Non Linear Bat Compression Thresholds????????

[Sunnyhdad]

Can someone tell me what this is all about and what does it mean???

http://www.teamusa.org/USA-Softball/Pla ... Thresholds

A non-linear bat is a bat that’s structure deviates from the traditional single wall, multi wall and/or layered composite designs.

The bats performance will consistently and repeatedly produce BCT results softer than the existing threshold and have not produced a BBS over 98.

Barrel Compression Cutoff
Exception for ASA Certified Softball Bats (UPDATED 8/1/13)

[NumeroUno]

Take a composite bat, out of the wrapped the bat has an ball exit speed of say 93 MPH. Ypu hit the bat 5000 thousand times now the ball exit speed is 98 mph and the top of the legal ball exit speed. You hit the bat another 3000 times and now the ball exit speed it 100 and now the bat is illegal.

It looks like they have a bat that is 98 and no matter how many times you hit it it will not exceed 98

just for the record for every 1 mph you increase ball exit speed you add 3 to 5 feet to the distance of your ball

[AlwaysImprove]

My understanding is that bats in general are pass/fail at 1550 psi, for the tester referenced from that link. Less than 1550 psi a bat is considered failed.
http://www.barrelcompression.com/G4_ASA_Barrel_Compression_Fixture_instructions.pdf

The bats on this list are allowed a much lower psi. as low as 1050 and still considered passing.

The design of the bat compression tester is actually pretty simple, and easily visible from the above pdf. You have two frames, one inside the other, and a pressure gauge. The pressure gauge in this case is very much like a scale. From the directions in the doc, you deflect the bat until the gauge reads 500 psi.

You then engage a handle. The handle moves the two frames a specified distance. This causes the bat to be squeezed in a vice formed by the two frames. Hard to tell the distance from those images, but maybe between 1/2" and 3/4". The gauge reads the amount of pressure the bat walls are resisting the that specified distance of squeeze.

Testers are only $850.

Edited. Less than 1550 is a fail, not more.

[AlwaysImprove]

Here is a link to ASA that talks about non-linear and the new slowpitch bat compression numbers.
http://www.asasoftball.com/umpires/clarifications_2013_May.asp

[Lorilee96]

Soft barrel does not necessarily mean it's super hot. There are plenty of stiff barrel bats that are hot too.

I believe the low compression"soft" feels comes from the gap between the barrels in the design.

[AlwaysImprove]

If you read the kettering and russell sites:
http://www.acs.psu.edu/drussell/bats.html

Basically it is a loss of energy problem in the bat ball collision. The biggest part of energy loss is energy that goes into deforming the ball. The answer is to deform the ball as little as possible, and be as efficient as possible in storing the energy in the bat, where you can control the release. Then you want to release that energy stored in the bat back to the ball in a way that results in the ball accelerating, not deforming. You want a Trampoline effect.

I suspect that the stiff bats that are hot because they still deform, or bend significantly when struck by the ball.

[Hinky]

Good info