Maltby KE4 Max - new and pretty clean Ultra Game Improvement iron...anybody hit it yet?

[Cwebb]

13 hours ago, Stan018 said:

Just purchased a KE4Max Pak with Rapport shafts.   The looks of the club are strikingly good.  Not chunky looking at all.   I ordered them in swing weight D3, 2 degrees upright and they were delivered with swing weight D2, according to my Golf Works tool.  Fixed it with lead tape but with all the weight options available, they should get it right.  Two grams up was all that was needed.

I am not satisfied with performance after three rounds.  I can strike my JPX hot metal 919s with UST Recoil 460 shafts much more consistently and accurately - distance and direction, and they have returned to my bag.  This MPF comparison tells me the MPF isn't quite that good a club selection metric, and I was banking on it when I made the purchase.   I don't see me holding on to these KE4s.  I wish they hit as good as they look.  Hitting the green is hitting the green, and for that, my mizunos work much better!

 

Any chance the shaft isn't the best fit?

[Klubster]

9 hours ago, Cwebb said:

 

Any chance the shaft isn't the best fit?

Good chance.  Very different shaft profile.  It took me a little time to get used to mine as would be expected with any change.

[bvmagic]

22 hours ago, Stan018 said:

Just purchased a KE4Max Pak with Rapport shafts.   The looks of the club are strikingly good.  Not chunky looking at all.   I ordered them in swing weight D3, 2 degrees upright and they were delivered with swing weight D2, according to my Golf Works tool.  Fixed it with lead tape but with all the weight options available, they should get it right.  Two grams up was all that was needed.

I am not satisfied with performance after three rounds.  I can strike my JPX hot metal 919s with UST Recoil 460 shafts much more consistently and accurately - distance and direction, and they have returned to my bag.  This MPF comparison tells me the MPF isn't quite that good a club selection metric, and I was banking on it when I made the purchase.   I don't see me holding on to these KE4s.  I wish they hit as good as they look.  Hitting the green is hitting the green, and for that, my mizunos work much better!

 

Reach out to golfworks and see if they can send you extra weights to move your irons up to a D3 as you requested.  I ordered a KE4 max club pak for my dad and it came in at D4 as requested.  

[JoeHatesSnow]

Also, where are your misses?  Besides shaft differences, there could be a lie issue as well.  You don't mention the lie angles of the Mizunos you like but stock Mizuno is quite flat.  It's also possible the sole design of the KE4 Max doesn't suit you as well as the 919s.

[bvmagic]

I built out a set of KE4 Max irons with Nippon Modus 3 105 S flex shafts.  My objective was to find a forgiving iron that didn't look too big at address and these fit the bill perfectly.  Back when I played a lot I used Mizuno MP69's, but a recent stint with some borrowed Ping G15 irons convinced me its time to find something easier to hit.  I used to be the type of player to try to work the ball and hit different trajectory shots, but with no practice that type of play just gets me into more trouble.  Now I just want a simple point and shoot type club that has turf interaction that is forgiving for the softer ground in FL.  It will take some time for me to adjust to these stronger lofts, the 8 iron of the KE4 Max is basically the same loft as the 7 iron on my MP69.  Before I pulled the trigger on these I did do a 4 club Maltby test with the KE4 Max / TS2 / TS1 / DBM forged.

 

My first round with these in play I was able to hit them well and I don't recall catching any shots heavy.  Misses on the toe were still pretty straight and still managed to hit some greens with those shots.  Very little curve, my miss if anything was a pull but they were just straight pulls.  I only tried to curve a shot once with the PW to hit a draw around a tree, which only curved about 5 yards.  Looking at my rounds with MP69's before I was probably avg 4-7 greens a round, but lately with the G15 / KE4 Max I was getting 8-11.  Feel / sound wise of course these don't compare to mizuno, but as long as I'm hitting more greens that's all that matters.  

 

 

[sui generis]

Of course, we can't leave well enough alone. 😉 Has anyone tried removing the stick on KE4MAX thing in the cavity? 

[JoeHatesSnow]

21 hours ago, sui generis said:

Of course, we can't leave well enough alone. 😉 Has anyone tried removing the stick on KE4MAX thing in the cavity? 

Have you seen the heads in person?  The medallion or whatever is pretty understated IMO.  From the heads I have in my possession it looks as though removing the medallion would also remove the silver "M" logo in the toe.  I would think that whatever is underneath it all is not particularly attractive, but I certainly don't know that for sure.

[sui generis]

On 7/21/2022 at 1:49 PM, JoeHatesSnow said:

Have you seen the heads in person?  The medallion or whatever is pretty understated IMO.  From the heads I have in my possession it looks as though removing the medallion would also remove the silver "M" logo in the toe.  I would think that whatever is underneath it all is not particularly attractive, but I certainly don't know that for sure.

 

Someone will do it sooner or later. If the cavity surface is nice and clean beneath the stick-on thing, that might be a good look for some. 🙂

 

UPDATE - from Golfworks. "The M is part of the badge and if you remove the badge the finish is not a high polished mirror finish. It would be a blasted finish."

 

I have the 6, 7, 8 and 9 and like them a lot.

Edited July 29, 2022 by sui generis

[JoeHatesSnow]

6 minutes ago, sui generis said:

 

Someone will do it sooner or later. If the cavity surface is nice and clean beneath the stick-on thing, that might be a good look for some. 🙂

 

I have the 6, 7, 8 and 9 and like them a lot.

 

Oh, I agree that someone will try it.

[Klubster]

23 hours ago, sui generis said:

Of course, we can't leave well enough alone. 😉 Has anyone tried removing the stick on KE4MAX thing in the cavity? 

Why would you want to do that?

[games]

One GolfWRX'r sanded the medallions on the TS2, which took the color out and gave the cavity an embossed look that was really cool.

 

When pix of the TS3 and TS4 got released, the cosmetic color was removed.  Of course, people are drooling over those...

[goalie]

I had some built to my specs with the Rapport shafts in R flex.  They hit the ball over a club longer than my Tour Edge HL4 irons, and the feel with those shafts is really nice.  Ball flight is pretty high, but not too high or ballooning.  They're very forgiving off the toe, which is my miss.

 

Overall, for a great price I've got a set of forgiving irons that don't look like shovels behind the ball and look very nice in my bag.  

[sui generis]

On 5/31/2022 at 12:27 PM, Colej said:

Very nice design and launch is high and straight. Coming from the TS2 they’re a much more forgiving design, imo. I’m about a club longer then the TS2. The lofts are jacked on the max but they launch higher then the TS2. Just my on course findings. 

 

Have you attempted to bend a KE4MAX? 

 

I have a MR3 True Blue and have been successfully bending stuff for fifteen years. This morning I tried to adjust the loft on my KE4MAX 6 iron. I don't think I moved it.

 

I have a very good adjustable bending bar and my True Blue is soundly anchored to my very sturdy bench which is bolted to the wall. I huffed and puffed, but I couldn't feel the hosel move like I usually can when bending. 🤨

 

ps On the Golfworks KE4MAX page there is a review from someone who said that they'd had trouble bending them, too. 

 

https://www.golfworks.com/maltby-ke4-max-iron-heads/p/ma0337/

[goalie]

1 hour ago, sui generis said:

 

Have you attempted to bend a KE4MAX? 

 

I have a MR3 True Blue and have been successfully bending stuff for fifteen years. This morning I tried to adjust the loft on my KE4MAX 6 iron. I don't think I moved it.

 

I have a very good adjustable bending bar and my True Blue is soundly anchored to my very sturdy bench which is bolted to the wall. I huffed and puffed, but I couldn't feel the hosel move like I usually can when bending. 🤨

 

ps On the Golfworks KE4MAX page there is a review from someone who said that they'd had trouble bending them, too. 

 

https://www.golfworks.com/maltby-ke4-max-iron-heads/p/ma0337/

I ordered mine 1.5* up, and they check out from "spec" on Golf works, so someone there bent mine.  

 

Now I'm wondering how easy/hard that was.

[ChaosTheory]

1 hour ago, sui generis said:

 

Have you attempted to bend a KE4MAX? 

 

I have a MR3 True Blue and have been successfully bending stuff for fifteen years. This morning I tried to adjust the loft on my KE4MAX 6 iron. I don't think I moved it.

 

I have a very good adjustable bending bar and my True Blue is soundly anchored to my very sturdy bench which is bolted to the wall. I huffed and puffed, but I couldn't feel the hosel move like I usually can when bending. 🤨

 

ps On the Golfworks KE4MAX page there is a review from someone who said that they'd had trouble bending them, too. 

 

https://www.golfworks.com/maltby-ke4-max-iron-heads/p/ma0337/

I’ve bent some old Pings.  What I recall is a springy feeling.  I had to push-push-push (spring-spring-spring) and then when I had the feel for where the end point was, really shove past it on the next push.

[sui generis]

2 minutes ago, Snowman9000 said:

I’ve bent some old Pings.  What I recall is a springy feeling.  I had to push-push-push (spring-spring-spring) and then when I had the feel for where the end point was, really shove past it on the next push.

 

I know what you mean. It's a bouncy sort of move unlike the steady pressure that works most of the time. I'm off to the hardware store for a short piece of metal pipe to slip over the handle of my bending bar to get more leverage. I'll be pissed if I break the head. 😉

[ChaosTheory]

4 minutes ago, sui generis said:

 

I know what you mean. It's a bouncy sort of move unlike the steady pressure that works most of the time. I'm off to the hardware store for a short piece of metal pipe to slip over the handle of my bending bar to get more leverage. I'll be pissed if I break the head. 😉

Good luck!

[sui generis]

37 minutes ago, Snowman9000 said:

Good luck!

 

The 1" x 12" metal pipe gave me a bit more of a lever, but I can say I've never had to apply that much force to a clubhead before. I moved the loft about 2* (and she didn't break).

[ChaosTheory]

1 hour ago, sui generis said:

 

The 1" x 12" metal pipe gave me a bit more of a lever, but I can say I've never had to apply that much force to a clubhead before. I moved the loft about 2* (and she didn't break).

Sometimes you wonder how the machine stays true and square.

[NRJyzr]

8 hours ago, sui generis said:

 

Have you attempted to bend a KE4MAX? 

 

I have a MR3 True Blue and have been successfully bending stuff for fifteen years. This morning I tried to adjust the loft on my KE4MAX 6 iron. I don't think I moved it.

 

I have a very good adjustable bending bar and my True Blue is soundly anchored to my very sturdy bench which is bolted to the wall. I huffed and puffed, but I couldn't feel the hosel move like I usually can when bending. 🤨

 

ps On the Golfworks KE4MAX page there is a review from someone who said that they'd had trouble bending them, too. 

 

https://www.golfworks.com/maltby-ke4-max-iron-heads/p/ma0337/

 

That review is from WRX member @dlow206.  He also posted on WRX about having that adjustment problem

 

Edited July 24, 2022 by NRJyzr

[dlow206]

8 hours ago, sui generis said:

 

Have you attempted to bend a KE4MAX? 

 

I have a MR3 True Blue and have been successfully bending stuff for fifteen years. This morning I tried to adjust the loft on my KE4MAX 6 iron. I don't think I moved it.

 

I have a very good adjustable bending bar and my True Blue is soundly anchored to my very sturdy bench which is bolted to the wall. I huffed and puffed, but I couldn't feel the hosel move like I usually can when bending. 🤨

 

ps On the Golfworks KE4MAX page there is a review from someone who said that they'd had trouble bending them, too. 

 

https://www.golfworks.com/maltby-ke4-max-iron-heads/p/ma0337/

 

That's my review. So hard to bend these things. I have a Mitchell bolted into concrete in my garage. Never had this much trouble bending in the past. 

[sui generis]

8 minutes ago, dlow206 said:

Never had this much trouble bending in the past.

 

Ditto. Like you, I know what I'm doing, but boy, these are stout. I played my new KE4MAX irons for a few weeks and determined that I wanted a little more of a gap between the 6i and 7i.

 

This afternoon's wrestling match, aided by my new Lowe's plumbing section 12" bending bar extension, moved the 6i loft by about 2*, I think. (The good news is there don't seem to be any dings in the chrome from the jaws of the bending bar. Although, I've never much cared about those small dents anyway.)

 

 

[Colej]

11 hours ago, sui generis said:

 

Have you attempted to bend a KE4MAX? 

 

I have a MR3 True Blue and have been successfully bending stuff for fifteen years. This morning I tried to adjust the loft on my KE4MAX 6 iron. I don't think I moved it.

 

I have a very good adjustable bending bar and my True Blue is soundly anchored to my very sturdy bench which is bolted to the wall. I huffed and puffed, but I couldn't feel the hosel move like I usually can when bending. 🤨

 

ps On the Golfworks KE4MAX page there is a review from someone who said that they'd had trouble bending them, too. 

 

https://www.golfworks.com/maltby-ke4-max-iron-heads/p/ma0337/

Yes I did bend them and I’ll fully confess I’m a bit of brute 😂. If you’ve ever attempted to bend a old Ping iron, you need to bounce them. Do not try steady pressure. You’ll likely only get 1-1.5 degrees from what the heads currently measure, before bending. 

[Sparkey67]

Everything I have read and seen regarding the ke4 max has me intrigued.  I should probably buy a set of heads but the boss says I need to sell my TS1's before I get something else. 😔

[mustang]

On 7/25/2022 at 9:26 AM, Sparkey67 said:

Everything I have read and seen regarding the ke4 max has me intrigued.  I should probably buy a set of heads but the boss says I need to sell my TS1's before I get something else. 😔

DO IT.  Then tell me about it!   I have my mind set on TS-3 or TS-4...... then all these reviews...   

[Klubster]

After being very happy with my Max irons, I played a terrible round yesterday.  Just could not hit anything solid.  The good part was that I got to play a lot of PW and GW shots from the rough around the greens.  I found them to get through quite well and easy to use around the greens.  Even bad rounds have their good points.

[Spankapotamus redux]

So after having these heads for a while now, I've finally started on my building. 8i test club is curing in the garage. I initially intended on building these with the RT 95s I have salvaged from another set, but after playing this year with light weight graphite, I just can't see going back that direction. I managed to score a set of new pulls 5-G of the MMT 70R off eBay for a cool $100. Must have been a guy who just didn't know or want to bother with trying to get a few more bucks (hadn't seen a set in any condition under $200 ever before). I'm only building 6-G, but the extra shaft will go nicely in a KE4 5 hybrid head I happen to have. That's curing atm too. I'll take those 2 out tomorrow for a few test shots to figure swing weight out and go from there. Rough calculation has them coming in rather light around C2-4 as is, but not sure I believe those numbers. If they are correct, it would work out to 10-15g per head I would need to add and I'm not sure I'd want to add that much to graphite shafts. So we'll see what the feel test says.

[Colej]

8 hours ago, Spankapotamus redux said:

So after having these heads for a while now, I've finally started on my building. 8i test club is curing in the garage. I initially intended on building these with the RT 95s I have salvaged from another set, but after playing this year with light weight graphite, I just can't see going back that direction. I managed to score a set of new pulls 5-G of the MMT 70R off eBay for a cool $100. Must have been a guy who just didn't know or want to bother with trying to get a few more bucks (hadn't seen a set in any condition under $200 ever before). I'm only building 6-G, but the extra shaft will go nicely in a KE4 5 hybrid head I happen to have. That's curing atm too. I'll take those 2 out tomorrow for a few test shots to figure swing weight out and go from there. Rough calculation has them coming in rather light around C2-4 as is, but not sure I believe those numbers. If they are correct, it would work out to 10-15g per head I would need to add and I'm not sure I'd want to add that much to graphite shafts. So we'll see what the feel test says.

What length are you building to? Grip? 

[Spankapotamus redux]

2 hours ago, Colej said:

What length are you building to? Grip? 

Standard length. 37" 7 iron. I looked at the shafts again this morning because something seemed off but I couldn't tell what it was. They came gripped with PXG Oversize grips. I usually play standard or smaller midsize grips, so these will come off and get swapped out. The oversize grips are probably contributing a small amount to the funky swingweight measurements. I did take a few swipes with the 8 iron I built last night and it feels pretty good. I'll take it to the range this afternoon and see what happens.

[Colej]

1 minute ago, Spankapotamus redux said:

Standard length. 37" 7 iron. I looked at the shafts again this morning because something seemed off but I couldn't tell what it was. They came gripped with PXG Oversize grips. I usually play standard or smaller midsize grips, so these will come off and get swapped out. The oversize grips are probably contributing a small amount to the funky swingweight measurements. I did take a few swipes with the 8 iron I built last night and it feels pretty good. I'll take it to the range this afternoon and see what happens.

I would think C8-C9? At 37”