Thanks man, they really are. Just super easy to hit and get away with mid-hits. Really looking forward to a full bag of these, I think they will really up the confidence level for me.
Bridgestone J40 Pay It Forward Review Thread
Thanks man, they really are. Just super easy to hit and get away with mid-hits. Really looking forward to a full bag of these, I think they will really up the confidence level for me.
texasgolfer
In The Hole!
After hitting the J38 DPC you left with me, I have seriously started to look at picking up a set of the J40's soon. Do you notice a big difference between the J38, and J40 DPC 6i?
I was actually asked that yesterday. While I have not been able to hit them side by side on the range, I do not recall any real noticeable differences. But, when looking online, etc - I know that you can get the J40's new for like $50 more than you can find the J38's for. The deal on new ones right now through Blind9 shipped with the shaft you require is just a heck of a deal on these.
royalwulff
New member
Great videos and information there cookie! These seem to be working out really well for quite a few of you guys.
Tadashi70
Well-known member
Based on the play of the DPC I have to say the tech behind it is way out in front of the J38s.
One-T
Skimming since Nov 2009
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Thats nuts...i am really enjoyin my 38s so to hear that is spectacular
Sent from my DROID BIONIC using Tapatalk
And for the price that you can grab the J40s for right now, why not get the upgrades.
2/19/2012
Grand Oaks Golf Course, Grand Prairie, TX
18 holes
55, partly cloudy, minimal winds
Bridgestone J40 3, 6, & 9 iron with PX Steel 5.5 shafts
Previous irons: Nike VR Pro Combo
Well, I headed back out yesterday to play 18 holes. Feel like a broken record when I discuss how superb the turf interaction is with these and just how much forgiveness these irons have. That theme held true again yesterday. I did not use the 3 iron yesterday, only the 6 & 9.
While I did not have any of those great shots of hitting irons to 5 feet, what I did have is success hitting greens. For me, that has been a pain point over the last year. I get off of the tee decently but within 150 I just don't hit the green enough. My common miss is either a fat shot or a toe shot. With the turf interaction on the chunky shots and the design of the cavity for the toe shots, simply stated, I am still seeing quality shots.
3 times yesterday I had the 9 iron in my hand for approach shots into the green. 3 GIR's and each shot was within 20-30 feet. Sure, I would love to be within 10 feet but I was given a chance at birdie and walked away with a few easy pars. Each of those shots were long and that is something I am still dialing in - these are longer than what I am used to even though they are only 1* stronger.
My worst shot of the day yesterday was with the 6 iron. 167 yard par 3 and I hit about 3 inches behind the ball. So dang fat that I somehow felt dirt hitting my face. Ended up 15 yards short of the green. All things considered it was not a bad result given how poorly I swung.
I did miss a few greens yesterday with these with the 6 iron but that was due to distance. I am consistently about 10 yards longer with this compared to what I am used to. Previously the longest (regardless of weather) that I saw the VR Pro 6i was 165 yards. Now, in 50 degree weather I am seeing 165-170 with ease. I think come summer, I am probably looking at a 175 yard 6 iron. I am not a long hitter by any stretch of the imagination but when I catch this club in the sweet spot, it really does fly. More importantly though is the forgiveness across the entire face, I am just not punished nearly as much on my misses and sometimes still find myself on the greens saying "I just got away with one".
As said previously, I can't wait to get a full set of these and honestly believe that along with hard work that these are game changers for me, especially coming from a true "players" set of irons. My ball striking has improved immensely with all of the clubs in my bag, so I am not giving all of the credit to the clubs, but they definitely help me when I miss that sweet spot.
Feel like I just rambled a bit, but hopefully the intended message is being conveyed. These will move onto another tester this week and they will be missed until the full set arrives and you will see a personal best from me shortly thereafter, I guarantee it.
Grand Oaks Golf Course, Grand Prairie, TX
18 holes
55, partly cloudy, minimal winds
Bridgestone J40 3, 6, & 9 iron with PX Steel 5.5 shafts
Previous irons: Nike VR Pro Combo
Well, I headed back out yesterday to play 18 holes. Feel like a broken record when I discuss how superb the turf interaction is with these and just how much forgiveness these irons have. That theme held true again yesterday. I did not use the 3 iron yesterday, only the 6 & 9.
While I did not have any of those great shots of hitting irons to 5 feet, what I did have is success hitting greens. For me, that has been a pain point over the last year. I get off of the tee decently but within 150 I just don't hit the green enough. My common miss is either a fat shot or a toe shot. With the turf interaction on the chunky shots and the design of the cavity for the toe shots, simply stated, I am still seeing quality shots.
3 times yesterday I had the 9 iron in my hand for approach shots into the green. 3 GIR's and each shot was within 20-30 feet. Sure, I would love to be within 10 feet but I was given a chance at birdie and walked away with a few easy pars. Each of those shots were long and that is something I am still dialing in - these are longer than what I am used to even though they are only 1* stronger.
My worst shot of the day yesterday was with the 6 iron. 167 yard par 3 and I hit about 3 inches behind the ball. So dang fat that I somehow felt dirt hitting my face. Ended up 15 yards short of the green. All things considered it was not a bad result given how poorly I swung.
I did miss a few greens yesterday with these with the 6 iron but that was due to distance. I am consistently about 10 yards longer with this compared to what I am used to. Previously the longest (regardless of weather) that I saw the VR Pro 6i was 165 yards. Now, in 50 degree weather I am seeing 165-170 with ease. I think come summer, I am probably looking at a 175 yard 6 iron. I am not a long hitter by any stretch of the imagination but when I catch this club in the sweet spot, it really does fly. More importantly though is the forgiveness across the entire face, I am just not punished nearly as much on my misses and sometimes still find myself on the greens saying "I just got away with one".
As said previously, I can't wait to get a full set of these and honestly believe that along with hard work that these are game changers for me, especially coming from a true "players" set of irons. My ball striking has improved immensely with all of the clubs in my bag, so I am not giving all of the credit to the clubs, but they definitely help me when I miss that sweet spot.
Feel like I just rambled a bit, but hopefully the intended message is being conveyed. These will move onto another tester this week and they will be missed until the full set arrives and you will see a personal best from me shortly thereafter, I guarantee it.
TC
Keg Thrower
We all have. It's called "chunkyloving"
Well, I am sad to say that my time with these has come to an end. I just handed them to Nate and he will start the review process.
Many thanks to Bridgestone for the opportunity to try these and I CAN'T WAIT to get an entire set into my bag!!! :banana:
Many thanks to Bridgestone for the opportunity to try these and I CAN'T WAIT to get an entire set into my bag!!! :banana:
What? I didn't receive any clubs from you? Are you trying to pull something over on all us? Oh wait..........
...you're right, I do have them now! :act-up: I'll be out on the range Friday afternoon giving 'em a hit for the first time. I have high expectations based on what's been reported here so I hope I'm not let down!
Have fun with them Nate, looking forward to hearing your thoughts on these.
sharkwrestler
One bad arse Dude
Great update Cookie. It will be fun to see your unboxing pictures/video and following getting accustomed to your new set for the MC .
Thanks buddy! I miss them.....played today without the 3,6,9 and really missed them. Looking forward to seeing what Nate thinks of them.
I hit a few shots today that I typically would have used these and was reminded just how forgiving these really are.
Wife twisted her ankle this morning at the lot so had kiddo duty this afternoon while she iced. Will give them a good range session tomorrow for sure as it's suppose to be just ideal conditions in the DFW area tomorrow.
2/26/2012
Eldorado Country Club, McKinney, TX
Driving Range
57, partly cloudy, gusty winds
Bridgestone J40 3, 6, & 9 iron with PX Steel 5.5 shafts
Previous irons: Taylor Made MC's and testing Taylor Made RBZ's
Finally got out to the range over the weekend and took the J40 3, 6 and 9 irons with me. I am currently involved in the testing of the Taylor Made RBZ's and before then played the Taylor Made MC's. I started off warming up with some RBZ short irons and then grabbed the J40 9 iron. First impression, love the look of the iron. Simple but yet stunning. The finish of the irons are impressive. When I put the 9 iron down behind the ball I could really feel the weight of the club and the head of the iron. Much heavier than the RBZ but again that was expected. Top line of the club at address is very much like the MC's. But there was something different on the J40's than the MC's. The J40's seemed to be longer......longer in the length of the head of the iron. It seemed to extend a bit further out when behind the ball. I have not read any of the other reviews as of yet, because I really wanted this review to come from what I first thought about the clubs. But I really noticed the length of the iron head on all 3 clubs (9, 6 and 3). It wasn't distracting and if anything just gave me a bit more confidence in each swing I made on the ball.
I hit about 10 J40 9 irons just to get the weight of the club and contact zone down to my swing. It didn't take long. I was hitting my target line real quick. My shot path had a tiny cut on the ball and was well controlled. I then grabbed the RBZ and took another 10 swings with it. Interesting enough, but one of the first things I noticed was how much higher I was getting the J40 9 iron. Wouldn't of thought that. It was not a ballooning shot, just a bit higher. As a result I was getting some really good lengeth on the J40 9 iron shots! Now, I did have the wind at my back which helped in that lengeth but it was hanging with the RBZ 9 iron shots. Then moved to the 6 iron. Wow. What a solid feeling this club had in each hit. Not only did the weight of the club feel great but I really felt like on each shot I could feel the shot all the way up the shaft of the club. I don't know if this has something to do with these Project X shafts but it was a great feeling. Again, shots were going right at my target line with just a touch of a cut on the ball. It was money. Moved to the 3 iron and had some really good shots with it. I really was able to get the 3 iron airborn quickly and I liked that a lot! It had a nice med to med high flight for me and I really liked the look of the longer length of the iron head with this club.
I continued to rotate between the RBZ, MC and J40's after that, just seeing if I could catch on to any differences or shot placement misses. The only thing I remembered out of that exchange was that I kept going back and grabbing the J40, not because I was testing these clubs but because they just felt great. By the end of the session I was really starting to groove the 6 and 9 iron. I was able to play a bit more of a cut/fade with these clubs than a draw. For me, thats good. Sometimes I like to play a good cut, 10-15 yards sometimes but hate doing that with a draw. But I do like to play a little draw with my small irons. The 9 iron did just that. I never overhooked any of them. My misses were out to the right, straight that just never drew in, but would of hit the green on any golf hole. Great confidence. I then put the 9 iron shots a bit back in my stance to see what kind of lower shots I could generate. No issues. Ball flight came down and was able to play a nice little draw into the flag. Very nice.
If I was buying some new irons these would be put on the short list. They look great and they play even better. I want another crack at them on the course and hope to get out with them next weekend.
Eldorado Country Club, McKinney, TX
Driving Range
57, partly cloudy, gusty winds
Bridgestone J40 3, 6, & 9 iron with PX Steel 5.5 shafts
Previous irons: Taylor Made MC's and testing Taylor Made RBZ's
Finally got out to the range over the weekend and took the J40 3, 6 and 9 irons with me. I am currently involved in the testing of the Taylor Made RBZ's and before then played the Taylor Made MC's. I started off warming up with some RBZ short irons and then grabbed the J40 9 iron. First impression, love the look of the iron. Simple but yet stunning. The finish of the irons are impressive. When I put the 9 iron down behind the ball I could really feel the weight of the club and the head of the iron. Much heavier than the RBZ but again that was expected. Top line of the club at address is very much like the MC's. But there was something different on the J40's than the MC's. The J40's seemed to be longer......longer in the length of the head of the iron. It seemed to extend a bit further out when behind the ball. I have not read any of the other reviews as of yet, because I really wanted this review to come from what I first thought about the clubs. But I really noticed the length of the iron head on all 3 clubs (9, 6 and 3). It wasn't distracting and if anything just gave me a bit more confidence in each swing I made on the ball.
I hit about 10 J40 9 irons just to get the weight of the club and contact zone down to my swing. It didn't take long. I was hitting my target line real quick. My shot path had a tiny cut on the ball and was well controlled. I then grabbed the RBZ and took another 10 swings with it. Interesting enough, but one of the first things I noticed was how much higher I was getting the J40 9 iron. Wouldn't of thought that. It was not a ballooning shot, just a bit higher. As a result I was getting some really good lengeth on the J40 9 iron shots! Now, I did have the wind at my back which helped in that lengeth but it was hanging with the RBZ 9 iron shots. Then moved to the 6 iron. Wow. What a solid feeling this club had in each hit. Not only did the weight of the club feel great but I really felt like on each shot I could feel the shot all the way up the shaft of the club. I don't know if this has something to do with these Project X shafts but it was a great feeling. Again, shots were going right at my target line with just a touch of a cut on the ball. It was money. Moved to the 3 iron and had some really good shots with it. I really was able to get the 3 iron airborn quickly and I liked that a lot! It had a nice med to med high flight for me and I really liked the look of the longer length of the iron head with this club.
I continued to rotate between the RBZ, MC and J40's after that, just seeing if I could catch on to any differences or shot placement misses. The only thing I remembered out of that exchange was that I kept going back and grabbing the J40, not because I was testing these clubs but because they just felt great. By the end of the session I was really starting to groove the 6 and 9 iron. I was able to play a bit more of a cut/fade with these clubs than a draw. For me, thats good. Sometimes I like to play a good cut, 10-15 yards sometimes but hate doing that with a draw. But I do like to play a little draw with my small irons. The 9 iron did just that. I never overhooked any of them. My misses were out to the right, straight that just never drew in, but would of hit the green on any golf hole. Great confidence. I then put the 9 iron shots a bit back in my stance to see what kind of lower shots I could generate. No issues. Ball flight came down and was able to play a nice little draw into the flag. Very nice.
If I was buying some new irons these would be put on the short list. They look great and they play even better. I want another crack at them on the course and hope to get out with them next weekend.
Nice feedback Nate! It's funny you mentioning the size and the appearance being longer on these. When I took comparison photos, they did not look much different when side by side with the VR Pro Combo's but in hand they definitely do. For me, that inspired a bit of confidence as I was less worried about being afraid to miss the sweet spot.
Let me answer that once the honeymoon is over. :bashful:
royalwulff
New member
Great write up there Nate! I am looking forward to reading more of your thoughts.
Ole Gray
Mayor of the Woodshed
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Nate , how would you compare the Bridgestone 3 iron with the the RBZ 4 iron, in terms of how easy they work off the tee/turf? Is there a list of folks that who will be receiving these past if forward irons :blob:?