I’m looking to get new irons and wedge set more in line with ABS gear but prefer to use modern equipment. I’m not too knowledgeable about golf gear or club repair myself so hoping to customize clubs from a major retailer to my specs. I understand heavy, stiff, flat, and minimal offset are the main things I should be looking for.
Did an iron fitting recently and had a considerable drop off in speed with 130 g shafts vs 120 g shafts. Best shaft numbers wise with mid 80s swing speed was KBS tour 120 stiff but was still launching a bit high and not sure if that is best choice for long term as my swing evolves with drill work. Any other thoughts on shafts to consider? Has anyone tried the TT DG 120 iron shafts in xtra stiff? Was thinking those may be a good choice.
Also interested in opinions on most ABS compatible players iron from the big manufacturers? I have hit the callaway apex pros, titleist T100s, and Mizuno 223s.
As an 11 handicap I’m not sure if I have the distance and ballstriking for true blades at the moment, particularly in the longer irons. I want to strike a balance between a set that will help me advance in my drillwork and something that is forgiving enough to keep it fun for me when I’m on the course.
So, this is just one guy’s opinion, so feel free to disregard it. And I’m not an ABS student, but been here a long time and am very familiar with ABS spec sheets as they’ve been posted here.
I’ve had some bad experiences with fittings, so make sure it’s well done. I could go on that forever on why many fittings are poorly done.
But, just a couple things to be aware of if you want modern, ABS-friendly gear:
With next to no exceptions, fitters aren’t going to recommend lies as flat as ABS, and OEMs will not bend their clubs that flat for you. If you want ABS lie angles, it’s DIY or have a local shop or Lag bend and they need to be very soft clubs (or they’ll break). Many will go 3 or 4 flat, but not beyond that.
Very few fitters will seriously consider a variety of swing weights and total weights. You will almost certainly not get clubs in line with how heavy ABS clubs are. Not hard to fix with DIY stuff, but they’ll be light by ABS standards. Most likely, very light by ABS standards.
Only clubs you can get meeting, or close to meeting, ABS standards on offset are the Arias. Maybe there’s others, but nothing made by major OEMs.
I don’t have opinions on the different heads and shafts. Heavy is heavy and stiff is stiff. It’s all marked with different logos but plays close to the same, IMO. I do prefer blades and think the forgiveness of other designs is seriously overrated.
I wish you tons of luck. I’m not trying to make this harder than it is, but giving you honest feedback. A lot of the stuff today is good, but most of it’s difficult or impossible to make fully ABS. You could get pretty close with a variety of options though, especially if you’re willing to do some of the work after the factory assembly.
Lastly, I know this isn’t what you’re asking, but being able to build/modify your own stuff is a huge advantage and worth the time investment. I realize it’s not for everyone though. And my 1975 Wilson irons are my favorites and I’ve tried many modern clubs, btw… A simple blade that fits you well and you can hit out of the center is hard to beat.
Oh, and I think Arias will bend things very flat in addition to having zero offset. Some folks on here use them - I’ve never tried them so can’t speak more on them than that.
Probably not what you’re looking for either but National Custom Works makes traditional looking heads from Japanese forgings to your specs. Definitely not cheap but what jewelry.