Cobra Connect Five-Pre Challenge Chatter-Testers Announced.

[GolfSpy_SHARK]

@gavinski91great video feel like these are a really slick way to add some flair to reviews. 

[russtopherb]

29 minutes ago, sirchunksalot said:

I've got to agree with the rest of the responses and say you did an amazing job on the unboxing video. Slick editing and I loved seeing the closeups of the clubs. I do hate that the lie angle is not correct, at least that's something that's easily remedied. 

It is easily remedied... but you'd hope that if you're having a set custom built to your specs for maximum performance that they'd come in the way you ordered them. Definitely not as bad as the shaft situation with jlukes, but still... if you order it a certain way, you'd hope they'd come in that way.

[chisag]

3 hours ago, russtopherb said:

It is easily remedied... but you'd hope that if you're having a set custom built to your specs for maximum performance that they'd come in the way you ordered them. Definitely not as bad as the shaft situation with jlukes, but still... if you order it a certain way, you'd hope they'd come in that way.

 

... It really is one of the big fallacies concerning equipment. Told this before but when I was on staff with a Top 3 OEM my irons came in with my 8 iron 2 degrees strong and my 7 iron 1 degree weak. 1* difference between the two irons and probably would not have known if my playing partner wasn't a Mgr at Golfsmith, so he checked the loft and lies for me. That is when I decided to buy my own LL machine. It would have been pretty bad for a Staff member with a PGA Bag having trouble with gaps and thinking it was the irons, not faulty lofts then not really recommending them to students. I have never and I mean never had a set of irons come in on spec and that includes Mizuno, Titleist, Taylor Made, Cobra and Bridgestone. Mizuno had me go through a fitting with their top Midwest Rep to do a review for WRX and their website and the irons arrived off spec. Some sets have been closer than others but all of them are off spec. That is just how it is and with irons costing $1200 and up, I would definitely have any new irons checked and adjusted before playing them. 

[russtopherb]

8 hours ago, chisag said:

Some sets have been closer than others but all of them are off spec. That is just how it is and with irons costing $1200 and up, I would definitely have any new irons checked and adjusted before playing them. 

So is that off spec due to potential equipment tolerances or how they were built, or off spec when you ordered them a specific way and the build sheet noted that they simply didn't do like you requested?

To me, those are two very different things. Sure irons can come in slightly different than you asked for due to the machine they bent them on perhaps, or a driver's actual loft might be different from the stated loft due to machine tolerances. Asking for 2* upright on a custom build and them having the sheet say "standard" is something else, IMO.

[bens197]

On 7/23/2021 at 4:01 PM, gavinski91 said:

The unboxing video is finished - it has my initial thoughts of the irons and wedges, along with some glamour shots. Check it out!

 

Really nice job...You hit something SO important that I think should get some more attention...

You mentioned how you didn't really think you'd like the carbon top line at address.  I can't tell you (after working retail) how many golfers will choose to disregard a certain club without swinging it.  

There is of course, a requisite need to feel confident and like the look, but discounting a club simply without hitting it is unfortunate.  I'm glad you like the first impression and with you the best of luck in the process!

[HardcoreLooper]

@gavinski91 - Amazing unboxing video.  Thanks for putting the work into it.  And it's interesting to see how things we think will drive us nuts with a club just don't seem to matter; especially if the club performs.  I had a lot of doubts going into CCC^2, and I loved the F8's.

[chisag]

6 hours ago, russtopherb said:

So is that off spec due to potential equipment tolerances or how they were built, or off spec when you ordered them a specific way and the build sheet noted that they simply didn't do like you requested?

To me, those are two very different things. Sure irons can come in slightly different than you asked for due to the machine they bent them on perhaps, or a driver's actual loft might be different from the stated loft due to machine tolerances. Asking for 2* upright on a custom build and them having the sheet say "standard" is something else, IMO.

 

... I don't think I have ever run into the latter, my build sheets have always been accurate, but the loft and lies have not. As lovers of the game and players that appreciate equipment we like to think there are technicians like those we see in the van at a Tour event explaining the build and showing the process for one club or one set of irons. In reality it is a mass produced assembly line that moves very quickly and almost always a non golfer just doing their job. And yes there are tolerances usually in the + or - 2* range so again you can have one club 2* strong and the next 2* weak resulting in two of your irons being the same loft while still within tolerances. An extreme example but certainly possible. More likely you have an 8 iron 1* weak and a 7 iron 1* strong and well within tolerances but a 6* gap between them and a 3* gap on either side IF the next irons are on spec. 

... I watched a smaller company go through builds at Tour Edge. An ingenious system where they accumulate one set at a time and each piece of equipment has a barcode so when picking up a set of 4-pw irons and use a hand held laser that reads the barcodes. If they pick up the wrong ferrules, grip, shaft or head the barcode buzzes with a red light like you lost on a game show instead of a green light. So it is virtually impossible to build a set with any wrong components. The assembly though was nowhere near as precise and the same + or - tolerances come into play as the fly through the assembly. I imagine TaylorMade, Callaway, Titleist etc move even faster. 

... Lastly it is also just impossible to get a sets loft/lies correct without double and triple checking. When I bend a set I am very meticulous but when I go back and check them after building the first attempt, some are always off due to the way the club sits in the LL machine as well as some metals not holding their specs so I will always bend them a second time and sometimes a third. And of course 2 different LL machines can give you different readings. I have never used them but I would hope since they are building just one set at a time a Club Champion, True Spec kind of custom build would take the time to double and triple check and have your irons as close to perfectly on spec as possible. 

[goaliewales14]

On 7/23/2021 at 4:01 PM, gavinski91 said:

The unboxing video is finished - it has my initial thoughts of the irons and wedges, along with some glamour shots. Check it out!

 

Loved the editing on this video!!  Great job!!

[HeathS16]

On 7/23/2021 at 3:01 PM, gavinski91 said:

The unboxing video is finished - it has my initial thoughts of the irons and wedges, along with some glamour shots. Check it out!

 

Nicely done! The video looked as crisp and clean as the new sticks! 

[null]

Really encouraging range session today.  Again I brought my fitted irons to the range so I could make sure that any swing tweaks I made with the Cobra irons could carry over to the Mizunos.  

I struck the Cobra MIM Tour irons great today. Found the sweet spot more often than not and got a much more repeatable ball flight than previous range sessions.  To be honest, I was very close to emailing the mods and asking to identify someone else who I could send the equipment to and take my spot in the challenge; I was that discouraged by the ill-fitting irons.  Thankfully, I have been able to incorporate a few new swing thoughts to get the iron strike to a serviceable standard.  The timing isn't perfect with the AMT shafts and they never will be, but it is to the point where I can give feedback on the iron heads throughout the review.

The MIM Tour heads feel great on well struck shots.  As good as a forged Mizuno?  Well, not to me - but they feel really really good.  Even though they are a slightly bigger head than my JPX 919 Tours, they provide admirable feedback and I know exactly where I've struck every shot without even looking for the mark on the face.

The Radspeed 7 Wood is a high flying bomber.  My god.  I need to get this on a launch monitor to see what my launch numbers are because it appears to be launching very high and peaking higher than I am used to seeing.  Also interested to see how it plays out on a course under windy conditions.  I am able to control trajectory with my 818 H2 hybrid and I am not quite sure I can do that with the 7 Wood.

The Radspeed 3 Wood is pretty fantastic on well struck shots, however I am visually noticing quite a low launch and a good amount of distance loss on shots struck low on the face.  My G410LST seems to protect me more on these types of shots, but like I said with the 7 wood, I will need more course and launch monitor data to confirm what I am seeing at the range.

The Radspeed Driver is a bit hit or miss for me right now.  When struck well, it is as long as anything.  It appears to launch a little lower and spin a little less than my G410 LST.  What is causing some angst is strikes high on the face.  At the range, when hit high on the face, the ball loses a ton of spin - much more than what I visually see with my G410LST on similar strikes.  I also feel like I am seeing much more right to left movement on toe strikes (over gearing) with the Radspeed.  Because of this, I found myself really trying to hit a fade as my stock shot with the Radspeed in order to make sure I keep the spin up and minimize the right to left miss (hook).  

The King Utility 4 iron -  This club excites me.  The ball shoots off the face.  I have both this and the 7 wood playing at 21* and I feel like I might be hitting the 4 iron further (both in carry and in total due to a stronger flight.  Will definitely need to get this on a launch monitor to determine carry distance and then potentially raise the loft back up to get a better gapping between the 7 wood and the 5 iron.

Still waiting on the wedges to come in.  It's ironic that I have not received them yet given that these were the clubs I was most looking forward to trying!

All in all a good range session.  Hoping that the rest of the crew and I get our missing equipment soon so we can begin the on-course challenges!

[null]

Surprise delivery after my bike ride this evening

the gangs all here 

No idea why it’s posting the wedge picture upside down

[Shankster]

@jlukes have you ever played cobra wedges before?

[null]

7 minutes ago, Shankster said:

@jlukes have you ever played cobra wedges before?

Nope never. But damn I’m liking how they set up at address. 
 

Going to put them in white vinegar tonight to see if I can strip the black finish like I always do with my vokeys

[Shankster]

20 minutes ago, jlukes said:

Nope never. But damn I’m liking how they set up at address. 
 

Going to put them in white vinegar tonight to see if I can strip the black finish like I always do with my vokeys

I really enjoyed the King wedges I had.  Curious to see how you like them against the Bob’s. 

[null]

1 hour ago, Shankster said:

I really enjoyed the King wedges I had.  Curious to see how you like them against the Bob’s. 

I’m looking forward to it. I mentioned earlier in the thread that I think the wedges are going to be my favorite part of this review. 

[gavinski91]

Three off the tee, but still all I can do is laugh in disbelief. 

[gavinski91]

Arccos says smart distance with my current driver is 254. And for comparison here is this hole with my previous clubs a month and a half ago, when I got par on the hole for the first time in my life en route to a career-best 80.

I’ve always been a firm believer that distance isn’t everything, but damn if it doesn’t make the game so much easier when your approach shot is two clubs down. For another example, on the 9th hole today I skyed my 3w off the tee and was left with 190 to the center of the green. With my old irons I would have gone with my 5i and swung out of my shoes in hopes that the ball somehow rolled up onto the green. Instead today I was able to hit a basic 6i without over swinging, hit the green, and 2-putt for par. I really hope some of the other contestants have a similar experience, otherwise I’m gonna run away with this thing!

[null]

5 hours ago, gavinski91 said:

Arccos says smart distance with my current driver is 254. And for comparison here is this hole with my previous clubs a month and a half ago, when I got par on the hole for the first time in my life en route to a career-best 80.

I’ve always been a firm believer that distance isn’t everything, but damn if it doesn’t make the game so much easier when your approach shot is two clubs down. For another example, on the 9th hole today I skyed my 3w off the tee and was left with 190 to the center of the green. With my old irons I would have gone with my 5i and swung out of my shoes in hopes that the ball somehow rolled up onto the green. Instead today I was able to hit a basic 6i without over swinging, hit the green, and 2-putt for par. I really hope some of the other contestants have a similar experience, otherwise I’m gonna run away with this thing!

Great stuff. Interested to hear how the review progresses, especially in regards to how the irons come into greens (are they holding greens or are they coming in flatter with less spin so you have to play for more run out 

[edingc]

10 hours ago, jlukes said:

I’m looking forward to it. I mentioned earlier in the thread that I think the wedges are going to be my favorite part of this review. 

The MIM Blacks are outstanding. Hoping they are as good for you as they are for me.

[null]

40 minutes ago, edingc said:

The MIM Blacks are outstanding. Hoping they are as good for you as they are for me.

Can confirm that mine are no longer black

One more round of soaking and scotchbriting and I will post some pics.

[GolfSpy BOS]

49 minutes ago, jlukes said:

Can confirm that mine are no longer black

One more round of soaking and scotchbriting and I will post some pics.

Do you know if there's any risk of the grooves becoming non-conforming by removing the finish?  It may be too thin to be significant and it also can naturally wear off, but I thought I read that Vokey in particular accounts for the finish layer thickness for its grooves and that's why there's not a performance drop off between them and the raw models.  

No idea if that's true or not, but since you've done this with your vokeys I thought you might know.

[null]

1 minute ago, B.Boston said:

Do you know if there's any risk of the grooves becoming non-conforming by removing the finish?  It may be too thin to be significant and it also can naturally wear off, but I thought I read that Vokey in particular accounts for the finish layer thickness for its grooves and that's why there's not a performance drop off between them and the raw models.  

No idea if that's true or not, but since you've done this with your vokeys I thought you might know.

The PVD finish isn't a plating, so I am not removing anything that would impact the wedges conforming (or performance in general).  As you mentioned, the PVD finish on wedges wears off naturally - I am just expediting the process.

Now, removing chrome plating is a different animal all together - that would involve dangerous chemicals and would change the grooves (not sure about if they'd still be legal)

[null]

[Golfspy_CG2]

8 minutes ago, jlukes said:

Nice!

Normally I'm  not a fan of the raw or the stripped look.  But I will say those look really really good.  

 

[knightsofnii]

25 minutes ago, Golfspy_CG2 said:

Nice!

Normally I'm  not a fan of the raw or the stripped look.  But I will say those look really really good.  

 

These looked so good in black.  These look exceptionally better in their current state.    

@jlukes did you have to redo the white paint fill? 

[null]

2 minutes ago, knightsofnii said:

These looked so good in black.  These look exceptionally better in their current state.    

@jlukes did you have to redo the white paint fill? 

Nope - didn't have to touch the paintfill

[txgolfjunkie]

58 minutes ago, jlukes said:

Welp, I now know how to fix all those ball marks on the toe on my wedges...strip the black finish and make it less noticeable. Those look really good. Do they rust or is it just taking care of the PVD layer? 

[null]

7 minutes ago, txgolfjunkie said:

Welp, I now know how to fix all those ball marks on the toe on my wedges...strip the black finish and make it less noticeable. Those look really good. Do they rust or is it just taking care of the PVD layer? 

I tried to find information on that online, but there is nothing on officials sites or in other forums.  With Vokeys they rust, so I would assume the Cobras will do the same.  They do not look like they are plated underneath the PVD

[hartrick11]

I have a black MIM 52* that has a bit of rust on the leading edge after a few months. It doesn't even get a lot of play as I usually play a four wedge setup with my set 50* and a Vokey 54*, so I am guessing with regular play you will see some rust, but this is just based on a sample size of 1 so YMMV.

[null]

Got in some chipping practice this afternoon when the boy let me have a turn. Really enjoyed the widelow grind off my tight, worn down range mat.