H&B made both store model and pro model (game used) 125 baseball bats. Store model 125 bats will be stamped with inch marks on the knob, for example a 35 inch long bat will be stamped 35". A pro model of that era will feature a hand turned knob with no inch marks. At the same time, they made bats with a lower grade ash that were designated as the 40 series. Cobb would be 40TC, Ruth 40BR, Gehrig 40 LG etc. All of these bats can be found in lengths from 32 to 36 inches. Pro model bats often fall on the 1/2 inch measurement.
Later 125 bats, in the 50's 60's and so on, started to be marked in foil. For example, Mantle 125 powerized bats would have MM4, MM3 etc on the knob, meaning MM for Mickey Mantle and 3 or 4 for the length 33, 34. The foil marked bats of that era were store models. A Mantle gamer of that era would have burned in markings and a model number on the knob such as K55.
I'll post some pictures later to help show the difference.
Matt
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