Customers
sometimes ask us about the difference between forged and cast heads. We hope
this brief guide helps you to understand some of the different materials used
in iron heads:
The heads of golf clubs are made in one of two processes - casting or forging.
Cast
The vast majority – probably 90% - of golf clubs sold are made by casting –
which involves pouring molten metal into a mould to produce a golf club head.
The nature of casting allows manufacturers to be more creative in their designs
– the process particularly lending itself to the creation of cavity back clubs
and the ability to push weight to the outside of the head which helps prevent
it twisting on off-centre hits.
You will hear manufacturers shouting about their use of cast 17-4 stainless
steel. No, we didn’t know what it meant either until we looked it up. It means
that 17% of the make-up is chromium – and 4% nickel. And that, apparently, is
very good news. 17-4 stainless steel is strong, durable, very hard, and doesn’t
corrode easily.
You will also hear about 431 Stainless steel which is 25% softer than 17-4 –
and would claim to give slightly better ‘feel’ . It’s worth noting, however,
that the harder the face, the faster the ball comes off it. So everything is a
compromise.
Examples of irons with cast heads? Well, where do you start - it’s most clubs
that are made.
A classic example might be an easy-hitting oversize iron like the
TaylorMade rac OS
– this photo is of a cross section showing the weight in the bottom of the club
which helps get the ball airborne quickly.
Equally, cast clubs are made which are aimed at scratch golfers. The
Ping S59
shown, for example, are used by many of Ping’s Tour Players – including one of
Golfbidder’s all time favourite players, Miguel Angel Jimenez.
Forged
Forging involves taking a piece of soft steel and stamping or beating it into
shape. Because the steel used in forging is so much softer (due to the higher
carbon content), some players claim that forged clubs offer better ‘feel’.
The process of forging is more labour-intensive which is why they generally
cost more.
When players talk about ‘feel’ in irons, they tend to be talking about knowing
when a ball has been hit off-centre. Golfers want to hit the ball out of the
middle of the clubface to achieve the maximum distance and desired trajectory.
But some of the bigger-headed irons are so forgiving that they hit the ball
pretty straight even when hit off the toe or the heel. Some better players,
however, want to know immediately if they have hit the ball off the toe or the
heel in order that they can attempt to make adjustments and not make the same
‘error’ next time.
‘Feel’ , however, is much more likely to be a function of the head design than
the material and while 20 years ago, all the top tour players used forged
bladed clubs, that is not the case anymore - and many of the world’s best
players now use cast clubs.
Because of the history, there has been a tendency to assume that forged clubs
are more difficult to hit. If they are, it is probably because of the shape of
the head – not because it is cast or forged.
A classic example of a forged club would be a bladed club such as the
gorgeous-looking
Mizuno MP-33s
The past few years has also seen the emergence of forged cavity back clubs
which aim to combine the best of both the cast and forged worlds. Here is
Titleist’s take on the concept – the
755 Forged Irons.
Titanium
Cast titanium – the same material used on the outside of the Space Shuttle – is
sometimes used in golf irons heads. It is as strong as steel – but half the
weight. Titanium allows club designers to build larger heads with larger
sweetspots – but without the club being too heavy. (Incidentally, this is why
virtually all drivers are now made of titanium rather than steel).
By combining ultra lightweight titanium faces with a very heavy metal
(typically tungsten) around the outside, designers can produce iron heads which
have a greater resistance to twisting on off-centre shots (because the ball is
hitting the ‘heavy’ bit of the club on such shots, it doesn’t divert the path
of the head as much). But we’re getting into Moment of Inertia (MOI) here –
which we’ll leave for another day.
Suffice to say that irons with titanium heads tend to be very light, very easy
to hit, very forgiving – and very expensive. They are aimed primarily at higher
handicappers with deep pockets.
Examples of irons with titanium heads include Callaway’s Big Bertha Fusion
Irons which retail at close to £1,000 a set:
We hope this short guide has proved helpful. If you need any further
information – or, indeed, if you think we can improve our explanation of loft
and lie – feel free to phone one of our PGA Professionals on 020 8401 6918 – or
email pros@golfbidder.co.uk
Other Articles in the Series:
Loft and Lie Angle
Golf Club Bounce
Angle