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New Looks
How many materials do you need to make an iron?
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By Mike Stachura
Photos: Jim Herity December 2007 How many materials do you need to make an iron? It sounds like an old joke, but, of course, the answer is about as simple as, How many colors do you need to paint a sunset? Quite simply, you need the right ones.
"You're always looking to push the boundaries, trying to make incremental improvements," says Scott Rice, director of research and development at COBRA. "Using different materials allows you to pursue all the performance objectives. If you use just one material, you're going to give up something that you don't have to by using the additional materials."
Working with different materials, however, can be problematic. For example, maybe a designer wants to save weight by using a thinner metal in the face than typical 17-4 stainless steel. Then he has to figure out how to join those materials. Or maybe the thinner face negatively affects feel and sound, so then certain softer inserts are needed to improve overall performance.
"Theoretically you'd want a big, empty space in the cavity to maximize forgiveness," says Clay Long, whose latest NICKLAUS iron uses stainless steel and a large urethane insert in the cavity. "But it might not feel as good, so you use multiple materials to make it sound and look better."
Still, the use of new materials, particularly in the face, can show measurable benefits.
"There's certainly going to be a discretionary weight benefit," says Bret Wahl, TAYLORMADE's director of iron development. "But if you can increase the unsupported face area, you're increasing the diameter of your trampoline. That means you're going to see an increase in ball speed, and it's going to give you an increase in launch angle."
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1. COBRA UFI
- An aluminum-scandium alloy face (65 percent lighter than steel) is bolstered by a urethane cavity; the tungsten heel-and-toe weights add stability ($1,000, graphite, cobragolf.com).
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2. CALLAWAY FT
- This sleek, player's iron-style update of the Fusion has a proprietary dense alloy frame that houses a titanium face and a thermoplastic urethane cavity insert ($1,440, steel, callawaygolf.com).
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3. TAYLORMADE R7 CGB MAX
- The 17-4 stainless-steel face has an inverted-cone design for higher ball speed. The tungsten heel-and-toe weights keep the CG low ($1,300, graphite, taylormadegolf.com).
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4. MIZUNO MX-950
- The mixed set has tungsten-weighted hybrids, forged hollow middle irons with tungsten sole-weight pads and forged cavity-back short irons ($1,000, graphite, mizunousa.com).
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