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

[Juice1121]

Playing in round 2 of our club championship this weekend. Decided to take the conforming Callaway X protos I just picked up instead of the baby blades. Either way, the irons were not the reason round 1 didn't go as planned. They were actually some of my best shots. The driver failed me a bit and the greens were atrocious. Will report back with how it went, it is match play from here on out. 

[sociojeje]

After demoing Hogan Icon, though I know it was a bit too much for me, I am falling in love with blade irons... For the past few days, I have been browsing used club sites to get an affordable set.... ahhhhh 

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

12 hours ago, Jonesy said:

Thanks @No_Catchy_Nickname! 

 

I know what you mean about the putting, I used to swap between completely different style putters to try find some magic and to just change up the visual. Maybe give it a shot? Also another reason to buy a new putter ?

 

I must say even after all the practice I'm still considering a new putter, really intrigued by the slant neck mallets... Hit a few putts with a 34" spider slant neck the other day and it practically swung itself.

 

With putters, I've come to realise that there are some I should just avoid. I pull the left with Anser-type putters, and while I like the idea of centre-shafted putters, I miss left AND right with them. I have an arc-type putter swing, and with some putters, such as centre-shafted ones, I can feel the head fighting the line I am taking it back on. 

I have a few heel-shafted blades and half-mallets, which suit my putting stroke, but aren't always the easiest to putt with. 

 

Totally agree with changing change the visual, and I've been looking at getting this putter, the PING Heppler ZB3, or something like it. 

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

1 hour ago, gbartko said:

Man, that is a sweet looking putter!

 

Yep, and it rolls well, too.

[BCULAW]

16 hours ago, sociojeje said:

After demoing Hogan Icon, though I know it was a bit too much for me, I am falling in love with blade irons... For the past few days, I have been browsing used club sites to get an affordable set.... ahhhhh 

Just a thought, but my experience is that a lot of people who are so inclined could play blades with a simple shaft change.
 

I’ve been playing blades for the better part of 15 years. I’m a former pro baseball player and can still move the club a bit. I picked up my first set of blades at a time when I was really struggling with my iron play. Went from Callaway VFT Hawkeye SGI irons to a set of Titleist 680s with Rifle 5.0 shafts. The improvement in my iron play was immediate and substantial. 

 

I’ve tinkered with many heads and shafts over the years and “fit” into KBS Tour 130x, but find that I play my best golf with blade irons and regular flex shafts. Irons are meant for precision, and the regular flex shafts allow me to maintain distance within a relaxed swing and to hit the shots the hole requires. The blade head puts out what I put in, which is exactly what I want. The weaker flex shaft doesn’t make me work too hard. 
 

Back in 2011, I was playing scratch golf and shooting par or better with fair frequency. After my wife and I started having kids, however, my scores jumped. For the last 2-3 years, I’ve been playing a mix of MBs, CBS, and even GI irons, mostly with stiff and x-stiff shafts. Scores hovered in the 77-80 range (par 73). My best round this year was a 75 prior to July. 
 

In July, I dug out an old set of MP32s with r400 shafts. Ignored distances and just played shots using one club more than normal.  (Ex. 7 iron from 160, which was previously a stock 8). First round out, I shot even par. Best round in over 5 years. For the next several weeks, I never shot higher than 77 (+4 at my home course), and had several rounds at level par. I even had 3 partial rounds under par that I was not able to complete due to darkness. 
 

I’ve since moved into a set of Ping Blueprints with KBS Tour 110 regular and my scores have remained consistently in the low 70s on a 6700 yard course. The iron game has never been better, and I attribute it to the “precision” of the blade head combined with the “forgiveness” of the regular flex shaft. 
 

Bottom line is don’t give up on blades if you are inclined to play them. Find a shaft that allows you to swing within yourself and focus on hitting golf shots, which is what iron play is supposed to be about. 
 

 

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

17 hours ago, Juice1121 said:

Playing in round 2 of our club championship this weekend. Decided to take the conforming Callaway X protos I just picked up instead of the baby blades. Either way, the irons were not the reason round 1 didn't go as planned. They were actually some of my best shots. The driver failed me a bit and the greens were atrocious. Will report back with how it went, it is match play from here on out. 

Conforming Callaway X Protos?? Nice find!!

[braincramp52]

Just picked up a lefty set of Wilson FG62's 3-PW for $125! I'm stoked!!??

[Juice1121]

8 hours ago, No_Catchy_Nickname said:

Conforming Callaway X Protos?? Nice find!!

Yea. I am really excited about them as I can play my nonconforming and switch to the conforming when playing in comp. I shafted them up with project x 6.0 and the same grips to match. 

 

Also, not sure if it counts. But I picked up a set of titleist zb 3-p for 150. Thinking about dropping some c tapers in them. These things are so soft. 

 

[NRJyzr]

I've mentioned reshaft jobs that I've had in the works, things are shifting a bit in that arena.  With my wife having a new job, and now having sold our cabin/getaway place, I've been playing more golf this year.  The elbows and wrists are not taking to it quite as well as they did 10 years ago.  I've put my Golden Rams with NV105 graphite back in my bag, along with the Scratch 53* I reshafted with Steelfiber 125.

 

Now need to pick a set for the RIP Tour 115's.  Thinking of also picking up a set of Steelfibers for a third set of irons, though not settled on that.

 

Ultimately, it means my dabbling with multiple sets is probably largely in the past.  I suppose I could get away with the odd round here and there, but for the most part, I'm thinking I'll have to rein myself in a bit.

 

The joys of aging.  ?

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

2 hours ago, Juice1121 said:

Yea. I am really excited about them as I can play my nonconforming and switch to the conforming when playing in comp. I shafted them up with project x 6.0 and the same grips to match. 

 

Also, not sure if it counts. But I picked up a set of titleist zb 3-p for 150. Thinking about dropping some c tapers in them. These things are so soft. 

 

 

Are the ZBs the combo version of the 695s? I'm pretty sure I've seen them, but I can't remember if they were ZBs or 695s. 

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

1 hour ago, NRJyzr said:

I've mentioned reshaft jobs that I've had in the works, things are shifting a bit in that arena.  With my wife having a new job, and now having sold our cabin/getaway place, I've been playing more golf this year.  The elbows and wrists are not taking to it quite as well as they did 10 years ago.  I've put my Golden Rams with NV105 graphite back in my bag, along with the Scratch 53* I reshafted with Steelfiber 125.

 

Now need to pick a set for the RIP Tour 115's.  Thinking of also picking up a set of Steelfibers for a third set of irons, though not settled on that.

 

Ultimately, it means my dabbling with multiple sets is probably largely in the past.  I suppose I could get away with the odd round here and there, but for the most part, I'm thinking I'll have to rein myself in a bit.

 

The joys of aging.  ?

 

I've got to admit, I think I'm through with buying loads of sets to try. I'm looking to shrink my collection of iron sets down to the ones I really enjoy playing. That means shedding anywhere from between 7 to 15 sets...

[shanx]

MP58s are back in the bag. Purists may scoff, but they just play so easy. I can control the height much easier than my MP33s, the 58s are a bit longer too.

[Gsea]

My gammers when the money is on the line.

 

[boggyman]

On 9/15/2020 at 2:30 PM, NRJyzr said:

 

When I played PX 6.5 in a set of Golden Rams back in the day, they definitely got up quickly, but were also obviously lower spin; the trajectory flattened rather quickly.

 

Personally, not fond of the bend profile.  Prefer DG profile, as a rule

 

 

 

Highly regarded over the years, but don't remember specific folks who've played them, or specific comments about them.

Any idea where I’d find info on the specs? I come up we empty  handed. 

[Juice1121]

On 9/26/2020 at 10:21 PM, No_Catchy_Nickname said:

 

Are the ZBs the combo version of the 695s? I'm pretty sure I've seen them, but I can't remember if they were ZBs or 695s. 

 

Yea. They are the combos. Really soft feeling and amazing irons. 

 

Ended up advancing to the next round of club championships on the back of the x Protos and a shaft change in the driver. They were great all day and definitely more forgiving than the baby blades. The project x shafts were fantastic. I hit a 5 iron from 185 to a foot. I did sacrifice a bit of my 8iron as I had to hit it off the cart path through a gap between two trees. Won the hole so I guess it was worth it. 

 

Shot my personal best 1 over 72 and won 4&3. Exorcized some real demons after shooting a 94 last week. I actually closed the match out with a long putt on a hole I shot a 12 on last week which I thought was apropos. 

Edited September 28, 2020 by Juice1121

[BCULAW]

13 hours ago, Gsea said:

My gammers when the money is on the line.

 

Those were my very first set of irons!  Mizuno Trues!  Picked them up on close out at the Edwin Watts in Tallahassee, Florida for $299 new.  They even threw in a free matching lob wedge.  WAY too much club for me to handle at the time, but they were gorgeous clubs that felt amazing on the few times I actually found the center of the face!  Ha ha!!

[NRJyzr]

11 hours ago, boggyman said:

Any idea where I’d find info on the specs? I come up we empty  handed. 

 

This is about all I've ever found on them.  I'd probably go a touch weaker on the 4i-9i, or maybe just go to the classic FG-17 lofts (30* 5i, 50* PW), but I'm funny that way  🙂 

 

Edited September 28, 2020 by NRJyzr

[boggyman]

3 hours ago, NRJyzr said:

 

This is about all I've ever found on them.  I'd probably go a touch weaker on the 4i-9i, or maybe just go to the classic FG-17 lofts (30* 5i, 50* PW), but I'm funny that way  🙂 

 

Appreciate it!! Figured they were close to the 17s. 

Edited September 28, 2020 by boggyman

[braincramp52]

On 9/25/2020 at 7:10 AM, Jonesy said:

Thanks @No_Catchy_Nickname! 

 

I know what you mean about the putting, I used to swap between completely different style putters to try find some magic and to just change up the visual. Maybe give it a shot? Also another reason to buy a new putter ?

 

I must say even after all the practice I'm still considering a new putter, really intrigued by the slant neck mallets... Hit a few putts with a 34" spider slant neck the other day and it practically swung itself.

 

Heck, it took me 30 years to figure out I can't putt with a plumbers neck. 🤣

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

I came across a set of Titleist 681 T Forged irons in a second-hand shop recently. 2-PW for around 115,000 yen (over $1,000US). Very good condition, with S400 shafts. Anyway, I had to give them a hit...The sweet-spot is tiny! A wee bit off and they felt really harsh, but then find the sweet-spot and it's amazing.

The shop has some sort of launch-monitor gizmo, but I'm not sure how accurate it is. I hit the PW at the end, flush and sweet, and it supposedly went 150 yards distance (I don't hit a PW that far). This odd reading may have been caused by the low spin: 4,400rpm. This from a PW that has about 49* of loft. The low-spin may have been a misread or caused by hitting off a mat.

Nice looking irons, very compact, but too pricey for me.

[Christen_The_Sloop]

Went around in 80 again yesterday. I had been striking the ball really well at the range and I hit the ball okay my last time out at a short, flat river side course. This was a typical Japanese mountain course - every hole isolated from the next by terrain and tree.

 

Started with a triple. Had a longish sand shot after under clubbing the approach and blasted it over the green OB. Mike Tyson quote came to mind, "every one has a game plan until they get punched in the face." Managed 5 pars in a row after that, but still felt I didn't capitalize, lost patience on a short par 4 and was lucky to find the t-shot - finished the front nine in 40.

 

Nice steak lunch with a beer.

 

Back nine - nothing solid, either a little fat or a little thin. Not much, just enough to miss a green. Got it up and down or I didn't - soft greens at the end of the day lead to greens that were as true as a political candidate.

 

Made a few putts, that made me think I had a chance to do something special. (curled in a 40 footer for par after leaving a wedge approach in the sand). Birdied the next after driving it to the edge of another short par 4. Bogeyed the next, the one after that and the one after that, missing short putts. Utterly deflated. Last, a short par 5 up the hill. Found the fairway. Scuffed a 4-iron into another bunker 30 yards short. Perfect symmetry. Left this one short of the green. Chipped it tight for a disgusting par.

 

I am positive about my misses being manageable. I think using Top tracer at the range has saved 4-6 strokes when I am not on my game. Putting was decent.

 

Negatives? Pre-shot - didn't get myself committed to clubs - that never translates well. Didn't feel comfortable. Off balance the whole time.

 

Feel like I need a range finder. Need to do some strength and speed training, so I can get through the round and still feel fresh.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Nard_S]

46 minutes ago, No_Catchy_Nickname said:

I came across a set of Titleist 681 T Forged irons in a second-hand shop recently. 2-PW for around 115,000 yen (over $1,000US). Very good condition, with S400 shafts. Anyway, I had to give them a hit...The sweet-spot is tiny! A wee bit off and they felt really harsh, but then find the sweet-spot and it's amazing.

The shop has some sort of launch-monitor gizmo, but I'm not sure how accurate it is. I hit the PW at the end, flush and sweet, and it supposedly went 150 yards distance (I don't hit a PW that far). This odd reading may have been caused by the low spin: 4,400rpm. This from a PW that has about 49* of loft. The low-spin may have been a misread or caused by hitting off a mat.

Nice looking irons, very compact, but too pricey for me.

I own both the 681 & the "T". Both are longish compared to my other MB's. "T" is more demanding, because it has higher, slightly thicker muscle. Have hit the T's once. My impression was that the short & mids are incredible and that the longs are flat out hard to hit. Play the 681's all the time. Both sets are heavy even by blade standards. Off center is not gratifying but they seem to handle thin and slight toe hits pretty well. Nutted shots very very satisfying. $1100 for a pretty clean set is not outrageous, I paid somewhat more for new in box. However the Nike VR Pro II's remain a real sexy (& lighter) alternative to both. 

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

7 hours ago, Nard_S said:

I own both the 681 & the "T". Both are longish compared to my other MB's. "T" is more demanding, because it has higher, slightly thicker muscle. Have hit the T's once. My impression was that the short & mids are incredible and that the longs are flat out hard to hit. Play the 681's all the time. Both sets are heavy even by blade standards. Off center is not gratifying but they seem to handle thin and slight toe hits pretty well. Nutted shots very very satisfying. $1100 for a pretty clean set is not outrageous, I paid somewhat more for new in box. However the Nike VR Pro II's remain a real sexy (& lighter) alternative to both. 

 

AH! I was thinking you own a set of these as I was writing my post. Certainly agree that nutted shots are immensely satisfying. I did not, however, feel up to giving the 2i a whack. I hit the 5i and PW. The 5i provided perhaps a touch too much feedback. I hit a couple a tiny bit out towards the toe--I mean, really, barely off-centre--and they felt harsh as heck, even though they flew OK. Now, a strike like that on my MP4 would still feel pretty good, but not with these.

I didn't think the price was outrageous either, but it's more than I want to pay for a set of irons when I've got so many already. If it was going to be the only set of irons I own, then I'd fork it over, but I don't have the game to play those every time.

[Nard_S]

4 hours ago, No_Catchy_Nickname said:

 

AH! I was thinking you own a set of these as I was writing my post. Certainly agree that nutted shots are immensely satisfying. I did not, however, feel up to giving the 2i a whack. I hit the 5i and PW. The 5i provided perhaps a touch too much feedback. I hit a couple a tiny bit out towards the toe--I mean, really, barely off-centre--and they felt harsh as heck, even though they flew OK. Now, a strike like that on my MP4 would still feel pretty good, but not with these.

I didn't think the price was outrageous either, but it's more than I want to pay for a set of irons when I've got so many already. If it was going to be the only set of irons I own, then I'd fork it over, but I don't have the game to play those every time.

 I really like both. They have an old school feel in their configuration with fat corded grips, stout weight and clean looks. They do communicate impact with clarity. Oddly my favorite aspect is the long irons. With Rifle's on the 681's they flat out bomb and can bend the flight at will. S400's launch lower so you add the mass and they can intimidate.

 

The VR Pro II's might give the MP-4 a run. They feel beautiful and are more forgiving on toe bound strikes. Look great with the added grooves too.

 

My Maruman SX's are blend  between all three. Descending S400U shafts, tall faced w/ lots of grooves too and are in between on weight scale. Throw in generous sole relief and Miura feel, they add up to my best playing set. Need to repair those, lol. 

[boggyman]

On 9/28/2020 at 8:22 AM, NRJyzr said:

 

This is about all I've ever found on them.  I'd probably go a touch weaker on the 4i-9i, or maybe just go to the classic FG-17 lofts (30* 5i, 50* PW), but I'm funny that way  🙂 

 

Appreciate it!!

[boggyman]

Absolutely love  my FG17s. I’m constantly on the search for a decent set of spares but find none to my liking.  I’ve got a set of FG51s  minus the 5 iron that I feel are close but wanting an expert suggestion if there’s a newer blade that comes close in blade length, overall size, etc. Figured it was easier to get an expert opinion here in this awesome thread.  

[Nard_S]

12 minutes ago, boggyman said:

Absolutely love  my FG17s. I’m constantly on the search for a decent set of spares but find none to my liking.  I’ve got a set of FG51s  minus the 5 iron that I feel are close but wanting an expert suggestion if there’s a newer blade that comes close in blade length, overall size, etc. Figured it was easier to get an expert opinion here in this awesome thread.  

 

FG 59's are a direct tribute of FG-17's.

[boggyman]

43 minutes ago, Nard_S said:

 

FG 59's are a direct tribute of FG-17's.

What’s your take on the 51’s??

[Nard_S]

40 minutes ago, boggyman said:

What’s your take on the 51’s??

Can only speak to the 59's. They are the only Wilson's I've owned. Guys in the Classic section would know more.

[FormerBigDaddy]

Just thought I'd share...  As a 12 HC, I know that people on here and/or the general golf population, would say I wasn't good enough to play blades.  But in my 3rd round with my new p7tw's I shot my career low of 78 and broke 80 for the first time.  I have played as "players cb" for many years and find these just as easy to hit.  I think a more demanding club can make you better if you work.