Jarri

PM sent of AF 103

I agree they are 2 different animals altogether... but I am more worried about digging too much with Epons after having them bent 2 degrees stronger. If someone who did this with their personals could share if these are still quite ok for a digger/driver profile, I'll happily bend them 2 degrees. I can adjust to changes in full swing distance quite easily... if they are half a club weaker in loft, most probably they are half a club short... it's more around the less-than-full swing shots (say a low 8 iron to 120 yards where my full swing 8 iron goes 155).. i have a 'feel' for how much I need to put on the ball for those less-than-full shots... with lofts change, it can mean adjusting to changes in distance at all levels... that's going to take a long time and a lot of rounds. Took me 6 months to adjust to 53° Miura wedge on half-shots coming from 51° Mizuno wedge.... all my chips, pitches etc will just be short.. if I put a little extra, they'd be very long... just couldn't get the right distance for a very long time.

Ordered. thanks everyone. One more question as I cannot find the bounce specs for personals anywhere. I am currently playing Miura babyblades which are 2 degrees stronger than epon personals... I do not want to adjust my distances as will be playing both interchanging. Is it safe to bend epons 2 degrees stronger... I am a digger and play in soft conditions. Everywhere i have read personals have a digger profile with blunt lead edge and normally epons have quite a bit of bounce so decreasing the bounce 2 degrees by bending the 2 degree stronger should be ok? Anyone who bent their personal stronger?

So these are real deal. And is the price ok given these are hard if not impossible to find.

pics

Is $2900 delivered a good deal on 3/P with PXi 6.0 given these are almost impossible to find anymore?

I am looking to buy a set of Epon Personals now, I guess a bit too late and the train has left the platform. Anyway, came across a very well reputed UK seller (without naming but a very long-in-the-business JDM specialist... used to be epon official dealer and still official dealer for other key JDM brands including Miura).. very very well known) and saw they still have one set in stock. Checked with Epon if it's safe to buy from them and here is the response from Epon's worldwide distributors... (seller name deleted to respect the privacy)....

Built me the below sets as well... for unbelievable prices as well.... they turned out ok... Hoping to be as lucky this time as well... have paid through paypal so there is some security if they turn out to be fakes. Babyblades + 2 wedges for €1000 Black blades + 2 wedges for €800 Hakusa blades + 2 wedges for €600

Ordered 302, thanks everyone for your input.

Yourself and Ian-500 have both made some very good points... I'll go with 302s then. On a side note, saw these Callaway Razr X Muslebacks 2/p going for a nice price and couldn't resist... http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/150944187755? (paid direct paypal as the seller offered them in £460 shipped if I did direct paypal)... So my the family of my iron sets grows... Need help stopping I guess....

Also add the fact that European hcp system is different.. one excellent round can take you down 1.8 hcp points, while you can shoot in the 100+ 18 times before you'll get back to your hcp. US system is more representative of how you ARE playing... European more difficult to sandbag in... To compare you would have had to shoot 50 rounds more than 3 strokes more than your hcp (no upper limit) to go from 8 to 13 (+0.1 for each round)...

Thanks mate, I'll take your advice and go for 302s... I guess the part in me that wants the AF502 is what wants to hit 7 iron 180 yards to quieten my playing partners (being the shortest hitter in the group kills a little... and saves me comments like "I can spit farther than you can hit")... I guess I should remain happy with 165 yards with 7 iron.. :) and I am paying the guy with paypal so if these turn out to be fake, there is some insurance.

My sincerest apologies if I have come across in a very negative way... admittedly this was my post here and should have refrained from saying what hcp I am and what I do for a living. This has come across very wrong, and I understand the doubts about my not getting to 2.3 in 3 years and being a finance director. :) I am just another guy trying to figure out whether I should buy AF302 or 502. I guess the worst that can happen is that I buy 502 and then figure I should have gone for 302 (or vice versa)... in that case I should quietly sell that set and buy the other one. or in retrospect I should have asked a simpler question like "what compares better to Mizuno MP 59 / MP 60 / MP 63s in Epon offerings... AF 302 or AF 502". Thanks everyone for the input... I guess I am better off trying and finding out like the long trail of iron sets I have bought/used/sold over the last 3 years. Will order 502 and see if I hate them :)... will post my findings...

I have bought from this guy twice once Miura and once Hakusa blades, and they turned out to be great... But I don't know the guy personally and seriously speaking it's the 3/p with PXI for only 725 that makes me wonder if NOW is the right time for him to strike. Also, maybe my builder doesn't know they are fake and maybe he was taken in for a ride himself... you guys perhaps have more knowledge about Epon than perhaps my builder and 10 like them combined on JDM products.

Just one last question guys... thanks a lot for the help.... I have seen in many other posts where you guys have identified fake epons where I could have 15 pairs of eyes and not be any wiser... Can you please comment also on whether the below look real or fake... the price is just too good so I am thinking may be my club builder (not knowingly) bought fake from somewhere as well.

Thanks... it might not be from Japan, it was just a letter of authenticity that arrived in my mailbox with Miura letterpad.... Thanks a lot everyone for your comments... guess I am going for AF 502 then (from what I gather from all the comments so far, they are quite close to player's cavities like AP2s / MP60s and that's the amount of forgiveness I am looking for). Will post pictures when I get them :)... and if I liked them, Miura bb's / AP2s and MP60s will be coming up for sale :)

But these irons look genuine, right?

Just thinking about how to justify this to my wife... when I bought miura I told her that my ho'ing days are over... they are not... they are just in JDM now...

Honestly speaking, I would not have started this thread if those were not coming my way so cheap and be happy to play with Miuras or AP2s or MP60s depending on how I feel my swing is that day (they are all in the trunk of my car). This guy built me my Miura bb's, the hakusa blades that I sold over ... those were/are 100% genuine... i got a separate certificate of authenticity directly from Miura Japan so can't doubt much there. So guessing either the guy thinks now is the time to 'make some money' or 'I have really gotten very lucky and buying this set'. Maybe I should buy both, play one round with each and sell the one I didn't like that much. with the kind of prices these go on ebay, I'd end up making some money as well.

Getting fitted in Netherlands is like trying to figure out your wedding dress in a yard-sale. The nearest guy I have who does Epon is 700kms from me... not going to spend a plane ticket on those. I am not planning on turning a pro or something... happy with the money I make as a Finance Director in British American Tobacco... I want to do well on this amateur tour (it's a weekend tour, so Saturday/Sunday 2 round competitions) for my own satisfaction. (my god my posts are turning into a passive-brag very quickly).... Also, if I hated the irons... I can always sell them back.. for perhaps almost as much as I will get them for. I fully agree with your point on the not-so-great-experience... I started my first post with a list of such experiences. but to be honest, this can teach you a lot about different heads / shafts and their combinations :)... In a way, that's the best fitting available in Netherlands.

Seem genuine to me... but then again... i know almost nothing when it comes to epons.

I fully agree with you... but just the thought of a 'combo' set... i don't know... there is something about seeing the same iron throughout the bag that appeals to me more.

Thanks a lot for the kind offer... the Dutch are not so kind on importing... 16% import duties + 21% VAT will kill any good offer :) The offer I have from a builder in France (built me my Miura babyblades as well so trust him) is €725 for 3/P with Project X PXi 6.0... while this might not be the best deal one ever got, but quite good.

I couldn't agree with you more if I were playing the local competitions only.. in fact if I would be happy with my Miuras hoping to improve further to be able to hit the long irons as well. But since March next year, I am starting to play some serious competitions (amateur mini national tour in netherlands) and you can make quite a gateway to next level if you can do well there... I am sure I'd be competing with many + hcps there... so can use as much forgiveness as I can afford... + as we'd be playing from championship tees, I am sure on many holes I'd have to hit longer irons into green as well (my current driving distance is around 275) From the replies so far seems to me 302 are aesthetically more pleasing, but AF 502 are not bad looking as well... If it helps, if I cannot make a decision, I'd enter the competitions with AP2s (that's the level of bulkiness (for the lack of a better word) that I can live with if it helps me hit some long iron shots better)... I want something for those long par 4s and shortish par 5s... where I can hit a 3 iron from 210/220 knowing the worst would be a missed green and not an OOB.

Well noticed about the 33 months... thought about it when posting whether or not to include Dec/Jan snow period when all you do is swing the club in your living room and destroy the carpet. :) I guess my getting down to 2ish in 3 years (in fact it's 3 years 2 months as I took my first mighty swing and completely missed the ball in Sep 2009) is a simple advice I got from the local club champion while playing a round with him. - twice as much time chipping/putting than all other parts of the game combined.. - twice as much time PW/9 approach shots than all other irons/woods combined... Personals are not in the offer... only choices are 302 or 502... About the 502, maybe I used the wrong word "concern"... I haven't seen either in person, only internet pics.. but from reading different forums I sensed that these are more gi than player's cavity and hence the worry.