GoIrish17's WITB *updated end of page 2*

[GoIrish17]

*Updated on page 2*So, I had one of these a few years back, and have totally been disconnected from it for a while now. FIgured it'd be easier to start anew rather than go back and start it up again a few pages in. I'm not going to get all wordsy with my descriptions (*warning- I did get a little wordsy). If anyone is curious about any of my equipment, interested in my thoughts/ opinions, wondering about comparisons, etc., please go ahead and ask. I've hit a lot of clubs and go through a quite a bit of turnover, so I have experience with a good amount of stuff out there. I know that there's nothing "latest/ greatest" in my bag, but I've hit a lot of the newest stuff. It's only that none of it impressed me enough to replace something that I haven't switched. It's a liberating feeling being content with my golf clubs and not having to consider buying every single newest club that hits the market. So, on to the clubs...

 

I do all of my own club work, been a hobby of mine since I regripped a set of irons about 7 years ago. I've got both of these sets just about where I'd like them- I've never been so happy with a bag as I am with my gamer set. It makes it hard to find chances to play my backup set, which I try to do once every week or two. The only changes I'm even considering are getting the wedge swingweights to flow with the irons better (which is my next project, beginning soon), and then get the Mizuno irons bent to match the lofts of the Srixons. I have the two sets almost identical as far as shaft weights, swing weights, wedge setup/ grinds, etc., I'd like to make it a seamless transition going from one bag to the other, and the uneven iron distances are slightly detrimental to that end.

 

All of the clubs have +2 wraps under the grips, and some type of corded grip.

 

 

 

 

 

Driver: 2016 TaylorMade M2 10.5°, Matrix Speed Rulz Type C Prototype 60x (VLCT Sp graphics)

 

Easily the longest and most forgiving driver I've ever played. I fought the hype, then I gave it a try. I'm sold. Plays approximately 44.5" long, D2 swingweight. I adjusted the swingweight with cotton balls and an aftermarket replacement weight, so not only did I get the swingweight spot-on where I wanted it, it also helped mute the sound a little.

 

 

 

 

3 Wood: Srixon f45 15°, Fujikura Speeder Evolution 757 stiff (tipped 1/2")

 

Plays at 42.5". Swingweight right around D2. Love this club, one of my favorites in the bag. Love the looks of this club, the shape is perfect at address IMO. This club can really be a crutch for me if I'm not hitting driver well. The shaft is such a great fit, I've had days that I can't hit a driver but I am not sacrificing much just playing 3 wood off the tee. I have no problem hitting a variety of shots with this, though my miss with it is my nemesis- the pull hook/ double cross when trying to hit a high fade.

 

 

 

 

Hybrid: Callaway X2Hot Pro 18°, Fujikura Speeder HB 8.8 stiff

 

My favorite hybrid I've ever hit, bar none. Long & hot, forgiving enough, and great feel & sound. I think this plays around 41", and D2.5 sw.

 

 

 

 

Hybrid (3 iron replacement/ driving iron): Adams Pro DHy 21°, Fujikura Speeder HB 9.8 stiff

 

If I've said that there was one club in my bag that I wouldn't replace already, scratch that- I lied. This club is a "over my dead body"-type situation. I have strayed from this club a time or two before, but here I am again. Love it off the tee and off the turf. I'm able to hit every shot I can imagine with this (when properly executed).

 

 

 

 

Irons: Srixon z545 5-pw, Recoil 110 F5 (soft stepped 2x's)

 

Love these. Very little offset, compact looking at address, and lots of forgiveness built in. The lofts are strong on these, I really feel like I'm actually playing 4-9 iron with a 24° 5 iron and 44° pw. I've had these in the bag for longer than any other set I've ever had. Prior to these, I was a habitual iron set jumper. No more. I'm actually dreading the day these wear out, I hope there are still sets out there in good condition to replace these with. The shafts in these suit me perfectly, too. I never could have believed I could flight down a shot with a set of irons with a sole like these, but I can. Plus, the benefits from switching to graphite for my bad elbow are immeasurable.

 

 

 

 

Wedges: 50°, 54°, 58° Vokey raw, KBS 610 125 S+

 

OK, so I am a self-admitted raw wedge partisan, and a wedge junkie. I really need to find the time to weight these properly to flow better with my irons, I've just been too lazy to do it. The 50° is bent to 48.5° (which is as close as I could bend it to the desired 48°). The 54° is my special club, I bought it as a wedding gift to myself, and hand stamped it myself. Though there are a couple double hits, I think I did an alright job. The shaft is laser etched with our wedding date as well. It is the raw WedgeWorks model, whereas the 50° & 58° are the black finished stripped to raw. I really think I am going to strip the paintfill on the 50° & 58° and paint them in the same black and silver colorway that I have on the 54°. Though, every time I strip the paint, I think to myself how good they look naked with no paintfill at all. These are starting to develop a nice patina, which is kind of hard to capture with my iPhone camera. I love the patina raw wedges get and how each develops at its own pace- it gives them character.

 

I keep considering SM6's, but honestly I've gotten comfortable with these and don't want to rush to replace until it's necessary. Maybe when SM7's come out these guys will be ready to retire.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Putter: Tad Moore Pro 1S Prototype 34", oil can finish, matte black shaft, blacked out Tad Moore Pure grip

 

I stumbled upon this on eBay, and was intrigued. I did some research and once I did, I had to buy it. I won't go into all of the details here, but I started a thread to share my find (as well as share some of the other Tad Moore putters the seller had listed on eBay): http://www.golfwrx.c...utters-on-ebay/ There is a link in that thread to this article about the origins of this putter (and the others on eBay): http://pluggedingolf...er-garage-find/ It's a cool, and quick read if you're interested in reading more. Spoiler alert!- there are mentions of Tiger Woods in the article. I sent this off to BOS after I got it to have the sight dot put on. Added lead tape to the sole to get the head weight up to around 330g. I'm not gonna gush over this here, but let me just say that I love this putter and I've never putted better than I am with it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Heres some random items that get put in the bag from time to time:

 

This is the 54 degree sand wedge that is part of the set, but got moved to second string after I bought myself the wedding present. I still use it sometimes, to save wear and tear on the other one. I really need to make some minor length and swingweight adjustments to this to get it to match my others. I'll probably end up playing it more once I sort out those minor details. The stamping isn't perfect, but I don't mind a couple minor double hits. I like it looking like it was done by hand and not a machine.

 

 

 

I've got two bags of clubs, and I've tried to build the two bags to mimic each other as closely as possible. Obviously, I play a 5wd in the second bag which changes up the gaping a little, but I've tried to keep shaft lengths, shaft weights, swingweight progression, wedge setup, etc. all about the same. Most of the backup bag is somewhat new to me (this is my first season with most of it), and I've only been taking it out once every week or two- and mostly at the same course. So I'm still feeling these out, but starting to really get a good idea of my distances with them and what shots I can hit confidently. Much like my other bag, someday I hope to take the clubs apart and swingweight them the right way to get rid of the lead tape. But, honestly, I probably won't. I kind of like the lead tape.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Driver: Cleveland Classic 290 9°, Matrix Speed Rulz Type C Prototype 60x (VLCT Sp graphics)

 

Yep, same exact shaft as the M2. Same length, same swingweight. I used some hot melt and cotton balls (through a port I drilled) to adjust the swingweight, which makes this thing sound like a wooden bat when you catch it on the screws. Most pleasing sounding driver I've hit maybe ever. I have had this driver for a couple seasons, and my confidence level with it is high. Every once in awhile, when the M2 is acting up, I bring this guy out. Just to let the M2 know that no one is safe in the gamer bag if they aren't performing.

 

 

 

 

 

3 Wood: Aeroburner TP 15° tour issue, Diamana D+ 70 Limited Edition stiff

 

5 Wood: Aeroburner TP 18° (19.5° actual) tour issue, Matrix 8Q3 Red Tie sg flex (strong flex- in between stiff and x)

 

I'm really not a big tour issue guy, but the price was right on these and the specs suited my swing and setup. Great clubs, I put some hot melt in the heads, they sounds awesome.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Driving iron/ 4 iron replacement: Mizuno MP Fli-Hi 4i 24°, Diamana D+ 90 HY stiff

 

 

 

 

Irons: Mizuno MP-H4 5-pw, Recoil 110 Prototype F4

 

I like these irons a lot, but need more time with them. I do want to get these bent closer to the lofts of the Srixons, just for continuity.

 

 

 

 

Wedges: Callaway X-Forged 48° KBS C-Taper, 54° KBS 610, 58° (MD) KBS Hi-Rev,

 

Again, swingweight, length, shafts, etc. all match up with my other clubs. Obviously, I custom stamped these to represent my favorite sports teams. I even tried to match the grips to the color scheme. I just need to figure out a way to work a Cavaliers wedge in here. Maybe I need to keep my eye out for a 62-ish degree raw X-Forged?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Putter: Rife Vault Iconic 001 34"

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you made it this far, I hope you enjoyed it and thanks for taking the time to check my sticks out. I'll be following this thread, if you want to ask questions or chit chat, please post a message. Thanks again!

 

-Brad

 

*New putter 9/16/2017

 

So, got the putter back from BOS pretty quickly. It showed up Friday afternoon while I was out playing a quick afternoon round. I'm really happy with the finished product. Sent this off to have the sight dot put on the topline, and then I stamped my shamrock into the cavity. Shafted with a matte black putter shaft from putter lounge, just a hair under 34". Black Iomic 65g grip with two extra wraps of tape. I added a 10 gram tip weight to get it close to where I wanted it swingweight-wise, but I purposely wanted to leave it a touch short of my desired D0-D1 area, so I could add lead tape to get to my desired range while also protecting the sole of the putter. I putt much better with a lighter swingweight, my miss is always too firm. So, long story short, about 3 strips of lead tape have this thing almost exactly D0.5. I'm cool with calling this my poor man's 009 until I can afford a real one. This is pretty much as close as I am going to get to my "dream putter", until I can afford to pay someone top dollar to make my dream putter.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[KC13]

Solid set up on both ends! Question, Did you have to shim the Cleveland Classic driver with the install of an upgraded shaft? I have a Cleveland Classic 310 with an old Project X blue shaft. Looking to upgrade it, which is why I ask. Love my Cleveland, its not leaving anytime soon.

[KYMAR]

SUBJECT TO CHANGE*...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

....TOMORROW

[Petunia Sprinkle]

Let's go Browns?

[Peanut191]

Nice setup. That Tad Moore putter looks pretty cool.

[GoIrish17]

Solid set up on both ends! Question, Did you have to shim the Cleveland Classic driver with the install of an upgraded shaft? I have a Cleveland Classic 310 with an old Project X blue shaft. Looking to upgrade it, which is why I ask. Love my Cleveland, its not leaving anytime soon.

 

Yeah, I had to shim the shaft. One of the unfortunate things about the Classic drivers. Still a great club, it can keep up with any of the new stuff out there when matched up with a properly fitting shaft.

[GoIrish17]

SUBJECT TO CHANGE*...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

....TOMORROW

 

Lol, I guess every time we play together I do have almost a completely new bag. Speaking of, we need to get together and play.

[GoIrish17]

Let's go Browns?

 

They're hard to root for, but no one will ever question my loyalty, I guess.

[KYMAR]

SUBJECT TO CHANGE*...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

....TOMORROW

 

Lol, I guess every time we play together I do have almost a completely new bag. Speaking of, we need to get together and play.

 

Agreed! Put Joe in charge of a tee time.

 

And go browns!

[GoIrish17]

SUBJECT TO CHANGE*...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

....TOMORROW

 

Lol, I guess every time we play together I do have almost a completely new bag. Speaking of, we need to get together and play.

 

Agreed! Put Joe in charge of a tee time.

 

And go browns!

 

I almost came out to Wicked Woods today, if Mother Nature had cooperated. Oh, well. Heading downtown to the Tribe game now. Hope the rain holds off for the next couple hours.

[Petunia Sprinkle]

Let's go Browns?

 

They're hard to root for, but no one will ever question my loyalty, I guess.

 

Yeah, bro, it wasn't your loyalty I was worried about. On the bright note, as we Red Sox fans used to say "there's always next season..."

[cvhookem63]

Nice setup! Glad to see you are still gaming the Tad Moore.

[GoIrish17]

Let's go Browns?

 

They're hard to root for, but no one will ever question my loyalty, I guess.

 

Yeah, bro, it wasn't your loyalty I was worried about. On the bright note, as we Red Sox fans used to say "there's always next season..."

 

There was also a time when Pats fans said the same thing

[Jwin323]

Can you please elaborate on what the cotton balls do to adjust swingweight? You have me curious. Thanks in advance.

[GoIrish17]

Can you please elaborate on what the cotton balls do to adjust swingweight? You have me curious. Thanks in advance.

 

They don't do much to swingweight, they do more for muting the sound. But, you can make minor adjustments to swingweight as you add cotton balls. I'm sure all brands and sizes of cotton balls are different, but I've found that about 5-6 equal a gram or two. Most of the weight adjustment in the M2 I did by changing the sole weight. The Classic I probably squeezed about 5-6 grams of hot melt and maybe 8-10 cotton balls to get it to around D2 or so (maybe a hair over). Playing a shorter driver than standard means adding some weight to the head to get the balance point back to "normal".

[Petunia Sprinkle]

Let's go Browns?

 

They're hard to root for, but no one will ever question my loyalty, I guess.

 

Yeah, bro, it wasn't your loyalty I was worried about. On the bright note, as we Red Sox fans used to say "there's always next season..."

 

There was also a time when Pats fans said the same thing

 

Maybe some did, but most of us were stunned when they did anything right. Then, Bill and Tom showed up and everything changed.

[gentles]

Love the detailed write up - we're so lucky to have a place like this where others can geek out on our crazy hobbies! My girlfriend after 5 years still can't get her head around why I'm always tinkering, and why club boxes are always at the door. Great stuff

[MuniPukeLife]

I see you got a mix of Z-Cords and Crossline Full Cords on the clubs. Which do you like better? As of now I'm trying to figure out which to go to as a fan of full cord grips.

[GoIrish17]

I see you got a mix of Z-Cords and Crossline Full Cords on the clubs. Which do you like better? As of now I'm trying to figure out which to go to as a fan of full cord grips.

 

Actually, the Lamkin's I have are the Keegan Bradley version, which are made with the tackier & softer ACE material (and I was going to include a link to the grips on the Lamkin Tour Van page (http://www.lamkingri...s/tour-van.html), but I see they are not listed there anymore). I prefer the Z-Cords to anything out there. I really like the firmness, but they can get a little pricey so I do some experimenting. I really like the Keegan Crosslines, but they're a little softer/ tackier than the Z-Cords. I like them on my driver, but I have a real problem with gripping my clubs too tight (especially irons and wedges). The softer/ tackier grips seem to make me want to squeeze tighter, but with the firmer Z-Cords my tendancy is to grip a with a little less pressure.

 

I'm a huge Z-Cord fan, though I don't mind the standard Crossline cords. I just find the Z-Cords to feel firmer and have more texture, which I prefer. Unfortunately, the Z-Cords are expensive, so I tend to mess around with other options when I'm building a club just for the hell of it.

 

*edit- Keegan's listed as sold out. http://www.lamkingrips.com/shop/products/tour-van/keegan-bradley-spec-crossline-ace-full-cord-golf-grips.html

[Redpro]

Let me say that I like the lead tape! And I, too, went the cotton ball route a few times.

 

I can tell that you love each club because you know the work you put into it.

 

Very nice!

 

A gram scale is your friend! :)

[GoIrish17]

Let me say that I like the lead tape! And I, too, went the cotton ball route a few times.

 

I can tell that you love each club because you know the work you put into it.

 

Very nice!

 

A gram scale is your friend! :)

 

Lol, you know it

 

[CDLgolf]

Having lived in Cleveland for 50 years I love the wedges.

The rest of the bag looks good also.

[Jwin323]

Can you please elaborate on what the cotton balls do to adjust swingweight? You have me curious. Thanks in advance.

 

They don't do much to swingweight, they do more for muting the sound. But, you can make minor adjustments to swingweight as you add cotton balls. I'm sure all brands and sizes of cotton balls are different, but I've found that about 5-6 equal a gram or two. Most of the weight adjustment in the M2 I did by changing the sole weight. The Classic I probably squeezed about 5-6 grams of hot melt and maybe 8-10 cotton balls to get it to around D2 or so (maybe a hair over). Playing a shorter driver than standard means adding some weight to the head to get the balance point back to "normal".

 

One more question about the cotton balls--- do you hotmelt them in place or do they float around the head?

[GoIrish17]

Can you please elaborate on what the cotton balls do to adjust swingweight? You have me curious. Thanks in advance.

 

They don't do much to swingweight, they do more for muting the sound. But, you can make minor adjustments to swingweight as you add cotton balls. I'm sure all brands and sizes of cotton balls are different, but I've found that about 5-6 equal a gram or two. Most of the weight adjustment in the M2 I did by changing the sole weight. The Classic I probably squeezed about 5-6 grams of hot melt and maybe 8-10 cotton balls to get it to around D2 or so (maybe a hair over). Playing a shorter driver than standard means adding some weight to the head to get the balance point back to "normal".

 

One more question about the cotton balls--- do you hotmelt them in place or do they float around the head?

 

Nothing special to do. Just stuff them in and forget them. You'll never notice they're there.

[Jwin323]

Can you please elaborate on what the cotton balls do to adjust swingweight? You have me curious. Thanks in advance.

 

They don't do much to swingweight, they do more for muting the sound. But, you can make minor adjustments to swingweight as you add cotton balls. I'm sure all brands and sizes of cotton balls are different, but I've found that about 5-6 equal a gram or two. Most of the weight adjustment in the M2 I did by changing the sole weight. The Classic I probably squeezed about 5-6 grams of hot melt and maybe 8-10 cotton balls to get it to around D2 or so (maybe a hair over). Playing a shorter driver than standard means adding some weight to the head to get the balance point back to "normal".

 

One more question about the cotton balls--- do you hotmelt them in place or do they float around the head?

 

Nothing special to do. Just stuff them in and forget them. You'll never notice they're there.

 

Thank you. Appreciate all the quality info.

[GoIrish17]

Can you please elaborate on what the cotton balls do to adjust swingweight? You have me curious. Thanks in advance.

 

They don't do much to swingweight, they do more for muting the sound. But, you can make minor adjustments to swingweight as you add cotton balls. I'm sure all brands and sizes of cotton balls are different, but I've found that about 5-6 equal a gram or two. Most of the weight adjustment in the M2 I did by changing the sole weight. The Classic I probably squeezed about 5-6 grams of hot melt and maybe 8-10 cotton balls to get it to around D2 or so (maybe a hair over). Playing a shorter driver than standard means adding some weight to the head to get the balance point back to "normal".

 

One more question about the cotton balls--- do you hotmelt them in place or do they float around the head?

 

Nothing special to do. Just stuff them in and forget them. You'll never notice they're there.

 

Thank you. Appreciate all the quality info.

 

No worries, it's fun to chat Golf & equipment on these WITB's. It's just that- good conversation without all the "Callaway sucks" "no, TaylorMade sucks more" crap that can prevail on many of the forums here.

[shootstill]

Can you please elaborate on what the cotton balls do to adjust swingweight? You have me curious. Thanks in advance.

 

They don't do much to swingweight, they do more for muting the sound. But, you can make minor adjustments to swingweight as you add cotton balls. I'm sure all brands and sizes of cotton balls are different, but I've found that about 5-6 equal a gram or two. Most of the weight adjustment in the M2 I did by changing the sole weight. The Classic I probably squeezed about 5-6 grams of hot melt and maybe 8-10 cotton balls to get it to around D2 or so (maybe a hair over). Playing a shorter driver than standard means adding some weight to the head to get the balance point back to "normal".

 

One more question about the cotton balls--- do you hotmelt them in place or do they float around the head?

 

Nothing special to do. Just stuff them in and forget them. You'll never notice they're there.

 

Where do you insert the cotton balls at? I've been wanting to do this to my M2 as well.

[GoIrish17]

Can you please elaborate on what the cotton balls do to adjust swingweight? You have me curious. Thanks in advance.

 

They don't do much to swingweight, they do more for muting the sound. But, you can make minor adjustments to swingweight as you add cotton balls. I'm sure all brands and sizes of cotton balls are different, but I've found that about 5-6 equal a gram or two. Most of the weight adjustment in the M2 I did by changing the sole weight. The Classic I probably squeezed about 5-6 grams of hot melt and maybe 8-10 cotton balls to get it to around D2 or so (maybe a hair over). Playing a shorter driver than standard means adding some weight to the head to get the balance point back to "normal".

 

One more question about the cotton balls--- do you hotmelt them in place or do they float around the head?

 

Nothing special to do. Just stuff them in and forget them. You'll never notice they're there.

 

Where do you insert the cotton balls at? I've been wanting to do this to my M2 as well.

 

My M2, I went in under the sole weight. Where the weight screws in is open to the guts of the driver, just need one of those security torx bits (or whatever they're called- with the hole in the center to accept the pin in the middle of the weight). I think I bought a set from Harbor Freight, eBay, or Amazon for like $10. The factory weight has some loctite on it, so you might want to put a bit of heat to it before you try to break it free the first time; and, there's a chance some of the loctite might break off and fall inside. I found that putting the tip of my air compressor in the hole blew all of the residue out of it.

 

You need to take care not to round off the teeth when tightening the weight, they're kind of soft (which is really easy- I suggest not tightening hard at all and just putting a little loctite on it), it's a P.I.T.A. to remove the weight if you do- extraction tools, etc. Or, so I've heard.

[GoIrish17]

So, it appears that Photobucket decided they aren't into 3rd party hosting photos anymore without me paying like $400/ yr. No thanks. I'm going to work on transferring these photos over to another hosting site and update this sometime when I have the time. Does anyone have any recommendations for the best site to switch over to? I run Windows 10 on my home computers, browsing on Chrome. Use Apple for mobile. Would like to use a service that integrates well between those.

[KYMAR]