Best Sand Wedge of the 1980’s

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

Great thread! It's bringing out the Wedge 'ho in me...

I notice no-one has mentioned MacGregor wedges yet. I have two or three Mac wedges from the Eighties, and none of them I particularly like. One, made for the Japanese market, has too much offset, and the others I just don't like the sole grind. I suppose one is OK for anything EXCEPT sand. It surprised me because otherwise their irons and woods were so good, it's odd that they couldn't get their wedges right.

 

Now, I've a few Wilson and RAM wedges I like. Probably my favourite all-round SW is the set one that came with my FG-J8s, which are pretty much the same as FG-17s. The leading edge is slightly rounded, but not much, and it works well in sand, in the rough, and off the fairway. I've a Staff 60* Tom Kite wedge that's a bit of an oddity, but fun to play, and a JP Custom Grind that feels angelic, but is devilishly heavy. I can't remember what the swing weight is, but I remember it being the highest of all my clubs.

 

I've a few RAM wedges too that I like. I've a BeCu gap wedge (53*) that has too much offset for me to really love it, but conversely it makes it a nice club to chip with, and fuller shots are fine too. Then I've a set SW from the Camber Sole model (may have been a Japan release) that I find to be very versatile. It's very similar to a TW custom grind wedge I've got that I also like. The Camber Sole SW I left at 55*, whereas I bent the TW Grind to 57* so I can play it with the 53* BeCu Gap wedge. I need to pull the R400 shaft in the TW Grind and put in a better shaft, though.

 

Finally, most of the Japanese wedges I have from that era are awful. Ugly-looking, weird offset, and no real special wedge-like grind. I like some heel relief, and few Japanese wedges of this period seem to have that. The only Japanese wedge I have from the Eighties that I like is the set SW that came with the MS-7 irons, which were made for the US market, and therefore probably reflects US tastes.

 

Finally finally, on the subject of the EYE2 wedges, I get mixed results with my BeCu L wedge depending, I think, on the swing I bring each day! But when it's on, it's really on, and it is probably the best club from sand that I have encountered. I won't be getting rid of mine ever, and in fact bought an EYE2 XG SW like the one @Dr. Block posted earlier.

 

I'll try to get some pictures up of my RAM and Wilson wedges later.

Edited December 23, 2020 by No_Catchy_Nickname

[Dr. Block]

17 hours ago, nitram said:

 

I would've put the eye 2 in this thread when it started a month ago had the OP not inferred he didn't want to include it. But since the ice is now broken, I agree with you 100%. I remember he first time I tried a bunker shot with the SW. My exact words were, "Oh daddy". After nearly 40 years many have tried to make a better wedge but so far, they havent.

Whoops. Looks like I get an F for reading comprehension. Still, the EYE2 deserves it's credit in these few posts; it is on a very short list of the finest wedges ever designed. 

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

7 hours ago, Dr. Block said:

Whoops. Looks like I get an F for reading comprehension. Still, the EYE2 deserves it's credit in these few posts; it is on a very short list of the finest wedges ever designed. 

 

Talking of "F", I've seen a Japanese set or two with an "F" wedge, which got me thinking about letter designations for wedges. "P" and "PW" for pitching wedges, "S" and "SW"sand wedge, and "L" wedge for the lob wedge. I think I've seen "SI" for sand iron as well. Then there's "A" for Approach wedge, which is still used by Srixon for their set wedges in the Z5 and Z7 series irons. Ping has "G" and "U" wedges as well. Lots of Japanese iron makers like Maruman and Daiwa back in the late Eighties and Nineties included a "P/S" wedge which fitted in between the pitching wedge and sand wedge. 

Any others out there? I should have a "D" and "T" wedge for Duffing and Topping, and possibly a "B/G" wedge for Blading through the Green.

 

Then there's the numbering. I've two sets with an 11-iron, one Honma, one Mizuno, and  Mizuno 12i. The sole of the 12i shows what I said in my earlier post about the Japanese wedges not having much grind to them. It's a very square sole.

[KRW59]

Ernie Vaderson Snake Eye wedges had a large presence on the PGA and Champions tours in the mid '90s

I read somewhere he was doing "Hand Mades" for the pros back in the 80's . I picked up a set 10 / 11 / 12 of Snake Eye EV wedges in the mid 90's (Pre GolfSmith). I like the narrow soles ...let"s one be creative with shot making ....all I had for pictures right now is the #12 ( the 10 and 11 heads are buried somewhere in my basement ).....

 

Some how?? All my pictures are upside down....

 

Edited December 24, 2020 by KRW59

[ThaiGolfer2]

The Ram Cobalt Tom Watson wedges were pure spin machines. I had a pair (53 & 58 if I remember) that I used until mid 90's. Great wedges for the time. Cobalt was as hard as hell, remember trying to bore out the hosel for a re-shaft and the drill and bit we were using would not touch it.

[elwhippy]

Ram stopped making the Cobalt heads because they were too expensive to make. The harder steel ruined the groove stamps. Awesome spin but could ruin a balata in 1 full swing.

[mocokid]

On 12/23/2020 at 7:32 PM, No_Catchy_Nickname said:

 

Talking of "F", I've seen a Japanese set or two with an "F" wedge, which got me thinking about letter designations for wedges. "P" and "PW" for pitching wedges, "S" and "SW"sand wedge, and "L" wedge for the lob wedge. I think I've seen "SI" for sand iron as well. Then there's "A" for Approach wedge, which is still used by Srixon for their set wedges in the Z5 and Z7 series irons. Ping has "G" and "U" wedges as well. Lots of Japanese iron makers like Maruman and Daiwa back in the late Eighties and Nineties included a "P/S" wedge which fitted in between the pitching wedge and sand wedge. 

Any others out there? I should have a "D" and "T" wedge for Duffing and Topping, and possibly a "B/G" wedge for Blading through the Green.

 

Then there's the numbering. I've two sets with an 11-iron, one Honma, one Mizuno, and  Mizuno 12i. The sole of the 12i shows what I said in my earlier post about the Japanese wedges not having much grind to them. It's a very square sole.

Looks like a copy of the Macgregor dual wedge./11 iron

[ReidThompson]

Founders Club

[Scully13]

I picked up a few of these from a golf specialty shop in Niagara Falls NY a while back.

 

Accuform PTM SW.

 

303 Stainless steel - very soft material, soft sound and square grooves that bite.

 

Gentleman that sold these to me said they once belonged to Joey Sindelar. I had them repurposed with brushed raw finish.

 

Very underrated club.

[BIG STU]

On 11/21/2020 at 5:35 PM, Bigarch said:

I've played the Cleveland wedges since the 588 came out in 1988.  That wedge really created the specialty sand wedge market.  Prior to that, they had the 485 which was a good wedge... although I never played one regularly.  I think the Cobra Phil Rodgers trusty rusty wedges were from that era.  Early in the 80's I played a custom wedge made by a guy in Pennsylvania.  They were all knock offs of the Wilson Dynapower designs from the 60's and 70's.

I will second the 588s--- And it is funny you mentioned the Phil Rogers Trusty Rusty. I had one in my stash more than likely picked up on the yard. I had forgotten about it and a bud of mine spotted it sticking up in one of the bags. Thank God he is a lefty. I pulled it out and liked the way it sat so it is in the front line bag now. For me before the 588s I played a Spalding Elite 10 iron and a R-90 SW. Wore the R-90 concave. Never found another one that hit like it. Ended up for a while with a Hogan W- Grind until I discovered the 588s

[TourSpoon]

The wedges I remember being my favorite had to be the Cleveland 588 and it was the first serious set of wedges that I had bought new. My brother had some JPs and then got the Founder's that he swore by. I do remember McGregor, Ram, and Hogan being in that space as well. 

[dalehead]

Cleveland 485, especially the beryllium copper model. The club that elevated Roger Cleveland to wedge guru status.

[Jack Pearsall]

Hogan Forged 

[ebk]

I seem to remember the Callaway Hickory Stick was pretty popular in the 80’s...

[sdandrea]

This!