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

[Kingcat990]

 

Very interesting. If you're getting unusually good distance, they're either stronger lofted or the faces are thin. I know that hollow irons are much older than most golfers think they are. I didn't know how old they were until I was talking to No Catchy on here and ran across a set of Macgregor's 100th VIP maraging irons that were from the early nineties. They were hollow carbon steel with factory graphite shafts and were pretty unique. I passed on them as I didn't want to destroy the set to make them work.

the soles on those don't appear to be out on the realms of noticeably wide for being a hollow iron. Also really curious what type of stainless they used to make them.

[deejaid]

Ah man. I would have picked up those Mac just for the ferrules. Those are sweet!

 

As for the Pedersen lofts, they are old school. The PW was actually 54* while the 9-iron was 46*, 8-iron was 42* so that’s why I had my pro bend the PW back to 50*. Luckily their was enough bounce to accommodate.

 

Ive never been a hard hitter and have had no problem playing regular or stiff shafts but always like active tip sections. My 5 iron has always been 170-175 yards so hitting multiple 190 yard shots was unexpected.

[Nard_S]

Nice find. My hunch on the Pederson's is that they are 304 Stainless Steel or near variant. Very soft and gummy. Possible they are done in a cold forged fashion, i.e. high pressure formed. If true, they would have softer feel than cast St. St,. and be as pliable as standard carbon forged head. CT at that time had a lot of aerospace manufacturing, cold forming capabilities were probably available. Also St St and the nickel (key component) were much cheaper at that time. The ISI from Ping or the cast nickel RAM's from back then could not be made today at a competitive price.

[Nard_S]

Just got a solid deal on Aldila Rogue White 130 MSI shaft in 70g weight. Pretty pumped to try this on the Type 1 @44.5". Ordered a Mizuno adaptor for it so TP shaft will remain an option.

Iron builds move up in priority again. My swing kinks are ironed out and golf courses are closed. Greater NYC area is hot bed of virus, my neighbor has it, might be May before I can go out for 18 or even go to a range. Keep vacillating on head to shaft combo's and what to do when. Recently acquired Rifle shafts in 7.5, have Curtis Strange Maruman;'s with Rifle 5.0.....hmmmm.

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

If the 8i was 42* and the 9i was 46*, I bet the PW was supposed to 50* or so. 54* sounds like someone weakened the loft (to use as a SW?). Nice looking set, anyway!

I've heard a lot of good things about those Pro-Ms, and being a bit of a Mac fan, I'd like to find a set one day.

That said, at the moment, I am looking to shrink my collection by a few sets

[bortass]

@No_Catchy_Nickname I am an unintentional Mac fan. I was in my 30's when I played for the first time in the early 2000s. My first set of fit clubs were MacGregor M565s. I really like them and they are the clubs I used for the years it took me to change my instaslice to a draw and break 100 and then 90. I bought the Pro-Ms because the reviews I had seen were positive as a guilty pleasure/reward to myself. I was pleasantly surprised when I took them out and my scores didn't seem to change any.

I'm sure I'm losing distance compared to the M565s but I don't care. I'm getting around the course and it is kind of cool to be a contrarian and playing this type of club. After all, I'm not on tour and golf is just a fun pastime and playing these blades gives my a sense of satisfaction, lol.

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

"After all, I'm not on tour and golf is just a fun pastime and playing these blades gives my a sense of satisfaction, lol."

 

Exactly!

[James the Hogan Fan]

Not as rare at the time. Lots of manufacturers had forged stainless in the 50's-60's, including Spalding, who had a tour model in fact. If you mean his exact set of custom irons in like-new condition, then yes. Very rare indeed!

[mahonie]

Lusted after the Pro Ms but I’ve never seen a set in the UK. However, managed to find a set of Pro Cs a few years back that had never been hit. Had them bent to my specs but I’ve never hit them consistently because they just feel light. They are my back up set and at some point I will get the swingweights sorted to see just how good they are. They are much softer than my MP4s...can’t imagine how the Pro Ms feel!

[Kingcat990]

Well, as luck would have it, I bought 6 dozen golf balls, put a set of Rose Proto MB's in the bag, 2 new wedges, and 2 TW-X long irons in the bag to try some experiments this Sunday only to be notified that my tee time was canceled, along with all the golf courses in my area, to flatten the curve of Covid. Oh well. I hope those that are in the infected areas are staying safe. Now I wished I had got components instead of built clubs so i could build and tinker on a set. I really wanted to try the Modus 120X in my Masda heads but am liking the profile of the Rose Protos more and more. Honma does a great satin finish, I'll give them that.

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

I've heard the same thing about the Pro-Ms being really soft, which is why I'd like to try them. I think I've seen one set on sale here, but it was expensive. Mind you, I'm not actively looking every day, so maybe there are more sets out there than I realise.I did get out today as things haven't shut down altogether here. It was a persimmon and blades round, and I took the Maxfli TM-92 Australian Blades out for my first ever time on the course. Since getting injured last year, I've been working through a bad swing problem--I'm flipping my wrists as my hips slide forward in the downswing--and only recently have I figured out the underlying cause (the hips slide) and ways to resolve it.

At practice last night, I was getting close to resolving it, and things went well at first today, but the flip came back near the end of the round. I did hit some nice shots, including a lovely 5i to the top tier of an uphill green which just rolled off the putting surface (a smooth 3-putt from about 15ft gave me a bogey). I think the "Bladiest" shot was on a par 3 playing about 180-190 (the tee-box said 191 to the centre, but my friend's rangefinder said 185 to the pin slightly at the back) into the wind but also a bit downhill. I hit a nice smooth 4i with a low draw that took the wind out of play. It pitched onto the green quite near the hole but just rolled off the back due to all the draw-spin. Nice shot, and I made my par.

Unfortunately, the greens had been punched and dressed with sand the day before, or perhaps today. Anyway, there was still tons of sand on them, so putting was a bit like a roll of the dice. Some went fast, some stopped up, and most bumped and bobbled.

Otherwise, it was a fun day out in glorious weather. We started with just the slightest of breezes, and ended with a stiff 2-club wind coming from the sea. That made the back nine tricky, for sure.

[bortass]

@mahonie I can't comment on the softness of the Pro-Ms. I have played one set of clubs, the M565s, for the majority of my golfing career. I'm not a club ho, lol. So I don't have anything to compare it to and I'm not even sure what hard versus soft means. I'm assuming it has to do with the feel of impact.

[mahonie]

One of my clients was working on some of the Olympic venues in Japan (including the golf) and the possibility of a trip out there looked likely at one stage...next year perhaps.

[mahonie]

I’ve only owned about 8 sets in my life so I’m a bit of an amateur around these parts lol. I seem to have an eye for more traditional brands and MacGregor always seem to suit my eye. I still have the Pro Cs and picked up an early 1970s set of VIP Limited’s in very good condition.

A well-struck shot with the Pro Cs feels like you’ve hit a marshmallow...probably just a bit too soft really. The VIPs are a tiny little bit ‘clicky’ in comparison.

[bortass]

The best I ever got was down to a 19 index before I quit years ago, so a well struck ball isn't my norm. I have noticed that a poorly stuck ball can hurt my hands with a blade. The Pro-Ms don't seem to hurt as much as the Mizuno 6i I used to practice with did but maybe I just don't remember. I don't think I ever had a shot with the M565s hurt. The feel at impact, even on bad shots, is good.

 

The only thing I wish was different with my Pro-Ms is that they were new, lol. They were definitely used, so the faces are not pristine.

[Nard_S]

Finally ordered supplies for builds. Full set of TI S400, also samples of PX & C-taper. Possess S.P. Blues, Rifles & FM Precisions. Big hang up has been issue of shaft F.L.O. which I sorted out and quick experiments show there is merit in deciphering spine, the strong & weak side of shafts. Probably will do the sample shafts first and test, figure out if they make the cut for a full build. 1st full build will be Titleist 962B. I know, not a real blade but head weights & bore conditions are stellar. Good training wheel and they will constitute my "GI" set. 2nd, will be Maruman CX-41's w/ S.P. Blue which need more massaging in gapping of bore to shaft. They are TI heads but someone was hackish on hosel care. Anyway, good way to pass time and get distracted during the lockdown.

 

[Nard_S]

Pretty decent sale of Rose Proto's on eBay. The ho in me was strirred but I'm taking a pass. Great looking clubs, Justin's issues has little to do with gear, great talent with lack of belief seems more the case.

 

 

[GwrxMod]

Another reminder to keep BST related posts out of this topic as stated in the topic title.

i.e. Do not post images of your clubs and hint that you may be selling them. Do not use this topic to negotiate a sale.

Continue to report violations for review. Thanks.

[Nard_S]

I understand but for the record, I'm not selling anything. If GG is clearing shelves of last year's Driver and someone on WRX conveyed that, would mods step in? Never seen that. I was merely doing the same.

[aquapig]

Yikes.

With all that's going on in the world and people stuck home and aren't as "savvy" or aware of all the rules...you'd figure they'd relax..Geeez!

Sorry I asked.

Wow..just wow.

[Nard_S]

You know, people are cranky right now. Road rage is an issue even though they are empty. So whatever. My daughter shares a house, they all were sick, neighbor was going ballistic because they did not keep garbage cans 'neat' even though real possible they were Covid positive. Took two weeks for results, thankfully it was negative. None of this stopped the guy from wigging out, calling owner and rental agent all while ranting how he's losing everything due to mass shutdown. Chill is in short supply too.

[aquapig]

Unreal..some folks could use a huge reality check.

Some people take themselves way too serious..although you would think when real issues are happening people would gain a touch of perspective.

[NRJyzr]

Latest idea I've got going.....

I have a set of Wilson 78 Staff Tour Blades, 1-PW. Bought them around 15 years ago, not sure exactly, hit a couple of them at a heated range one winter, but have never played them. One reason, they're a somewhat mixed set, they're all Dynamic S except for the 7 iron, which is regular flex.

Managed to find a 78 Staff 7 iron in Dynamic S, started looking at the full set. It seems they have an additional issue, the lengths are a bit messed up once you get to the 4 iron. The 4i is only 1/8" longer than the 5i, and there are a couple other slightly odd length changes.

Ordered shaft extensions from GolfWorks, going to fix those club lengths in the 1i-4i, regrip them, and get them ready to be adjusted for loft and lie, when the clubmaker I visit for L&L is back open.

Excited to take them on course. Used to have a set of FG-17's that I rather liked, and in full Ho Mode, traded away to get back a driver I'd traded to someone else a year or more previous.

[Fellaheen51]

Brother NRJ. Ha. Have a similar issue with a set of '76 - '77 Wilson Staff "Mini Bullet" irons (3 - PW) that I've had sitting around for a couple of years. Picked up on the dirt cheap somewhere along the way. They're Dynamic R flex except the 8 iron has been reshafted with a Dynamic S flex. However the first step progression doesn't come close to matching the 7 & 9. Plus it's significantly longer in overall length. So I found a X-31 8 iron with Dynamic R and was going to move the shaft over. Until I started the exercise. And realized the X-31 had the bloody screwed hosel!!! (I'd rather mess with hosel pins.) Couldn't get the shaft out, made quite a mess of the shaft and head. Ended up throwing the club in the thrash. Have around a TTDG R300U (.370) in a component head that I'm thinking about using. Have to ream out the Staff, no big deal. But now gun shy that whoever performed the reshaft didn't clean up the threaded hosel. Don't want to mess it up like the X-31. Then extend and regrip. All for clubs that may never see any play!! I'm a Hogan Hacker typically. They're in reasonably nice shape:

Also in the Wilson genre, picked up a set of '72 "Buttonbacks" on a cheap BIN listing from the Bay some time back. Primarily because they had a full set of Neumann leather wrap grips on them. NTM Buttonbacks, classic Wilsons that every classic hacker should try. Had a notion that I wanted to transfer the grips over to the '99 Apexs. But never quite found the time. So they've also been just sitting around in inventory. Hit the 9 iron a few times, seemed OK. But was to short in playing length to setup comfortably, needing extensions. Holy sharp leading edge!! Seemed to recall really laying over some sod while whacking the club. IDK, maybe I'll begin peeling off the grips this week. Got ample time on my hands and the weather is not forecasted to be all that nice this week (temps in the low 40's). Not conducive to further yard work. Rex235 supplied me with 4 buttons to replace missing ones, freshened the paint fill, buffed them them up with #0000 steel wool and chrome polish. Also reasonably attractive:

However. While pursuing persimmon listings on eBay (strange that I rarely check out modern clubs, but always looking at old stuff), see Wilson percys occasionally listed. Rather inexpensive also. Don't need pristine, prefer my persimmons in "players" condition. Which means some character marks on them. Thus not having a concern with mucking them with the inevitable mishit. Perhaps an all Wilson classic bag of implements. Already have a couple of wedges (the R-90 would blend appropriately) and putters on hand. Again IDK.

Random musings sitting here with my coffee, waiting for daybreak.

[NRJyzr]

 

Brother Fella, don't know if this is in your acceptable range, but I found this at Ironfinder: https://www.ironfinder.com/item_detail.asp?sku=102028

 

[Fellaheen51]

@NRJyzr. Thanks. Saw that one this a.m. while verifying the age of the Staffs. Looks a little rough. Plus, it's 2x the expense of what I have into the set. Aye, the nature of attempting to acquire fills. Way I'm contemplating now is to cut it down to the appropriate playing length and leave it alone. Live with whatever shaft that's in the club. The first step on the 8 iron (reshaft) is 1.25" higher than the 9 iron (stock). Perhaps some of the difference is attributable to S vs R.
Likely the best approach, don't mess with it. Fear of the threaded hosel. Adjust the playing lengths (as you are doing), replace the miserable Victory grips and play on. And simply forget about it, in a "ignorance is bliss" sort of way. Once was a time when I would have zero awareness of such trifles. Likely not going to see much usage out in the wild anyhow. Mostly just sitting around in a storage bag looking pretty.
In the grand scheme of things. Why am I even ruminating about one shaft in one club anyhow?

[NRJyzr]

I feel your pain, Brother @Fellaheen51 (nicer embedding your ID instead of quoting the post just above). The replacement 7 iron I picked up for my 78 Staffs was $25, with $12 shipping. I paid $50 for the full set. I felt it was worth it overall, because the regular flex would have bothered me. Possibly not for performance reasons, but just because I'd know about it and it would nag at the back of my mind. LOL
Funny are we humans.
I don't know that I'm going to play these clubs all that much. But, it's a way of keeping myself from buying new toys in yet another longer-than-should-be offseason; I always seem to start buying things in winter. I'm probably also going to spend some time playing my Muirfield set, they only come out a couple times every several years.
Too many toys, not enough time.

[Nard_S]

Lockdown had my supply order sitting in fed ex terminal for over 2 weeks. Ridiculous, but finally just received it. Also got some Boyd ferrules which I'm pleased with.

Rigged up a FLO station to "pure shafts". Tested AD TP shaft that has been in Driver. Really hard to find a whoop, however in the MSI shaft can clearly see strong and weak side of shaft and it does not line up with labeling. Will do this to iron shafts too. So the fun is beginning.

Btw, took a peak, at 4 new sets of Rose Proto's that sold on the Flea. All sold for under $500. Solid deals

Spending time at school field, can poke up to 180 with safety. Can't wait to play .

 

 

 

[Nard_S]

 

From the house:

[Nard_S]

Shop collection: