No new acquistions...?

[Stephen8802]

After a bit of a dry spell at thrift stores, I found some cool stuff again. Thrift stores are absolutely impossible to predict, but I guess that is part of the fun.

1. PowerBilt Grand Slam, driver and 3. The refinish isn't that bad, but they desperately need some wood bleach, so I'm going to strip them down, bleach them, and bring them back in a dark walnut. I think a thread on second tier 50's clubs would be interesting, so maybe I'll start one up. The shafts aren't good, but boy, there are some pretty heads in the lower tier.
2. Staff Persimmon, picked up the whole set with stiff shafts. I came of age with Wilsons in the 80s, so happy to find these even if they don't get played much. They need a sand and dip, but not a full refinish
3. Palmer Swinging Weight driver. I've been eyeing these on line, happy to find this for $4. I've become a bit obsessed with Peerless drivers lately and wanted to round out the family with a pre-Peerless driver. This head is really small, kinda like a 3 wood with driver loft...how it plays is to be seen, but I'm happy to have it in the family.
4. Button Backs, 5-W. The 4 was also there, but the chrome was half off, so I left it in the bin. I'll find a 3 & 4 eventually, but I'm in no hurry since the Bullet Backs in my bag are making a bid to never leave. The cool thing here are the grips, a wrapless leather I don't have yet. They are the short version, so I would have to extend to play, but I can't see stripping these grips. They go on the upper storage shelf and I'll figure out what I'm going to do some time in the future. I'm getting close to all the sets, and just need some '66s to get all the sets I care about.

Edited May 31, 2021 by Stephen8802

[raggal62]

1 hour ago, Stephen8802 said:

After a bit of a dry spell at thrift stores, I found some cool stuff again. Thrift stores are absolutely impossible to predict, but I guess that is part of the fun.

1. PowerBilt Grand Slam, driver and 3. The refinish isn't that bad, but they desperately need some wood bleach, so I'm going to strip them down, bleach them, and bring them back in a dark walnut. I think a thread on second tier 50's clubs would be interesting, so maybe I'll start one up. The shafts aren't good, but boy, there are some pretty heads in the lower tier.
2. Staff Persimmon, picked up the whole set with stiff shafts. I came of age with Wilsons in the 80s, so happy to find these even if they don't get played much. They need a sand and dip, but not a full refinish
3. Palmer Swinging Weight driver. I've been eyeing these on line, happy to find this for $4. I've become a bit obsessed with Peerless drivers lately and wanted to round out the family with a pre-Peerless driver. This head is really small, kinda like a 3 wood with driver loft...how it plays is to be seen, but I'm happy to have it in the family.
4. Button Backs, 5-W. The 4 was also there, but the chrome was half off, so I left it in the bin. I'll find a 3 & 4 eventually, but I'm in no hurry since the Bullet Backs in my bag are making a bid to never leave. The cool thing here are the grips, a wrapless leather I don't have yet. They are the short version, so I would have to extend to play, but I can't see stripping these grips. They go on the upper storage shelf and I'll figure out what I'm going to do some time in the future. I'm getting close to all the sets, and just need some '66s to get all the sets I care about.

Just a thought on your Button Backs. You may consider soft stepping. You could go back and grab that 4 iron, yank the shaft and install in the 5 iron. 5 into 6, etc. 

 

You would gain 1/2" and keep the grips at the same time. Just thinking out loud here.

[Stephen8802]

38 minutes ago, raggal62 said:

Just a thought on your Button Backs. You may consider soft stepping. You could go back and grab that 4 iron, yank the shaft and install in the 5 iron. 5 into 6, etc. 

 

You would gain 1/2" and keep the grips at the same time. Just thinking out loud here.

Hmmm...that's a good thought

[apexironman]

Picked these two drivers up at Goodwill this weekend. I did a quick regrip on the Whale and hit it off the first tee on Sunday - about 220 left side of fairway. Very smooth through impact. The XL-500 is the first club I've seen with a stepped graphite shaft. The Whale is definitely going in the vintage bag. 

 

 

[Foozle]

2 hours ago, apexironman said:

Picked these two drivers up at Goodwill this weekend. I did a quick regrip on the Whale and hit it off the first tee on Sunday - about 220 left side of fairway. Very smooth through impact. The XL-500 is the first club I've seen with a stepped graphite shaft. The Whale is definitely going in the vintage bag. 

 

 

My golf partner had a Whale back in the day - hit it miles! I couldn't play it as the proportions against the ball looked all wrong at address. Wonder how it looks now against a modern 460cc driver - probably tiny?!😁

One came up on E Bay here in the UK recently with the firestick shaft like yours. Thought I would buy it for nostalgia sake but the bidding went crazy and left me a long way behind. If I recall it made around £300 so assuming you only paid a few $ at Goodwill it is a pretty good find.

Enjoy! 

[apexironman]

9 hours ago, Foozle said:

My golf partner had a Whale back in the day - hit it miles! I couldn't play it as the proportions against the ball looked all wrong at address. Wonder how it looks now against a modern 460cc driver - probably tiny?!😁

One came up on E Bay here in the UK recently with the firestick shaft like yours. Thought I would buy it for nostalgia sake but the bidding went crazy and left me a long way behind. If I recall it made around £300 so assuming you only paid a few $ at Goodwill it is a pretty good find.

Enjoy! 

It's a 250cc head, so it look a bit smaller than a modern driver. It looks very much like a fairway wood to me at address. My son also tried it and had no issues.

 

Each driver was $4.99, so yeah, a great deal!

[Daeldalus]

I found 4 nice clubs at a local thrift store. A powerbilt citation 2 iron that matches my iron set all by itself. A persimmon macgregor 4 wood. I would like some more info on it. A macgregor VIP sand wedge. I think it is probably a 'modern' wedge. And finally a Daiwa hand crafted 3 wood made of laminate. It looks and hits very nice.

 

 

[Shallowface]

On 5/31/2021 at 10:20 PM, apexironman said:

Picked these two drivers up at Goodwill this weekend. I did a quick regrip on the Whale and hit it off the first tee on Sunday - about 220 left side of fairway. Very smooth through impact. The XL-500 is the first club I've seen with a stepped graphite shaft. The Whale is definitely going in the vintage bag. 

 

 

I had one of those XL500 Drivers purchased new in the summer of 1977 for the princely sum of $49.99.  The one I had was marked a "firm" flex as well, but truth is it should have pulled the same rating as an adult movie, at least a Triple X.  It didn't last more than a couple of weeks as it snapped below the grip just after impact one evening.  The drive went about 290.  I exchanged the driver for a similar model except this head said "Johnny Miller" on top.  I broke that one around my back on a follow through less than a month later.  I also broke a Pro Dyn laminated driver with a Dynamic X that same summer, again on a follow through, so it wasn't a good year for drivers.  I was 17 and at what passed for the height of my powers when it came to clubhead speed, measured at 122 MPH although who knows how accurate that really was.  These days I can't break an egg.

 

The stepped graphite was Wilson's attempt, in conjunction with a company called Babcock and Wilcox, to make a graphite shaft that had the torque rating of steel, as excessive torque was thought to be a major issue with the graphite shafts of that day.  The shafts were originally available in Staff and 1200 woods, but I believe that project had been dropped by 1977 and the two clubs I had were store line leftovers.  What they ended up with was certainly the stiffest shaft I ever had a chance to play, and I remember coming across a ladies model with Laura Baugh's name on it years later in a thrift and it was rebar stiff as well.         

 

The Whale is a great driver.  I still have one.  Payne Stewart used one for some time back in the day.   

Edited June 2, 2021 by Shallowface
spelling

[Joe S]

On 3/4/2019 at 3:56 PM, @_the_crook said:

 

your Golfcraft is very nice.

I have a Joe Kirkwood Tru-Goose model that is money.

 

I have a chance to buy a set of these Joe Kirkwood irons and was wondering what you guys know about them.  They buyer says he doesn't know what to ask for them, and I don't know what to offer.   I would have at least $20 in shipping.  I've seen some other threads where they are mentioned and they seem to be well thought of.  I like the channelback design and with stainless heads you don't have to worry about chrome loss.  

 

 

 

[Brewski_golfs]

Headed out early this morning to one of the largest neighborhood yard sales around, 60 houses selling over 5 blocks.  Was pretty slim pickings for golf but scored a few items.  A set of Wright and Ditson  Lawson Little persimmon 1&2 and 2-8 iron.  I almost passed due to their condition until I noticed they all had True temper Meteor shafts rust free.  Also a Spalding cash in, and a Bag Boy Spartan Lite.  Grand total $16 for everything, can’t beat that!  Anyone know anything about the Meteor shafts?  Assuming they maybe the budget version of the Rocket?  

[@_the_crook]

On 6/3/2021 at 4:10 PM, Joe S said:

 

I have a chance to buy a set of these Joe Kirkwood irons and was wondering what you guys know about them.  They buyer says he doesn't know what to ask for them, and I don't know what to offer.   I would have at least $20 in shipping.  I've seen some other threads where they are mentioned and they seem to be well thought of.  I like the channelback design and with stainless heads you don't have to worry about chrome loss.  

 

 

 

those look like a nice find Joe.

no idea on value but if you like the style, why not give them a try?

 

[Stephen8802]

Work has been busy and I haven't been posting my thrift store finds, but these woods deserve some airtime. I picked them up from a local posting site today and I'm very happy with what I found. They are in good, original shape, but with two odd anomalies. First, the driver has the wrong sole plate...its an Armour, not a Tourney. And second, the 1/3/4 have leather grips and the 2 wood has a Macgregor rubber grip; all four have the correct shaft. I'm guessing the sole plate was put on at the factory, perhaps because they ran out of Armour driver plates that day. I think the 2 wood grip was replaced later with a Mac grip, probably a few years later. I have the same ugly rubber grip on '62 Macgregor. I'm not complaining though, anytime you find a set of '50s Macgregor woods in original shape, with matching neck numbers, you take the clubs and smile.

 

 

 

 

Edited July 5, 2021 by Stephen8802

[Robert L.]

On 5/27/2021 at 11:09 AM, dcopp7 said:

 

WOW! Those irons are gorgeous! They must feel so smooth when hitting a ball!

[cold_war_era_golfer]

You all know that feeling when you buy a set of vintage clubs and you think?  "Oh these have had a a paint fill to look new"  Then you look at the original grips and you think, "Maybe that's the original paint"  I'm a magnet for M2s.  Luckily they are my favorite of all the vintage irons.  

[Swingingk]

Ok so it's not exactly persimmon but this seemed like the best place to post this.  I've been looking for a clean Ram Zebra for a long time and finally found one tonight.  Actually the seller had two of them but I only brought the nicer of the two home.  Strangely enough they were slightly different from each other in that the one I bought has a slightly lower face height than the other and has the Zebra logo cast into the face as well where the other one didn't.  So while it could use a paint job the shaft, shaft label, and original cord grip are intact so I've got that going for me.  I'm excited to get it out for a test round!

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

18 minutes ago, Swingingk said:

Ok so it's not exactly persimmon but this seemed like the best place to post this.  I've been looking for a clean Ram Zebra for a long time and finally found one tonight.  Actually the seller had two of them but I only brought the nicer of the two home.  Strangely enough they were slightly different from each other in that the one I bought has a slightly lower face height than the other and has the Zebra logo cast into the face as well where the other one didn't.  So while it could use a paint job the shaft, shaft label, and original cord grip are intact so I've got that going for me.  I'm excited to get it out for a test round!

 

Definitely a classic there! I've seen some with a ram's head just over where it says "RAM" on the sole between the two screws, and some without the ram's head. Any idea of what that difference signifies?

[Swingingk]

29 minutes ago, No_Catchy_Nickname said:

 

Definitely a classic there! I've seen some with a ram's head just over where it says "RAM" on the sole between the two screws, and some without the ram's head. Any idea of what that difference signifies?

I have no idea what the differences might mean but I do hope to find out.  I always thought that a Zebra was a Zebra but there does appear to be different versions.  I can see how there might be slight variations from year to year but I must admit to being surprised by the different face heights on the only two I've ever handled.  I thought that was a bit weird.  Everything else looked the same (to my untrained eye) except for the height.  I guess I'll just have to keep on buying them until I figure it out.  Haha!

Curiosity got the better of me almost immediately upon getting it home and I removed the sole plate.  Inside is a large piece of rubbery sort of foam'ish type material I assume would be for dampening effect as well as a threaded stud welded to the inside of the plate with a Nylock nut about halfway up it.  Again with the assumptions but I figure it's some kind of COG adjustment, which would be pretty nifty.  Cool putter!

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

1 hour ago, Swingingk said:

I have no idea what the differences might mean but I do hope to find out.  I always thought that a Zebra was a Zebra but there does appear to be different versions.  I can see how there might be slight variations from year to year but I must admit to being surprised by the different face heights on the only two I've ever handled.  I thought that was a bit weird.  Everything else looked the same (to my untrained eye) except for the height.  I guess I'll just have to keep on buying them until I figure it out.  Haha!

Curiosity got the better of me almost immediately upon getting it home and I removed the sole plate.  Inside is a large piece of rubbery sort of foam'ish type material I assume would be for dampening effect as well as a threaded stud welded to the inside of the plate with a Nylock nut about halfway up it.  Again with the assumptions but I figure it's some kind of COG adjustment, which would be pretty nifty.  Cool putter!

 

I was going to ask you if you'd taken the soleplate off yet. I thought it was removable in order to add weight; I didn't know that there was some sort of dampening material in there. From the looks of it, it does not appear to be aftermarket

[Swingingk]

1 hour ago, No_Catchy_Nickname said:

 

I was going to ask you if you'd taken the soleplate off yet. I thought it was removable in order to add weight; I didn't know that there was some sort of dampening material in there. From the looks of it, it does not appear to be aftermarket

Yeah I couldn't help it - I had to see what was inside.  😆

I agree that it seems to be all factory looking in there.  It is certainly a technologically advanced little unit that's for sure.  I must say I'm quite intrigued by it.  This will be my first crack at a face balanced putter too so who knows, maybe it'll bump my beloved Anser 2 out of the bag for a while.  That would indeed be a feat though as nothing else has ever been able to make that happen!  Haha

[dcopp7]

you should be able to stack dimes over the nut in that recess for weight

[Foozle]

11 hours ago, Swingingk said:

I have no idea what the differences might mean but I do hope to find out.  I always thought that a Zebra was a Zebra but there does appear to be different versions.  I can see how there might be slight variations from year to year but I must admit to being surprised by the different face heights on the only two I've ever handled.  I thought that was a bit weird.  Everything else looked the same (to my untrained eye) except for the height.  I guess I'll just have to keep on buying them until I figure it out.  Haha!

Curiosity got the better of me almost immediately upon getting it home and I removed the sole plate.  Inside is a large piece of rubbery sort of foam'ish type material I assume would be for dampening effect as well as a threaded stud welded to the inside of the plate with a Nylock nut about halfway up it.  Again with the assumptions but I figure it's some kind of COG adjustment, which would be pretty nifty.  Cool putter!

They came with weights in the form of metal washers that you put put under that nut to adjust to suit your preference.

The foam is factory standard.

Very advance for their time and lovely to use. I still do!

[Brewski_golfs]

Picked this up from EBay, just arrived today.   Was planning on stripping and refinishing immediately but the finish is nicer than I expected (except for the stamping), and I have others in more need,  so it will remain a bit of a mystery.  Have stared at the stamping area from all angles but there just isn’t enough there to make out what it says.   I am thinking it’s a ‘56 M75 SEOM but that’s just a guess.  Has definitely been reshafted so no help there.   Face height is about 1 5/8”.  If anyone has any tips on how to identify (without stripping) let me know. 

[Swingingk]

10 hours ago, Foozle said:

They came with weights in the form of metal washers that you put put under that nut to adjust to suit your preference.

The foam is factory standard.

Very advance for their time and lovely to use. I still do!

Washers of course - that makes sense.  I guess I should check the swingweight and see what I've got but it feels pretty good as is.  

[Woodridge]

I mentioned this club in the thread on 2 irons. I saw it at a Goodwill and went back to pick it up. It's not really a playable club, but it's interesting enough for me that I wanted to have it and share it here.

 

It's Golfcraft 2 iron. I cannot make out what's on the sole of the club. Maybe some of you can or would know. I've never owned or seen a Golfcraft club during my Goodwill and thrift store hunts, so that was one reason. But, the main reasons were the lead tape on the back, the fact that it's about a 5 iron length and that the TackiMac shamrock grip has a reminder wire in it. It feels almost like a triangle when you grip it. It's obviously a club that someone loved and customized for themselves or a family member. 

[scomac2002]

Registration ID. 13759

[James the Hogan Fan]

 

I didn't need a set of '72 apex, but the golf mart had them in the trade-ins bucket (I'm surprised they took them)

 

Not exquisite condition but pretty good.

[@_the_crook]

On 8/12/2021 at 4:13 PM, Woodridge said:

I mentioned this club in the thread on 2 irons. I saw it at a Goodwill and went back to pick it up. It's not really a playable club, but it's interesting enough for me that I wanted to have it and share it here.

 

It's Golfcraft 2 iron. I cannot make out what's on the sole of the club. Maybe some of you can or would know. I've never owned or seen a Golfcraft club during my Goodwill and thrift store hunts, so that was one reason. But, the main reasons were the lead tape on the back, the fact that it's about a 5 iron length and that the TackiMac shamrock grip has a reminder wire in it. It feels almost like a triangle when you grip it. It's obviously a club that someone loved and customized for themselves or a family member. 

 

I've got two GC two irons -

one the same flatback head as yours. Reg 43859.

orig grip - mid brown perf wrap with the plastic button on top. number worn off.

unknown shaft. has a 1 3/4 black ferrule w red trim ring.

 

 

the other is a GC Joe Kirkwood personal model. has a straight line concave muscle back.

the brand stamping is a bit different.

orig dark brown perf wrap grip, number 2 on the button. Eddon shaft.

two-tone brown/ivory ring ferrule.

 

I found those at the same store as a GC Kirkwood putter. ferrule matched the JK two iron.

the head and leather grip are both in excellent condition.

 

never saw any of the other irons.

how odd to find the 'ends' of that set.....

 

 

 

 

[Woodridge]

Thanks for the additional info. I've seen almost every brand except Golfcraft over the years. My 2 iron also has the red trim ferrule and unknown shaft.

[pymmdcp]

Just found these at a Goodwill near me. It’s been forever since I found a full set or anything worth picking up in a long time. They were more expensive than I’d like but couldn’t pass up a 3-SW. Does anyone know what flex shafts these are? I don’t see any markers. Is the only way taking off the grip?

[@_the_crook]

snake-eyes.

those were pretty good sticks back in the day.

Grafalloy used the small R and S to denote flex on many releases.

I have a few examples in driver, fairway and iron with that type of designation.

YMMV