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yururi flatbacks vs. epon af-tours


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as tario knows, prior to picking out my yururi flatbacks i was also interested in the epon af-tours. after weighing all the input from him, my decision ultimately came down to uniqueness and the yururis got the nod. well as luck (or bad luck if you ask my slush fund) would have it, soon after i received my yururis a set of af-tours presented themselves to me and having a weak mind and no will power, i couldn't resist. so i thought i'd offer my comparative thoughts...even though you guys probably already know all this stuff.

as you might have read from my original post, the yururis are very small and compact...and being raw/black look even more so than they really are. they're just about the size that i like and am comfortable with (although i am eager to try a set of miura babies). they set up well with little to no offset and are extremely soft and pure on good shots. even with the slightly killed leading edge, they're still very sharp and will dig on softer turf. mis**ts can be harsh but that can be said for just about any blade. i have these set up with kbs c-tapers and i don't know that there's a better shaft out there for me. great feel, nice ball flight, and reduced spin (both backspin and side spin).

now on to the epon tours. it seems hard to imagine two irons, both blades, being so different from each other that one almost doesn't' feel comfortable to dare compare the two. the epons are large for a blade! well they are when coming from cobra s3 pros or the yururi flatbacks. if these were a first blade for someone moving up from g/i or cavity backs they would probably look perfect! i've read several times how forgiving these irons are and i don't think one can really comprehend how true that is until they hit these blades. can one actually use "game improvement" and "blade" in the same sentence??? if so, this would be the time! the sweet spot is larger than anything i've played...and i played the ping i15's for a brief moment a little while back. and YES, they're pure and soft! one of the other reasons that i initially chose the yururis over the epons was the lofts. the flatbacks are a bit stronger where the af-tours are much more traditional. this probably aids in the epons forgiveness but either way, it's probably not enough of a difference to have swayed my initial decision. mis**ts with this iron...well it's probably harder to mis**t it than to find the sweet spot. don't get me wrong, it can easily be done with my swing but even with a mis**t it's no where near as harsh as with the yururis and the outcome is much less punishing. the epons are shafted with the aerotech steelfibers i125's in s flex and feel pretty damned good. i really wasn't a fan of graphite iron shafts but i'm pretty impressed now and am not sure that i'll change these out as i had initially planned.

although i'm still learning the yururis, i've been pretty consistent with my flatbacks on the course. i'll get another range session in later today and put the af-tours to the test tomorrow. this is going to be a fun summer!

i had no intentions of keeping both sets but really wanted to know the difference first hand. in retrospect, this was a bad move...at least for my slush fund! these sets are so different that there's really no overlap and i'm thinking that maybe both deserve a spot in my arsenal for different conditions. the epons could really fill a need during periods when my swing may not be up to the yururis. how's that for justification! lol!!!

now i just have to hope a set of romaros don't show up on the bst!!!

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The Yururi will feel softer and have a bit more spin. The AF-Tours are a bit more forgiving.

A lot of this will come down to your eye and what your personal preference is.

Another thing to consider is the wear of a raw head. A lot of people only desire non plated and love the worn in look while others like their sticks to look pristine.

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they're just about the size that i like and am comfortable with (although i am eager to try a set of miura babies).

I might have an extra set of the Baby Blades if your slush fund can hack it... Non-conforming 38.5" 5-iron...

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i'm really a fan of the industrial non plated look and can't wait for the yururis to wear in more. i actually wouldn't mind if they had no black on them at all...similar to the raw cobra amp pro protos that ricky was playing!

i only recently discovered cobra made some outstanding players clubs but if they put these out i'll be first in line!

post-15004-0-69882600-1336248821.jpeg

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I might have an extra set of the Baby Blades if your slush fund can hack it... Non-conforming 38.5" 5-iron...

you guys are evil!!! damnit...pm me a few pics and details!

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Great writeup! I'm also considering a set of black yuyuris as a back up to my Epon 502's (although I'd be hard pressed to find something that kicks my 502s out of the bag).

Also love my Aerotech steel fibers....for some reason I thought they were not graphite, but rather a blend of graphite core with a steel fiber jacket wrapped around them.

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Great writeup! I'm also considering a set of black yuyuris as a back up to my Epon 502's (although I'd be hard pressed to find something that kicks my 502s out of the bag).

Also love my Aerotech steel fibers....for some reason I thought they were not graphite, but rather a blend of graphite core with a steel fiber jacket wrapped around them.

for now the yururis will stay in the bag and the epons will be my backups. you can't go wrong adding some yururis to your stable! my s3 pros are now relegated as my travel clubs.

i believe you're right about the make up of the aerotechs, but because it's a graphite core which is the main functioning part of the shaft, i would consider them graphite. i believe they just use the steelfiber wrap to manipulate the overall weight without having to increase the thickness of the graphite to the detriment of shaft's feel and performance.

btw, people keep asking me what the characters on the back of the yururi heads translate to. any help?

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Flat back are lovely irons and gives great spins. However during the raining season here where the grounds are very soft and wet, I will usually use my Epon 502 as it will simply glide along the wet fairway.

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Gents: what are the "best" yuyuri irons? I know it depends, but very partial to the KS3001's (not even sure if these are the same as flat backs??)

http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEAR-MINT-YURURI-PROTOTYPE-SHIMADA-KS-3001-3-PW-8-CLUBS-JAPAN-ONLY-/120876306972?pt=Golf_Clubs&hash=item1c24ca121c#ht_588wt_922

We have very little info on Yuyuri's in the US...any comparisons out there between different models?

Edited by swisstrader
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Gents: what are the "best" yuyuri irons? I know it depends, but very partial to the KS3001's (not even sure if these are the same as flat backs??)

http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEAR-MINT-YURURI-PROTOTYPE-SHIMADA-KS-3001-3-PW-8-CLUBS-JAPAN-ONLY-/120876306972?pt=Golf_Clubs&hash=item1c24ca121c#ht_588wt_922

We have very little info on Yuyuri's in the US...any comparisons out there between different models?

i can't really compare the different models but i know there is some questions concerning those irons on ebay...

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no non o no no!!

dont make the least fav clubs the trvel clubs!!

how much more do u play on hols that at home?

iONLY useth ebst sticks on tour as i psend so miuch time on course.

take the yururis!

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lol! ok, i guess i should clarify but first let me say that i hold my s3 pros in quite high regard. however, if they were to go missing on a flight (as i've had clubs do in the past) they would be much easier to replace with a lesser sense of loss. what i mean by travel clubs are the clubs i take when golf is not the priority for the trip or i may not even make it to a course. if i'm planning a golf vacation (like to scottland next year) i will definitely take my best sticks!

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I really like both yururis and epons, but there is a big difference in spin. Both are soft feels but yururi irons and wedges spin the most out of any clubs I tried. Epons are good at making forgiving players clubs while yururis concentrate on spin and feel, keeping a traditional shape. Its hard to choose, ill just keep both handy;) I know that the pro tours are about half and half now when it comes to traditional style irons and more forgiving types.

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I went from Mizzy MX-23s to the Af-tours, and I had no problems forgiveness-wise. Sure, they lose a club when hit on the toe, which put me in the water once, and pin high another last round. But the first was really badly out on the toe. Also, for me they are the perfect size and are beautiful to look down at.

Haven't hit the yururis so can't compare there.

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