Grade I

Grade 1 willow is surely the most popular  - everybody wants a grade 1 bat don't they? However it's never quite as simple as that.....
Is there anything better than grade 1?  Well yes, sometimes you will see the word Premium or test grade willow, these are usually the very best of the grade 1 clefts.
For a grade 1 cleft I would expect 6-7 straight grains and a white blade with no marks, fleck, blemishes or knots in playing area, you may get a small amount of brown/heart wood (less than 2cm) down one edge of the bat.
For a premium cleft you would be looking at 8+ straight grains, typically 10 or more, again with an all white blade or slight brown edge. Generally these premium blades are also lighter and offer big profiles on lighter weight bats.

Grade II

Grade 2 bats I would say 6-8 grains, with maybe some slight grain wobble outside of the main hitting area. A white blade or less than 3cm brown wood down one edge. You should expect a few blemishes or insignificant marks outside of the main hitting area.

Grade III

Grade 3 - now we start to get into the mid-range, typically 5 or 6 grains, some blemish is possible and possibly some minor marking anywhere on the bat, some slight grain wobble again anywhere on the blade.

Grade IV

Any number of grains, but rarely less than 4 grains. Upto half the bat may be brown heart wood, fleck, mark, stains and blemishes will be present but nothing too serious in the playing area, grain wobble is likely.

Grade V

Anything goes! Any amount of brown wood, any amount of grains, any type of markings, blemishes and stains. These are sometimes bleached to remove some of the brown colour and markings, but this just improves the cosmetics, it doesn't do anything for the playing characteristics of the blade.

Knocking-in is a process done to new cricket bats to compress the wood and allow them to be ready for use, as most brand-new cricket bats will crack or badly dent if used in competition without being knocked-in.

The Knocking-In Process

After the application of a thin layer of linseed oil the person knocking in the bat must use either a worn-down 'soft' leather cricket ball or a specialised mallet and hit the face of the blade of the bat repeatedly for several hours. After three to four hours of knocking in, another layer of linseed oil may be applied. At this stage the bat may be used in light practice but should not be used in competition without another few hours of knocking-in. The spring of the bat should not be knocked as this will cause the bat to jar.

After being properly knocked in, the wood will make a slightly higher-pitched sound when hitting the ball and will feel softer to use.

Testing the willow

During the knocking-in process, a fingernail is pressed into the front face of the bat to check if the bat is properly knocked in. If an indentation is left on the bat during this process, it shows that the wood is still not fully compressed, and should be knocked in for longer.