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gocchin

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  1. The Labospec is forged at Endo just like all ONOFF Forged are. They are currently building sets (and many of them) Labospec is not big and they are handling orders for all of Japan. Those who ordered early should see their sets ship very soon.
  2. It's finally time to announce the TSG Awards for 2013. As our readers, viewers and customers know, there is no such thing as the perfect golf club. Every player is different when it comes to their level of play, their swing and ultimately the clubs they need. Because of this, we have set certain criteria which our awards are based on. A combination of Market Buzz Sales Design Innovation Performance and Golfer Feedback help us in determining the winners for this years awards. As I said earlier, please keep in mind, that the clubs /products we choose don't necessarily mean they work for every single golfer. They are however the clubs that stood out from the rest based on consolidating all of our criteria. While these are the awards of the best of 2013, many of these models are still current and carry over into 2014 and are still top of the line performers. So looking at our list what do you think was the best of 2013? TSG Awards 2013 Best Driver of 2013: Maxima Runner Up: TRPX There is no denying the buzz around Ryoma not only in 2013 in anticipation of the Maxima but since they first came out with the original D-1. While the driver is not for everyone, it continues to outsell all other JDM drivers at TSG and still boasts a high tech design and great ease of use and distance. Before the Maxima was even announced many already inquired about the replacement for the D-1 leading up to huge anticipation for the Maxima. TRPX was a great surprise for a first year brand that was not even a few months old. TRPX drivers only began selling at the end of last summer and was the second best selling driver at TSG behind the Maxima. All around performance and great looks as well as great marketing from TRPX has made many owners happy and now waiting for the fairway wood. Best Fairway Wood: S-Yard XV Runner Up: EGG Spoon The XV has a bit of everything, a great shape, awesome matte crown, great feel and fantastic all around performance. Many were excited when the XV FW came out and appeared to be a mini XV driver which is not a bad thing. It's not necessarily the longest FW but all around its right up there with the best. This may be the first time we are not calling the PRGR egg the best FW out there. While there is no denying its distance as well as its consistent performance over the last few years, newer generations have had a hard act to follow when being compared to the original egg spoon which was odd looking, weird sounding, and funky feeling... but in the end was longer than anything out there. The new ones are just as long and probably better looking and feeling but has the competition caught up? Best Hybrid Club UT/DI: Romaro Type-R Runner Up: egg i+ It's not often a club that is released with minor tweaks can make such a huge difference but that is essentially what the Romaro Type R UT was. The 2013 Type R took the previous years model and changed it's internal weighting, changed it's shape slightly and increased its sweet spot for considerably better performance. It's good looking and super long and nearly unrivalled in 2013 except for... The odd looking egg i+ utility. For many people the egg i+ and its scooped out back and maraging construction is a love hate relationship. It's an iron trying to be a utility or is an a utility trying to be an iron. Either people don't necessarily love the looks or feel but there is no denying it's ease of use and distance... it goes and is as easy a utility as there is out there. Best Irons: Mizuno Yoro Craft Irons Runner Up: Yamaha Tour Model CB While there is not one specific Mizuno model being touted here we can't ignore the ooohs and aaahs generated by each custom Yoro set. With awesome finishes, custom grinds and stampings and offset as well as masterful builds by top Yoro craftsmen, there are not many other brands that can offer the same kind of customization especially a top brand with many models well known around the world. We just found out as well that Mizuno is about to add two new finishes for 2014! Details to follow soon! Year in and year out the Yamaha releases are the talk of the town even before they are released. Even though it came out in late November it has made the list as the runner up simply because we love it and customers love it. Endo forged, great looks and fantastic all around performance, many more people went for the CB over the limited blade. Best Wedges: Titleist Vokey Forged Runner Up: Miura MB-5000WC When Titleist first announced the Vokey Forged in 2012, we had no doubt it would become our best selling wedge for 2013 which it promptly did. The fact is Vokey has a huge following worldwide but the only forged models are available in Japan. It wasn't just sales though as Vokey's look great, feel great and offer more than enough loft options to fit most player's bags unlike many JDM brands that don't offer enough lofts (many still don't offer 54!). The new Cold Forged has basically taken the torch from the Vokey Forged and ran with it. Miura's MB-5000WC may be its best wedge yet... simple yet effective, the hollow or curved back creates a beautiful look enhanced by great feel and performance. We will always have hardcore Miura fans... if only they came out with more lofts than 2 options! Best Putter: Gold’s Factory MAC Series Runner Up: ….. Gold's continues to be the pinnacle of premium high end putters in Japan and really there was nobody else in 2013 hence no runner up. There is no denying that Gold's is pricey and many can't justify the costs but those who do are rewarded with masterpieces and unrivalled workmanship and one of a kind putters all made in a little work shop in Itabashi, Tokyo. Best JDM brand of 2013: Crazy Even through all its company and image and financial troubles, Crazy continued to roll in 2013 as its shafts outsold any other brand at TSG. Even with its higher prices, those who are loyal Crazy users stick to the brand and love its image and performance. Crazy is a lifestyle, with high end shafts, awesome drivers and cool accessories... The last batch(es) of Toyoshima wedges sold out in days and people still ask for the Crazy MB even though it was sold out months ago in 2013.... it will be interesting to see how they do in 2014. Most Underrated Brand: Geotech Geotech is a brand that nobody seems to love. It is reasonably priced, available as heads only yet many seem to always overlook it for a higher priced alternative. It's clubs provide very solid performance and probably bang for the buck and those who were lucky enough to take a chance on models like the W-213T wedge, RF700 and GT Tour series know they put their money in a good and safe place. Best Breakthrough brand of 2013: TRPX TRPX burst on the scene only last summer with mastermind ABEX and a few of the top staff from Crazy. The result some select shafts that all have their niche and now have quite a following on TSG. Great materials matched with great designs and a focus on matching timing with different types of players to create easy to use shafts results in great all around performance. Their 2 driver models combined to fall only short of Ryoma when it came to overall sales in 2013 even though they started 8 months into the year at TSG. As the breakthrough brand of 2013 it will be exciting to see how they follow up this year. So what were your favorites of 2013?
  3. It should not leak even on an aircraft because the amount of pressure injected into the head is not at the max meaning there is still room to "breathe". If it were at the max then the impact of the ball on the head could literally cause leakage as well but this is not the case. I am trying to find out from Kamui how the air injection is actually done so we can understand more.
  4. If the air was released it would still perform like any other driver that did not have air in it. Heating the hosel area won't affect the air. The air is in the head to create pressure thus more rebound at impact.
  5. T, I know you like Raijin. (^_^) This driver is even more forgiving than the Ray and hotter. But for your swing speed I would hesitate to go Hi Cor and I would have to check on the air pressure for you as you swing fast. The air inside is of course guaranteed. I need to double check but I think it's for 2 years?
  6. R, that is not possible unless the gold port at the back is released. The air cannot come out the hosel side.
  7. It's been very busy so I have taken far to long to get around to writing about the Kamui Works Air. Today I snapped some photos and tomorrow will build the club. As many here now I have gamed all the Kamui Works drivers since we began carrying them from Asiri, to the 456 Silver and 420 Prototype to most recently the Ray. Those who play the drivers will share my view on the wonderful feel and great performance they provide. For others who do not know the background of Kamui Works and Kamui Pro, they were once all part of Kamui Works who have now been making drivers for over 15 years. Kamui Works popularity grew and several of their staff left to create a new brand Kamui Pro. In the past they have shared similar concepts and materials. But recently their philosophies have gone in separate ways. Kamui Works focuses on hand made and made for each specific customer while Kamui Pro is more mass produced. I have of course played both brands and while Kamui Pro certainly can perform, it's feel is not my liking (this is subjective of course) and I feel Kamui Pro is just not up to par with Kamui Works mainly because of the custom options Kamui Works provides. Kamui Works's new KM-200 Air, like all other Kamui Works drivers is made in Toyama Japan and assembled and finished by hand. The head is a multi piece design welded together by hand and hand finished. Because it is all done by hand, they can easily control real specs such as loft, lie, face angle and check the specs along the way as the driver is being built. While KW always sets spec ranges for what they can do, I have put in orders for specs way beyond their ranges ie 6* real loft and 55* lie angle etc with past models so I expect them to be able to do the same for the Air. My head is as follows: 10* Hi Cor 0.5* Closed 60* Lie 201g Black Metallic Crown Inject Air for 40m/s (170kpa) The KM-200 Air features what KW calls a Particular Titanium Face. It is a specially forged variable thickness Beta Ti face. Kamui works has also developed an all new crown and body for the Air which further increases the heads repulsion abilities. I photoshopped some descriptions below: There is not much on the Air so when I first saw the driver, I thought the crown was dented but that is it's design. This design along with the injected Air supposedly can create smash factors above 1.5 which theoretically is not possible but apparently has been done with the KP Nitro which uses a similar concept. KW touts the Air as their most forgiving and best distance driver ever and compared to previous models which were considered older more traditional designs, it certainly has the features to back that up. I love the way the Air sets up at address and I have always enjoyed the shape of its wonderful feeling face. Both Kamui's tout that their Conforming injected heads are as good distance wise as many NON conforming heads. USGA, which measures the spring effect of a driver's face apparently does not take into account the gases injected in the head. So top that off with the fact that KW's Air can also be made with a 0.88 COR face PLUS air injection, could we possibly be seeing a head equivalent to 0.92-0.93 COR in performance? That would be, excuse my language, friggin amazing. Tomorrow I will be shafting the Air up with the very reliable TRPX Messenger in SR flex. I'm very excited to see how it performs but even before that, I am always thrilled to be able to order the exact specs I want and have them hand made for me in Japan. Considering the cost of Kamui Works drivers and the options they provide, they can very much be considered great value with many other premium brands priced much higher. Stay tuned for more.... PS I am working on getting the head in the pro shop. Lots of options so please give me another day. (^_^) For those of you who have not seen it, here are some pics of Kamui Work's making a driver.
  8. Tae got a pair of hand grind Buchi's with copper plating... said to be very soft!
  9. We at TSG work hard to bring enthusiasts worldwide not only the biggest and most popular Japanese brands but also smaller up and coming brands that most people have never heard of. If it is available in Japan, TSG can or will eventually be able to get it (so don't hesitate to ask us if you don't see something in our shop). We introduced Modart and it's founder, tour grinder Mitsuru Suda (pictured above) back in February at the Japan Golf Fair. It has taken some time to iron out the details of our partnership (people always expect products to appear instantly at TSG but we make sure things are done right) and Modart clubs are finally available at TSG! I was actually in Tochigi last week at Modart headquarters ironing out the final details and got the chance to look over Modart's beautiful products again and snap some photos of the clubs and Suda-san grinding and posing to help promote the brand. Besides having Suda-san's wondeful custom grind wedges now available to all TSG followers, Modart's entire lineup can be had through TSG with an custom shafts and custom made to specs. Just to recap what I had posted before, Modart launched last year but is really just picking up steam this year especially after their first appearance at the show in February. The key things that appeal about Modart which again stands for Modern + Art are that all clubs are made in Japan and a few of the iron and wedge models are completely CNC Machined from the block!! Suda-san explained that this creates the most pure iron when it comes to materials. The pressure and heat from a forging press can create inconsistancies in the steel including cracking and weakening of the material ultimately degrading he feel. With each Modart iron and wedge being milled straight from the block, there is no contamination of the steel and you get S25C in its original and purest form. The mix of satin and chrome mirror plating really enhances the machine marks on the irons which make them stand out like no other brands irons. It's not possible to have grinding inconsistencies or unbalanced shapes as every head is machined to perfection. Every curve, every line. Not to forget those who also want a human touch, Suda-san will grind his custom wedges for any TSG order to whatever shape and offset and spec the customer wants. While the CNC machined irons are works of masterful technology and machinery, the Suda grind wedges are works of masterful hand art and his experience from grinding on both the PGA and Japanese tours. One of the great things about the new Modart drivers is that unlike many Japanese drivers that are made to counter slicers, the Modart drivers are fade biases for those who fear the hook. The black IP finishes of all the woods look amazing and the key strengths are feel and performance. The new Modart putters are also CNC Machined and look fantastic. So be sure to check out the new clubs here in the pro shop. And as always if you need help choosing the right models or understanding options, just give us a shout!
  10. Hello craniac76, Any order placed in our shop automatically gets a confirmation of order received. If you did not get one please check your spam box. Our order form also does indeed have a comments section on check out for any special instructions. I have not received any request from you by email or by an sort of communication asking to cancel. We have no problem with cancelling at a customers request. As for your comment on order processing being slow on a SUNDAY, besides being automated and being automatically processed I apologize that it is humanly impossible for us to ship out the same day in most cases especially on a Sunday when suppliers and brands are closed. Starting a forum thread here doesn't solve anything. It would have been considerably more productive just to contact us and we would have gladly sorted it out for you. Thank you for your understanding, this topic is closed.
  11. The CB358 is classified as a tour model. The VG3 is more of an average golfer model that better players can play. This is more so this year when Titleist split the VG3 into 2 iron models.
  12. Okay so VG3 demos finally arrived and I was able to compare the current VG3 Forged to the previous model. I still have to take more detailed pics so for now its by first impression since I finally have them side by side. Physical size, they are sooooo close. However design aspects of the new head give the illusion that it is smaller. A few things Titleist did to make it seem this way, they opted for a real satin finish which is more subdued and does not reflect like the only slightly brushed chrome mirror on the previous VG3. They made the actual cavity area smaller ie the back face heel area of the new model is much bigger as the cavity does not extend there unlike the previous model, so while dimensions are very close, the smaller cavity makes the new model look smaller. The new model has a more pronounced tapered topline which makes it look thinner when they are in reality about the same. On the sole side, the newer model may be a tad thicker but not by much, again this may be due to the design since the toe area is wider and the leading edge rounder while the sole of the previous model had more equal thickness from the toe to heel with a straighter leading edge. I still prefer the looks of the previous two models, but the newer one and its rounder more curvy design is not as bad as I had previously though when I saw them under the poor lighting at the golf fair. They set up nice and feel nice which is what counts. I'll be taking more pics for a more visual comparison later.
  13. As I notes in the original pre order thread the official release date is mid April but because of demand shipping will vary as each order is built on order. So we are looking at anywhere from mid April to mid May.
  14. Still in the midst of pre order. Nobody has them yet so there are no updates. http://forum.tourspecgolf.com/topic/36381-onoff-labospec-cb358-forged-shingo-tour-limited-model-pre-order-info/
  15. Updated in the first post! http://forum.tourspecgolf.com/topic/35873-updated-april-1st-the-future-of-crazy/
  16. The XR was fantastic, easy to hit with great distance. But with the Gloire, TM has completely overhauled the technology/materials and design. It is nothing like the XR. And proof in point was that when the XR was out, barely any of Japan's TM Lady pros played it even though as an average golfer men's model it would best suit them. However nearly every TM pro in Japan on the ladies tour plus even other brand's staffers play the Gloire driver. If you want to upgrade I think its worth while.
  17. Appears clean is in. Ash decided on the Kanji for TRUTH. Nice and simple design with White Satin and of course Seven's SM490A head! Original PZ Milling. Orbit around G Weights and a single sight line!
  18. We have been requesting this for years on all Miura irons... they just refuse to do it... but we will keep trying!
  19. That's right Ash, 240y and in the center of the fairway is longer than 255y slice and in the deep woods 40y offline!
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