Copper Versus Steel Irons

[bradwillrockyou]

Does anyone have any opinions on beryllium copper irons versus standard steel irons? I've heard that copper irons supposedly give you a better "feel" because it's a softer metal or something, but wouldn't the softer metal also mean less distance? Any thoughts? Thanks!

[picrig]

I know nothing about copper irons, so take this with a grain of salt, but my first thought would be that copper irons, regardless of performance characteristics, wouldn't be very durable. Just think about how easy it is to bend/deform copper wire. I'll be interested to see what other people know about them.

[denver_nuggs_15]

I remember reading that the old BeCu irons caused cancer. It might not be true, but I would never play with a club that can do that. They are supposedly very soft. I have hit a couple of shots with them and it's a different feeling. I'm not sure about distance compared to modern steel irons.

[I <3 Titleist]

Beryllium is a carcenogen but BeCu as a finished product is harmless. Breathing dust after machining beryllium copper will pretty much kill you.

[lumpuckeroo]

In the early 90's several companies, most notably Ping, tried several different materials to make the cast iron softer, like copper and nickel. I actually own a set of nickel Ping's, while the clubs were not as hard as previous investment cast irons, they were not close to a forged iron.

Today, manufactors are using the ploymer and urethane inserts to give the cast irons a "softer" feel.

[ks8829]

I own a set of Ping Eye 2 Becu that my wife bought me about 20 years ago. I played with them for about 5 years and do not notice a softer feel compared to my Mizuno mp33 forged irons. I would buy a forged iron over a becu. Becu is harmful to you and they don't make clubs out of the material anymore. Below was a previous thread regarding becu back in August 08.

http://thesandtrap.com/forum/showthread.php?p=229081

[paperclip]

I've been playing a set of BeCu irons for around 20 years. I can't answer for the cancer-side stuff, except that as far as I know I don't have cancer. But the feel is definitely softer than regular cast clubs and rivals some of the forged ones. After 20 years, mine are still in pretty good shape.