Why playing blades ?

[Gerald]

Whenever a mid or even highcapper asks anything on blades or musclebacks at the TST forum, he will get a lot of advise to be out of his mind and that you need a super swing to hit them.

I am not saying a super swing isn't going to help you get the best out of these sticks, but anyone even a high midcapper can play the most traditional blades with the same easy as any SGI iron.

A bad shot with a blade isn't going to be a good shot with any SGI iron, but a pured shot with a blade will be much more rewarding than the same with any SGI.

Some are small and I just don't believe the fairy tales of blades forcing a bad swinger to become a better swinger, well maybe only a bit ......, butt of all the extra time you put in practicing will make you a better ballstriker ...... it is not the arrows, but it is the archer !

For me it is all about control (or the lack of it) and the ease you can work the ball.

Most (S)GI and even Players Cavity Backs are great for hitting high launching straight balls, working the ball from right to left will be easely done, but left to right ..... well these things are designed for hitting straight balls, so if you want or need to work the ball, you will need to work harder .......

Also they mostly have a way better turf interaction and I find it easier to work the clubs under the ball and at the same time still have a lower trajectory which has of course most to do with having a higher center of gravity.

So if you don't mind being punished for the mishits (you will be) there are also a lot of benefits in playing a blade or muscleback iron.

[bunkerputt]

Blades I own:

Spalding Lee Trevino series circa 1980s

Mizuno MP-67

Callaway X-forged

Maltby MMB musclebacks

Maltby Tricept F2 Forged

Blades I want to own:

Mizuno MP-68

Why I own blades:

• Feel/Feedback.  The reward for hitting a well-struck blade is enormously higher than for the equivalent shot with a GI club.  Combined with the right ball, the sound and feel is truly spectacular.
• Weight/Balance.  It's just easier to swing a blade and find one that swings well.
• High VCOG.  Shots tend to launch lower with a bit more side-spin so you don't have to change your swing/setup so drastically to work the ball.
• Looks.  Blades have a simple and focused look reducing your target to a specific area of the clubface.
• Mis-hits go short, but straight.  Barring a forced carry, I'd rather be on-line and short than off-line and long.
• Somewhat more resistant to the vile marketing and technology machine than the GI category

[dbuck]

I own a nice set of Wilson Staff Tour Blades, ca. 1979, 2-SW.  I also have an FG-17 1 iron that I use with them. With this set, I have also reverted to persimmon--most often a Joe Powell driver and 3 wood.

My current most used bag includes a Golden Ram 5 iron, a Hogan Director 9 iron bent to a 7 iron,  a Wilson FG-17 9 iron, and a Wilson Staff JP pitching wedge. I have given over to technology a little bit on the driver, and may add a hybrid--something I have never owned.  I am sticking to blades for the irons though, and if this experiment continues, I may try to talk Scratch into a half set (actually more like a 1/3 set) of custom lofts someday.

I just enjoy blades because I like the look and feel. I know I could probably play better with a little more forgiveness and in fact I do own a decent set of Titleist cavity backs.

[TourSpoon]

My current sticks are the Titleist 735 cms which are a progressive set. They have minumum offset, thin toplines, and everything else that goes along with a player's club. The 8-PW are muscleback, 5-7 are shallow cavity, and the 3-4 are cavities. The only thing that I would have done differently would have been to start the blades at the 7 iron. When I switched to this set and hit the blades, it was eye-opening as far as precision, workability, and trajectory were concerned.  I think that it has helped get to where I am at by allowing me to be able to really hit some shots.

[Deryck Griffith]

I currently play Mizuno MP-57s and while they aren't "pure blades," they certainly demand a consistent swing.  As a Mizuno club, I must say that any hit on the sweet spot is a feeling like no other SGI irons could ever give you.  Working the ball is a dream and the look of the Mizuno's (or any other blade for tha matter) inspires confident over the ball!

[marengo]

I currently play a combo set of TM TP MC/MB's.  I also have a set of TM ICW5's in the garage gathering dust.  My reasons for playing these:

1) I love the slim topline and the looks of these clubs.  Much nicer than the bulky look of my previous Irons (Burner 2.0s/Cobra S9s)

2) I have been taking lessons and I am trying to change from a sweeper/picker to a digger.  I think the thinner sole of these irons might help me learn better versus the very wide soles of the (S)GI irons

3) The smaller heads of these really makes me focus on contact and swinging within myself.  The size of my other irons gave me a false sense of confidence.  I would over swing with them; kind of like you do with a 460cc driver versus an old persimmon 1W.

[bradsul]

Mizuno MP-33 for me.

I love the look of the slim top lines and smaller club heads.  The first time I hit the sweet spot on a blade I was hooked, I never felt that great contact with any cavity backs.

[sean_miller]

  bradsul said:

Originally Posted by bradsul

Mizuno MP-33 for me.

I love the look of the slim top lines and smaller club heads.  The first time I hit the sweet spot on a blade I was hooked, I never felt that great contact with any cavity backs.

I also two very similar sets of irons, one being musclebacks and the other being players cavity backs. The CBs are easier to hit long and high and they feel almost as good on a good strike, but . . . they're just not blades.

[Rednax1530]

Well my coming set of clubs are the Miura Limited Black Blades.  Although I am not a great player I tried the equivalents out in a fitting and found them to be phenomenal, as well as Miuras Passing Point irons. I do admit that was swayed by the beauty and fact that they are Limited edition. But I found hitting those irons to be amazing compared to what I was hitting before which were really low end clubs. Good for starting don't get me wrong. Wilson Prostaff.

I decided to buy something that will last me for a long time, although eventually I'm sure another fitting, new shafts and more often new grips will be required. And I decided to go with blades because while hitting, although they will not be as forgiving, even in the fitting I could tell when I was hitting too much on the toe or heel of the club. I never understood before what people were talking about the feel of a club.

Anyway I think I have rambled on long enough, and welcome any tips or constructive criticism anyone has to offer.

Mitch

[misty_mountainhop]

  bunkerputt said:

Originally Posted by bunkerputt

Blades I own:

Spalding Lee Trevino series circa 1980s

Mizuno MP-67

Callaway X-forged

Maltby MMB musclebacks

Maltby Tricept F2 Forged

Blades I want to own:

Mizuno MP-68

Why I own blades:

Feel/Feedback.  The reward for hitting a well-struck blade is enormously higher than for the equivalent shot with a GI club.  Combined with the right ball, the sound and feel is truly spectacular.

Weight/Balance.  It's just easier to swing a blade and find one that swings well.

High VCOG.  Shots tend to launch lower with a bit more side-spin so you don't have to change your swing/setup so drastically to work the ball.

Looks.  Blades have a simple and focused look reducing your target to a specific area of the clubface.

Mis-hits go short, but straight.  Barring a forced carry, I'd rather be on-line and short than off-line and long.

Somewhat more resistant to the vile marketing and technology machine than the GI category

Just out of interest, what were the Maltby MMBs like?

[GaijinGolfer]

Agree.  Blades arent as difficult to hit as some people make them out to be and GI/SGI irons dont fix your swing flaws as much as some people think they do.  To each their own.  If GI irons allow people to feel more confident and enjoy the game more, good for them.

[bjornarneson]

  misty_mountainhop said:

Originally Posted by misty_mountainhop

Just out of interest, what were the Maltby MMBs like?

I'm also very curious about these Maltby MMBs. My MP-29s may have another season (or two) left in them, but I'm already scouting for the next set. I have some club-building skills--the component approach appeals to me very much.

[Gregoryhouse]

I just love my MB 712!

I feel I can get the best of my golf with them.

Maybe it's the way they look when you take your stance, like you can't miss....

I don't buy the urban legend that blades are more difficult to hit or that the misses are bigger than other irons.

[bunkerputt]

  bjornarneson said:

Originally Posted by bjornarneson

I'm also very curious about these Maltby MMBs. My MP-29s may have another season (or two) left in them, but I'm already scouting for the next set. I have some club-building skills--the component approach appeals to me very much.

They are heavy, a little long hosel-to-toe, have a little bit of offset, and feel pretty good.  They aren't traditional blades at all and the feel is less buttery and more thumpy.  They're sort of a crossover for people with less than perfect swings who like a fairly clean looking set of irons.  Ball flight is medium.  I played them for a couple of years until moving back to Mizunos.  Feel free to purchase any single head, build a club and try them out before committing to the whole set.

[defunctaccount]

Why playing blades? Two words: butter.

[dak4n6]

Most misses by high cappers are fat or thin, and no amount of game improvement is going to change that. OK maybe sole and leading edge shaping can make a slightly fat shot a little better, but the down side to that is there is reduced feedback that you just hit it fat, with the resulting reduction in motivation to hit it cleanly.

Myth, exageration, and manufacturers' techno-garbage talk lead many to believe that blades are harder to hit than they really are. What can't be overstated, however, is the feel and precision of blades.

[Rip24]

I play them because of looks and feel and playability.  but mostly because of looks, i cant stand to see a big chunky head with a ton of offset and also i dont want to be seen with a bag full of shovels.

But I dont belive its an exageration that blades for the average golfer/weekend hacker are way too dificult to play.   for those guys with slow swing speeds and multilpe swing faults id feel bad if they had to try to play only blades

[Fireblade]

I play Cleveland 588 MB's 3-pw because of all the clubs I 'tested' when it was time to replace my Callaways, these were simply (imvho) the best feeling club and gave me the best result. They fit my swing and just felt right from the very outset. The biggest difference was that the 588's have a less aggressive loft angle, by 2* to 3* at the shorter end of the set, which caught me out the first few weeks as I was feeling my way around new distance numbers. But now I have figured out my distances I am dialed in and I have a comfort level which wasn't there with the CB Callaways.

Is there a danger in buying blades? No, nobody is going to die!

If you are not a low index player do the golf manufacturers want you playing blades? Probably not as they miss the opportunity to sell you SGI to GI to Players clubs to...

Will playing blades make me a better player? Not exactly, that is what practice is for - GOOD practice that is.

But remember folks an ugly bloke in an Yves San Laurent suit is still an ugly bloke. He just looks like he has some style ;)