Blade users thread (NO DEBATING CLUBHEADS! NO Buy Sell Trade!)

[Jonesy]

I must say I'm not a fan of golfprides, I find them too be super skinny and I have to build them up so much... I know I know, get a midsize... they are too large for my liking :(

 

So I much prefer Lamkin grips, they feel thicker as well as better to me.

 

@NoCatchy - that fairway for the hardest hole looks like it should be a part of a motox track, so many hills!

[Sir Slicealot]

Today I made it off the ship all the way home and found my three new $20 golf clubs. I dropped a foundie in my yard, took one practice swing and slapped the heck out of it with....yup you guessed it...the brand new Ram Axial Tour Grind 1 iron @37". Somewhere over the rainbow lies a pinnacle gold...it was a little shocky but it went straight and ended up gone baby gone!

 

Sir Slice a 37" 1i? That's how long my PW is in one set and 9i in another. Strange.

It is quite strange. I was given the option to back out on the deal given its non standard length not being initially disclosed. In the spirit of what the heck...I'm trying it out before it is reshafted. It was kinda neat. I only hit it once so I have no real idea of the club. It may be something interesting at that length. I am back on the ship now and you can guess which club I brought with me... the oddity that just might be one hell of a three club scramble tool. I have some Callaway foams and I am going to play with it at chips and half swings. Maybe practice putting with it. The Dave Hill spade blade two iron is a razor. Super sharp sole. Weed whacker extraordinaire. The second silver Scot is a bit beat up...going to live with the cavity backs.

[Fellaheen51]

KungPaocat leather is a different feel than rubber for sure. And it is not for everyone. Part of why I like it is because it is the same material as gloves and also leather is closer to human skin than rubber or silicone elastomer, so it just feels literally more natural to grip leather than a synthetic material.

 

Edit: Thx for the ferrule tip on ebay.

 

Edit, The Sequel: OMFG these are the...best...ferrules...ever...

 

http://goo.gl/images/TT38sy

 

Ferrules are part of getting the "just right" look to your clubs. One of the problems with finding ferrules for Hogan overhauls is correct O.D., length (1") and the ones with two red rings. Can vouch for misfit13 on eBay (on a tip from PD), they fit perfectly. IIRC O.D. were not listed though. Other options:

 

Cell Parts. They have a custom option if you can't find the correct match from there extensive number of standard ferrules.

http://www.cell-parts.net

 

Grail Golf.

http://www.grailgolf.com

 

Or these.

http://www.ebay.com/...-kAAOSwKrxUZiv4

 

Slippery slope recommending grips to anyone. All about one's preference for feel and look. WTS, a fav has been the GP CP2 Wraps. Just the right amount of softness (play sans glove), excellent wear characteristics, and the feature I'm really liking these days, a reduced taper lower hand. Have them on all the modern clubs. Excellent grip in all conditions.

 

Also have been using the Lamkin UTx wraps lately. They're on the '99 Apex's. Firmer feel that the CP2's. And have a stash of Lamkin R.E.L Ace 2 Gen grips in green and white waiting for a set of irons. I've got a couple of Perma Wrap Classics installed on the Colokroms and I'm not liking what I'm feeling. They're really skinny, especially on the lower hand. Maybe close to going to Plan B. Classic clubs should have a wrapped style grip IMO. Maybe just a simple GP Tour Wrap even though they're worthless in the damp.

 

Winn's. Sh**iest grips ever made. Way over priced. Terrible wear characteristics. Feel like you're gripping plastic. Don't touch an old Winn Excel grip when out scrounging, unless you want black tar residue on your hands. Just say no to Winn grips.

 

Leather grips. I'm liking the feel of leather. Been getting some experience with them on classic MacGregors. Never used Best or Gripmaster. Have become a big fan of classic Neumann wraps. GOAT? Can add Lamkin leather wraps to the mix as well (Arnie's grips). Both are very difficult to find these days. Still kicking myself for allowing a set of nine installed on Apex shafts to slip by on eBay for the paltry sum of $85. Could have stripped and sold the shafts netting a minimal investment in nearly new Neumanns. Have been been assembling a small stash of Neumann's where and when I find them. Perforated brown being the preference. They can be unwrapped, the underlisting removed, and transferred to another club. Rewrapped a putter this way. One day hopefully, I'll have enough to do an entire set of irons.

 

Also have gone the salvage route with Mac leathers. As long as they're in decent shape, they can be cleaned and a leather treatment applied (Lexol). Amazing how they come back to life, 50+ year old grips. Stripped a Mac leather off of an old iron and reapplied it to a nice Designed by Cleveland 8802 putter. The original leather was shot, reused the putter underlisting. The experiment came out much better than expected.

 

Probably not the route one would take with a new build. Only mentioning to bring awareness to the possibilities. There is a certain intrinsic satisfaction with learning how to properly wrap a leather grip onto a golf club. After all, thats how they used to do all grips. BITD.

 

Some early morning musings on the subject.

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

 

@NoCatchy - that fairway for the hardest hole looks like it should be a part of a motox track, so many hills!

 

The actual fairways aren't too bad, but the areas of rough are like a Mogul ski slope. It was built on an old coalfield slag heap, which goes someway to explaining its topography. The collection areas around the greens are brutal. There were times yesterday when I just missed the green or span off, and found myself with chip shots off massive hanging lies or 25ft below the hole.

Great course, but not at this time of year.

[BCULAW]

Anyone looking ferrules should look up Scratchtastic (Patrick) here on the board. He used to be affiliated with Scratch golf, and not only has a huge store of custom 1 1/4" ringed ferrules of all styles and colors from Scratch, he still has his connections from the manufacturer to have more made. Check out the pictures of the AP2s from my recent classified ad and you'll see an example of what he has available. The longer ferrules look really great on blades.

 

Here's a link to a picture of the ferrules I got from Patrick.

 

https://goo.gl/images/p4reTG

[Jonesy]

^^^ BCULAW those are incredible!

 

 

@NoCatchy - that fairway for the hardest hole looks like it should be a part of a motox track, so many hills!

 

The actual fairways aren't too bad, but the areas of rough are like a Mogul ski slope. It was built on an old coalfield slag heap, which goes someway to explaining its topography. The collection areas around the greens are brutal. There were times yesterday when I just missed the green or span off, and found myself with chip shots off massive hanging lies or 25ft below the hole.

Great course, but not at this time of year.

 

I can't say I've ever seen a fairway like that in my life, you could catch a downslope and roll forever or basically land in the side of a mountain... An I don't even want to think about chipping off lies like that! The members there must have wicked good shortgames.

[bobbyclampett!!]

I'm a Lamkin man. REL ACE midsize. Love how simple they are, feel thick and firm, yet responsive. Cool colors too. Have the bright orange on my ACPs and dark blue on my Fly Zs. Have tried GP Tour Velvet- felt spongy and twisty compared to REL. Don't like cords. The pures were too tapered for me. CP2 too squishy. Going to try the Crosslines on my TA Tours. Excited to try those. They seem to feel very similar to REL, maybe a bit smoother, not in a bad way. Also about half the price, but not as many cool colors. I am jealous of the Green RELs. Those would be sweet.

[BCULAW]

Thanks, Jonesy. I bought Patrick out of them. Still have some laying around waiting for a little project I have in mind for a refinish on a set of MP32s. That is, unless I can find a nice set of Scratch SB-1s to put them on.

[3woodvt]

I'm a Lamkin man. REL ACE midsize. Love how simple they are, feel thick and firm, yet responsive. Cool colors too. Have the bright orange on my ACPs and dark blue on my Fly Zs. Have tried GP Tour Velvet- felt spongy and twisty compared to REL. Don't like cords. The pures were too tapered for me. CP2 too squishy. Going to try the Crosslines on my TA Tours. Excited to try those. They seem to feel very similar to REL, maybe a bit smoother, not in a bad way. Also about half the price, but not as many cool colors. I am jealous of the Green RELs. Those would be sweet.

Lamkin man as well. Wrap tec for me and I've tried everyone they've had or offered the last 20 years. Arnie knew! I like em Black! I guess they're jazzed up a bit if you count the white stripe. For those really wanting to step out you can get a red or blue stripe.

[Sir Slicealot]

You guys get a load of this two club guy? I missed it originally, but he uses a one iron! How cool is that? I may be slimming down my bag and walking more.

[Kingcat990]

KungPaocat leather is a different feel than rubber for sure. And it is not for everyone. Part of why I like it is because it is the same material as gloves and also leather is closer to human skin than rubber or silicone elastomer, so it just feels literally more natural to grip leather than a synthetic material.

 

Edit: Thx for the ferrule tip on ebay.

 

Edit, The Sequel: OMFG these are the...best...ferrules...ever...

 

http://goo.gl/images/TT38sy

 

Well now I wanna try leather grips.

 

Nice ferrules :D

[kaaayelll]

Big fan of leather grips. Those Gripmaster Swingers are nice. I used to use them, but I've switched over to Best Grips Microperfs on all my sets.

[WannabePaperTiger]

Can all of us miura small blade owners who has them as their gamers share a pic as deninny has? I will put mine up tomorrow... would love to see other owners' bag setups.

[DeNinny]

Ferrules are part of getting the "just right" look to your clubs. One of the problems with finding ferrules for Hogan overhauls is correct O.D., length (1") and the ones with two red rings. Can vouch for misfit13 on eBay (on a tip from PD), they fit perfectly. IIRC O.D. were not listed though. Other options:

 

Cell Parts. They have a custom option if you can't find the correct match from there extensive number of standard ferrules.

http://www.cell-parts.net

 

Grail Golf.

http://www.grailgolf.com

 

Or these.

http://www.ebay.com/...-kAAOSwKrxUZiv4

 

Slippery slope recommending grips to anyone. All about one's preference for feel and look. WTS, a fav has been the GP CP2 Wraps. Just the right amount of softness (play sans glove), excellent wear characteristics, and the feature I'm really liking these days, a reduced taper lower hand. Have them on all the modern clubs. Excellent grip in all conditions.

 

Also have been using the Lamkin UTx wraps lately. They're on the '99 Apex's. Firmer feel that the CP2's. And have a stash of Lamkin R.E.L Ace 2 Gen grips in green and white waiting for a set of irons. I've got a couple of Perma Wrap Classics installed on the Colokroms and I'm not liking what I'm feeling. They're really skinny, especially on the lower hand. Maybe close to going to Plan B. Classic clubs should have a wrapped style grip IMO. Maybe just a simple GP Tour Wrap even though they're worthless in the damp.

 

Winn's. Sh**iest grips ever made. Way over priced. Terrible wear characteristics. Feel like you're gripping plastic. Don't touch an old Winn Excel grip when out scrounging, unless you want black tar residue on your hands. Just say no to Winn grips.

 

Leather grips. I'm liking the feel of leather. Been getting some experience with them on classic MacGregors. Never used Best or Gripmaster. Have become a big fan of classic Neumann wraps. GOAT? Can add Lamkin leather wraps to the mix as well (Arnie's grips). Both are very difficult to find these days. Still kicking myself for allowing a set of nine installed on Apex shafts to slip by on eBay for the paltry sum of $85. Could have stripped and sold the shafts netting a minimal investment in nearly new Neumanns. Have been been assembling a small stash of Neumann's where and when I find them. Perforated brown being the preference. They can be unwrapped, the underlisting removed, and transferred to another club. Rewrapped a putter this way. One day hopefully, I'll have enough to do an entire set of irons.

 

Also have gone the salvage route with Mac leathers. As long as they're in decent shape, they can be cleaned and a leather treatment applied (Lexol). Amazing how they come back to life, 50+ year old grips. Stripped a Mac leather off of an old iron and reapplied it to a nice Designed by Cleveland 8802 putter. The original leather was shot, reused the putter underlisting. The experiment came out much better than expected.

 

Probably not the route one would take with a new build. Only mentioning to bring awareness to the possibilities. There is a certain intrinsic satisfaction with learning how to properly wrap a leather grip onto a golf club. After all, thats how they used to do all grips. BITD.

 

Some early morning musings on the subject.

 

Fella, thank you for sharing all this insight into ferrules and grips, especially the links and the perspective of old classic grips. Also I see that we share the same leather appreciation and fetish. I am kind of excited about going to a stitch and non-wrapped grip. I like the idea of just a smooth single piece of leather to hold with that simple stitch alignment reminder along the bottom. LOL I am going to be nitpicky with my fitter to make sure the stitch line is perfectly straight and bottomed at square.

 

In regards to GripMasters, I think you may like their more classic and traditional offerings based on your preference of wrapped. Also you can sometimes find their older obsolete wraps still for sale on ebay but it is rare. I have only held a Best Grip standard microperf black and the tack was very good and better than GripMaster's tack. My only issue with Best Grips is that they have almost no taper. GripMasters have just the right amount of it, so I prefer them.

 

Edit: LOL re: shi**y Winn Grips. I could tell they were crap just by looking at them and holding them in the store. And I mean any and all of them.

[DeNinny]

Can all of us miura small blade owners who has them as their gamers share a pic as deninny has? I will put mine up tomorrow... would love to see other owners' bag setups.

 

To compile it all into one post, here is my entire gamer WITB as per my post footer:

 

My baby blades, my lovely 'Cal Hotties':

 

 

 

My woods*, 'The Frankenwoods' (*I mostly use a strong 13*, 43.5" 3w as my driver**):

 

 

 

 

 

My wedges,'Gold Diggers':

 

 

And last but not least, my putter, Boss Moss:

 

 

 

**Not shown is my other driver, a TEE CB4 10* with Fujikura Speeder 652, 45", R-flex.

[Fellaheen51]

Fella, thank you for sharing all this insight into ferrules and grips, especially the links and the perspective of old classic grips. Also I see that we share the same leather appreciation and fetish. I am kind of excited about going to a stitch and non-wrapped grip. I like the idea of just a smooth single piece of leather to hold with that simple stitch alignment reminder along the bottom. LOL I am going to be nitpicky with my fitter to make sure the stitch line is perfectly straight and bottomed at square.

 

In regards to GripMasters, I think you may like their more classic and traditional offerings based on your preference of wrapped. Also you can sometimes find their older obsolete wraps still for sale on ebay but it is rare. I have only held a Best Grip standard microperf black and the tack was very good and better than GripMaster's tack. My only issue with Best Grips is that they have almost no taper. GripMasters have just the right amount of it, so I prefer them.

 

Edit: LOL re: shi**y Winn Grips. I could tell they were crap just by looking at them and holding them in the store. And I mean any and all of them.

 

There is only one way to approach club building/tinkering. Has to be done perfectly. Very OCD (nitpicky) about this. Would have a serious conversation with the club builder as to your expectations. "See this grip. See this stitch line. I expect it to be installed ruler straight. No exceptions. No excuses. If you're not up to the task, I'll find someone that is." Probably would be to performing my own installation. I trust my eye more than someone else's.

 

Play at tinkering with golf clubs much better than I play at golf. Harkens back to my club building days, when everything in the bag I built. And a natural progression of things once I delved into the world of classic golf clubs. Thanks to finding a old Ping 029 Anser and stumbling in the door of the Classic section.

 

My opinion on leather grips has shifted 180*. Prior, nice to look at but way over priced. Now, maybe the value option after the initial investment. Given how long they remain serviceable. Once one determines the desirable shape and feel to a selected grip. The longevity factor reinforced by finding 50+ year old clubs with very serviceable leather grips, once a little TLC has been performed to renew them. No denying that a leather grip is unique and classy as it gets. Compared to the usual. There's a reason why Arnie would only play Lamkin leathers, hand wrapped, just right, by himself.

 

And, in keeping with the general theme of this thread. Matching the simplicity of form and function of a MB iron with a quality leather grip just seems so "right". Perhaps its time for the '99 Apex's to be so attired.

 

Thx for the tip on the GripMasters. My inclination has leaned towards that brand rather than Best. Because they offer a wrap style. Perhaps its time to pick one up for evaluation purposes. Before making the full investment in a set. The quest for a full set of primo Neumann's may take forever.

 

How about some early morning leather grip p0rn. Just because.

 

Neumann's awaiting repurposing.

 

 

 

A brown perforated Neumann install on a Ping Zing 2 BeCu putter. Compliments the putter head and has a very nice feel to it. The antithesis to a S.S. My full time gamer last fall.

 

 

 

Lastly, marvelous original leather grips on a set of '63 FC4000 Mac irons. Fully cleaned and rejuvenated with Lexol. Very tacky. Pro line quality from BITD.

 

 

[DeNinny]

That is some beautiful leather grips pr0n, Fella. Stunning and just perfectly OCD to my eye. And I am 100% with you about leather grips and blades. Like symbiosis. I'm curious as to how long do you find leather grips to last? I'm going on three years now with my GripMasters on my mp67s. And they still have plenty of life.

 

Edit: BTW I see you have an old school classic metal practice putting 'hole'. I have the exact same one too! My brother in-law gave it to me as a gift. I love the thing. Maybe my most used golf gift ever.

[Fellaheen51]

That is some beautiful leather grips pr0n, Fella. Stunning and just perfectly OCD to my eye. And I am 100% with you about leather grips and blades. Like symbiosis. I'm curious as to how long do you find leather grips to last? I'm going on three years now with my GripMasters on my mp67s. And they still have plenty of life.

 

Edit: BTW I see you have an old school classic metal practice putting 'hole'. I have the exact same one too! My brother in-law gave it to me as a gift. I love the thing. Maybe my most used golf gift ever.

 

Cannot anser that question with any direct knowledge based on current offerings. I suppose its dependent upon number of swings in hand, care and maintenance, environmental conditions. WTS, using what I see on classic clubs as an indicator. The grips on those '63 Macs are still very serviceable. And 54 years old. They were played as well, based on the character marks on the heads. So can today's versions last as long as those? Don't know. If the quality of the leather is commensurate, possibly.

 

To make a justifiable case for leather grips over regular, purely from a economic standpoint, thinking ten years would be a minimum expectation.

 

Curious what Best and GripMaster may be recommending for maintenance practices. Other than a simple wipe down after play. When I find these old(er) grips, a thorough cleaning with saddle soap is the first order of business. Then when dry, a couple of heavy applications of Lexol leather conditioner. Let soak in, then a wipe off after a couple of hours. A great product for restoring the natural oils in leather. Keeps them supple, restores dried out ones and in the case of grips, tackiness. Would think this would prove beneficial with modern leathers as well.

 

Wth proper care of the leather, one would think they could last a very long time. Again, would be interested to hear what the manufacturers are advising on L/T care. I became aware of the Lexol treatment method when Tad Moore brought it up in a Classic's posting. Thinking he may know a thing or two on the subject. The hickory players don't make a habit of changing grips very often.

[DeNinny]

Yeah Fella I understand the variability in how long a leather grip will last. I'm very happy with anything over five years without any restoration attempts. TY for the mention of Lexol.

 

A factor to consider with modern leather grip is that they still have rubber. And the simple reason rubber doesn't and won't ever last as long as leather is it's susceptibility to UV light degradation and going brittle with age. This is inevitable with rubber, so how much this plays into how modern leather grips last is an unknown to me. I'm not too worried since a minimal amount is exposed to sunlight. Just the ends.

 

As to long term maintenance and care of GripMasters and Best Grips, I would think that the same restoration techniques as traditional leather will be fine, but I would be careful and test if the treatment chemicals affect the rubber. That would be my main concern. Also I know both companies treat the leather with something to give it tack and they sell it. I'm not sure if it is glorified Lexol or not.

[Nard_S]

Question on leather grips:

 

On Best, is the stitch raised above the rest of grip?

 

On Master's, specs show they are on heavier side, do you notice?

 

Thanks.

[DeNinny]

Nard, I did not notice when I switched from Golf Prides to GripMaster on my mp67s.

[PeanutsDaddy]

I started with a set of Best Grip Classics. I justified the upfront cost after reading about their durability and tackiness. I liked the grips so much that I bought two extra sets of Microperfs for my back-ups.

 

Positives:

 

- They install and un-install easily with air.

- Clean well with water.

- Are tackier than anything I've ever tried (and I've tried many).

- Non-tapered design (DeNinny is right to point this out).

- The feel of the stitchback (they are raised and provide a 'reminder').

- Size (midsize).

- Can easily play without a glove if I wish.

- A unique feel.

 

Negatives:

 

- Pro-tack (sticky additive) leaves a residue on your gloves over time. Not that I care.

- Cost. Although you may be able to pick up 'seconds' from Zach if you inquire.

 

I'm short, I'm a big fan of leather Grips. They look classic, wear well and feel awesome.

 

Wish I would have switched earlier.

[Bigmean]

I would love to try leather, but I don't like midsize.

 

I am stunned at the lack of GP guys here. I only play corded, MC half cord at the least, and the Z cord golf prides are my current grip of choice.

[WannabePaperTiger]

I bought my clubs used and they came with gripmaster leather grips. Hesitant at first but real nice. Caring for them is a bit of a pain as they seem to get dirtier than other grips. I prefer m-31 mizuno grips in my wedges.

[Nard_S]

Thanks, good feed back.

 

I have been considering leather or some time but each brand has drawbacks to me. The weight of Gripmaster is 70g which is more than what I like and the stitch thing on Best may or may not be of issue.

 

I am leaning towards the Best micro perfs, I am partial to less taper and they are same weight as GP Velvets or Tour Wraps (both my favorites).

 

Have not used a glove in decades so leather might be just right here.

[PeanutsDaddy]

I believe my Best Grips are 58 grams. I build with 52 gram grips to figure swing weight then blow my leathers on and call it a day.

[3woodvt]

15-18 on GIR today. Z945 blades are the real deal. Love these things. 6 birdies and 1 OB ball on a pretty easy Par 5 cost me a double or the round could have been really special. Blade players unite!! GHIN down 1.2 strokes since I've made the switch. Iron game strongest its been in years.

[Par-net-birdie]

Did a little thrift store hunting today

Found 2-2 irons Wilson staff re-issue

And a titleist 962. Staff 2 is like new too

Bad the set wasn't there $2 a club

[DeNinny]

15-18 on GIR today. Z945 blades are the real deal. Love these things. 6 birdies and 1 OB ball on a pretty easy Par 5 cost me a double or the round could have been really special. Blade players unite!! GHIN down 1.2 strokes since I've made the switch. Iron game strongest its been in years.

 

That is some very nice blade using. I wish I could say the same for me. I went 40-48 today. And I must say that it takes a very special talent to shoot 48 with two nines on back to back holes. A very special talent indeed. I had a pretty solid round going too. I guess it must have been because I stopped to take a picture of a wounded skunk today that was just sitting off the cart path.

 

 

 

He got rescued by animal control later in the day. He could not spray or move his hind legs. Regardless, right after I took the pic my game stunk to high heaven anyway. This hole was the first of the two back to back nines. I have never taken back to back nines like that. Oh well. That's golf.

[mallrat]

DeNinny, you going to be there tomorrow? My buddies there invited me out and we're playing at 10:30