Buying used forged irons - need help deciding what is "too worn" to buy

Here is a quick link to an ebay auction I saw with some Mizuno MP63's. The title describes them as "nice" but they certainly don't look new by any means. I'm just wondering if this wear is reasonable and whether they still have plenty of life left in them.

I know forged clubs are softer and wear out quicker so I don't want something that is only going to be good for a year. Would the clubs in this auction be considered good, fair, or poor for used condition?

Thanks guys, here is the auction:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Nice-Mizuno-Mp-63-Forged-Irons-Set-4-PW-Dynamic-Gold-S-300-Stiff/371132850751?_trksid=p2050601.c100269.m3464&_trkparms=aid%3D111001%26algo%3DREC.SEED%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20140813133143%26meid%3D4fbe39f41bd44f46aff67a27548c2099%26pid%3D100269%26prg%3D20140813133143%26rk%3D3%26rkt%3D4%26sd%3D251631664489%26clkid%3D292284856898609349&_qi=RTM1562571

On two of those heads, you've got some serious wear on the grooves. He describes them as 7.5/10 ... those 2 heads might be less than that... but others may be higher..

But the price of $319 also requests an offer ... if they fit you, and you decide, I'd go the "Make an Offer" route.

Just to make sure I'm understanding correctly, the grooves affect the amount of spin put on the ball, correct? Are there any other areas that "wear out" to the point where the club becomes inefficient, or are the grooves and the sole of the club the main areas that you want to look at?

You can sharpen the grooves to freshen them up.

Grooves act as tread would on a tire. It collects water, dirt, grass and allows the ball to still make contact with the clubface. Majority of the friction comes from the space between the grooves. If the grooves wear out I would suspect a person would get more flyer type trajectories.

I have a few sets of forged irons worse than that and have never had a problem with grooves. But I wouldn't spend that much on those. I'd rather have something more forgiving. If you want to get into a conventional forged head and experiment there are more affordable options out there.

It takes a lot of play to really "wear out" irons. I bought the irons in my sig new in 1979. I am sure their grooves may be worn a bit, but for you and I (hcps +/- 15=bogey golf) it really isn't that much of an issue. Some of the responders are a better than us and would notice the difference. The irons in the ad you posted would be fine I think for your intentions. I don't think you will wear them out in several years given modest maintenance.

I do agree with others that they are a bit pricey for what they are. If you are just wanting some forged blades to experiment with, look around a bit and you will find some less expensive; probably in the $200 range or less, or even make an offer on those in the $200-225 range. When you get them, change the grips if necessary. It seems odd to spend $60 on a $200 set of clubs, but changing grips is just like changing oil in your car.

Also, check out a Play it again sports, or  Goodwill in your area. You can often run up on sets for $100 and even less.

I recently picked up some pristene 91-92 Macgregor VIP's (some of them appear to have never been hit) for $30. In their day, they were probably $500-600.

I have the Titliest 695CB forged irons 3-pw, and the higher lofted club faces are pretty ugly, yet, they still play very well. I bought these used about 4 months ago for 140.00, although they needed to be regriped.

No I did not get those clubs, and to be honest I wasn't ready to pull the trigger on them, they just seemed to exhibit the amount of wear that most used clubs I've looked at do, so I thought it would be a good example to ask about.

I hit the Mizuno MP64's and absolutely loved them. I know they don't "match up" with my handicap, but I did not have a problem hitting them at all. Sure I would get the occasional mishit but usually when I mishit it's so bad that even a cavity couldn't help it. :) But as I hit the range more and more, the mishits are becoming less and less common.

Thank you for all the help you guys have given me and I will keep up the search for some nice forged clubs. Maybe if I stick with my no-name irons for another year the MP64's will become more reasonably priced.