How long should a higher end bat last?

[CoreSoftball20]

Any truth in it when people say they "go dead"? Or do they just get progressively hotter until they break? The latter is my experience. But, DS says he's got an Easton bat that is dead, no cracks, just not as hot as it used to be. I'm skeptical, because the bat in question (2014 XL1) is supposed to be a tank. I think it's his swing.

DD swore to me that her 2014 LXT lost pop too. My contention is that her swing mechanics were off, not the bat.

The older bats used to get hotter and hotter and hotter and then blow up at some point. New bats aren't made to be like that nor allowed to be.

There is such a thing as a dead bat, but I do not think its as often as claimed by the user...haha.

 

[smddad]

2007 RockeTech is still going strong after several years.

 

[JAD]

I budget for a new bat every year and use last years bat in the cages, but I think you could get 2 years or more out of a bat if your DD takes care of it.

 

[CoreSoftball20]

Exactly, meaning get yourself a cage bat/beater.

But there is some thought from people that you do get a free return when it breaks so you can
drive the first one a little hard since you have a return due you.

 

[mth23]

my DD's 2012 Catalyst has a seen a ton of hits and it is still A-OK. Ball jumps off it, and no issue with the S1ID, or any rattles.

 

[GunnerShotgun]

There is no such thing as "hot out of the wrapper". That is a marketing tool designed to sell bats.

All bats still need to be broken in and I agree with the others in that most bats are retired too early.

 

[CoreSoftball20]

Its how you interpret it...the current bats are much hotter out of the wrapper then they used to be
and require much, much less break in time, thats fact.

Is the word used too much or assumed to mean that the bat is the best its going to be without any hits...sure.
Because every composite bat will get a little better than out of the wrapper when you get hits on it.

 

[BT3100]

DD has an older Rip It Elite.
That bat has tons of swings on it. She uses it only occasionally as it shivers her bones, but boy does it hit.

 

[mudrunner]

What is a typical range of hits on a bat in a years time? I would guess that DD has about 3000 or more hits on her bat. I do use it also to hit her grounders and pop flies occasionally (which i probably shouldn't be doing). It does seem like it's loosing a bit of pop.

 

[JJS]

Again, depending on usage. If only used for game swings, a bat will last a long time. But many do not do that. With the amount of hits a lot of kids put on bats, you are lucky to get a year. And I'm not talking about a bat going dead and wearing out...I mean breakage.

We had a Demarini Insane several years ago that was super hot for 3 months. After about 750 swings a week for 3 months hard line drives were barely making it to second base. Now we don't use the game bat for practices anymore.