UK Classic Club Thread - John Letters, Ben Sayers, Slazenger, Dunlop, George Nicoll, Swilken, Petron

[stixman]

Anybody on here win these?

 

https://www.ebay.co....=p2047675.l2557

 

Hello Fans, it wuz I. Very reasonably priced, I thought.

[Jiggered]

Anybody on here win these?

 

https://www.ebay.co....=p2047675.l2557

 

Hello Fans, it wuz I. Very reasonably priced, I thought.

 

Great, I was just happy to see them bid for and I wondered if it might be you as I thought you had a few of the oggmented style clubs but not necessarily these models.

 

If they didn't get a bid I was probably going to bid myself just to save them from the skip.

[stixman]

Anybody on here win these?

 

https://www.ebay.co....=p2047675.l2557

 

Hello Fans, it wuz I. Very reasonably priced, I thought.

 

Great, I was just happy to see them bid for and I wondered if it might be you as I thought you had a few of the oggmented style clubs but not necessarily these models.

 

If they didn't get a bid I was probably going to bid myself just to save them from the skip.

 

As it happens, they're not 'oggmented'. Willie Ogg put the weight to the toe. As a btw, Willie became a Wilson staffer and Wilson made a lot of Oggmented clubs. As you will have seen STAG or The St Andrew Golf Company were agents for Wilson in the UK / Europe and made many Wilson clubs under licence.

 

No, these clubs have the weight in a lump towards the hosel, why, heaven knows but they did. The design was called their 'Akurasy' model which I featured in this thread some 2 years ago when I showed a 4 iron. These particular clubs do not show the brand name Akurasy which is odd, but they do show the relevant Registered Design Number. Neither are they stamped to show that they have a NoShok hosel, but if you look closely, they do.

The 4 iron I showed previously was stamped Wizard Akurasy and had a Noshok hosel. I can't be sure but I believe that Wizard was a brand name applied to the NoShok hosel models.

 

And the kicker is....the Akurasy model came in both Hickory and Steel by virtue of having the NoShok hosel. The Akurasy model is very rare, a full set of the Hickory Variant sold for $2500.

The 4 iron went to the USA to have the shaft switched.

 

Scarcely credibly, I bought the lot for the putter which is a very collectible NCR (National Cash Register) piece of memorabilia. :D.

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

I've been meaning to post this for a while: a Slazenger Powerthrust driver, which was my the first persimmon driver I bought when I decided to get back into persimmon woods a couple of years ago. I think it's been refinished at some point, but the shaft is original. It has a speed slot like many of the old Hogan woods, so I assume it was made under licence by Slazenger?

It's OK to hit, but it has want appears to be an old damp mark in the face by the insert. Ridden hard and put away wet?

 

 

 

[stixman]

There are a few threads here on Slazenger Hogan woods, as you suggest, made under licence in the UK.

There should be a 3 digit number on the toe but this apears to have been lost in the refurb. as has the marking on the crown.

The damp mark and insert show signs of repair, if it were me I would have the insert off before playing, if only for peace of mind

1961 ??

[Jiggered]

I have a Powerthrust 2 wood that looks identical to this and I also thought had been refurbished but I've since seen quite a few and they all look pretty much the same, some even down to the oversized face screws showing on mine, so now I'm not so sure.

No markings on the crown but the speed slot decal is there.

 

I suspect that these were sold after the Hogan deal had ended and were to use up old stock.

 

http://www.golfwrx.com/forums/topic/1063941-no-new-acquistions/page__st__3570#entry16228048

[stixman]

More George Nicoll 'Akurasy' photos. Picked up recently as commented on by Jiggered.

 

Note the No-Shok hosels....but no mention of the fact on the stamping. Ideal candidates for retro-fitting with hickory?

'I couldn't possibly comment'

 

 

 

 

 

[stixman]

Calling P&B players in the UK

 

An outing has been set up at the links course of Fleetwood for Thurs May 9th. Cost for the round is a very reasonable £20 (with a County Card). I have 3 x 4 ball availabilities from 10.30. I can get more if the demand is there.

It is important that you PM me to get on the list :) .

 

(and, if we have misjudged the interest level for such meetings, then also please PM me :( )

 

Note...if you don't have a County Card, the Pro is tame and he is happy to accomodate the odd one or two without.

Note.....this coincides with the British Masters at Hillside GC, Weds is the Pro/Am. Get yourselves along and support Tommy Fleetwood, media star, crack golfer and Mr Nice Guy.

[Swingingk]

That sure sounds like fun. Wish I could be there. Have fun and post lots of pictures!

[Maxwell]

Recently purchased a 2 club set of 1941 Men's R/H Robert Forgan "Imperial" persimmon woods. I have started to restore them. Does anyone have a "couple of scanned pages" from a Robert Forgan Golf Club Catalog for this year and model that I can purchase from them?

 

Max

Canada

[email protected]

[Jiggered]

Collected a set of Slazenger +, Jack Nicklaus $1m irons, I assume that they date from when his career competition earnings reached $1 million, some time around 1969 or 1970?

 

3 to PW with True Temper Dynalite R shafts and some nice Golf Pride Tour Wrap grips.

Matching ferrule numbers apart from the PW which is unnumbered.

 

 

[stixman]

It is possible I posted this club in the wrong topic. I posted it in the 'Show me your 1 iron' but in terms of heritage it belongs here. It, too, I picked up unregarded by others on Ebay and after a nationwide circuit and bump courtesy of Hermes it finally wound up in sunny Morecambe.

 

This is a Frank Ayres club called the DW Brand, this is an early 1 iron. I had a set once in stainless but they were too light, I was given to understand that they were favoured by the ladies.

Anyway, this one is a nice weight and well balanced. It's claim to fame is the 1926 Registered Design which is the first split back club which was hijacked by MacGregor to style the Tommy Armour Silver Scot models from 1935 -1965. I have a part set of Neutralisers, a full set of Colokrom 925s and a full set of much later PGA Tommy Armours, all of which play very well, and you can clearly see the lineage from this early DW Brand.

I never met anyone who could tell me who 'DW' was although there were a few unfounded speculations including DW Auchterlonie.

The other thing I like about this club is that it comes from L'Ancresse, home to the Royal Guernsey Golf Club and scene of some happy holiday rounds with the early family.

 

[Chris122]

Jiggered,those Slazengers are great lookers,hope you're well on the road to recovery and looking forward to getting out in some warmer weather.

[Jiggered]

Jiggered,those Slazengers are great lookers,hope you're well on the road to recovery and looking forward to getting out in some warmer weather.

 

Thanks Chris, yes I'm making steady progress.

 

Played a leisurely 18 holes yesterday, trying to limit myself to 3/4 swings but wasn't always successful and a few full swings crept in! Play was mostly poor but I did hit one very nice 3 iron just short of the 15th green and got up and down for par, which is a miracle in itself with my short game...

 

I have spent some time trying to improve my chipping indoors off a scrap of old carpet, I'll see how useful that was when I play my first proper round.

[Chris122]

Glad to hear that,are all your light fittings intact with the indoor practice?

[DM70]

Collected a set of Slazenger +, Jack Nicklaus $1m irons, I assume that they date from when his career competition earnings reached $1 million, some time around 1969 or 1970?

 

3 to PW with True Temper Dynalite R shafts and some nice Golf Pride Tour Wrap grips.

Matching ferrule numbers apart from the PW which is unnumbered.

 

 

 

Here's the driver for that set! Unfortunately I never got around to hitting, will dig it out to try!

 

http://www.golfwrx.com/forums/topic/1063941-no-new-acquistions/page__st__3480#entry16163612

[Jiggered]

Collected a set of Slazenger +, Jack Nicklaus $1m irons, I assume that they date from when his career competition earnings reached $1 million, some time around 1969 or 1970?

 

3 to PW with True Temper Dynalite R shafts and some nice Golf Pride Tour Wrap grips.

Matching ferrule numbers apart from the PW which is unnumbered.

 

 

 

Here's the driver for that set! Unfortunately I never got around to hitting, will dig it out to try!

 

http://www.golfwrx.c...0#entry16163612

 

Nice deep face to it, I'll be interested to hear how it goes. :)

[Jiggered]

A putter that I've been on the look out for since I first saw one was delivered today, Ben Sayers "Moon Shot", I expect this was from around the time of the moon exploration / landings so mid to late sixties.

 

The crescent moon based design is a bit way out there although it seemed to put a decent enough roll on the ball after a quick practice on the carpet, maybe a little tricky to get the ball in line with the sweet spot but a dot of paint would sort that.

 

 

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

A putter that I've been on the look out for since I first saw one was delivered today, Ben Sayers "Moon Shot", I expect this was from around the time of the moon exploration / landings so mid to late sixties.

 

The crescent moon based design is a bit way out there although it seemed to put a decent enough roll on the ball after a quick practice on the carpet, maybe a little tricky to get the ball in line with the sweet spot but a dot of paint would sort that.

 

 

 

I really like the look of that. Kind of a cross between a Bullseye and a heel-shafted half mallet.

[Jiggered]

More George Nicoll 'Akurasy' photos. Picked up recently as commented on by Jiggered.

 

Note the No-Shok hosels....but no mention of the fact on the stamping. Ideal candidates for retro-fitting with hickory?

'I couldn't possibly comment'

 

 

 

 

 

 

I was drawn to a bit of browsing on ebay at the weekend, as most of us here seem to be, and spotted some if these hiding in a set.

 

I didn't have time to find this post and wasn't even sure if they were the same clubs but I stuck in a bid anyway and am now waiting for delivery of 6 clubs, 1 through to 6 iron. They're stamped "Nicoll's Akurasy Wizard" and also don't mention Noshok. From what I can see on the internet the 1 iron might be a rare beast.

 

The shafts look to be in poor condition with bits of Pyratone missing around the Noshok fitting but I'm keen to get them as they'll be my first Noshok clubs.

 

Also included is a Noshok putter (stamped this time but not the Akurasy model unfortunately) and three Gradidge Triple Crown persimmons, all also in tired condition.

 

I'll post pictures when they arrive.

[Jiggered]

The Nicoll Akurasy irons turned up today, condition was never their strongest point but I was disappointed to see a split in the hosel of the 6 iron. From the pictures I'd suspected there was one in the putter hosel and indeed there was but I hadn't seen it in the 6 iron.

 

Other than that though the heads are pretty good.

 

The Gradidge Bobby Locke 1, 2 and 3 woods were decent.

 

 

[stixman]

Nice pick up, Jiggered.

Shame about the 6 iron. It is curious how the split has come about. Usually this sort of damage is the result of forceful attempts to remove shafts from the heads, clearly not the issue here. It won't be corrosion, being stainless. Maybe the rubber in the No Shok fitting expands as it hardens with age or it's a faulty forging (which I've never heard of).

I should be interested to hear how they play, mine had the shafts severely shortened so I never had the chance to check them out.

Incidentally mine were a run from 5 through to 8, hosels were fine.

[Jiggered]

Nice pick up, Jiggered.

Shame about the 6 iron. It is curious how the split has come about. Usually this sort of damage is the result of forceful attempts to remove shafts from the heads, clearly not the issue here. It won't be corrosion, being stainless. Maybe the rubber in the No Shok fitting expands as it hardens with age or it's a faulty forging (which I've never heard of).

I should be interested to hear how they play, mine had the shafts severely shortened so I never had the chance to check them out.

Incidentally mine were a run from 5 through to 8, hosels were fine.

 

I wondered whether it might be expansion too, perhaps caused by the shaft rusting and forcing out the rubber, or maybe as you say the rubber expanding due to age or being stored in damp conditions? Pertinent that the putter has the same split and also looks to be due to expansion rather than being forced.

 

I'm playing the final match of our Winter League divisional stage this weekend, my partner and I are already out due to the games lost after my heart attack so I think I'll slip the 3 or 4 iron in the bag and try a few shots with it and will report back.

[DM70]

What do you think about this Ben Sayers putter I bought today? 1950s club? No markings at all except for the Ben Sayers logo.

 

It's the same ferrule, shaft, grip and end-cap as this putter on ebay, but head design is very different as you can see.

 

 

 

 

 

[Jiggered]

Took delivery of these today, I'm guessing a bit of a retro slant with the naming rather than numbering of the clubs as I believe these to have been made in the 1960s, although elements of them do look earlier.

 

My understanding is that Swilken came about after the final withdrawal of Spalding (who had acquired Stewarts and the pipe mark) from the UK. The advert shown (along with a few other classifieds for your amusement) is from a 1966 Golf World magazine.

Any shaft experts here that can date them from the shaft bands, True Temper Pro Fit?

 

Leather grips.

The chipper looks to be a stand alone club as the back of the head has a different design as shown in picture, the chipper has the Saltire.

The cleek is 38.5" long so around a 2 iron, in any event they'll make a nice half set to carry in the evenings!

 

 

[Jiggered]

Oh no, I've found Gumtree!....

(Anyone still around from the UK after the recent changes?)

 

Just bought the below set of George Nicoll Henry Cotton irons 2 to 10, HB Thunderbird 1 & 3 persimmon woods and a John Letters Golden Goose putter all in a tatty carry bag which might be salvageable for hickory carrying, £10 all in.

 

The picture in the sale only showed the top of the woods and I thought that they might be an early Harold Bird product but I’m not so sure now, the double headed eagle looks familiar but I can’t remember where I’ve seen it (I don’t think that they’re Hillerich and Bradsby either but I may be wrong), any suggestions?

 

(I also have another set to collect via Gumtree on Friday….. more tat I’m sure but I like them!)

 

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

Nice looking woods and irons, jiggered.

[Jiggered]

It's been a while since I've had anything to add to this thread (well over a month anyway!) but yesterday I picked up some Penfold International clubs.

Laminated 1, 3 & 4 woods and 3 to SW in the irons. The irons are similar to the Ben Hogan Producer in appearance.

 

Shown below are the irons, the woods aren't really worth a picture but do look eminently playable.

 

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

I like that head shape. Lots of weight low down by the looks of it, too. The wide sole would be useful in the wet UK winters and spring. And wet autumn and summers, come to think of it...

[Jiggered]

> @No_Catchy_Nickname said:

> I like that head shape. Lots of weight low down by the looks of it, too. The wide sole would be useful in the wet UK winters and spring. And wet autumn and summers, come to think of it...

 

The soles of the longer irons aren't that wide but they do have a nice progression down to the SW, which is a bit of a beast!