RomaRo 460HX 9* Driver...and other Woods

[morebeerbettergolf]

I picked up a RomaRo 460HX driver, put an Attas3 7 TS in it, and this thing is a cannon. Such a dense, solid feel, incredible carry, great looks. RomaRo really is the "it" brand right now, in my opinion.

 

I also have the cup face 3W and the 18 and 21* cup face UTs. Forgiving, long, and so dense they could almost be mistaken for persimmon. Really worth a shot. The cup face really makes them hot on mishits, particularly towards the toe. I have hit some shots that had no business being as good as they were. They seem to incorporate more bulge/roll in the face of their woods which enhances gear effect, but for the good. The toe strikes seem to "self correct" and fly straight instead of pushing right or hooking back left with too much spin. Hard to describe really.

 

You know when you toe one with a 3W and you expect it to push/slice or weak hook/draw? Well it feels like that is what it's going to do, except it starts right a bit then straightens towards the target line. I am sure it has something to do with the cup design/bulge and roll but whatever it is, it works.

 

I ordered the Pro Forged irons and they were built today at UST with Recoil 125 F4 tipped 1/2", should have them Friday as Bobby was overnighting them to me Thur AM. As great as the woods are, I can't wait to hit the irons. I have also had an opportunity to hit the RomaRo iBrid clubs a fair amount, and they are excellent as well.

 

I honestly think this small boutique brand is onto something with their designs. They not only are stunning visually, but they seem to embrace a philosophy of a soft, dense, traditional feel as well. Really worth looking into.

 

Signed,

 

The RomaHo

[whiteretro]

Great to hear about RomaRo driver

Could you provide specs on your driver and shaft?

Also, could you provide comparison to other JDM drivers (distance, ballflight, etc) and let us know what ball you are using?


Retro

[morebeerbettergolf]

45.25", Attas3 7TS shaft.

Compared to KPX, Ryoma, etc it just seems to be easy and has more carry. KPX is lower and more roll, Ryoma is higher and has less roll. It just fits in between the two with exquisite feel and looks. Pretty compact for 460 because it is so deep. Was really worried I would hit it too high but that isn't the case at all. Hard to really put my finger on it, but it just flat out works, and it can be had pretty reasonable on yahoo japan.

[whiteretro]

[quote name='morebeerbettergolf' timestamp='1365047687' post='6757335']
45.25", Attas3 7TS shaft.

Compared to KPX, Ryoma, etc it just seems to be easy and has more carry. KPX is lower and more roll, Ryoma is higher and has less roll. It just fits in between the two with exquisite feel and looks. Pretty compact for 460 because it is so deep. Was really worried I would hit it too high but that isn't the case at all. Hard to really put my finger on it, but it just flat out works, and it can be had pretty reasonable on yahoo japan.
[/quote]
e
10 degree? neutral, open, closed face? ball preference?

This is great info

Many Thanks


Retro

[morebeerbettergolf]

9* square face, I have hit it with range rocks, srixon XV, Epon 4, Titlist ProV1x, Velocity, E7, this time of year just pulling whatever is in bag because the conditions suck. It feels great and performs great with all. Even range rocks.

[conkara]

[quote name='morebeerbettergolf' timestamp='1365045483' post='6757139']
I picked up a RomaRo 460HX driver, put an Attas3 7 TS in it, and this thing is a cannon. Such a dense, solid feel, incredible carry, great looks. RomaRo really is the "it" brand right now, in my opinion.

I also have the cup face 3W and the 18 and 21* cup face UTs. Forgiving, long, and so dense they could almost be mistaken for persimmon. Really worth a shot. The cup face really makes them hot on mishits, particularly towards the toe. I have hit some shots that had no business being as good as they were. They seem to incorporate more bulge/roll in the face of their woods which enhances gear effect, but for the good. The toe strikes seem to "self correct" and fly straight instead of pushing right or hooking back left with too much spin. Hard to describe really.

You know when you toe one with a 3W and you expect it to push/slice or weak hook/draw? Well it feels like that is what it's going to do, except it starts right a bit then straightens towards the target line. I am sure it has something to do with the cup design/bulge and roll but whatever it is, it works.

I ordered the Pro Forged irons and they were built today at UST with Recoil 125 F4 tipped 1/2", should have them Friday as Bobby was overnighting them to me Thur AM. As great as the woods are, I can't wait to hit the irons. I have also had an opportunity to hit the RomaRo iBrid clubs a fair amount, and they are excellent as well.

I honestly think this small boutique brand is onto something with their designs. They not only are stunning visually, but they seem to embrace a philosophy of a soft, dense, traditional feel as well. Really worth looking into.

Signed,

The RomaHo
[/quote]Hi, Who is "bobby" where did you buy?
Thanks

[idrive]

Mine will be here in a couple of days.... bought this only because of MBBG's recommendation.

Expecting this to be real good, just need to figure out which shaft is going to work best for me. thinking
about my Diamana 'ilima as I want this to launch high. Already have a low screamer for the wind.

[Bravo36]

Good grief, I'm being sucked into the vortex! You guys need to knock this sh$t off.

Oh, yeah, I'd like to hear what you think about it.

[MizzyMan]

Haha. I called you a fraud in that other room, but I guess you've left TSG and now are VP with Romaro. Great review, damn, now I'm gonna have to give this one a shot. Thought I could resist.

[idrive]

[quote name='MizzyMan' timestamp='1365106017' post='6761967']
Haha. I called you a fraud in that other room, but I guess you've left TSG and now are VP with Romaro. Great review, damn, now I'm gonna have to give this one a shot. Thought I could resist.
[/quote]

I think there are quite a few of us that have left.....

[morebeerbettergolf]

Played 18 with my JDM freak buddy, John. Long, tough course, just opened for season, with the slickest greens I have ever played on. So we didn't break any course records, but was a good chance to try out gear. I just wasn't swinging well at all today either, couldn't get my weight transferred on the tee box, etc. You know...cold, too many clothes, excuses, excuses.

I want to reiterate that the RomaRo FW clubs are the real dense feeling, persimmon like clubs. Very solid. Had another good day with the FW today, might have been the most consistent single club in the bag today although the Yururi's were bailing me out time and again and leaving me with really short putts to miss.

The 460HX, upon further review, is a little more metallic than what I thought at first. Maybe it's getting loosened up, lol. It's actually dependent on where the strike is, most drivers have a dead sound when you miss it, and a louder sound when you nut one, whereas this is the opposite. Good strikes are soft and somewhat muted but "hot" sounding, and off center hits are a little more hollow and tinny. I was hitting the ball so well the first couple of times I used it that I didn't realize this til today when I seemed to be using the rest of the face.

John plays an Epon 103 with a Crazy Noir shaft. The Epon is much more of a thwack sound than the RomaRo. He hit my driver, and I hit his, and I think we both agree that the Epon is very solid and muted both in feel and sound, while the RomaRo has a very springy-hot feel to it. As John described it, it's kinda like the ball sticks to the face or has the suck it in-shoot it out trampoline feel to it.

The Epon seems to hit frozen ropes while the RomaRo was a bit more of a bomber, even though the Epon is a 10.5 and the RomaRo is a 9*. John was dead down the middle all day with the Epon, sometimes with a baby draw. It really was disgusting. He was fading the RomaRo a bit, but on one hole where he nutted the Epon dead down the center like always, he teed up and hit the RomaRo with a baby fade and hit halfway up a tree on the right side of the fairway, and that tree was pretty much parallel with where his Epon drive had ended up. It wasn't the be-all, end all of testing, but I think if a guy had 2 drivers, I would take the Epon out on windy days and the RomaRo on days when the ground was soggy or you had more forced carries, because the thing is a carry monster.

I believe that people that have trouble with pushes, fades, slices might struggle somewhat with the RomaRo unless you get the shaft right. I have found the high modulus shafts like the ATTAS3 and others, even higher launching ones, tend to be more fade prone than your run of the mill carbon. Even so, I normally hook or overcook draw my missed drives even with HM carbon, and with this setup it's a flare when I don't get my weight transferred, and a push fade when I don't get my hands turned over. It really takes the left side out of play for me, which is great. The extra bulge and roll of the face likely contributes to this somewhat.

I got surprisingly good distance out of the couple of flares I hit today. I was pissed when I hit them but when we got to the ball, it was very acceptable in terms of distance. Lie, on the other hand, was a problem a couple times. I think the Epon and Crazy is more neutral/draw biased, as when I hit it, it drew.

All in all, I probably prefer the more lively, springy feel of the RomaRo to the duller feel of the Epon, but prefer the sound of the Epon. I did some thinking on the way home tonight, and I realized that I was playing a new course today in less than ideal weather, and all the clubs in my bag I have played less than 36 holes of golf with except my wedges, which have seen 54 prior to today, and only 18 of those with the newly installed Recoils in them. So I don't feel too bad playing bogey golf today with a bunch of unfamiliar clubs on a new, long course. That was like my Stuart Smalley Daily Affirmation.

I have a big ol' box of RomaRo clubs coming tomorrow before noon from UST, and hope to take them out tomorrow afternoon, wife permitting. I will give full write ups of the Pro Forged blades/Recoil combos, and the UTs with Recoils in them once I get some time in with them and feel I can make a fair assessment. Essentially my plan is to weed out the clubs that don't work for my game, move them on, and keep the ones that work best. The constant Ho'ing hurts my game, and it is my focus this year to bring my handicap down to where it was 2 years ago (or more) before I tore up my shoulder and wrist, and I can't do that if I have different clubs in the bag every week. It will be hard to do, but when it is all said and done, I will have the best of the best in terms of feel, performance, looks (to my eyes), and confidence.

The OnOff irons are absolutely brilliant, so good that John is considering ordering a second set. I hit some balls today that had no business turning out good, but they did, to the point of amazement, even. I really want to be able to play blades, but I just don't see how the RomaRo can perform any better than the OnOff, but we shall see. I wouldn't hesitate to tell anyone other than purists or super high launchers of the ball to give the OnOffs a shot. I am sure some of you think I sound like a broken record, but they really are [i]that good[/i]. They are so unique in the fact that they offer so little offset, but with enough junk in the trunk, tungsten weighting, incredible soft feel, and uncanny forgiveness...all in a relatively playeresque package. I do offer some glowing reviews of products on here, but keep in mind a lot of clubs go through my hands that never get talked about...I only post about the ones I like, and I REALLY like the OnOffs.

John might chime in here with his thoughts too. Until next time,


RomaHo

[idrive]

I have a Quadra Fire Express WBQ in my AF103 and I really struggle turning it over. Mid flight baby fades. One
of the few drivers I don't hit straight or draw slightly. Just picked up a TJ46 Noir, probably my most favorite shaft,
to put in the Romaro.

Interesting to have you mention the feel and sound of the 103. Just exactly how I would have described it.

Will be fun comparing these two.

[chiromikey]

[quote name='idrive' timestamp='1365139951' post='6765707']
I have a Quadra Fire Express WBQ in my AF103...[/quote]

really been wanting to try the fex wbq...tell me more about this baby!

[morebeerbettergolf]

[attachment=1619923:image.jpg][attachment=1619927:image.jpg][attachment=1619921:image.jpg][attachment=1619919:image.jpg][attachment=1619925:image.jpg]

[chiromikey]

well...were you only able to take pics or did you get to use them?

[charge]

Very nice set.

Looking forward to your review of the Pro forged irons!

[morebeerbettergolf]

I have had a huge crush on these irons for a very long time, and even though I knew they were probably a little out of my league, I wouldn't rest easy without giving them a shot. clubs themselves are absolutely stunning. Beautiful workmanship, the satin is just the right amount of bright and brushed, the complete lack of paintfill really gives them a classy look. There is a surprising amount of leading edge relief which is nice for two reasons: It helps with the thin miss, and it helps with digging. These have pretty much no offset, razor thin top line that was thinner in person than all the pics I have seen, and just much more compact from every angle to anything I have ever owned.

I hit a bunch of shots at the range tonight, and if there is one thing in life outside of death and taxes that's an absolute certainty, hitting blades after getting comfy with forgiving CBs can be a rude awakening. I was the mat hero all winter, but going out and hitting on grass can be another matter entirely. It seemed all the work I had done on mats had taken me away from really getting down and compressing the ball, and I was doing more picking that led to thin shots on natural turf. I really struggled with my ball striking yesterday in our round, but overall it has been pretty decent. It definitely took me a little introductory period to get it right with the blades.

When you really boil it all down, a high quality soft carbon blade is a blade is a blade is a blade in most respects. Sure there are subtle sole differences, etc. If you can get through the ball with a strong late release and take a divot, they are the cat's meow. If you're hanging on your right foot and sweeping up at it, it's gonna be a long day. So what I could get away with using the OnOffs was definitely not going to work with these. I really had to control my tempo and backswing and focus on compressing the ball and taking a divot. When I did that, they were as pure as one could ever hope for. It's true...there just isn't really anything that can compare with the feel of a dead center nutted blade long iron.

Performance:

They compared distance wise exactly to the OnOffs loft for loft. The Onoff 7i is 31 degrees, which is the same as the RomaRo 6i. Alternating between the two, I was stacking balls on top of each other at the 163y flag/green apparatus at the range. Weak, I know. The OnOff is the overall softest iron I ever hit, and I still think it is. The Kyoei Zestaim would be second. The Romaro is as good or better than anything I have ever hit out of the center of the clubface. It is definitely the dense, tackhammer pounding in a wire brad nail feel, whereas the OnOff is--and this is the only way I can really describe it--a lighter, fluffier, marshmallow kind of soft. They are both exquisite but in completely different ways. On thin mishits, The RomaRo is, as expected, godawful feeling and makes a horrible clack sound. Thank God I have carbon shafts in these.

I was shocked at how well they went compared to what I was expecting. Toe shots give up nearly no distance loss unless it was a weak shot with poor release, strong release toe shots were pretty close to center shots. Compared to the Epon Personals, which are very forgiving of thin shots and terrible off the toe, it was quite a surprise. I think I had built myself up to think that these weren't gonna go anywhere unless I pured it, and that just wasn't the case. But it sure doesn't feel real nice.

Ball flight with the OnOff is much more of a strong climb to an apex, then more of a "fall out of the sky" descent, whereas the RomaRos seem to be almost a perfect inverted U shot shape. Bear in mind these have the same exact shafts in them. I would almost have expected it to be the other way around, but it isn't. They both end up in the same place, they just get there differently.

I have a lot of playing and testing to do yet, but overall I am pleased with the blades. Love the way they look and set up, the feel on good shots, the ball flight. The shorter clubs were going high I thought then remembered how much weaker the lofts are than the OnOffs and Personals (bent 2* strong) I have been playing. Duh. I have never been a big believer that playing blades will make you a better golfer, but maybe after today I can see it a little bit. 50 balls into my range session my technique was WAY better out of sheer necessity. I still don't know if they present the scoring benefit the OnOffs do...actually I am pretty sure that I would give up a couple strokes if I put them in the bag right now. But give me 6 weeks with them and it might be a different story. The OnOffs are almost so forgiving and soft that you don't put as much of a premium on the correct swing and you still come out ok. When I was taking calm, collected, focused swings, I was hitting the blades every bit as accurately time after time as the OnOffs, it's when things get sloppy that you see the difference.

I also kind of subscribe to the theory that you're more apt to find the center of the club face with a smaller club than a larger one. In this case, the OnOff is more forgiving on off center strikes, and by a decent margin....but at the same time, I don't miss near as badly or as often with a blade...Long story short--and I have seen this as iron sets rotate in and out of the bag--it doesn't really seem to matter what I use. If I have a little time under my belt with them, I pretty much score the same. I can honestly say right now that I have no idea which one of these sets of irons will end up in my bag.

[chiromikey]

nice write up matt. remind me again which recoils you have?

[morebeerbettergolf]

125 Proto F4 tipped to play between S and X.

[Cpgaalberta]

Maybe a little of topic but the last time I played in Japan there was a guy throwing ray Romania name around with the Romano brand clubs. What is his involvement, if any with this brand?

[chiromikey]

well, that was almost a nice attempt at humor...