New Level Appreciation Thread

[akseem]

On 3/13/2021 at 6:37 AM, lefthack said:

Have you seen the new lefty wedge? Not sure I'm keen on $140/club, but hey 

 

 

This is the first I've seen they are coming out with a lefty wedge, when I saw they weren't selling the left handed iron set any more I feared they were giving up on lefties. while the price of the clubs is a big selling point for them I really appreciate a company this small making something for lefties and I love my irons I picked up last year.

[halliedog]

Just received my 902s, need to grip them up and take them for a spin, so wanted to be part of this thread.  SW is spot on (I ordered without grips so slightly high), but all consistent, so once I put grips on should remain.  Don't have a loft/lie gauge so can't check that at home.  

 

I'll have a range session in tomorrow and hopefully at least a quick 9 and will post a quick review tomorrow night.

[GolfTurkey]

I've had the NLU-01 driving irons with Ventus Blue 9x for a couple weeks.

 

The feel is amazingly soft but almost too soft e.g. if I turn it over too much I struggle to tell if it was a closed face to path or if I clanked it off the toe

[jamgam]

I haven't found anything that can kick my 902s out of the bag.  Tried jpx921 / Srixons zx5 / callaway. I just love the feel of these clubs

[RolandofGilead]

I got rid of the original paint fill for a cleaner look and put some gold in there. These irons continue to be awesome performers. 

[ChadL]

I put MMT 125TX shafts in my 902 heads a couple months ago.  They felt great with the shafts I had them in previously, modus 120x, but the feel now is superb. I changed primarily because the swing weight with the modus was D6. I didn’t want to add a bunch of weight to the butt to counter balance so I picked the MMTs. The 902 heads are heavy. The 7 iron head weighs 273 grams.

 

I really enjoy New Level products. Had a H4995 utility but didn’t care for the “clickiness” of that head.  The NLU01 heads are significantly better IMHO. I have an 18 and 22. 
 

I’m curious to see the hybrid when it’s released.

Edited April 15, 2021 by ChadL

[rping]

For those of you with the NLU-01. How is the swingweight? Trying to pick a shaft and leaning towards something in the 105g range Ventus black or MMT. Looking at the 21*. I was originally looking at something in the 125g range but afraid the swingweight will be too heavy. 
 

Driver swing speed 118-120. Looking for something off the tee and coming into long par 5s. 

[Phabs]

On 4/15/2021 at 12:50 PM, rping said:

For those of you with the NLU-01. How is the swingweight? Trying to pick a shaft and leaning towards something in the 105g range Ventus black or MMT. Looking at the 21*. I was originally looking at something in the 125g range but afraid the swingweight will be too heavy. 
 

Driver swing speed 118-120. Looking for something off the tee and coming into long par 5s. 

My driver is 116-118 and I’ve got a KBS 95s in a NLU and love it.   Doesn’t feel like a feather and the ball flight / sound is perfect.  I use it about 6-7 times a round off the tee on par 4’s to set up a 150ish wedge in. 
 

I just received a 50* tri-weight wedge and love it so far.  It’s got too light of a shaft but the head feels fantastic.  End of this year I’ll absolutely be ordering a 58/54 for next year.  Just hoping they can match up my current shaft specs. 

Edited May 1, 2021 by Phabs

[RolandofGilead]

On 4/9/2021 at 9:13 PM, halliedog said:

Just received my 902s, need to grip them up and take them for a spin, so wanted to be part of this thread.  SW is spot on (I ordered without grips so slightly high), but all consistent, so once I put grips on should remain.  Don't have a loft/lie gauge so can't check that at home.  

 

I'll have a range session in tomorrow and hopefully at least a quick 9 and will post a quick review tomorrow night.

How are these working out? Always curious to hear what other people think of these sticks.

[fixurpitch]

Monday, I’ll be sending back a couple demo 7 irons, 902 and PF-2. Ordered graphite and steel S (you don’t pick your shaft model). Received Steelfiber 80 and Elevate Tour. Swappable heads, so I tried all combos. 
 

Some tech info on the heads, they are within 2gm of each other. The PF-2 has a smaller grooved face by 2-3mm. But the 902 head is shorter toe to hosel by 1-3mm. The 902 sole is wider. It is still comparable to big brand players distance irons. These both are low bounce, with most bounce toward the face of the club. The PF-2 offset is marginally less than 902. The toe shape appears different between them. 
 

I’m a picker. These both performed really well for me. Dispersion is great, distance control as tight as anything  tried this year. Flight is high with both heads, both shafts (I’m a high ball hitter). 
 

Flushed shots feel on par with any of this year’s forged clubs I’ve hit. Actually on the soft side. Both models are more forgiving than expected. 
 

I placed an order for a PH-1 / PH-2 combo. As easy as the PH-2 are, the PH-1 short irons should be manageable. They don’t arrive until late May. 

[B.Easy]

19 minutes ago, fixurpitch said:

Monday, I’ll be sending back a couple demo 7 irons, 902 and PF-2. Ordered graphite and steel S (you don’t pick your shaft model). Received Steelfiber 80 and Elevate Tour. Swappable heads, so I tried all combos. 
 

Some tech info on the heads, they are within 2gm of each other. The PF-2 has a smaller grooved face by 2-3mm. But the 902 head is shorter toe to hosel by 1-3mm. The 902 sole is wider. It is still comparable to big brand players distance irons. These both are low bounce, with most bounce toward the face of the club. The PF-2 offset is marginally less than 902. The toe shape appears different between them. 
 

I’m a picker. These both performed really well for me. Dispersion is great, distance control as tight as anything  tried this year. Flight is high with both heads, both shafts (I’m a high ball hitter). 
 

Flushed shots feel on par with any of this year’s forged clubs I’ve hit. Actually on the soft side. Both models are more forgiving than expected. 
 

I placed an order for a PH-1 / PH-2 combo. As easy as the PH-2 are, the PH-1 short irons should be manageable. They don’t arrive until late May. 

Agree with these statements.  I have the PF-2's and the softness is akin to something from Mizuno in the 90's, but the forgiveness is on par with any modern forged CB.  My miss is on the toe and I have had half of the ball miss the grooves and only lose around 5%-7% distance.  They spin like a blade.  Specifically, very similar to my MP-20 MB's. 

 

My swing impact is somewhere between digger and picker.  Shallow divots, but almost always some kind of divot.

 

These were an experiment for me to try and replace my all time faves-- Ping S55's.  Which, they definitely remind me of in some ways.  Looks at address and forgiveness. 

 

Also, wanted to try the MMT shafts in 125TX.  The whole experiment has been fun and I am really enjoying this set up.  Due to the shafts, this set up is wildly different as a whole.  Very effortless to get in the air, long irons stop on the green, relatively forgiving (more than I thought), and easy on my elbows with the shafts.  Kind of a stress free set up.

 

After a couple months of range balls, sandy coastal rounds, local club rounds, etc.--they seem like they will be very durable.

 

The build was immaculate with lofts, lies, and swing weights.  

 

Overall, I am just enjoying this set up.  My S55's had X7's in them and my MP-20's have Modus 125Tx's.  These 125Tx MMT's are weird. They feel like x100's, but fly like the Modus 125's for me.  It takes me a while to settle in with irons, so I'll know by mid to late summer if they'll be in the bag for the long haul.

[RolandofGilead]

52 minutes ago, fixurpitch said:

Monday, I’ll be sending back a couple demo 7 irons, 902 and PF-2. Ordered graphite and steel S (you don’t pick your shaft model). Received Steelfiber 80 and Elevate Tour. Swappable heads, so I tried all combos. 
 

Some tech info on the heads, they are within 2gm of each other. The PF-2 has a smaller grooved face by 2-3mm. But the 902 head is shorter toe to hosel by 1-3mm. The 902 sole is wider. It is still comparable to big brand players distance irons. These both are low bounce, with most bounce toward the face of the club. The PF-2 offset is marginally less than 902. The toe shape appears different between them. 
 

I’m a picker. These both performed really well for me. Dispersion is great, distance control as tight as anything  tried this year. Flight is high with both heads, both shafts (I’m a high ball hitter). 
 

Flushed shots feel on par with any of this year’s forged clubs I’ve hit. Actually on the soft side. Both models are more forgiving than expected. 
 

I placed an order for a PH-1 / PH-2 combo. As easy as the PH-2 are, the PH-1 short irons should be manageable. They don’t arrive until late May. 

What made you choose the PF-2 over 902? (Ignoring the combo set you settled on) I have a feeling I would have ended up with a set of PF-2s had they been out when I got my 902s. Anything to lower ball flight would be good for me and specs I’ve seen say the PF-2s are lower launching.

[halliedog]

5 hours ago, RolandofGilead said:

How are these working out? Always curious to hear what other people think of these sticks.

Actually these are a bit of a sore spot at the moment, but that's due to Golf Galaxy club repair service, nothing at all to due with the 902 performance.  I recently got a few new CBX2 wedges to fill in some gaps due to the 902 44* PW.  I had the wedges bent 2* flat and it's been working to mitigate the left miss I have with the shorter clubs, so I took the PW to GG to have the lie angle bent to match, and of course it came back with a ding on the sole from being clamped.  Nothing major, but just annoying since I really don't have a scratch on these yet.  I didn't even notice it in the store, only once I got home and had it in brighter light.  Oh well, I digress, it won't be the last ding they get I'm sure.

 

 

Due to a combination of work and bad weather I've only played one actual round and the irons were phenomenal.  Distance control is spot on.  Kind of like you I'm a picker and biggest miss is thin and toey, and forgiveness on this miss is great.  I do hit about 500 range balls/week and so far everything is great.  Point and shoot is a good description.  Loving the KBS V's, everything I remembered from playing them in an old set of TM RSi Tours I was playing prior to the P770s that these replaced.  I went with Master Grip Roos for grips, my first go with a leather grip, and needless to say I won't be going back.  In fact will installing on the NLU-01 and new wedges this week after I get the wedges re-shafted.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Phabs]

26 minutes ago, halliedog said:

Actually these are a bit of a sore spot at the moment, but that's due to Golf Galaxy club repair service, nothing at all to due with the 902 performance.  I recently got a few new CBX2 wedges to fill in some gaps due to the 902 44* PW.  I had the wedges bent 2* flat and it's been working to mitigate the left miss I have with the shorter clubs, so I took the PW to GG to have the lie angle bent to match, and of course it came back with a ding on the sole from being clamped.  Nothing major, but just annoying since I really don't have a scratch on these yet.  I didn't even notice it in the store, only once I got home and had it in brighter light.  Oh well, I digress, it won't be the last ding they get I'm sure.

 

 

Due to a combination of work and bad weather I've only played one actual round and the irons were phenomenal.  Distance control is spot on.  Kind of like you I'm a picker and biggest miss is thin and toey, and forgiveness on this miss is great.  I do hit about 500 range balls/week and so far everything is great.  Point and shoot is a good description.  Loving the KBS V's, everything I remembered from playing them in an old set of TM RSi Tours I was playing prior to the P770s that these replaced.  I went with Master Grip Roos for grips, my first go with a leather grip, and needless to say I won't be going back.  In fact will installing on the NLU-01 and new wedges this week after I get the wedges re-shafted.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I feel your pain.. I’ve never had a mizuno adjusted by anyone and had it come back without a jaw/bar marks.  

[halliedog]

25 minutes ago, Phabs said:

I feel your pain.. I’ve never had a mizuno adjusted by anyone and had it come back without a jaw/bar marks.  

I guess if nothing else, it's a testament to how "soft" they are 😉.  At least it's on the sole where most of the wear is gonna happen anyway.  They didn't ding up the hosel or topline, so I guess I should count it as lesson learned and move on.  Just moved to a new city, need to find a new clubmaker for this kind of work like I had back home.

 

The most upsetting part was this was all after I bought the first CBX2 wedge from them last week asked to have it bent 2* flat and a guy did it on the spot without charge (before I'd even paid for the club actually).  Took it to the range several times and really liked it.  Needed one in a different loft, so went back and bought another CBX2, and took the 902 PW with me, asked them to bend the CBX2 2* flat, and make the PW match whatever loft that turned out to be.  Was charged for both bends this time, and had to wait 24 hours to get them back.  I don't mind paying, especially for my own I brought in, but considering it takes about a minute or 2, and I'd just bought the one, I was half expecting them to do the adjustments on the spot and only charge me for possibly the one I brought in?  They didn't appear super busy, and had 3-4 guys working in the repair department, so was also puzzled why they couldn't just take the 2-3 minutes to do it, then after 24 hours it ended up with a ding.  Oh well, don't want to devolve this from a NL Appreciation thread in GG bashing, just had to get that off my chest.  Will be playing tomorrow on a course with some more tight/shorter par 4s, so will hopefully get some more testing in with the NLU-01.

[fixurpitch]

6 hours ago, RolandofGilead said:

What made you choose the PF-2 over 902? (Ignoring the combo set you settled on) I have a feeling I would have ended up with a set of PF-2s had they been out when I got my 902s. Anything to lower ball flight would be good for me and specs I’ve seen say the PF-2s are lower launching.

The PF-2 has a slightly thinner top line, which I prefer. The sole seems to get through the turf better for my AoA.  And I liked the feel at impact a bit better. 
 

I’ll offer this caveat, you can’t tell them apart feel-wise if ya flush them both 

[fixurpitch]

The PF combo set came in today. They are exactly as ordered, and look fantastic. I got 5-7 PF-2 and 8-P PF-1. 
 

Here are some pics with 7 and 8 irons. You can see the difference in topline and offset. But the set looks to blend great. 
 

 

Edited June 26, 2021 by fixurpitch

[RichieHunt]

I've had the 902 Forged 4-PW for about 5 months now and I've been extremely pleased with them.  I took my KBS $ Tapers off my Honma's and installed them in the 902 Forged as the bore from the Honma's is the same as the 902 Forged.  

 

I have JumboMax Grips on them.  I had JumboMax on the Honma's and while I liked the performance of the JumboMax, they weren't the most appealing feel on strikes with the Honman.  But on the 902 Forged they feel just as pure as your typical forged iron with standard grips.  In fact it makes me wonder what the 902 Forged's would feel like with standard grips.

 

But the best thing about these irons is that they perform so well with every iron.  Normally with irons certain clubs don't perform all that great.  For example with the Honma's the short irons were great for me, the mid irons were solid and the long irons left a lot to be desired.  With Mizuno's it's usually the mid-irons are great, the long irons are solid and the short irons leave a lot to be desired.  But now with the 902 Forged.  In fact, I can't really say I have a favorite club in the bag as they all perform so well.  

 

 

 

 

 

RH

[Hoff_19]

Just got my set of 902's with DG AMT White X100 shafts. Played 4 or 5 rounds with them so far and I'm in love. Compact head size that frames the ball well and I like the thicker top line paired with the shorter blade length. I have a steeper AoA and my prior set of JPX 919f dug way too much, I was scared to swing down onto the ball. These are much better through the turf, I don't think their V-sole level of turf interaction but they're way better than the mizzys.

 

Long irons are easy to elevate but that could also be the AMT's. I wish there was a gap wedge with the set but I don't see NL ever doing that. 

 

 

[fixurpitch]

I have a couple rounds and a few range sessions on the PF combo. These are smooth through the turf. I have a shallow AoA. Last irons were ZX-5 with the v-sole. The PF works better for me. It’s not obvious in pics, but these have a pre-worn leading edge.  Guessing that adds to the nice turf interaction. 
 

These were ordered with the Elevate 105 S. I’d hit the 115. Took a chance on these “poor man’s graphites” with their dampening tech. They are so much better than I expected. Ideal ball flight for me. 
 

What would I change? I’d have gotten the 7i in PF-1. Don’t discount the PF-1 because it is blade-like. It’s a manageable iron, and accurate. After hitting the PF-2 5i so well, I wish I’d ordered the 4i too. 

Last point, the PF-2 seems a bit draw biased for me compared to PF-1. Would buy again without a thought. 

[vandyfan]

I have read the entire thread and it convinced me to get two demos from NL (902 and MODB-1). I am currently testing 3 other clubs so I will have a decent comparison pool. Love the looks of the 902 but am trying the MODB-1 in case I am moving to far towards the player's category...

[Hoff_19]

1 hour ago, blackbdmillsaps said:

I have read the entire thread and it convinced me to get two demos from NL (902 and MODB-1). I am currently testing 3 other clubs so I will have a decent comparison pool. Love the looks of the 902 but am trying the MODB-1 in case I am moving to far towards the player's category...

 

I think you're going to like the 902's better. Better feedback, still good help on mis-hits, and I'm a big believer in the "aim small miss small" idea. I came from a much bigger head size irons and I'm hitting the ball way better with the 902's.

[vandyfan]

I thought I was going to like the 902s better as well but based on the Trackman numbers I got along better with the MODB-1s. Once I had them in hand (comparing to the 902s), I wasn't in love with the looks. They had a distinct "driving iron" look about them with the long blade and big sole with the rounded heel. I have to say I turned my nose up a bit at them but, again, the performance for me was better. They were extremely consistent on Trackman (see below):

 

 

Warmed up and hit 12 shots, took the best 10. The numbers across the top are supposed PGA tour averages for a 7 iron on Trackman (I imagine their lofts are a bit higher). The "trackman #" column is actually more of a strike quality indicator. So AAA is dead center with ideal turf interaction, AA is pretty good and A is good enough but usually meant a little bit out of the center by either being high/low or left/right on the face. To only have 10 yards difference on carry between my best strike and a below average strike was insane and that spin rates stayed in the 6000s for every shot is equally impressive. The only thing I didn't love about these was the launch angle, to my eye, was a tad low. A minor quibble, of course. Below see the dispersion:

 

 

Again...pretty good! The two shots way out right were during warmup and I would classify them as "mega blocks" and not anything a club is going to fix. As is noted above, the FEEL of these is not as specific or good as the 902s but the tradeoff there is the ball speed stayed up on a variety of strikes. 

 

TLDR - For me, these clubs looked like the would be jumpy distance irons and actually were incredibly consistent on a variety of strikes with good spin. 

[dmeeksDC]

On 7/23/2021 at 3:27 PM, blackbdmillsaps said:

I thought I was going to like the 902s better as well but based on the Trackman numbers I got along better with the MODB-1s. Once I had them in hand (comparing to the 902s), I wasn't in love with the looks. They had a distinct "driving iron" look about them with the long blade and big sole with the rounded heel. I have to say I turned my nose up a bit at them but, again, the performance for me was better. They were extremely consistent on Trackman (see below):

 

 

Warmed up and hit 12 shots, took the best 10. The numbers across the top are supposed PGA tour averages for a 7 iron on Trackman (I imagine their lofts are a bit higher). The "trackman #" column is actually more of a strike quality indicator. So AAA is dead center with ideal turf interaction, AA is pretty good and A is good enough but usually meant a little bit out of the center by either being high/low or left/right on the face. To only have 10 yards difference on carry between my best strike and a below average strike was insane and that spin rates stayed in the 6000s for every shot is equally impressive. The only thing I didn't love about these was the launch angle, to my eye, was a tad low. A minor quibble, of course. Below see the dispersion:

 

 

Again...pretty good! The two shots way out right were during warmup and I would classify them as "mega blocks" and not anything a club is going to fix. As is noted above, the FEEL of these is not as specific or good as the 902s but the tradeoff there is the ball speed stayed up on a variety of strikes. 

 

TLDR - For me, these clubs looked like the would be jumpy distance irons and actually were incredibly consistent on a variety of strikes with good spin. 

That’s a really solid performance. What’s not to like? Did you grab them?

[vandyfan]

4 minutes ago, dmeeksDC said:

That’s a really solid performance. What’s not to like? Did you grab them?

 

They were great and, for me, they beat out 8 other iron heads (I tested 10 in total) rather handily. I did not grab them as I got along ever so slightly better with another set of irons (or rather, the 7 iron since I was demoing the 7 irons in all these clubs). I don't buy clubs very often (that probably will get me kicked off this board) so when I do I test the absolute s*** out of them. I did this trackman experiment for all 10 iron heads off of grass which took like 3 different trackman sessions. 

 

The spin, carry, ball speed, forgiveness and dispersion was all basically the same between the MODB-1 and the iron I ultimately chose. The deciding factors were (1) the launch angle and descent angle for the MODB-1s was a bit low in comparison to the winning iron and (2) I liked the look of the winning iron better. That's it. Like I said, these would have been perfectly fine for me to play and would have been an upgrade over my current clubs and the other clubs I tested. With the sale they have now, I could have gotten these for less than $500. That's an insane deal. 

[dmeeksDC]

If you like the MODB-1 @blackbdmillsaps  you will really enjoy their forged heads! Maybe it’s just my taste that matches the New Level designs, but I have yet to try anything that wasn’t really good and also perfectly built. The irons I have are so nice — 902, PF2, Tri-Weight wedge, the 1126 4 and 5 irons — they all perform and the feel is as good as I’ve experienced. 
 

The new hybrid coming out next month looks good. I am not a big hybrid guy and have only liked a handful. The Adams hybrids and the original TaylorMade Rescue and the 2015 Callaway Apex are the type of designs I like. I emailed Eric about what to expect and he says that New Level’s upcoming hybrid will be similar in style to the old Adams heads. Has no left bias. It looks very nice. Price is pretty good too with lots of shaft options. I pre-ordered the 23 degree with the Catalyst 80 6.0. 

[Gerr]

Recently got a 2nd hand set of 1126's as a backup set and love them.  However, they came with New Level labeled stiff shafts with a constant taper(stepless).  Anyone have any info on these shafts?  Weight, flex profile, launch, spin, etc?

[Gerr]

Got this answered by Eric from New Level...FST Pro 115 Stepless.

[dmeeksDC]

New hybrid arrived. As usual, the web site photos don’t do it justice. Very sharp looking. Like the size. Eric told me it would be similar in profile to the old Adams hybrids and I loved the Adams Proto 9031 that is still a great club. If I could change anything about it, I would have made it just a touch deeper front to back for forgiveness. Looks like that is what New Level has done. Here are a few pics and one comparing it to the 9031. 

[Cactus Jack]

I've been thinking about picking up a set of 902s or a set of Maltby TEs. Has anyone played both sets and can provide a quick comparison?