gocchin

Your math would be right if you were playing 8 Stage 5 wedges. But if you're playing gold's cb's 3-PW and 2 x Stage 5 Wedges that's 10 clubs for around $2700. 270 is not a lot for the quality you get from Sasaya-san. Also as I mentioned above the Stage 5 wedges are the pinnacle of handmade as everything is done in house including the forgings. The irons are forged elsewhere then brought in to gold's for the grinding and finishing work and detail.

I had a massive gap between my 10.5* Epon driver and XXIO 17* Utility as I hadn't been carrying a wood since I dropped my G-field 4 wood. In my quest for a new wood, I looked at G-Field, Tourstage, Srixon, Onoff and Epon. In the end based on Epon quality and reputation I decided to go for the Technity 15* 3 Wood that I could use off the tee occasionally too. I knew it probably wasn't the most forgiving out of what I was looking at but guessed it probably had the best feel based on hitting Epon drivers and irons and feedback from other members here. Once again, Epon is all about feel, performance, and looks. When the 3 wood arrived I just kept staring at it because it was so stunning. Typical Epon quality. Tourstage X-Drive FW's look high tech, G-Field understated business, Onoff more plain, and the Epon yes... art. After a few days of staring at it. I shafted it up with an Axiv 5052L I had lying around. I know typically for stability it'd be smart to go with a heavier FW shaft but I like to experiment and I like things light, so in went the 52g 5052L which made for a driver and having a soft tip was a little on the soft side, so it was tipped 3/4" to make it perfect for a 3 wood at 42" (I play all my lengths shorter). Common Japanese 3 wood length is actually around 42.5" so it's not too far off. I took some pics and headed off to the range to give her a try... as Blader-X told me ahead of time, the feel of the Epon FW is just amazing. Now I understand why Chris, Blader-X and idrive are always raving about these fairway woods. They are mini Technity drivers and more forgiving than I expected, while not quite as forgiving as the compact GFT, the feel more than makes up for it. Those who love Epon driver and iron feel will not be disappointed. The pear shape with no alignment mark is also very pleasing at address. I was happy with the Axiv pairing. I'm not a fast swinger as most of you know I usually use R flex, the low kick point and light weight help get the ball up and resulted in a nice boring trajectory. I'm very happy with this FW. I hit so many different brands and models of clubs, sometimes all it takes is one shot, you can either bag it or put it back on the shelf... this is one of those where you hit one and it instantly goes in the bag. Now gotta get back out for 18 with this baby. (^_^) Thanks again to TSG for bringing Epon into my life.

In most tests with the Roddio it is neither high nor low spin, it is optimal spin at least for me at around 2200-2400 backspin and only around 200 side spin (which IS quite low I guess). It is a a softer tip but mid kick and untipped may be on the soft side, which is why Roddio is usually installed following Roddio's specific headweight vs amount tipped to reach finished cpm. An SR would be right in that 242-252 range (with a 5" clamp).

Depending on your weight preference it will be a W5 or W6 as you said. I went with the W5BA in the Epon 460 and it is longer AND straighter for me than any other shaft. I am also not the greatest ball striker, do not always hit the sweet spot and my bad shot is a strong fade or slice. I am not a hard hitter nor do I have an aggressive move at the top so I went with the BA which is very smooth to go along with a smooth transition. My swing is still changing to be straighter and more consistent but the roddio works for me well. 90-100 MPH is a pretty big range... you could be R to SR but would probably be okay with SR. Get the right shaft and make the right changes in your swing and it'll be great.

I'd like to try the g4, how does it feel? And the new s3... Tourstage balls are very good, they really have great offerings for a variety of player levels.

She's gonna be 24 in November.... tell them to unban the site! Yeah almost every Tourstage pro on the JLPGA is now playing the ViQ forged. The feel of the GR will definitely be not as pure as the ViQ or X-Blade due to the undercut making it a bit more clicky. Should be pretty forgiving as you said!

Surprise surprise, I've owned both. Pretty equally forgiving, but the ViQ's are softer and look better. However if there's that big a difference it's worth a try at the lower price for sure. TS-202's are still many people's favorites.

I was just reading a magazine special on golf balls in the world and recently there have been a lot of tests with Japanese golf balls and they always use Pro V1x for comparisons. There definitely is a lot of technology put into JDM balls just like their clubs. And the price points are higher just like anything JDM. There are an equal number of balls are geared towards more average golfers, mid to higher handicapper as their are for low handicap/pro usage. And many balls fall in between as balls for everyone. The Gran Z started making it's way West only because a new model was released in Japan this year, the Gran Z Blue. Which supposedly offers even better performance and feel than the Gran Z. Tourstage and Mizuno have long been popular choices in Japan along with Callaway Japan only models and Titleist Japan models. One way of trying balls is getting the sampler pack TSG has. That's what I did. I got a pack with Tourstage X01 R4, Mizuno Cross Eight 401, XXIO DC, and Callaway Hyper ERC. The Mizuno ball was nice, I found I got more distance with it because of their rubber cross like center which is almost like a superball inside. It flies. The X01 R4 was a bit too hard for me and probably better for the lower handicapper. The XXIO DC being a softer ball was also long off the tee with a good mixture of spin and control. The Hyper ERC was similar to the HX Tour except maybe softer.

I wouldn't call them exactly the same in shape (^_^) I had the M402 Prototype which was close in shape to the 401. They both have the smooth face which is suited for the faster greens of Japan. The M2+ probably rolls the ball a bit better and is a heavier head by about 10g or so due to the insert and tungsten. The 303 steel that the 401/402 uses is pretty soft but not as soft as the insert. Nice feel on the putter but probably better for the fast greens of Asia as I sometimes left it short on some of the slower greens here.

Both are soft, but the copper finish is softer otherwise they are the same wedge.

People always have trouble with that one. (^_^) zecku-show don't ask me how they came up with that...

Distance gains here too with JDM graphite... my clubfitter hit my regular flex Axiv with ViQ Forged and was shocked.... he hit the 4 Iron 227 yards dead straight. He obviously swings far faster than I do but found the Regular Axiv iron graphite very tight and smooth.

That's what I said. Great to hear B how well these are going for you. I've been saying all along, JDM Iron Graphite rocks just like JDM clubs. I have yet to hit the Roddio Irons but Axiv and GD Tour AD are similar, tight dispersion, great feel and kick!!! Congrats on finding just the right set for yourself... now if only at 5'4" I could hit my 7 iron 160-165 yards.

Looking good B, my coppers are still in the bag as well and wear is not like yours but gettng there. Still the softest there is!!

Glad you like it B, I knew you would! (^_^)

Haven't heard anything about Axiv, perhaps Chris can comment, but a little birdie has told me lots of things are in the works at Eh-pon that we will see in coming months...

eh is eh not like A but like eh xtra (the e in extra)

chinkwan's ViQ's are the cast game improvement ones. While they are definitely forgiving and nice irons I would consider the 2007 ViQ Forged over these especially if they can be had cheaper... Premium Endo forged. I did have some pics in this thread but they were compared to Tourstage Z-101's: http://forum.tourspecgolf.com/index.php?showtopic=24429

Welcome to the forums! You'll find many threads here on all the wonderful forged irons that come out of Japan. There are tons to choose from including brands that you're probably not as familiar with like Epon and Tourstage and others which make forgiving forged irons with great feel. The Mizuno JPX are indeed very nice irons, forgiving and good looking with performance and feel to boot. I'd suggest Epon Type S or X or if you don't mind something a little larger in size, TourStage's ViQ Forged was voted iron of the year in Japan for all around feel, forgiveness and performance. Make sure you spend time looking at all the threads that have been posted in the Gear category here over the last couple of months for feedback as well as check out the Top Line references to see irons that suit your eyes at address.

ho-kai-doe (dough)

you - ru - ree eh-pon is correct though most people probably say ee-pon anything else? (^_^)

As I mentioned in my PM reply J, Dunlop has clubs under the brands Srixon and XXIO and both brands have fantastic clubs, irons from both brands are both highly rated. Your DP-701's are over 10 years old and were considered pro models back in the early 90's. Information from the site say that the DP-701 was using a semi-goose neck which was getting popular at the time. The 701's were also 1* flatter than standard with a wide sweet spot for that time due to the long face and a more rounded sole for less digging. They were very expensive when new back then, around $2500 USD for a set, but can be had for around $100-$150 a set used nowadays. Carbon steel forged with a nickel satin finish.

Welcome to the forum! The MP-32's are wonderful irons. I think the Type-S will be something a little different for you but in a good way. They will most likely be comparable in feel as they are premium endo forged but they may be bigger slightly in size with a thicker sole (not big by any means but thicker than the 32's), think between your 32's and 23's. The topline is still relatively thin and looks aside best of all is the performance and feel for the Type S, forgiving and accurate. In my never ending testing of irons, I had a set for a while and regret letting them go. A few others here including Duffer19 actually plays a set as their gamers so they may be able to chime in more.

Good question.... (^_^) I'll let you know after the weekend.

No probs R, did you already grab the MacTec? Stock shaft no good?