Tell me more about these forged Gene Byrne irons

[maxwellg]

Just picked up a 3, 5, 7, 8 and putter. The back reads Gene Byrnes, Double Flange and all but the 7 iron read Mild Forged Steel.

 

They all have Wilson Reminder grips with the club number on the butt of the club. The shafts are a brown color and read Wilson Flex Trolled.

 

Along with the irons were 2 steel shafted woods- Vic Ghezzi Autograph 2 and 3.

 

They all came with a Par Oval canvas bag that is nearly perfect and a pretty sweet hat...

 

I couldn't find anything about any of the clubs on the internet. The best I could do was a old newspaper advertisement from 1943 for the woods. Here are a few pics.

 

Any informtaion or idea on value is appreciated.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[maxwellg]

Anyone have any sort of information on anything?? Shafts? Grips? I'm still googling and still coming up with nothing.

[rex235]

[i]More than likely these are Wilson clubs, since the shaft shows a Wilson "Flex-Trolled" stamp.[/i]

[i]The "Mild Forged Steel" stamp on the Gene Byrne clubs is from the mid 1930s.[/i]

[i]It is possible these would be shown in the Kaplan reference book for Wilson, but the cream shaft color, soleplate stamps, registration numbers and insert materials on the woods are found in similar Wilson models. [/i]

[maxwellg]

Thanks for shedding some light on the subject Rex. Looks like I will be doing some research on that reference material.

I also have about 15 golf balls from the 1940s-50s

Looks like the rarest are a MacGregor Jack Burke ball, Spalding DOT, Spalding Kro-Flite, Spalding Tru-Flite, old Wilson Staff, Wilson Jet, Wilson Top Notch.

[guisician]

Nice find! Unfortunately, there's nothing on these specific clubs in the Kaplan Wilson book; FWIW, the 1st reference in there to the reminder grip was from the 1931 catalog.

[maxwellg]

Thanks so much guisician. So it's sounding like they have to be newer than 1931 because that is when the reminder grips came out. The finish on them is just really unbelievable. It's a very nice satin finish. Not like any other older clubs that I've seen, not that I am an expert on old clubs. The pictures in the sunlight don't portray the finish very accurately so I tried to grab a few better ones and one with my chrome 670 to try to give a comparison. Also turns out that what I thought was rust in the grooves was actually just dirt.

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[dalehead]

Gene Byrnes. Never heard of him. Finding out who he was may provide some clues.

[maxwellg]

I can't find anything at all on the internet about Gene Byrne. Just called Wilson golf customer service for fun. They only have information on clubs dating back to the 60's and the guy on the phone couldn't suggest anyone at all to speak with. Not sure where to go from here.

[majic]

My guess 30'2 or 40's as the shafts were all going to straight chrome during this time. Made for a club pro. Wilson made them but I am afraid you will have to check with a collector of catalogs to try to find a picture of head/shaft combo. The Golf Collector Society might be a place to try and fin some info. One of the members might know. Tad

[esketores]

Call the PGA or the USGA and see if they have any record of a Gene Byrne?

[Bella Woods]

My guess is we are looking at circa 1938 Wilson Irons, the woods could be
newer though - say early 1940s, assuming original finish (staining/painting
the face of the wood was more of a 1940s "thing"). That style of Wilson
"Swing Weight" soleplate dates to as early as 1938 and as late as 1941 (and
therefore generally available until at least 1946 due to the war).

Is the 5 iron 37" long? Hy Power shafts as opposed to TT.

The number on the bottom of the Brassie - signifies its the 43" long model.
Model 430A - 13 OZ (about 369 grams), Model 430B 13 1/4 OZ (about 375 grams).
Models 430C, D & E were heavier special order woods.

[maxwellg]

Great stuff Bella Woods. Thank you.

The 5 iron is 37". I'm not sure what you are referred to whne yo say "Hy Power shafts as opposed to TT". Are we talking about shaft models from Wilson? The only markings on the irons are in the picture above "Wilson Trolled Flex". There is no information on either of the wood shafts.
The soles of the woods wo no list A, B, C or D after the 430. Just 17430.

Can I ask where you are getting your information from? Right out of the ol noggin or can you point me to a resource somewhere?

Thanks again.

[Bella Woods]

maxwellg:

Hy Power and TT - Yes Wilson shaft models. Hy Power with the Walnut Sheathing you have on
your club. True Temper shafts were chrome.

Right - the sole of the wood only has 430 in the number sequence. The catalogs call them 430A
Model etc based on the weight of the finished club. So if your club weighs 375 grams - you have
a Model 430B Brassie that is 43" long.

Some info from memory - some from the old Wilson catalogs. The fact that your 5 iron is 37"
long leads me to believe I am right about 1938 year. 36 1/2" would have had 1501 on the sole of
the iron, 37 1/2" would have had 1503 on the sole.

My honest opinion about the woods is that they are 1941 or so, and could have been purchased around
then (or even up until 1946). Can't prove that though. The problem with dating some 1940s woods is
the effect of World War II on production etc.

[maxwellg]

Thanks again for the education Bella Woods.

Last question for you. They are obviously worth whatever someone is willing to pay for them, but have you seen anything else comparable sold lately?

[Bella Woods]

Not really - you know the market is way down so don't expect much unless
you happen to run into someone who wants (or needs) them for some reason.

I am curious - weight/length of the 2 wood?

[maxwellg]

So I measured the 2 wood and doubled checked the 5 iron. Looks like I was incorrect on the original measurement on the 5 iron.

5 iron = 38"
2 wood = 44"

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I don't know how to measure the weight of the woods without going down the street to golf galaxy to use their machine.

If you had to put a valuation on the irons and the woods right now..50-75 for the irons and 40-50 for the woods? I really have no idea.

[Bella Woods]

maxwellg:

It looks like you did measure the 5 iron correctly the first time - the measure is from
the bottom of the heel portion of the club - not the middle of the sole.

From your pictures - the 5 iron is 37" and the 2 wood (brassie) is 43".

Sorry, but I don't put valuations on clubs of any age - the three screw insert is
very interesting/unusual.

[maxwellg]

No worries. Thanks for your help. Let me know if anything else comes to mind or you run across a set for sale. I'll try to get the woods weighed in the next few days.

[ptjn1201]

[url="http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2199&dat=19360525&id=XI9SAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Lr4MAAAAIBAJ&pg=2162,3910882"]news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2199&dat=19360525&id=XI9SAAAAIBAJ&sjid=Lr4MAAAAIBAJ&pg=2162,3910882[/url]

THis seems to show that Byrne was a local pro in the KC area in 1936