- Feel: in general, forged irons feel/sound better at impact. However, many cast irons feel great as well, as it is more so affected by club shape (forged are typically more ...
- Distance: the process of making the iron (cast vs. forged) has no impact on the distance a ball will travel. ...
- Durability/maintenance: forged clubs typically require more maintenance (just checking lofts and lies to make sure nothing has shifted). ...
- Distance control: The different club head manufacturing processes (forged vs. cast) does not affect launch or impact at all, unless the face springs during impact. ...
- Forgiveness: this is more so a factor of players irons vs game improvement irons, less so about forged vs. cast irons. ...
- Launch angle/trajectory/spin: not affected by cast vs forged. Affected more by loft, weight placement, and groove depth/placement.
What is the difference between forged and cast golf clubs?
- Starts as a solid piece of metal
- Heated up and beat by a large hammer-like machine into the correct shape and loft
- results in improved consistency (less air bubbles –> better distance control)
- results in a more pleasant vibrations when hit (better feel)
- less iron sets are forged (~10%)
- often times used in players irons
What are the most forgiving golf clubs?
Top 3 Most Forgiving Golf Clubs Reviews
- Callaway Men’s Big Bertha Alpha Fairway Wood This Fairway Wood From Callaway is one of the most forgiving golf clubs out there. ...
- Mizuno JPX-EZ Irons Set 4-PW+GW Not only are these great looking, but Mizuno has brought their amazing design, and “buttery” feel to the JPX-EZ to create a comfortable and ...
- Cobra Golf Men’s KING F7 Hybrid
What is the best brand of golf clubs?
The first port of call to test golf clubs is usually the indoor simulator ... Thankfully most brands make models at different price points so you can rest assured there will be a top-performing model for you, however much you want to spend.
Which golf clubs are better?
The biggest factors when deciding what kind of golf shaft to use are:
- Swing Speed
- Ability to Work the Ball
- Skill Level
- Preferred Feel
- Type of Club
How can you tell if irons are forged?
The Forged Iron Difference Cast irons are made by pouring hot metal into a mold, or cast, which gives the club heads their shape. Forged irons, on the other hand, are carved out of a solid piece of metal.
Are forged or cast golf clubs better?
Forged clubs make it easier to shape ball flight This is an attribute geared toward the better player that benefits solid shots and hurts on mishits. The cast club conversely tends to have more of a game improvement design with a lower, deeper center of gravity, which helps get the ball up in the air and aids mishits.
Can a high handicapper play forged irons?
Considering that blades or players' distance irons are commonly crafted using the forged method, these irons are best suited to low handicappers and professionals. The heads of forged irons are often compact, the sweet spot sits directly behind the center of the face, and they are the least forgiving of the irons.
Do any pros use cast irons?
Bubba Watson is just one of the many pros who use investment cast irons. Back in the days of Bobby Jones, you played forged irons. There were no retail outlets; instead, golfers had blacksmiths make clubheads for them from a block of iron.
How do I know if my golf clubs are forged?
The main difference in the two methods is this: in a cast process, there can be small air bubbles that are created in the process and when cool turn into tiny voids, whereas in forged clubs this does not occur, the metal is solid throughout.
Are forged clubs harder to hit?
Forged irons are usually a little harder to hit than a cavity back iron. Since a forged iron is molded from a single piece of metal, it is hard to give it the capabilities that it needs to be quite as forgiving as a cast or cavity back iron.
Are Ping irons cast or forged?
Solid, consistent impact and added forgiveness come from an aerospace-grade aluminum insert (AlumiCore™) joined to a forged 1025 carbon steel body and 17-4 SS laser-cut face.
Do forged irons wear quicker?
Problem, as you say, forged clubs do tend to wear a little quicker than cast.
Do any pros use cavity back irons?
According to Titleist, 70% of tour players use cavity backs while 30% use blades. Cavity back irons provide increased forgiveness while blades offer more control and a better feel. This is why a lot of tour players have both cavity backs and blade irons in their bags.
What is the hardest club to hit?
A 1-iron is the hardest iron to hit because it is the longest and has the lowest loft of between 14° and 16°. The rise of hybrid clubs to replace long irons however means in the modern game 1-irons and 2-irons are very rare indeed resulting in 3-irons and 4-irons in reality being the most difficult irons to hit.
Why do I hit blades better than cavity backs?
Hitting a blade you'll know right away when you hit it solid or not very well. A blade iron will also be easier to shape the ball around. You'll be able to draw or fade the ball much easier compared to a cavity back. You'll also be able to control the trajectory better and that's what most professionals would want.
Do all PGA players use forged irons?
By the mid-1990s, only about half the players on the PGA Tour were using forged irons. Forged irons made a comeback after the turn of the century thanks to new manufacturing techniques, including some designs borrowed from their cavity-back cousins.
What are the pros and cons of forged irons?
While forged irons offer incredible feel, acoustics, and greenside control, they are unforgiving and difficult to play. Even though most of the forged irons that we looked at were best suited to lower handicappers and pros. There are options for mid to high handicappers.
Are cast irons more durable than forged?
One thing's for certain is that forged irons are the best for feel and distance control while the cast variety performs better when it comes to long-term durability and boosting distance. Now let's talk about all of this in a little bit of detail below.
Do forged irons wear out faster?
Problem, as you say, forged clubs do tend to wear a little quicker than cast. I use my previous R7 irons as an example. When I sold them there was hardly any wear for a club I'd had and used 3-4 times a week for 12 months.
Do forged irons last longer?
Forged irons use softer steel than cast irons, but unless you're playing golf multiple times per week, the average player won't notice much different in terms of longevity. While both are manufactured to be high quality, forged irons are purer than cast irons and, in theory, should last longer.
How to make forged clubs more precise?
Instead, they can make them more precise by having an exact mold for each loft, bounce, and grind combination. Then they can ensure that the products are of the highest quality before leaving the warehouse.
What is a forged iron?
A forged golf iron is a club that is made out of one solid block of metal. The irons are carved and shaped, and they are one solid piece of material. A cast iron is an iron that is made from a mold. Hot metal is poured in the mold into the desired shape, and the result is a cast iron golf club. The cast golf irons are mostly known as being cavity ...
Why are cavity back wedges so popular?
Some cavity back wedges made by Cleveland are becoming increasingly popular because they are making the wedge game that much easier for the average golfer. In years past, the only wedge options were available were more like the blade-style wedges.
What happens if you miss a shot with a cast iron?
If they miss a shot slightly with a cavity back or cast iron, then they still have a chance of a decent result. If you miss a ball with forged iron, you will likely see some ugly golf shots. Some like to argue that this forces a high handicapper to get better at golf.
What is the most important part of a golf wedge?
The most important part about a golf wedge is making sure that it has the feel, bounce, and spin that you need to hit a variety of shots. It does not matter which process was used to make the wedge as it will not have a significant impact on the performance of the wedge itself.
Do Taylormade irons vibrate?
They used their new Echo Damping system to help make it, so there is little to no vibration when you hit a golf ball with these irons. With the better feel and the increased distance these irons provide, you will be very happy with the TaylorMade SIM Max.
Is a forged iron better than a cast iron?
Forged irons are thought to be more of a player’s club. Since this is a more traditional iron and has been around for many years, the forged iron gets a better name than the cast iron. In reality, cast irons are going to be almost as good as a forged iron in the modern golf world.
What does price equate to in forged clubs?
Advocates of more expensively made forged clubs and processes suggest to you inferences of price equated with performance, greater attention to detail, precision, quality, craftsmanship, and manufacturing process demands and skill . A few of these suggestions might be valid in some brand-to-brand comparisons, but is there real value-added from a critical performance attributes standpoint?
What is a drop forged golf club?
Forged golf club manufacturing processes are no longer “hand forged” for nearly a century now. They are instead “drop-forged” with huge drop forge “hammers” – so large they literally shake the factory floor with every forging hammer blow. A red hot cylindrical bar of carbon steel is “drop-forged” through 3 to 5 progressive dies. With each blow, the bar gradually morphs into a very rough golf club shape (that still requires extensive work before becoming a golf club head). You can see good examples of this drop forging process on the Internet.
What is a RAW forging?
They were L-shaped pieces of scaly steel with the longer leg of the “L” flattened and angled to become the clubface and the shorter leg left in a cylindrical shape to become the hosel. There was much work then yet to be done to manufacture a conventional forged iron, with 50 to 60 grams of steel (20%+ of the total weight) commonly removed during the shaping and finishing manufacturing processes.
Why were irons stymied?
While shaping metals with early hand-forged processes did limit the design possibilities for metal irons, the development of irons was more effectively stymied by the poor durability of the early golf balls. Irons had to wait for a better ball to come along.
What are multi-material club heads?
Now, Multi-Material club heads are becoming the new standard with some forged parts and other investment cast steel parts that are combined to provide the best of both worlds. Other additional materials are even added for vibration dampening and final weight adjustment is done with high-density tungsten pieces inserted to increase MOI and move the CG positions significantly. These multi-material combination club heads now commonly include forged steel + investment cast or CNC milled steel (or exotic alloys) + high-density tungsten weighting inserts + urethane vibration dampening molded pieces + stamped aluminum graphics badges, totaling 5 or more materials and parts in a single club head. These are generally exceptional golf clubs, and they represent the direction of the future.
When did forged irons start being offered?
Perimeter weighted, cavity-back forged irons were not even offered commercially until as recently as the late 1980’s – and still only when the forging producers were forced to do so by the economic reality of declining forged irons sales, as investment cast offerings from the OEMs began to gain broader consumer acceptance.
How old are perimeter weighted irons?
Perimeter weighted irons are in fact a 100 year-old idea. The archives of the patent office and our golf history are rich with many amazing ideas. We are literally talking about 500 years of golf nuts (like ourselves) contemplating how to improve their games with better golf club designs.
Why are cast irons used in golf clubs?
The casting process allows golf club makers to experiment with more game improvement-style shapes and features. Cast irons are often cavity back to feature more perimeter weighting. They also often include wider soles and weighting that allows manufacturers to move the center of gravity around. Cast irons can be made into a massive variety of shapes and designs to boost performance and allow golfers to hit the shots they need from anywhere on the course. These designs generally produce faster ball speed for more distance, more forgiveness, and higher, easier launch from all types of turf.
Why are forged clubheads so easy to bend?
Also, because of the softer material used to make forged clubheads, they are easy to bend and adjust loft angle and lie angle, making them an excellent choice for golfers who want to custom build and fit their iron set.
How are golf irons made?
How They’re Made. Cast golf irons are made through a molding process known as casting. In casting, a mold is made of the club head design the manufacturer is producing. The metal is then heated until it becomes a liquid and poured into the clubhead mold.
What are the two ways to make golf irons?
These two ways of making golf irons provide the perfect set for every player. Cast and forged irons both bring certain strengths to the golf course and can make a difference in your game when you know which one is right for you. Now that you know how each is made, what the benefits are, and what type of golfer they are a good fit for, head over to TGW.com and shop our selection of golf irons from the top brands today. Whether you are looking for cast iron or forged golf clubs, you are sure to find the perfect iron set for your game.
What is forged iron?
They are made with softer steel that usually has more carbon in order to make them more workable, keeping the grain of the steel packed in tight. This is what gives forged irons that signature feel and feedback golfers who love them often cite as to why they prefer this construction. These irons are also works of art. Forged irons frequently feature blade or muscle back shapes, sleek lines, and a compact size. Also, because of the softer material used to make forged clubheads, they are easy to bend and adjust loft angle and lie angle, making them an excellent choice for golfers who want to custom build and fit their iron set. They are known for the feel, responsiveness and feedback, great looks in the bag, and the ability to control the ball with their smaller club head size.
How often should you use irons in golf?
Irons make up the majority of your set and you use them on every hole, often more than once per hole.
Do forged irons need to be buffed?
A forged clubhead still needs to be buffed, ground, and detailed by hand to meet the exact specifications of the iron’s design.
What is a forged iron?
The clubhead starts its life as a piece of steel. It's heated until it's red hot, then the craftsman uses a machine called a forging hammer to pound the steel into shape .
Who designed the first investment cast club?
By the late 1950s investment cast clubs entered the market. At first it was only putters, designed and cast by Karsten Solheim.
How did cast iron start?
Cast irons began with molds into which molten metal was poured. This let the worker form the clubheads into any shape he wanted. When they cooled, he broke the molds and finished the clubheads. Investment cast clubs not only incorporated cavity-back designs, but they were less expensive than forged clubs.
Is there a difference between forged and cast irons?
Former U.S. Golf Association Technical Director Frank Thomas says there is no longer any real difference between forged and cast irons – provided, that is, that the designs are the same. Cast irons are now capable of providing the same feel and quality as forged irons.
Do forged irons have the same design as cast irons?
Forged irons incorporate many of the same game improvement designs as cast clubs. But the primary choices you face when choosing between the two are the same as they have always been – how the irons feel and how much you're willing to spend.
Is air bubble bad for pro casting?
Many held to tradition, feeling that these new cast clubs were inferior. In many ways they were. Air bubbles were always a danger with investment casting. These bubbles could affect a pro's accuracy, although they were rarely a problem for the amateurs.
Who uses investment cast irons?
Bubba Watson is just one of the many pros who use investment cast irons.
How do forged clubs compare to cast clubs?
The main difference in the two methods is this: in a cast process, there can be small air bubbles that are created in the process and when cool turn into tiny voids, whereas in forged clubs this does not occur, the metal is solid throughout. If you are a visual person, think of it this way: the molecular structure of a cast head is like a jar of marbles (beads) whereas with a forged head it is like a jar of fine sand, much denser. But does this affect the playability? In a word, “no”. For some players it is all about the feel. For lovers of forged clubs, the impact feels and sounds more solid. For the average golfer, I do not think they would feel any difference at all.
How are forged clubs made?
So, now let us look at the process for forged clubs. Then we will do a comparison of forged versus cast. In the forged process, a solid billet of steel is used. The steel billet is heated to very high temperatures, put in a press and is then hammered into shape with several tons of pressure. This process can be repeated several times before the head is ready for finishing. It is at this point that there is a big difference between cast and forged. With the cast process, at this point the head is virtually ready to be assembled. There is not very much additional work to be performed on it. In the forged process, the head has to go through a grinding, buffing and detailing process before it is ready to be shafted. This part of the process requires very skilled craftsmen and is extremely labor intensive. The cost of labor is the main reason why forged clubs are much more expensive. There are a few smaller foundries in Japan that are still producing totally hand forged heads, and they are the priciest heads available. They produce beautiful heads. They are of top quality but you pay a premium price for them.
What is the difference between forged and cast iron?
Firstly, the main difference between cast and forged irons is the actual process of manufacturing. With cast irons, the manufacturing process is called the “investment casting” or “lost wax” process. In this process, a wax model of the club head is made and then this model is coated with a ceramic mixture. Once the ceramic mixture is hard the ...
Why are forged clubs so expensive?
This part of the process requires very skilled craftsmen and is extremely labor intensive. The cost of labor is the main reason why forged clubs are much more expensive.
How many degrees should forged clubs be?
One instance where forged clubs might be a necessary option is when it is determined in the fitting process that the golfers set up or his general swing characteristics require that the lie angles be markedly upright or flat, more than 2-3 degrees.
What is the advantage of casting over forged?
The advantage that cast heads have over forged heads is in the level of design possibilities. In the cast process, there is really no limitation on design. In forged clubs, there are limitations. I doubt we will ever see a forged head with a huge undercut cavity and extra wide sole.
What type of metal is used for investment casting?
There is no restriction as to what type of metal can be used. In the early days of investment casting, a grade of steel called 17/4 stainless steel was used which when hardened was extremely hard and brittle.
What is not affected by cast vs forged?
Launch angle/trajectory/spin: not affected by cast vs forged. Affected more by loft, weight placement, and groove depth/placement.
What is cast iron?
Cast irons. Starts as a liquid metal form. Poured into a mold. results in the ability to add more components (extra weighting, more creative cavities) typically results in a less pleasant, louder sounding vibration (less feel) most iron sets are cast (~90%) typically used in a game improvement iron.
How does distance control affect a club?
Distance control: The different club head manufacturing processes (forged vs. cast) does not affect launch or impact at all, unless the face springs during impact. The face springs at impact when there is an imperfection in the club making process, such as tiny air bubbles in the casting process. Forged clubs are made of more tightly compacted metal, which will lead to better distance control. Let’s be clear though, these differences are small. Plus, if you are not hitting it close to the center of the face on a forged club, your distance control will be less consistent than hitting it on the center of the face of a cast iron.
Does a forged iron go the same distance as a forged iron?
Distance: the process of making the iron (cast vs. forged) has no impact on the distance a ball will travel. If anything, forged clubs typically have weaker lofts than cast irons. That means that a forged 6 iron might be the same loft of a cast 5 iron. This all depends on the manufacturer and the specs associated with the irons. A 40 degree lofted cast iron will go the same distance as a 40 degree lofted forged iron, no matter what number is stamped on the bottom of the clubs.
Do cast irons feel good?
It is very hard to quantify feel. On average, yes, cast irons don’t feel as good as forged irons. However, many cast irons feel better than the average forged iron.
Is forgiveness a factor in irons?
Forgiveness: this is more so a factor of players irons vs game improvement irons, less so about forged vs. cast irons. Forgiveness comes more from perimeter weighting and the sole design. It’s not affected by how the club is made . Cast iron clubs are typically game improvement clubs though, so cast irons are typically pretty forgiving.
Is there a correlation between forged and cast irons?
First, let’s get one thing straight. More player irons are forged, and more game improvement irons are cast. Therefore, there is a direct correlation between the two iron characteristics, especially when we are talking about very high level, general concepts and relationships. Anyway, let’s keep this discussion about forged vs cast irons, not player’s irons vs game improvement irons.
How to tell if cast iron is steel?
The spark test to identify cast steel from cast iron is very easy to do, when you grind if there is lots of sparks long and bright yellowish it is steel, if they are shorter and more on the red orange color it is cast iron.
Do crankshafts have sharp casting lines?
I would imagine, like a crankshaft, you should see a sharp casting line on the part if it's cast. A forging should have a thicker ground parting line.
