Cracked Driver Head

[muttbag]

I have a Cleveland Launcher driver that I absolutely love and hit well. Unfortunately, there is now a crack on the bottom of the head. I made the mistake of letting a buddy's drunk girlfriend use it at Top Golf and she took out a neighboring bay in her follow-through. Is there anything I can do to fix the head? I can't bring myself to throw it away without hearing a definite "No, that is irreparable." Ironically, I can still hit the club about 270 yards off the tee. I tried before getting a new one. Non-golfers are no longer allowed to touch my clubs.

[saevel25]

Nope, you could probably get it welded, but now your messing with the integrity of the club, and how it performs. Is it an older moldel, if not you can usually contact Cleveland and they will ship you out a new one. you probably have to pay shipping for it, but its probably 20 bucks for a new club.

[Mr. Desmond]

No.

Find another.

Good luck.

[muttbag]

Thanks guys.  Saevel, I'm not the original owner.  Traded dad my TaylorMade R7 for his Launcher, we swapped on several occasions and ended up hitting each other's clubs better than our own.  I guess I'll stick this driver with my old set of clubs and sell online 'as-is', or donate them to a local program for kids who want to get into the game.

I ended up buying a used Nike SQ Sumo 5000 from Golfsmith for $50 to replace it.  I hit several new drivers and didn't like how any of them felt, this one is eerily close to my Launcher in both weight and overall club feel.  It has served me well and I plan on using it until it dies.

[Big C]

About a year and a half ago, I cracked the crown of my Taylormade R9. It was a prize through a charity auction, so I figured I was SOL without a receipt. Nonetheless, I knew a couple of the guys at my local Roger Dunn and decided to take it in to see what my options were. They told me no guarantees, but they would send it in to Taylormade on my behalf. A week later, I get a phone call that my new club was ready. When I arrived, they told me that not only did Taylormade agree to replace the club, they upgraded me to the R11s (apparently they were no longer producing new R9's).  It was a pleasant surprise, and needless to say, completely unexpected.

Point being, a lot of these major golf distributors have pretty tight relationships with the large club manufacturers. If you have a golf shop that you frequent, it might be worth a trip in there to see if they can work something out with Cleveland.

[dbuck]

Back when the Taylormade Firsole was new, I traded for one from a non-Taylor dealer. While I was hitting at the range, the shaft broke right at the head. I called a local Edwin Watts and told them up front I did not buy the club from them, but asked them to send it back for repair and I would pay whatever. The manager said it would be $15, and that usually Taylor would just replace the club. When I took the club in, the manager looked at it and said just pay us the $15 and pick out a new one from the rack! Another option is Ebay- you can often find a replacement for pennies on the dollar.

[muttbag]

Wow.  I frequent both Golfsmith & Edwin Watts here in the DFW area.  If that's the case, this merits at least a phone call.  If they can arrange any type of replacement, you guys are my heroes.

[Mr. Desmond]

Originally Posted by muttbag

Wow.  I frequent both Golfsmith & Edwin Watts here in the DFW area.  If that's the case, this merits at least a phone call.  If they can arrange any type of replacement, you guys are my heroes.

Well, I would have brought up a warranty replacement, but I don't think any warranty covers Bimbette Crashing Roof with Clubhead.

[Shorty]

Wow.  I frequent both Golfsmith & Edwin Watts here in the DFW area.  If that's the case, this merits at least a phone call.  If they can arrange any type of replacement, you guys are my heroes.

It does not warrant a phone call. It was used inappropriately and it would be rude to even ask if there's anything they could do.

[muttbag]

Well, when you put it like that.  I don't plan on concealing the nature of the damage, I simply don't want to throw a $300 club away if it can be salvaged.  If there's no recourse due to the circumstances, that's understandable.  I do not consider it rude to inquire through a distributor and/or manufacturer as to what my options are (if any) under a particular set of circumstances.

[Mr. Desmond]

Originally Posted by muttbag

Well, when you put it like that.  I don't plan on concealing the nature of the damage, I simply don't want to throw a $300 club away if it can be salvaged.  If there's no recourse due to the circumstances, that's understandable.  I do not consider it rude to inquire through a distributor and/or manufacturer as to what my options are (if any) under a particular set of circumstances.

If you've owned it for more than 2 years, it's probable worth is $25.... unfortunately.

But hey, give it a shot. People like honesty.

It's so .... rare.

[dbuck]

Mr.D is right on about the worth, unfortunately. That is why I mentioned ebay. Since you live in the DFW area though, I would also look at pawn shops, used sporting goods stores, and the used section at golf retailers. You might find someone's former $400 club for $50. I have a Taylormade 360Ti I paid $25 for several years ago, and a Titleist 905T with a speeder shaft I paid $50 for 3-4 years ago, both formerly $400 clubs.

[dbuck]

You might also put a wanted to buy ad in the sporting section of Craigslist--in an area that big someone might have one they want to part with.

[muttbag]

You're both right.  This thing is well over 2 years old, probably closer to 5 - 7 now that I think about it.  My current Nike driver that I purchased used is holding up well and I've certainly gotten my $50 worth out of it in the few short months I've owned it.  Dbuck, on your suggestion, I hit E-bay as well as Amazon to look for a Nike SQ 3-wood.  Looks like I can pick one up for about $40 delivered.  I'll make that my next endeavor instead of trying to salvage this driver, especially since I already have one in my bag.  I did have quite a fascination with this Cleveland Launcher when I first started playing (and had cheap no-name clubs), which is probably why I'm so hesitant to call it quits and part ways. .

If I'm this scrambled over an old broken driver, imagine the mess in my head when I'm on the range trying to focus on swing mechanics.

[Wisguy]

Call up Cleveland, tell them the truth, see what they tell you and post the results here so we know what kind of service Cleveland provides.

I had the same thing happen to me with a used Ping G20 I bought off eBay early this spring, which cracked across the clubface at the driving range the third time I used it.  I contacted Ping, was completely upfront with them about having bought it used from a non-authorized dealer off eBay, and asked how much it would cost to have it repaired.  They told me to send it in and a week later, they Fed-Exed a brand new one to me, next day delivery, at no cost.  My next clubs will be Pings.