Miura 1957 Small Blade/Baby Blade enthusiasts thread! (Lots of enabling and physics lessons inside)

[EaglesGolf99]

@DeNinny Awesome!!!! Correct. Please share pictures!

[DeNinny]

Yeah I couldn't believe the news. I will absolutely share pics in this thread. BTW it's costing me $350 for a full club. I don't care.

[bd59]

Anyone have a chance to compare the new BBs to the MB101s? Trying to decide here........decisions decisions......ugh!!

[DeNinny]

I have two BB sets and a Retro TBs set. None are latest generation, but the relative comparisons should be the same. And I can tell you that both models have phenomenal feel due to the high quality raw steel and Miura forging process. If you've never hit a Miura, they are next level better feeling than anything a major OEM can provide.

But based on performance and ease of play, the BBs are hands down better in every way than the normal sized Retro TBs. I've already posted earlier in this thread all the detailed reasons why, so I won't repeat the details. But in summary the small BB head size is precisely why it is a better design for ease of play than any other iron out there. This goes beyond comparison to the bigger Miura blades. It applies to comparison to any iron with a bigger head design. BBs are simply the...best...irons...ever! (And it doesn't matter what your skill level is.)

It's a no-brainer...

BBs FTW!!!

?️???

[bd59]

Appreciate the feedback man!!

[DeNinny]

No problem. I hope this helps and look forward to your posts if you get them. Please note that you would still be fine with the mb101s since they are a size you are already familiar with. And there's a bit of psychological adjustment period needed when starting out with the BBs because their head size is small at first when you look down at them. But then you get used to it with a little time.

And now, having owned and played my BB sets for 3 years now and truly experiencing and validating their superior playability over and over again, I can say that they have completely ruined other irons for me. While I could go back to others if needed, I don't want to because of how great the BBs both play AND feel.

LOL the only other clubs that I would consider buying now are the latest BBs. I love the simple stamping on the back. ???

[sogan.]

Great posts. Long live the BBs.

[3riC]

just recently learnt about Miura Giken custom shop, drooling over some of the options available

sorry if this is an obvious question: is the TB Zero equivalent to the NEW BBs?

thanks in advance

[DeNinny]

I can't say for certain but it doesn't look like it. Note that you can compare them spec for spec looking at the Miura Giken site for the TB Zeros... TB-ZERO

...and the Miura USA site for the new BBs... Miura Baby Blades - Miura GolfThe new BBs look the same and have the same specs as the previous generation and as the Miura Giken SB-01s (the smaller 'Miuraism' model). Plus they have a perfectly straight upper muscle boundary.

The TB Zeros have a slightly curved upper muscle boundary AND...(OMG, OMG, OMG!!!)...are lighter than the BBs! Plus the description mentions that they are a small head design. What this means to me is that they are going to be ever-so-slightly smaller than the BB!!! ????

To me this makes for a winning design with the TB Zeros. I cannot wait to hear from WRXers that get some. Also they go down to a 52* gap wedge!!!

[EaglesGolf99]

Craftsmen World set of TB•Zero 5-P and 52° should be en route next week! Will get pics up as soon as I can.

[DeNinny]

Notwithstanding the lack of 3i and 4i, it's an understatement that I'm jelly AF!!! Can't wait to hear your experience with them! ???

In other news, my Japanese buddy says my 53* Miuraism SB-01 is coming early July. LOL and now I'm going to put a bug in his ear to get the TB Zeros, but I think he's set on the SB-01s because Miura-san still personally grinds them.

[EaglesGolf99]

All my sets are 5-P. The only 4 Iron I have is the 2019 CB•301. And that's firmly entrenched, along with its brother and sister, 5 Iron and 6 Iron!

 

7, 8, and 9 are ideally what I'm trying to fine tune. Love my Handgrind 46, 52, and 58°.

 

Should see soon enough.

[3riC]

that's awesome, didn't know it goes to 52.

but i put my wedges through some pretty rough stuff, don't think i can swing a Miura through those stuff =(

[3riC]

did you order directly on the giken site? i remember looking at the accessories and it didn't ship to US

[EaglesGolf99]

No.

[DeNinny]

You don't need to fear Miura blades getting ruined or anything swinging through the rough stuff. Both my BB sets get exposed to PNW weather all the time and an interesting observation has been that they never show rust spots or any signs of excessive wear from it. My Miura black wedges, for whatever reason, will develop rust spots after a muddy round as compared to my black boron BBs which are part of the same set.

And given the smaller head design, a small 52* TB Zero will literally be easier going through the rough stuff as compared to a standard 52* sized wedge. There's literally less drag force on a smaller head.

[3riC]

yeah i miss my BBs, i benched them for CB501 because i was just losing too much distance on toe hits

gotta pull them out again

[EaglesGolf99]

Small Blade, Thin Top Line, No Offset No Onset, Double Cut Sole, 1° Additional Bounce.

[DeNinny]

That's weird. I found my BBs as the best for me in terms of toe hits. When I hit one, I get the feedback that it's a toe hit but there's very little penalty relatively speaking.

Anyway yeah you should go back to them. I'm sure the time on the bench has done some good and when you go back to them they'll make you realize what you've been missing. Absence makes the heart grow fonder. LOL for me I can only play maybe one round with one of my non-BB sets before I go back to them for their superior performance and feel.

LOL but then again I don't own any TB Zeros. ?

[DeNinny]

So I gotta admit, although you mentioned TB Zeros I didn't really research their specs until today after @3riC brought them up. When you talked about them earlier I just assumed the were like the past TBs which would be bigger than the BBs. And now knowing their specs, I am totally impressed and will go on record now that their design rivals that of the BB. My only nitpicky issue with them is the added bounce because it's theoretically of no benefit. But that said 1* difference is in the minutia. Higher bounce is only major issue at the extreme wedge and GI end.
All that said if I didn't already own two BB sets I'd get the TB Zeros in a heartbeat. I'm seriously really excited for you! ??

[chonkoa]

No they are not. The TB Zero is the equivalent of the MB 101 which replaces the MB 001.

[kaaayelll]

Appears to be based off of the old 5003 mold, like the others mentioned. I have not seen them in the flesh, but, based on mold (and my eye), I do not think they are as small as the BB.

[DeNinny]

? According to the posted specs...
TB Zero 3i = 244 g
BB 3i = 245 g
MB-101 3i = 245 g

TB Zero PW = 295 g
BB PW = 298 g
MB-101 PW = 298 g

? Could it be that less total weight makes for a slightly smaller TB Zero head?
?Or a lighter TB Zero hosel?
?Or a thinner TB Zero muscle but larger head?@kaaayelll I dunno. To my eye that TB Zero head looks pretty compact and overall smaller than the older mb001 and TB heads. And given the lighter weight it's possible that the head is smaller (but I understand not necessarily).
And BTW good to see you again! It's been a while since you hooked me up with that BB 1i!

[DeNinny]

? And why would the (translated) overview of the TB Zero state the following:

"The iron, which is the origin of Miura, has a sharp and small head..."

???

[DeNinny]

@EaglesGolf99 All other things equal, the lighter TB Zero heads are going to take less overall energy to swing so theoretically you'll get just slightly more swingspeed with them relative to both the BBs and MB-101s.
I'm going to go on record right now and, assuming that you have the optimal shaft for them, those TB Zeros are going to be so good.
And just food for thought regarding the 3i and 4i...
...the theoretical physics say that the very same technical reasons that you used in choosing to choose to play GW - 5i in them also apply to the 4i and 3i. Meaning, they ALL have the same technical advantages. Furthermore, the stronger the loft, the more you will feel the bliss of a pure strike with a longer iron.

[EaglesGolf99]

I have '57 Baby Blades, CB•57 and CB•1008.

 

We'll know how they compare to Baby Blades when I get the Zeros!

[DeNinny]

Miura much? ?

Can't wait to see some side by side pics with the BBs! ?

[kaaayelll]

I suspect your last two points (hosel and muscle) will prove to contain the answer, but we’ll find out. It would be cool to have a small blade available with an alternative muscle shape. I’m pretty much wed to the BB, though. There are lots of subtleties to the BB that allow significant mass in a small package.

[DeNinny]

Assuming the metal density is the same (a safe assumption), less mass literally equates to a smaller head. So the ultimate question is where did Miura-san remove the mass (hosel? length? muscle thickness? sections of the sole?). I'm hoping it's the length (mostly) so there's an alternative small blade out there.

LOL and as you know by being my BB "fixer", I too am firmly wed to my BB sets. But the TB Zero, based on my paper study of the specs, has the true potential to truly rival (and even surpass?) the superior design of the BB. I doubt it will be enough to push me to a purchase, though.

When I was younger a (married) dirty old man once told me, "Son, when you're on a diet, it's still OK to look at the menu." ?

[EaglesGolf99]

"Small Blade, Thin Top Line, No Offset No Onset, Double Cut Sole, 1° Additional Bounce." This was the formula for 9 Iron, Wedge and 52° Wedge. We'll see on the 9 Iron and Wedge how they compare.

 

The Toe, I don't expect to be as High Toe(ish) and square as the Baby Blade; really the only major difference I expect to see.

 

I personalized with the Double Cut Sole on the 9 Iron, Wedge and 52° Wedge so that'll be different and personal.