Clarification on Vault Markings...

[BlaineMcDonald]

Is the link below a Gehrig game model, vault marked bat? Or is it just a vintage store model bat?

http://cgi.ebay.com/VINTAGE-LOU-GEHRIG-G69-LOUISVILLE-SLUGGER-BAT-EXCELLENT_W0QQitemZ330123365729QQcmdZViewItem

The looks like its either way too high or way too low.

[bat_master]

This Lou Gehrig bat is a 1950-60 era H&B professional model bat which would be considered a team index bat in that it does not match Gehrig's personal ordering records...particularly because it would have been made a minimum of 9 years after his death.

I would say that the price reflects a very reasonable alternative for the collector that wants a professional model Gehrig bat for either a collection or to display without paying the $60,000+ that a 1920s H&B would cost.

Looks like a nice bat.

[BlaineMcDonald]

Thanks for responding so quickly.

What would a 1950-60's Gehrig H&B look like if it had vault markings... or wouldn't they maintain such a bat after the player's death?

[bat_master]

Hi,

Because vault marked bats are bats that were returned to the factory to be used as pattern bats a 1950s Gehrig (or any other post-1944 bat for that matter) would not have a vault mark since when it was made it would have been created under the model number system of the mid-1940s.

According to the new Vince Malta book: "Vault marks are a series of letter(s) and number(s) stamped onto the kob and/or barrel end of a bat, used by the manufacturer as a reference from which to pattern future bats. These bats were stored away by the manufacturer in a vault, and retrieved as pattern bats when ordered by a player. Bats stamped with vault marks are usually found in the pre-model number era, before the mid-1940s, and may have been made specifically as pattern bats, or bats returned by players as references for future bat production."

Long story short a 1950s Gehrig bat (if it was a professional model) would already have a model number stamped on the knob making it unnecessary (not to mention) impossible for vault marks to exist on a bat of that era.

*If any of this information is incorrect I would hope that someone will correct me*

Thanks