DMG

Word on the street is that he looked awfully 'tired' in the interview he had before leaving on the drive. Apparently no skid marks so possibly fell asleep. However, as with most (if not all) media, you can't trust it.

I'm a fan of anything matte! The gloss is growing on me as I check out more traditional JDM drivers... but that's gloss metal, not plastic!

I recall it being one you've suggested to me to check out... so again... good call mate! It's one of the main reason's I picked up the driver. 🤪

When I first picked it up I thought to myself... "Oh no, another noodle!" However, it's far from it when swinging. It's also reg flex which I don't usually go for, and in the little time I've used it... it felt great!

Pick me, pick me! ✋

Cheers buddy! I've got another one incoming for an old-school review of an Epon AF-103 shafted with a Crazy Noir... no spoilers but... WOW! Thanks for the shaft suggestion, and yes... there are way too many! It's like having to wear a uniform to your job, the uniform may suck, but at least you don't have to decide what you're going to wear everyday! Pretty loose analogy, but worked in my head. 😁

Thanks mate. One thing I do enjoy is reading or watching reviews from people that aren't all that great at the game... it's more realistic for me as a comparison, so I appreciate you calling that out. There aren't too many though... mainly pro's that call it a miss when they strike it 2mm off centre!

Some clips here...

Finally tipped a shaft for the KZ-5, so putting 'fingers to keyboard' for an initial review. Disclaimers: 1) I've only been playing golf for about 18 months, so really don't know what I'm talking about! I.e. take all this with a grain of salt. 😀 2) Thanks Hutchy! 😎 Set-up: jBeam KZ-5 9.5* shafted with a Project X HZDRUS Green 70 6.0. Looks: This thing is beautiful! Normally not a fan of glossy crowns, but with the carbon shimmering through... I'm sold. It's clean and easy with no top alignment (I'm used to playing with USDM big OEM drivers) and it's the first time I've played a more traditional shape with this must confidence at address. Just wanted to keep swinging it. In standard 9.5* it appeared to be a little closed so I think I'll try going down to 8.5* (I'm a high hitter) and see what the face does. More to come on that after I put it in play. Feel/Sound: Putting these together because for me, they go hand in hand. What more can I say other than... THWACK! I'm a huge fan of muted drivers, so the carbon crown will always be a winner for me. Centre face strikes are really dead, and I mean that in a good way. Super solid 'thick' feeling, and you know it's going a looooong way! Off-centre will give you a bit more of a crack, as you would expect, but no ting like you would get with some full Ti heads. Performance: As mentioned, range only so far and having only been playing for such a short period of time I don't have a great grasp of my data. However, being a bit of a range rat I do know what distance signs I normally land near! On solid strikes I'll carry somewhere between the 200 and 230 metre signs, and a good trajectory will see the ball bounce past the 230 metre mark. Longest measured drive on my home course is ~260 metres total distance. On solid strikes this thing is a rocket! I saw it roll past 230 metres a lot, which is good for me. However, let's not forget about the other major part of a driver... the shaft. The HRZDUS 70 6.0 has worked well for me in the past (TM M1, M2, SIM, SIM Max) so I got the adapters swapped out for the jBeam. I'm not 100% sold on this combo. The KZ-5 is a slightly lighter head so I'm feeling a lot of shaft in the swing, and think I'm missing a bit of the head. Don't get me wrong, it works/I can make it work, but it doesn't feel natural. I'll continue the hunt for a better matched shaft and when I find one... look out! Flight was low-mid on most shots. This is unusual for me as I'm a high hitter. Hard to tell what level of spin I was putting on the ball, but it was carrying well. I'd say the shaft took a fair bit of height off the ball, so will be keen to see what happens when I find a better match. Having said that... on a windy day this would be close to perfect! Forgiveness: I'm a pretty typical newbie at golf... inconsistent. My most common miss is a high fade to slice (OK, more slice than fade), however I can also hook it with the best of them! I.e. Heel and toe misses are common for me. I was a little worried about the deeper face, thinking the heel/toe misses would be punished more than usual... I was wrong. This thing is straight. Credit again to Hutchy for his guidance on this. The only 'hook' I hit was when I hit the ground before the ball (something we refer to as a drop-kick here in Aus)! I don't think I put any side spin on any shot! Everything was dead straight. Yes, I pushed and pulled a few, but the ball was on a rope from the direction off the tee. This is pretty incredible for me. Forgiveness is a very subjective... well, subject... however, I'm comfortable calling this a forgiving head! Conclusion (update with on course review below): It's in the bag! Yes, I want to work on the shaft match... but it's not enough to keep playing my TM M2. I love the way it looks, sounds and feels. With a slightly lighter shaft (weight and flex) this thing will be an even bigger monster than it already is. Hmm, I could also look into a bigger weight for the head. PS. If anyone knows how to rotate pictures in the forum... let me know! They aren't landscape on my Mac, but are when uploaded. Update - On course review: Now with two rounds under my belt I can provide a bit of an update on this driver review. I would still see this as an initial review, as I want a lot more time to dial this beast in. One round at my home course (http://northhavengc.com.au/about/course/) and another at possibly Adelaide's finest course (https://www.royaladelaidegolf.com.au/cms/golf/course-tour/). I'll combine my comments as I saw very similar results both rounds. Firstly, this thing is loooong. I've seen my longest drives ever with the KZ-5. Home course I had just over 260 metres and at Royal Adelaide I had 280 (both total distance). This was measured with my Garmin watch, so +/- a few I'd say. Now, that's breaking 300 yards... something I thought was a long way off in my golf. Yes, conditions were perfect... but I can comfortably say that I'm consistently longer with this driver, on both clean strikes and mis-hits. Round one I kept the loft at 9.5* and while the trajectory was mid-high (remember I'm a high hitter) the face appeared a touch too closed at address. Round two I went down to 8.5* which did seem to square up the face a bit and it felt better looking down on it. While I don't think this made much of a technical difference, it helped my mental game. Flights in round two were a hair more penetrating and straighter on clean strikes. However the first 9 holes on both rounds were some of the best drives I've ever hit. Back 9 for both weren't so hot... but I've now worked out that when I get tired I'm all arms which produces some wicked hooks (can't blame the driver for those). Touching on forgiveness again as this is a big deal for me. Again, the KZ-5 is amazing. After looking at some of my strike locations via a tee mark on the sole, or visible dimple marks on the face, I was blown away at where my drives ended up! One that will stick in my memory was a shot very low on the face, just toward the toe. Yes, it flew very low but it was dead straight and with roll out ended up being the longest drive out of the group! Also, obvious toe strikes (which I could feel) produced little baby draws... and one of these produced the 280 metre bomb I mentioned earlier. With all that said there are two things I need to do: 1. Keep on the hunt for a better shaft match. Again, the current combo is definitely not bad and obviously can work for me... but I'm going to chase a slightly better 'feel' through the swing. I'm not in a hurry though. 2. Remain flexible for the whole 18! If I can drive as well on the back 9 as I do on the front... my score is going to drop significantly! Thanks for reading... DMG

Name of that tree mate? Just so I never plant it in the backyard by mistake...

When I first started playing that was me... but have since found that I actually strike better when I'm happy with what I'm looking at... psychological I know, but seems to work for me.

God I love forgiveness... but god those are ugly not for me.

Bloody postal service getting in the way of me building my collection!

I've read their forging is on par, if not better than Miura. Very bold subjective claim. I've also read their wedges are hard... so only the internet gods really know. 😁

Thanks, hopefully we can turn something up!

I plan on doing the same mate... once I get the JBeam shafted up, and get some other goodies organised! Will have a HUGE disclaimer up front... Review by a NEWBIE! ha

TSG'ers... please let me know if this is not appropriate and I'll remove... as it's not JDM. Chasing information on Gimar Golf (Swiss forging), specifically these irons... https://www.gimargolf.com/product/nrbx/, or any irons in general. I think(!) they are predominantly played in South East Asia... but there is little to no information on the www that I can find/understand. Anyone know anything and care to share?

Excellent write up mate, enjoyable read. Glad they are working out for you!

It's like bloody winter down here mate!

VERY nice Hutchy! Can't wait to read how they went...

Thanks Nobs!

Haven't hit that many, so take this with a grain of salt... but 2015 OnOff Kuro. Butter baby!

That Hiro is a thing of beauty... and really like the camo grip! Never seen one before. GLWS.

Hulk Smash!

Great shooting Nobs! I'll echo your Evnroll sentiments... my ER8 also with gravity grip has been an excellent addition to the bag!