Bat / Deal or no deal?

[Jimmyz]

I found a new 2006 model Easton LST3 Stealth CNT Youth 28" 17oz Baseball Bat and a Easton LT360 Redline CXN Little League 28" 16oz Baseball Bat for $80 each. Which is the better bat or better deal.

[Dah-Dee]

My guess would be the Stealth is the better bat due to the apparently much stronger SC900 alloy used versus the 7050 alloy, one of Easton's oldest, used in the Redline.

Here's some info I found:

Evolution of Easton Bat Alloys

7046 ALLOY: This was the original alloy used initially by most all metal bat manufacturers. It is still used today in many models of bats made by Easton and other aluminum bat suppliers. 7046 Alloy out-performs any wood bat in power and durability, and it is a better value than wood because it outlasts wood many times over. It is a lower-priced alloy that offers good durability and value in a bat where "high-tech" performance is not an issue (e.g. beginner-level little league or recreational softball).

CU-31/7050 ALLOY: This strong, lightweight alloy was patented by Alcoa Aluminum, Inc. as CU-31 for use in military and commercial aircraft. After Alcoa's patent expired in 1996, other suppliers offered this same alloy under the name of 7050 (the generic name for Alcoa's patented CU-31). With their B5-Pro Big Barrel Baseball Bat in the early 80s, Easton and CU-31 Aluminum revolutionized the bat industry in terms of high quality and high performance. Easton later used this alloy in their Little League and Softball Bat line in certain early key performance models and now uses this CU-31/7050 alloy in their Recreational and Mid-Level Performance bat models.

EA-70 and EA-70+ ALLOYS: Bats using these alloys were developed to meet player demands for increased performance, power strength, and bat speed. Both alloys were Easton Exclusives, developed in a joint venture with Alcoa Aluminum and introduced to the market in 1990. EA-70 was a modified version of CU-31 that Easton used as a "step-up" alloy from CU-31. It was stronger, lighter, and better performing than CU-31. EA-70+ was even stronger and lighter yet.

C-CORE BATS: Easton developed a proprietary process of combining exotic Aluminum alloys and Carbon Graphite to produce one of the lightest and liveliest bats ever made. By laminating Carbon Graphite (a proprietary Easton process) to the inside of the barrel, the bat wall can be made thinner and stronger than conventional Aluminum Bats.

C405 Ultra ALLOY: This ALCOA alloy is a high-strength aluminum alloy which is 13% stronger than CU-31/7050 and 9% stronger than EA 70. The added strength and toughness of C405 means that this alloy can be used to design bats with thinner walls to increase performance. Easton has combined this new alloy with some exclusive manufacturing and design technology to produce the Reflex Power Contour Series and Reflex C-Core Series of bats. Other bat brands offer the C405 alloy but do not have the inner-technology (i.e. C-Core) to develop and maximize all the advantages offered by C405.

SC500 ALLOY: This alloy was developed by Easton Aluminum Co. in an exclusive joint venture with Kaiser Aluminum and Ashurst Technology Group. This performance alloy, which is 19% stronger than CU-31 and 6% stronger than C405 or C405+, features the addition of a rare earth metal called Scandium, originally developed in the Soviet Union. This alloy, when combined with Easton's exclusive Carbon Core (Z-Core) technology, creates the thinnest-walled, strongest Baseball or Softball bat produced thus far, including 3.25 Titanium.

Sc777 ALLOY- This alloy was introduced in 2001 and developed exclusively for Easton by Kaiser Aluminum for the baseball and softball markets. This alloy consists of aluminum, magnesium, copper, and zinc. Kaiser changed the formulation to maximize strength and toughness. Sc777 is 9% stronger and 175% tougher than Sc500 and C555.

Sc888 ALLOY - This Advanced Metal Matrix Design was introduced in 2003 and developed exclusively for Easton by Kaiser Aluminum for the baseball and softball markets. Sc888 increases strength and toughness by over 10% compared to the highly successful SC777 alloy.

Sc900 ALLOY- This Advanced Metal Matrix Design was introduced in 2005 and developed exclusively for Easton by Kaiser Aluminum for the baseball and softball markets. This alloy consists of aluminum, magnesium, scandium, copper and zinc. It provides an average 4ksi additional strength and a 10% increase in toughness compared to the Sc888 alloy. Conventional technology says that if you increase the "strength" (ksi) or dent resistance of aluminum alloys, there is a significant loss in the material's "toughness" or crack resistance. However, Easton's SC900 alloy provides the strongest, highest-performing barrels in baseball and softball: 10% tougher and stronger than Sc888. Easton bats made with Sc900 alloy come with a 400-day manufacturer's warranty.


Link to info: http://www.modells.com/info/index.jsp?categoryId=2598451&infoPath=222974

The LST3 also gets pretty good reviews over at Baseball Corner's reviews page:

http://www.baseballcorner.com/batreviewsdtl.asp?id=LST3

I hope this helps!