Maxum<\/a>. Like so many Combat -5\u2019s that have come before it, the Vigor would make an excellent choice for boys making the transition down in drop weight. Boys who had already been swinging -5\u2019s got it around with ease, and those moving down from -8\u2019s said it felt like the transition would be quick and easy. Combat has definitely established themselves as the flagship brand when it comes to balanced composite bats, and it\u2019s a pretty safe bet that any model they release will be very accurate in terms of sticker weight and swing very balanced.<\/p>\n![\"Vigors](\"http:\/\/www.baseballbats.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/VIGSL105-Angled-1-300x110.jpg\")
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Barrel\/Profile<\/h2>\n
While not as long a barrel as the Maxum or the Portent G series, there is definitely plenty of barrel length on this bat. One of the things that\u2019s quickly apparent to experienced Combat users is the fact that the taper on the Vigor is more traditional and not as thick as that on the Maxum or Portent G series. That obviously won\u2019t affect balls that are barreled up, but will have a bit of affect on balls hit off the hands. But again, the barrel is more than long enough to give hitters ample opportunity to launch balls off the sweet spot.<\/p>\n
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Grip<\/h2>\n
Like all new Combats, the Vigor sports the very popular Lizard Skins grip, with no flare at the knob. If a bit of flare is desired, a knob cuff quickly takes care of it. Nice that more bat companies are following suit and adding a Lizard Skins grip as factory equipment on their higher level bats, as having to replace the grip on new\/newish $200+ bats seems a bit silly.<\/p>\n
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Performance<\/h2>\n
For those who know the brand, the performance is very \u2018Combat\u2019. Right out of the wrapper this bat was very hot, was introduced into tournament play with a minimum of hits on it, and performed as well as any high level composite bat we\u2019ve used. Nice \u2018crack\u2019 sound on well hit balls, very nice distance when hit off the sweet spot, and not too much different than the performance we\u2019ve seen firsthand with the Maxum and G Series Portents. Probably the only difference you\u2019ll likely see with the Vigor is a drop in forgiveness\/performance on balls hit off the hands, due to the thinner\/more traditional taper. Balanced swing weight and perfectly accurate actual weight make this bat easy to swing and to get some serious bat speed going, and make it a great choice for any hitter.<\/p>\n
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Durability<\/h2>\n
No issues, and just a couple of scrapes and ball marks from use. The very simple matte silver finish is doing a great job of holding up, and not showing too much in the way of signs of use. Yellow Lizard Skins grip is looking good and dirty, the way our hitters like their gameday bats to look\u2026 this bat looks like it will just look more serious, with more use.<\/p>\n
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Overall<\/h2>\n
With the Vigor, Combat has put all of what we\u2019ve always liked about the brand in a less expensive, more traditional profiled bat. Barrel is certainly long enough to find the sweet spot easily, swing weight is very balanced, actual weight is right on the money, sound is great, and performance\/pop is top notch right out of the wrapper. Bottom line, if you\u2019re a fan of Combat you\u2019re gonna like this bat. Everything we\u2019ve always liked about the brand, but at a more friendly price point. The question now is if this is going to usher in a new era of budget friendly high end composite bats, and reverse the trend of stretching bat prices closer to the $500 mark with each new model.\u00a0Only time will tell\u2026<\/p>\n
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<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Lately Combat has been releasing a number of models that boast the longest barrel and largest sweet spot, and these bats carry a price tag similar to that of other high end composites. For 2016 Combat has released a model that has a more traditional profile (although the barrel […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":3157,"parent":1365,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.baseballbats.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3155"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.baseballbats.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.baseballbats.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.baseballbats.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.baseballbats.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3155"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.baseballbats.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3155\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3305,"href":"https:\/\/www.baseballbats.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3155\/revisions\/3305"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.baseballbats.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1365"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.baseballbats.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3157"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.baseballbats.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3155"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"Combat](\"http:\/\/www.baseballbats.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/VIGSL105-Flat-Side-B-1024x126.jpg\")
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