Customer Reviews on Google!

Bhavesh Shura
Bhavesh Shura
2023-06-20
One of the best cricket bat makers in the world. Ordered many bats so far, and never had problem with ordering or the quality of cricket bats Response: Always prompt response Service: Open to fulfill all your needs for cricket bats Craftmanship: Kudos
Josh Deniet
Josh Deniet
2022-12-11
Best quality bats and great customer service. Purchased my frist reserve grade 9 years ago and have only just had the need to replace, didnt hesitate in ordering again.
Wayne Baird
Wayne Baird
2022-10-20
The team at Laver and Wood are amazing. We put in an order with a very short timeframe on it and they delivered an outstanding cricket bat for games over labour weekend. Highly recommend them for their great comms, awesome customer experience and a World class product.
H S
H S
2022-02-14
I received the bat today and it is exactly how I wanted. Their lowest Quality I felt is the best Quality. The quality and the bat is the best than you buy in shops.
T C
T C
2021-12-22
This review is a bit of a belated one so apologies, I attended your head quarters when it was based in Otane way back in 2000/ 2001 for a bat sizing and got a custom bat made. It wasnt long after that I relocated to NSW and used that bat for a season or two here in Aus. What I remember was the service was fantastic and that willow from the private bin range provided many great memories. Think I first saw you at a test match or a ODI between AUS and NZ at McLean park you had a tent setup showcasing bat making... good to see your still plying the craft, Thanks James
Goodex Trading
Goodex Trading
2021-12-22
Outstanding service. If you want a quality bat with great service look no further. Highly recommend
Alex Gibbons (Gibs)
Alex Gibbons (Gibs)
2021-02-21
James is great to deal with. Onto my second bat with Laver & Wood and both times the process has been smooth. There is a great deal of trust placed in the team to deliver bats that meet the standard agreed on, especially when you are an 'average joe' not a professional cricketer. To date I have not been disappointed and even when things do not go quite to plan the team goes above and beyond to rectify any issues without hassle.
Luke Smillie
Luke Smillie
2020-12-04
Super happy with how me and my brothers laver & wood cricket bats turned out. James is so amazing and knows so much and is super helpful. Would 100% recommend getting a custom bat made through these guys.