Newbery
Newbery traces its bat-making heritage back to the early 1900's, when the
Newbery family first made cricket bats in Robertsbridge. John Newbery's
father, Len, was a bat-maker and partner of Nicolls Bats (later to become
Gray-Nicolls) who had made bats since the time of W. G. Grace. Len's
skills were handed down to his only son John, who founded John Newbery
Ltd. in l981. John's legendary reputation as a master bat-maker quickly
spread throughout the world, as did his innovative designs. This all took
place against a background of failing health, which led to his early death in
l989.
His senior craftsman Tim Keeley is today the Managing Director of Newbery,
using the same skills to produce cricket bats that John passed on during
their years together. The philosophy remains the same - that quality,
performance and style come first.
Newbery cricket bats begin life as carefully selected willow trees - the
selection process begins with the willow strikes prior even to the planting
of the tree. Every year, Newbery plant, maintain and fell an increasing
number of willow trees sited on farms across the South of England. In
addition, we buy seasoned timber from a number of sources, which have
serviced bat makers for decades. Each cleft is individually assessed
and, if accepted, will have been judged favourably for it's weight,
grain and performance.
Common to all bats is the treble spring handle, which we know to give
the bat greater feel and 'whip'. Particular care is given to the binding,
a strong Irish linen thread, which effectively tunes the flex of the handle.
The handle is left subtly oval in shape, again for greater feel, and is set
slightly forward so that the line of the handle follows the line of the
blade's natural bow.
The primitive bat is given it's individual character by the craftsman who
cuts and shaves the willow to a weight and balance specified only by
his experience. It is his job to make the best out of every single cleft.
The shaping and balancing of each Newbery bat is done by hand and
eye. Traditional tools such as the drawknife, spokeshave and block-
plane are used to shape the blade and create a 'middle' to the bat.
Each bat will then be pressed, sanded and polished to a smooth
burnish before being graded for resilience and appearance. Finally
the Newbery crest and ribbon are applied.