Ping Scottsdale Anser Putters: Couple Questions…

[Mainegrw]

It would figure that the nicest week of the summer here in the northeast, I’d stuck inside with Covid. Fortunately, I’m out of purgatory on Saturday! In the meantime, I’ve been using my boredom to do some projects that had been on the back burner, including cleaning up my old set of BeCu Ping Eye2s and my BeCu Scottsdale Anser, which is the topic of this post:

 

I bought the Scottsdale Anser back in the springtime from a local sports consignment store for $50. I was pretty certain it was BeCu, as it stood out from the bronze Ansers in the bin with it, but the guys at my preferred golf shop thought it was definitely bronze and not copper. I started to doubt it myself a little, whereas the patina matched the color of my Eye2s, in certain light conditions it looked more gold than copper. That said, my cleanup has proved my original assumption correct, it is most definitely a beautiful BeCu Anser. 

 

After cleaning, which was done with soap and water, followed by a 24 hour soak in Sprite soda (decided to try Sprite for its higher citric acid content over the traditional Coke treatment) and then finished with a second rinse and a final clean/protective coating of non-abrasive Flitz to pull out any remaining oxidation from the pores of the metal, I am left with a brilliant bright and shiny copper finish that looks almost buffed. The first question I have is whether this was original as Ping released it? Did they buff these putters to a high shine, or is that something that was probably done by a previous owner? Based on my experience with Flitz on other clubs and firearms, I do not believe that my light application and buff with a rag would be enough to bring it to a mirror shine all on its own. 
 

The other question on mind is if anyone recalls around when Ping released this series of Scottsdale Anser putters. I’ve seen a variety of sources with different years listed, some well after Ping stoped using BeCu in their putters, so it had me curious. It also doesn’t seem to match the markings of the 1996 version, leading me to believe this one was released after. Thoughts? 

Edited August 3, 2023 by Mainegrw

[Mainegrw]

Maybe it is the standard finish… here’s the putter next to my Eye2 3 Iron just pulled and cleaned up from its Sprite bath. Looks pretty close to the same finish, unless both have been buffed at one point or another. Again, my treatments have been all non-abrasive. 

[Tommy56]

I have this same putter … bought new from a pro shop in the late 1990’s for ~$80 or $90.  It has a dark bronze finish with a smooth polished brighter face.  I’ve never messed with the finish, and not sure on what the metallurgy is.  I see people sometimes trying to pass them off them off as originally issued Scottsdale Anser putter, which it is not.  

[Putter Addict]

Mid 90s, yes they were polished looking. I personally would have left it with the patina on it, but obviously it's not my putter. All of mine have been left alone to patina. Also much better to use in bright sun that way.

 

Probably should move to putter forum for more traffic/responses. 

[Mainegrw]

36 minutes ago, Putter Addict said:

Mid 90s, yes they were polished looking. I personally would have left it with the patina on it, but obviously it's not my putter. All of mine have been left alone to patina. Also much better to use in bright sun that way.

 

Probably should move to putter forum for more traffic/responses. 

Yeah, I know the polished look isn’t for everyone, I wrestled with it myself, truth is though, with my Eye2s especially, the more I use them, the more wear through the patina I see down near the sole, and to me they look kinda blotchy and not well cared for. They’re also a mixed set I put together from two partial sets, 3-6 in one set, and 7-SW in the other. The condition varies a little and they need to be repainted (lies were adjusted recently to standard black dot spec on all clubs, so the white dot is incorrect for half the set, shaft lengths are correct though). The goal is to clean them up, repaint the lettering and the dots, and then I’ll let them age back naturally together. The Anser I wanted to do because I honestly wasn’t 100% sure it was BeCu, now I am very certain. Again, I’ll probably let it age back naturally too, and all will eventually match. 
 

Good thought on moving the post, is that something I can do, or does a forum moderator need to move it for me? 
 

Also, mid 90s is where I was leaning, did they do these before the special commemorative one with the original markings, or was this released after? 

Edited August 3, 2023 by Mainegrw

[Putter Addict]

1 minute ago, Mainegrw said:

Yeah, I know the polished look isn’t for everyone, I wrestled with it myself, truth is though, with my Eye2s especially, the more I use them, the more wear through the patina I see down near the sole, and to me they look kinda blotchy and not well cared for. They’re also a mixed set I put together from two partial sets, 3-6 in one set, and 7-SW in the other. The condition varies a little and they need to be repainted (lies were adjusted recently to standard black dot spec on all clubs, so the white dot is incorrect for half the set, shaft lengths are correct though). The goal is to clean them up, repaint the lettering and the dots, and then I’ll let them age back naturally together. The Anser I wanted to do because I honestly wasn’t 100% sure it was BeCu, now I am very certain. Again, I’ll probably let it age back naturally too, and all will eventually match. 
 

Good thought on moving the post, is that something I can do, or does a forum moderator need to move it for me? 

They look nice polished, but I use mine from time to time so I leave it with patina because I don't like sun glare when putting.

 

Moving the post, I have no idea unfortunately. 

[Mainegrw]

20 minutes ago, Putter Addict said:

They look nice polished, but I use mine from time to time so I leave it with patina because I don't like sun glare when putting.

 

Moving the post, I have no idea unfortunately. 

That’s fair, this is admittedly a set of clubs I don’t often play, so the glare is less of a problem to me. If it were my regular set, I probably would have left them alone for that reason. I do use the Anser from time to time, but my Scotty Cameron Special Select Newport is my preferred putter for course play, just more practiced with it. 

[bellken]

It looks like the Guyson(?) finish has been removed. My BeNi and bronze versions were not shiny, when, I bought them years ago. It is definitely a BeCu, the bronze ones had sound slots.

[Nessism]

The original finish was "tumbled."  Basically, the putter is put in a large barrel, along with ceramic abrasive stones, then the barrel is vibrated to clean up the metal.  The metal surface as cast was a little rough, and the tumbling smoothed it out some and hid imperfections pretty effectively.  They never looked polished in any regard, but when new, they didn't have an oxide layer, which looks brown.

 

BTW, I had the BeNi version Scottsdale Anser and loved it.  I regretfully got rid of it because it was kind of light.  For this reason, the 50 anniversary Scottsdale Ansers had tungsten weights added.  Those are cool putters.

 

BTW2, this photo is of a Mg version Scottsdale Anser, posted here to demonstrate the tumbled finish, as evidenced by the swirl patterns on the surface.

 

 

 

Edited August 3, 2023 by Nessism

[Dustdevil]

Loved the tumbled finish.

I'd like my BeCu Scottsdale refinished, but since it's BeCu, people treat it like it's made of Plutonium.

[chip75]

You should be able to check if it's BeCu, it won't be magnetic. The Magnesium Bronze putters should be. The latter had the range of antique finishes with polished faces.