Best Blade/Tour Irons...Ever?

[The Tin Man]

Originally Posted by sean_miller

Whatcha smoking?!?

This is a channelback below. "Channelback" being far and away the most common name for the 1994 Apex irons.

In 1994 I was smoking Ping Zings. I am now older, wiser and don't do that anymore.

[newtogolf]

Awesome collection.  I'm trying to do the same only with lefty clubs.  I'm not sure if all the Hogan models were made in lefty, but as I find them I pick them up.  Thanks for sharing.

Originally Posted by Ben

I'm clocking in at around 25 sets... My oldest is actually a set of Hogans made by MacGregor (pre-Hogan Company) and my latest being a set of 2008 Apex (post-Hogan Co.) made by Callaway when they still cared about the brand... Bastids! My goal is to have a (serial numbers matching with original grips) set of each club made. I've really slowed down my collecting over the last two years, but I've still got my searches saved on eBay for the sets I'm missing, in case a deal I can't refuse comes around. Now I'm more into collecting odd items. Photos, books, anything Hogan. This is my club collection from about two years ago: I've had some additions since.

[BugDude]

There's currently some nice sets of VIP, Ram, Hogan, and Sam Sneed irons on eBay for around $100 or less.

[VMAN]

I have the pc's and ftx. Loved the pcs though mine are well worn and now are retired a long time ago. Went to mizuno when call away shut it down

[Daniel Watkins]

Ben Hogan Apex :D

[handlez42]

saw an old man playing hogan apex blades the other day when he joined my twosome...classic golfer cigarette in his mouth walking 18 holes the guy who tells you his life story and loves to give tips. im sure we have all met that golfer.

ive never hit a hogan blade before. ive never even seen one. my buddy said he was "hitting some nice ben hogans or something" around the 15th hole. i snuck a look at them on the 18th after our round and i wont lie they absolutely stunning blades. thinking back i started to remember how his money shots were anywhere between an 7 iron and a pw. he was all over the pin and was constantly leaving it below the hole when needed. throwing darts i suppose. i might have to get some just to hit every once and a while. they look like clubs you wanna hit but dont want to ruin. beauties.

[Jon Robert]

Players irons = blades (highly questionable "players" wives tale) The best "blades"or players clubs  ever are the old hard to hit ones that you learn to hit well.

The fact that someone can hit a very hard to hit club well does not mean that is the club to choose if you want to hit it well. "players clubs" are not hard to hit clubs.

There are no blades that are better in terms producing good shots. Blades are obsoleted by cavity backs or "game improvement" irons for producing a good shot.

There are only "better" blades for masking a swing flaw. The blades that are better at masking a swing flaw are actually worse than a blade that reveals a swing flaw.What is the point have having a club that puts you  in the middle of no mans land of knowledge. Was it you or the iron that resulted in a good shot? Hard to tell with  a "good" blade. With a game improvement iron your only concern is a good result. There is not much interest in terms of feedback as to your fundamental swing flaws. i.e tend to hit on toe etc. Your mission is not to learn how to improve and hit it dead center but to obtain "game improvement" results at that time.

Therefore the clubs to seek out are old blades for the practice field and game improvement clubs for the golf course. Any of the 60.s 70.s and even modern "blades" will do to perfect the swing. Use their ineffectiveness to reveal your swing flaws and make corrections.   I have 1963  Hogan IPT - Improved Power Thrust (name is sales pitch gimmick mostly) Very light lacking any heft, razor leading edge that does a wonderful and noticeable job of slicing off the grass as it passes through. Or slicing a golf ball. Very short distance and hard to control/repeat distance. Generally a really poor club for helping me produce a good golf shot.  Exactly what I want on the practice field.

Your "players" clubs are the ones that can put you in the winners circle i.e game improvement features to the max.  Like Hogan Apex Edge. Oversize, Forged (bend for lie and loft), can fill the pocket with lead to change heft. (mine gets 2 oz)  These are about as perfect a game improvement club as they get. Unless you are extremely average/lucky to match a production line club perfectly (not likely - does everyone where size 10 shoe?) you will probably need to alter grip, length, lie and weight.

The fact that someone can hit a very hard to hit club well does not mean that is the club to choose if you want to hit it well. "players clubs" are not hard to hit clubs

[handlez42]

Although I agree with you in some cases..not totally.

Blades are considered obsolete but only because the technology is considered "old" I hit cavity back forged Wilson's and im never going back to cavity back "numb" casted clubs.

Blades hit on a dime and in most cases old blades are "diggers" and demand near perfection which is why many people like them cause hitting a blade pure and putting it on a dime is no better sensation, I assume.

Now in terms of having blades vs. Cavity tour players will take cavity forged just because of the many things that can go wrong in a swing that can deduct distance or punish accuracy. Tiger woods on the other hand doesn't believe in such theory. He used to with the first few combo sets Nike produced and are still producing but recently he plays a full set of blades and one cavity forged 3 iron

I have a set of 76 blades and although I'd like to hit them the amount of work to make them my own is quite alot considering my nice set of fgs. New shafts to +1 and the. Lies to +2 and that's depending on if the lies are even comparable to what I have. Lofts as well id like to adjust up a bit the pw looks almost like a 52* gap. And the grips are hard flat and lifeless. Now I know that doesn't seem like much and id like to do the work myself but dont know how so ill try to learn a bit. Get a few tools to work on the lie or loft or something to measure the loft. In short im sure these clubs would thrill me with accuracy and feel but they will remain "project" till I find a reason to replace the fgs

[pixel5]

Originally Posted by pixel5

I have tried MP-68's and Titleist 710 MB's (the newest and 'greatest' from two top blade makers)...hated them. I tried the Ping S57's and loved them...they will definitely be my first set of tour irons once I have the funds. I suggest trying everything you can get your hands on. You can find older versions of all 3 of these models for cheap. I know for ping the older model is the S59 (or the S58 if you want a little newer, the numbers go down as time goes on). I'm not sure what the Titleist and Mizuno models are.

I'd like to point out I made this post on August 6, 2010. Today is May 26, 2012. I just got a set of MP-14's. haha

[SNYP3R]

Mizuno TN-87's

[trumb1mj]

I just swapped out my JPX pros for Mizuno MP-57s.  This is not quite a blade but is a forged muscle back.  I switched for a smaller head, thinner top line, more workability and a super soft feel.  I have to say, I'm very happy with these 3 year old irons.  You can pick up a set for $200-250 on ebay.

Anyone else play the MP-57s?

[mlf16507]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Macgregor-Vintage-Colokrom-MT-M85-Irons-/280995010910?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash;=item416c9b995e

I juist bought the early 80's version of this 1955 classic.  The newer version has larger heads, which is a good thing,  The long irons in the early version aren't much bigger than the ball [tough to hit]

[Subpar68]

Got the Founders Forged 200 series since Novemer 1998 - technology can't beat them to date!

[HighlandLaird]

John Letters Master Model, double flange.  Wonderful irons, which Gary Player and Lee Tervino played..

But best of all (and I have had almost every blade iron made) is the 1999 Ben Hogan Apex.  They have a good degree of "bounce" in the sole, and a lovely "buttery" feel.  The only drawback is that if you want to change the shafts, they take taper tip, but are of such soft steel, they are easily drilled out to 0.370" for parallel tip shafts-----I have done this on my set, which comprises 2-SW, plus 54degree gap wedge.

[Just Brilliant]

I play mp33's.  They are so sweet.  My best golf was with Macgregor 67's circa 1977.   I salvaged the PW from the set, when they were confiscated at the border coming back from Tijuana. (I never hide stuff in my bag anymore).  Back then, I bought them in an alley, brand new in the plastic.   sorry about the old thread.

[chicagogolf]

RAM tour grinds

[Wedgespinner]

These, mainly because they're mine. Golden Ram Tour Grind Axial, Frequency Matched, Precision FM 6.5 shafts at +3/4".

Tried and liked lots of different things, mostly blades or similar. These just fit me nicely.

[Siberian]

Hi guys,

Used to post under a different account, but it's been a while. About to turn 60 and have been re-tuning my body, so I can re-tune my game. I grew up with Hogans. My first set was circa 1972 (Apex II?), but they got stolen on my Honeymoon it '84 (along with a hand-me-down wedge that had been hand ground by Chi Chi himself - wedge game has never been the same). So, I got a 1-E set of 1984 Apex PC's to replace them.

When I first got back to playing after years of playing seldom while my kids were growing up, I shot 74 my third time out with my Hogans, Stupidly, I opted out of my Hogans in favor of a set of Titleist 735 CMs. They look very similar at address, but I find that especially in the wind, the ball tends to balloon on me even when I try to knock it down. I have not been better than 75 since, albeit with sporadic play. So, I'm going back to my Hogans. A well-hit Hogan can't be matched, and even though my game is not what it was as a youth, I want to be able to knock the ball down if I want to. A hooded 2-iron played back can get you under anything in your way. A punch-draw 8-iron was a favorite for cutting through the wind as well. The Titleist irons try to launch everything high, and I already hit a high ball. I may not hit the same quality shots I used to as often, but I've decided to go with clubs that at least let me try. The game has always been about shot-making for me anyway.

For fun, I've included a pic of my 1-iron, which used to be a go-to club but is now a tall order to hit well.

I've actually considered ponying up for newer blades, but I'm not sure there's much to be gained.