Pros using "Raw" irons, ie: Chad Campbell, Rod Pampling

yes, but your swingweight will decrease and make sure you know what you are doing. This is a very toxic project.

My plan was to have them professionally stripped and I figured the swingweight wouldn't be too bad since I will be adding shafts that are 1/2 inch longer.

Also my old set of Staff bullet back swingweighted at like D8, so if the FG17's are the same, the weight loss could be a good thing!

Any idea if the raw clubs feel softer without the hard chrome on them?

I play with raw mizuno mp32's. They do play a little softer. Not that noticable to me though.

Raw MP32's? Did they come like that from the factory? Any pics? That sounds really sweet!

They were custom flat black from mizuno japan about 1 1/2 ago but that is all gone now. I'll take some pictures in daylight soon. I play with no ferrule's either which you might think is a little strange but I like them. matt

WOW! Mizzy's with a Ping flare! Can't wait to see those babies!

Did the black finish wear off all over the club or just the face?

just the face, i took the rest off.

Stripped them yourself? Is that why you mentioned how messy/toxic a job it can be?

How did you do it?

black finishes are not plating. They are usually some sort of gunblue or black oxide. These come off VERY easy. Chrome is an actual metal plating that needs to be put in an acid bath to remove. not easy or fun.

Why would you want to do it?Man ,you must be bored.

I remember when the Vokeys were first out and only in chrome. I wanted a raw finish like the Cleveland RTG. A friend of mine who was a mini-tour player said "If you want them to rust that bad, strip the chrome."

Which works if the underlying metal is carbon steel.

However, I believe the FG-17 are solid steel without chrome plating so it won't work.

Hi everyone!

 

I am thinking of experimenting on an old set of Wilson FG-17 blades by trying to replicate the raw finish I see on many pros irons like Chad Campbell and Rod Pampling.

 

Has anyone ever tried this before or have any info on how the OEM's are achieving this look?

 

Can I simply strip the chrome from the iron heads and that's it?

 

Thanks for your help and insight.

1/2 inch longer won't get your swing weight back (some but not all). People are very suprised at how much is lost when the chrome plating is removed. That is why it costs more at replaters for what is called tour chrome plate in which they control accurately the layer/thickness/overall weight. Most that do that also have either machined plugs in the sole or back cavity of lead or tungsten to get the weight back. Just throwing lead strips on the back doesn't work very well either but can be done by shaping the lead strips. It sometimes takes 3-4 to get the weight back.

I will be very curious to see how much weight comes off when the chrome is stripped.

Like I said before, my other Wilson Staff blades when reshafted with Project X's at 38.5" 5-iron ended up swingweighting at like D8.

If these are the same, the removal of the chrome might bring them down to D0? From there it would be easy to add a little lead tape (or maybe some lead powder in the hosel) to get them to my preferred D2/D3.

Once the chrome is stripped, is the underlying metal still shiny until it rusts? If I wipe off the clubs after every round they should simply darken over time without must rust right?

I noticed also looking at the bag pics that Rich Beem's and Camilo Villegas' irons were ported with some weights added to the back or sole. It looks like they both also might be playing raw irons.

I bought these Wilson FG-17's for only $29 on ebay, so I can afford to play around with stripping the chrome etc... Can you believe that? $29 for 3-PW of an awesome blade from the 80's!