Blader-X

Sneer-free :tsg_smiley_laughatyou: Maybe the aggressive look comes from the intense glow eminating from the radioactive yellow eyes! :tsg_smilie_rolleyes: Mine seems to have a little cheese-eatin' grin, but he does look good on the bag. :tsg_smiley_yes: Tony, I have Kamen Rider coming in the next few days and when I get it I'll try to post a pic. Have fun boys!

Haven't played the Fourteen's but currently play the TourStage X-Blades. Look under the Iron Set Reviews for my review on them. Like them very much, however I do wish they had some leading edge relief. For me, could be the only down side but I have thoroughly enjoyed them. Stock shaft choices are limited but you could always have them changed. I'm actually playing around with idea of going with NS 1150's since I just had a wedge made with that shaft and really like the way it performs. I used to play 690.MB's and find these X-Blades superior to those. Ultra-thin topline. Good luck with your decision.

Anyone like the wedges or care to give feedback on them? We've heard a lot about the driver and irons. I too, am interested to hear how the wedges stack up for those who've played them.

Let us know how it goes! You've got me longing for the days when I used to sit on a range for hours on end working on different types of shots, such as the "stinger". Although, with this heat wave, sitting at the range for any extended period of time would require gallons and gallons of liquid refreshment along with some serious sunscreen! :tsg_smiley_laughatyou: Seriously though, keep us updated on your progress and have fun with it.

I myself use this shot and for me, the key is the shoulders and the hands. Keep your thumbs pointing down to the ground through the shot or your back of the leading hand square through impact, whatever visual will work for you. Along with that however make sure the shoulders "move through" the shot. Its vitally important not to decelerate through the shot. Lastly you don't turn your hands over. Just keep the wrists firm and move them towards the target down the line without letting them break. Basically by keeping the club square throughout the shot and using your shoulders to power you extend your hitting zone through the ball. Also since you keep your wrists as such, you deloft the club keeping the trajectory down. It takes practice but once you get it down, its such an awesome shot. You can use it with any club in your bag and it also adds a lot of fun to practice.

Very, very nice, 134. :tsg_smilie_cool:

Callaway ERC3 is definitely worth a look. Very clean design, simple but very effective.

I had that happen last year while in Japan to a Black Studio I had had for a couple of years. Mine wasn't from the fertilizer just the very humid weather. I too was very diligent about wiping it down, but in Japan, during the summer its hot and very, very humid. I was there for three weeks and played four times, twice down in Kyushu area and then up in Chiba and one other place which is escaping my memory. When I wasn't playing I kept my clubs in the Golf Glove travel bag. Upon arriving back in the states, I discovered rust spots all over it. Its too bad. When Scotty first came out with their restoration department I wanted to send it in and have that new (new at the time) black finish put on but they said they didn't do that one. Those finishes it seems obviously aren't made to be played, just displayed. :tsg_smilie_sad:

I'm curious to hear if any of you out there have putting greens, either synthetic or real at home and you thoughts on them. I had one installed at my last house back in 1999. It was synthetic using black and green sand as a filler. I loved having one that I could just go to whenever I wanted. We moved from there about 4 years ago and I just never put another in. I want one but they can be rather expensive to install but there are so many newer options now. One of the drawbacks to the old kind like I had was that the sand they use to fill the green to make the fibers stand up really eats up the bottom of your putter. Really don't want to do that to the G-Field! For those of you out there with any personal experience on these let us know. I really miss mine and sooner or later am going to put one in at the new house. I would really like to hear if anyone has put one in themselves. Having seen it done, its not hard, just labor intensive.

Great review, Randy. There really is something to be said for import clubs. My bag has been increasing with import clubs and the feel of them is truly exceptional. Keep hitting them well! Import clubs

I hope that you enjoy them as much as I have. When I ordered the X-blades the 1150's weren't an option so I decided to go with the M266V's. I had always used X-100's and really wanted something different. Overall I really like them and haven't really noticed that much of weight difference with the higher irons. But if a problem, I suppose one could change out the shafts in the higher irons. From PW to 5 iron I love the feel of them. I don't hit my 4 iron all that much. I have G-Field wedge head coming soon so I think I'm going with an 1150 in that since I too like heavy feeling wedges. Have fun.

Hey Chris, Any update on these in terms of how they play with the Axiv wedge shafts? Against the Beres?

Pucci, Yes, the X-blade 2's I have are the blades and not the cb's. I like very thin toplines and have yet to see a cavity back which fits my eye, although the X-blade cb's do look pretty good. I posted a review in the iron review section of this forum and I believe its still there. Basically, its been about 4 months now that I've been playing these clubs and I do really like them. My dispersion pattern is much better than my former clubs (690.MB's). Cavity backs are probably easier clubs to hit but I just like the look of blades so much better that its hard for me to even consider cavity backs, even though I might do better with them. Just because I don't play or practice everyday as I once did. As I said I saw these clubs in Japan last year and couldn't get them out my mind. I was considering actually going with a cavity back late last year. I was demoing some Nakashima NP-1 irons but just couldn't get past the thick topline and reduced feel. So I started to search for the X-blades, came across this site and the rest is history. Love the look and feel of these irons, there may be better feeling clubs, but I haven't come across them yet (Hopefully I won't I don't need to spend anymore cash!) :tsg_smilie_money3: The X-blades are slightly smaller than than the Titleist I used to have. I have never hit the NC-1's so I'm not able to compare there. Please read the review I posted and if you have any further questions, just ask. By the way, how do you like the 1150's in your irons? Blader-X

Thanks for the update Jack. I just put sand in my Cammie. 1 round with it. Not sure about it yet but I think it takes a little time to adjust. Out of curiosity has your "sweet" putter ever attracted ants?

Yes I have that very same tool from Golfsmith. It works well but like alpha_pro says you could get by with a wire hanger and solvent. Just make sure the wire hanger is a strong one. Basically you just need anything that you can slip under a grip thats small (width wise) enough but yet strong enough to do the job. You just need to use solvent to loosen up the tape. Slip the tool under the grip, add solvent, loosen the grip a little and repeat until you've worked your way completely down the shaft under the grip. The one from Golfsmith has a handle which makes it nice but if using a hanger just be careful. Either way will work.

Thanks as always for the info Chris. I like the look of the grind on the 58*. In the picture it looks like there's a lot of relief in the heel area, enabling one to easily open the face. Am I correct in seeing that? Yes its definitely a sweet wedge. :tsg_smiley_yes: I really like that it has a raw face. I had used Vokeys for a long time in the raw design and had a guy grind them to my satisfaction. Right now I'm messing around with a couple of Mizuno's. But I must say this wedge looks really sweet. Do you have any 58* for sale, especially with a Nippon Shaft 1150? :tsg_smilie_money3: :tsg_smilie_cool:

Hey Chris, Got any footage from TourStage?

Hey Chris, What's the swingweight of the 58*? I like the feeling of a "heavy" wedge and was curious how this one feels. Is that grind a custom grind or is it one of their "standard" grinds available from G-Field? The raw face is definitely a plus. At least in the opinion of someone like me who loves the look and feel of raw wedges. Any comparison to Scratch wedges?

Just wanted to revisit this topic. I had never heard of this until I came on this board. I'm intrigued. For those of you who have done this I would like to know if you are continuing to do this and the what the results have been over the long term? Thanks in advance.

Ultra Man is on the bag. Kamen Rider may soon be joining him. :tsg_smiley_yes:

I can tell you a little about them. I have them in my TourStage X-blade 2's. They are a reverse weight flow shaft and they are made by Nippon Shaft exclusively for TourStage. Last summer while in Japan I fell in love with the look of these X-blades. I had used Titleist 690.MB's. I bought this set (X-blade 2) from Chris a few months back. I was looking for something different in terms of the shaft from x-100's which I have pretty much always played with. I wrote to Nippon Shaft and they told me they (M266V x-stiff) are 115 gm with a mid-high kickpoint. They also said they could not be ordered separately since they are made only for TourStage. I took them to a local clubmaker who does a lot of work for me said they measured D-3 at stock. Since I wasn't able to get them custom to my specs I had the clubmaker add one inch to every club. Now they fit me just fine. They are slightly lighter in weight but not too much. I can say that the overall feel of the entire club is much improved. I have no difference in length but my dipersion pattern is much improved. I am definitely much more accurate with them. As far as trajectory, slightly higher than x-100's but I can work it low or high depending on what I'm trying to do on a particular shot. When I was contemplating purchasing this set I looked at Nippon Shafts but I didn't want to go too much lighter than what I was accustomed to. I didn't want to go with 950. I must say in the short time I have had them I find them to be a much better shaft than the x-100's I used to play with. This is only my opinion and my game. I'm not sure what others may think or how they would fit someone else's game. I like heavy feeling clubs and these do fit me there, but at the same time they have a lightness about them as well. I don't think I'm conveying what I'm trying to say except just to say they just have a much enhanced feel about them while at the same time being a comfortable weight. When I get the time I know I should take them and have them measured as far as swingweight and cpm's to see how well they match in the set. I can say that these will be in the bag for quite some time. I really can't say enough about them. Hope this helps. Blader-X (a new TSG ho)

That's too cool. Thanks for sharing the pics. :tsg_smilie_cool:

Hi Corky3, Thanks for the add. I was curious if what I was told by Nippon Shaft in terms of the specs to be correct from what you know? 115 gm. weight, mid-high kickpoint? Not that it matters much since I really like the way they feel but just for clarity. TourStage rocks! Blader-X

Hi Willy, Don't know if this helps but I have the M266V in my TourStage X-blade 2's. I e-mailed Nippon Shaft and they said they make them only for TourStage. Mine are x-stiff and their weight is 115 grams, with a mid-high kickpoint. I don't have the specs on stiff or reg. Having played X-100's in the past I must say I find these to much better both in feel and definitely dispesion. My shots are much tighter now. A little lighter than the X-100s but more feel. I definitely enjoy this shaft a lot. Hope this helps. :tsg_smilie_cool: