Cobra Bio Cell Irons Review Thread

[Just_Brad]

Any longer term thoughts on these? If money were not a factor would they kick your current irons out of the bag?

Honestly, with some additional testing of more of the set, there is a high probability I will be picking these up later this season. I love how quick the ball gets up into the air with these irons.

Hesitations I have right now are:
1) Really want to get some swings in with these irons in the stiff shaft. My current irons switching to Stiff really tightened dispersion, and resulted in more yardage as well for me.
2) I want to see how I like the 7/8/9/PW out of this set. Liking the 6 iron, I really want to see yardages with the "go to" clubs out of the set.
3) It will never, and I mean neeeeeever be golf season here it seems. Simulator, and hitting into a net is all good, but I really need to be on a range or a course to see real-world ball flight, and how it reacts for me.

If not a full "set", I would love to order in a 6/7/8/9/PW batch and game them, if the non-snow affected results suit me!

 

[Fozcycle]

These comments are great concerning the performance of the 6i. Unfortunately, the set has 7 more clubs. I for one, have not been hitting 4 & 5 irons great in the past year and opted for hybrids (Nike VR Pro 3 & 4 then added Nike Covert #5)....In December I picked up a new set of Mizuno JPX800 HD's and was getting used to the FliHi 4 & 5. The Mizzy 4 - 8 were all about 1/2 club shorter but much straighter than my Nike VR Pro CB's......Then BOOM! I was offered a chance to try out the Cobra Bio Cell irons. The only prob was they were 1.5* flat and had the Dynalite 85 stiff shafts(I play regulars).

My first complete round was Saturday and the 2nd shot of the day I pulled the 4 iron instead of my 3 wood on a 500 yd Par 5. Wow! The 4i swung thru the ball like a hot knife in soft butter. The ball sailed to just inside the 150. I don't think I have gamed a 4i that good in 10 years. Anyway, as the round continued, I used the 4i & 5i as much as possible....with similar results. The play with the mid and short irons put me back at the distance I was used to with the Nike VR Pro CB w/PX graphite 5.5 shafts. Now I am thinking, this is terrific! I was also able to punch out from trouble with the 4 & 5 drawing or fading at will.

I played the long irons, mid irons & short irons with straight results....

 

[salisboss]

I wanted to drop and say that I that I still having great success with this club. I just need to make I don't drop my hands to low and chunk the heel. Otherwise at least a club length over my gamers.

On bad news partially tore a ligament in my ankle so I am in a walking boot for at least the next 10 days. I won't have any updates then but I will still be on to answer questions.

 

[War Eagle]

These comments are great concerning the performance of the 6i. Unfortunately, the set has 7 more clubs. I for one, have not been hitting 4 & 5 irons great in the past year and opted for hybrids (Nike VR Pro 3 & 4 then added Nike Covert #5)....In December I picked up a new set of Mizuno JPX800 HD's and was getting used to the FliHi 4 & 5. The Mizzy 4 - 8 were all about 1/2 club shorter but much straighter than my Nike VR Pro CB's......Then BOOM! I was offered a chance to try out the Cobra Bio Cell irons. The only prob was they were 1.5* flat and had the Dynalite 85 stiff shafts(I play regulars).

My first complete round was Saturday and the 2nd shot of the day I pulled the 4 iron instead of my 3 wood on a 500 yd Par 5. Wow! The 4i swung thru the ball like a hot knife in soft butter. The ball sailed to just inside the 150. I don't think I have gamed a 4i that good in 10 years. Anyway, as the round continued, I used the 4i & 5i as much as possible....with similar results. The play with the mid and short irons put me back at the distance I was used to with the Nike VR Pro CB w/PX graphite 5.5 shafts. Now I am thinking, this is terrific! I was also able to punch out from trouble with the 4 & 5 drawing or fading at will.

I played the long irons, mid irons & short irons with straight results....

While we realize that the set is made up of more than just the 6i, this is what Cobra sent along to us for this opportunity. Having read through all of the reviews, I think the testers did a great job of explaining how they did their testing and reviews based on the performance of just the one 6i we received.

 

[#Cookie]

I took another 10 swings or so yesterday at the range with the stiff flex 6i. I'm still seeing that slight push right but distance and trajectory are solid. Ball flight is straight (even with a push) which I like. I'm still not completely sold on the turf interaction when I compare to something like the J40 which IMO gets through it a bit better.

Still want to try this in another shaft though for sure.

 

[War Eagle]

I took another 10 swings or so yesterday at the range with the stiff flex 6i. I'm still seeing that slight push right but distance and trajectory are solid. Ball flight is straight (even with a push) which I like. I'm still not completely sold on the turf interaction when I compare to something like the J40 which IMO gets through it a bit better.

Still want to try this in another shaft though for sure.

How would you say this one compares in regards to turf interaction to the Altitudes?

My biggest issue with the larger hybrid clubs was turf interaction and the inability to cut through at times.

 

[#Cookie]

How would you say this one compares in regards to turf interaction to the Altitudes?

My biggest issue with the larger hybrid clubs was turf interaction and the inability to cut through at times.

That's a good question. And one I have thought about. I could be way off base, but here's my perception:

DPC's - hit and dig into turf but then do a good job of getting through turf

Altitudes - hit but don't get near as much so they more less glide into the ball at turf level

Bio Cell - hit and dig into turf but don't get through turf well resulting in a significant fat shot

That's not to say you can't create a divot with the altitudes.....just what I recall from memory.

Obviously the turf conditions play into this as well,

 

[Just_Brad]

I took another 10 swings or so yesterday at the range with the stiff flex 6i. I'm still seeing that slight push right but distance and trajectory are solid. Ball flight is straight (even with a push) which I like. I'm still not completely sold on the turf interaction when I compare to something like the J40 which IMO gets through it a bit better.

Still want to try this in another shaft though for sure.

Do you play a regular or a stiff in your normal irons #Cookie? Or I guess, the better question is what irons shafts do you play, are they similar in weight etc?

Would course conditions, like a wetter turf maybe be playing into this a bit as well?

 

[#Cookie]

Do you play a regular or a stiff in your normal irons #Cookie? Or I guess, the better question is what irons shafts do you play, are they similar in weight etc?

Would course conditions, like a wetter turf maybe be playing into this a bit as well?

Altitudes: stiff stock graphite (very light - 55g)

J40's: PX 5.5 steel & SteelFibers regular flex

So I've played iron shafts all over the weight gamut. I do believe that turf conditions will impact this, much different in dry firm Texas than east coast with softer turf.

 

[salisboss]

That's a good question. And one I have thought about. I could be way off base, but here's my perception:

DPC's - hit and dig into turf but then do a good job of getting through turf

Altitudes - hit but don't get near as much so they more less glide into the ball at turf level

Bio Cell - hit and dig into turf but don't get through turf well resulting in a significant fat shot

That's not to say you can't create a divot with the altitudes.....just what I recall from memory.

Obviously the turf conditions play into this as well,

What about each of these do you think causes the above effects. I have never given thought to conditions and the type of iron that would work.

 

[#Cookie]

What about each of these do you think causes the above effects. I have never given thought to conditions and the type of iron that would work.

Combination of sole and leading edge IMO.

J40 is fairly sharp (for lack of a better term)
Altitude is more round and with a deep sole it's not gonna dig like a typical iron (think hybrid).
Bio Cell is more rounded than the J40 (I think) so it still digs but sole isn't deep enough to keep it on top if that makes sense

 

[mikeg_74]

Combination of sole and leading edge IMO.

J40 is fairly sharp (for lack of a better term)
Altitude is more round and with a deep sole it's not gonna dig like a typical iron (think hybrid).
Bio Cell is more rounded than the J40 (I think) so it still digs but sole isn't deep enough to keep it on top if that makes sense

As one who tends to be a digger and not a picker with my irons & wedges, I'm seeing similar issues with the Bio Cell Cookie.

Today at the range they were not fat shots and not really losing considerable distance, but I do find myself trying to not take some much of a divot bc of the negative turf interaction. I'm not that well versed in sole vs leading edge, but feel the sole design is more of the reason vs leading edge.

 

[salisboss]

Combination of sole and leading edge IMO.

J40 is fairly sharp (for lack of a better term)
Altitude is more round and with a deep sole it's not gonna dig like a typical iron (think hybrid).
Bio Cell is more rounded than the J40 (I think) so it still digs but sole isn't deep enough to keep it on top if that makes sense

So would you say in your opinion that the Bio Cells may not be the best in a place with generally wet turf?

 

[#Cookie]

So would you say in your opinion that the Bio Cells may not be the best in a place with generally wet turf?

I actually think wetter turf may help as it would be softer to get through.

Hitting a fat shot in Texas on dry firm ground is no bueno.

 

[ironcondor]

Now that I'm all moved into my new-to-me house and started to unpack, I got to head off to the range for a few hours and hit two large buckets. After warming up, I tried some of these deliberately 'terrible' shots towards a range flag at the 180ish distance:

1) Hitting it fat: this resulted in a straight ball flight towards target, but woefully short in the 100-120 yard carry range depending on how fat the shot was. Some I hit fatter than others.

2) Coming severely over the top with a super-strong grip: Ball didn't really hook, but was just pulled straight but way left of target, like 50+ yards, probably to be expected. I noticed I lost about 20 yards of carry even though it felt flush.

3) Hitting it really thin: The ball flew out straight like a laser beam and rolled to at least 140-150 yards.

4) Normal swing, really weak grip: I'm not sure I would even call the ball flight a slice. The ball definitely landed right of target, but not way off, perhaps about 20 yards. This is, in my opinion, where forgiveness comes through in spades with this club. I just could not get it to slice in a violent manner. I can slice my JPX 825 6i with ease...

5) Normal swing, really strong grip: Opposite of #4, I was able to get the ball to hook significantly. I wouldn't really call it a draw...the ball started off right, came back left, but WAY left, about 30 yards.

6) Normal swing/grip, but trying to crush it as hard as I can: Many different things happened here, LOL. Some were fat, some were thin...the ones where I connected well were just GONE. Carried the 180 pin. Fantastic. However, it should be noted that with my normal pace swing, if I hit it really well I get the same result. So as with most things golf...no point in trying to crush it. Let the club technology do it's work here, folks. I don't have that high of a swing speed; with my driver 95 mph MAYBE over 100 on a really good day. But this 6i has no problem carrying to the 180 mark. As I mentioned earlier, my usual 180-190 stick is my 4h mashie...

I am also wondering what results I'd see with an S-flex shaft in these. Right now I use the R-flex, and I have R-flex in my KBS Tours in the JPXs as well.

Pondering these hard. Watching a couple auctions on the bay. Still not my favorite looking iron...but these things just plain WORK! Ball flight carries farther and is yet higher than my JPX 825 6i...presumably I'd see similar results across the rest of the bag!

 

[Butch]

I've been following this thread since inception but frankly disappointed that the postings have virtually dried up since March 8th. Perhaps this due to testers only receiving a 6-iron which you can only do so much with. I myself being a 20 handicapper (still play Taylormade RAC HT irons from 2005) am a perfect candiate for these irons and have been pondering them vs Taylormade Rocketbladez. I demoed both at a local Golf Town and was prepared to witness the Taylomade irons trumph the Cobra Bio Cells .... but au contraire the opposite occurred. . After asking a salesman to hit 7-irons in the practice areas I queried if he had hit either .... he replied no but in his opinion the Cobras looked strange and wouldn’t be a staunch performer as only a “poor man’s Titleist” club. I took these comments with a grain of salt and proceeded to the hitting cage. Visually I actually prefer the Cobras (the Frankenstien backs are never seen at address and don’t bother me) and the top line appears narrower and cleaner than the Taylormades. The Taylormades look a little more intimidating to hit due to a shorter blade length (much shorter than my RAC's and a little less than the Cobras) and less offset. I only compared 7-irons due to not having swung a club in quite some time (its winter here ya know) and started with the Cobra Bio Cell. After a few warmup swings I was hitting a consistent 155-157 yds with a slight draw and the action thru the ball was like butter which really instilled confidence in my swing. With the Taylors I couldn’t seem to feel the same “action” thru the hitting zone and could muster no better than 145 yds. I then switched back to the Cobras and hit three additional cycles with both irons – all with almost identical results and the Cobras out distancing the Taylors by 10-12 yds. From this very brief session the Cobras out-performed the Taylors for me and they are definitely at the top of my list for new irons. I know other testers have already commented on this but I think important to repeat – don’t eliminate these irons based on their looks! At address they are as smart looking as any other iron out there and they just might surprise you performance wise.

 

[salisboss]

I think it will get more active as the weather gets better. I know for me I have been out of commission for three weeks with a bad anjkle ligament. I am cleared for activity on Thursday and will be playing 18 on Friday. I will have more then. Having just the 6-iron makes me want to look for a few more individual irons out there. Perhaps a 4 and a 9 would do. I play my 6-iron maybe 6 times during a round so I do not get a whole lot of value added information each time. I will definitely post after Friday's round with what I can but will check the bay for a few more irons.

 

[Michigan Slice]

I had the opportunity to hit the BioCell a few times this weekend in Hilton Head. What ive continued to notice about this iron is the nice high ball flight. This high ball flight seems to contribute to a slightly longer carry distance (4-5 yds).
Misses not overly penalized as a toe miss is my usual miss.
I haven't really noticed any turf interaction pros or cons as others have asked for, I will keep an eye on it.

 

[Wonton]

Ok so I know that I'm not a reviewer for this but I have to comment on it.
I just came back from the shop, had no intentions of hitting these but I did because I was curious. (Bio Cell +)
I hit about 25 with the monitor. 7 iron.
I averaged 202 yards in total yards. Longest… 218! With a 7! What? No freaking way!
I couldn't believe these numbers so I grabbed my X Hot Pro 7 iron. Averaged 182 in total yards.
I immediately thought that "well the Cobra HAD to be jacked up in loft." Actually, I just came home and researched. 32.5 Loft with the Cobra vs. 31 on XHP.
Shaft wise it was S300 on Cobra vs. PX 6.0

The question is, do I want to hit THAT far with a 7? Let's say my 9 iron goes 170. Now what? There's going to be a huge gap. I'm ok with hitting 170-180 with a 7 iron.
Ok, in real life with real conditions, I am sure those numbers would be lower.

Unreal though...

 

[salisboss]

Ok so I know that I'm not a reviewer for this but I have to comment on it.
I just came back from the shop, had no intentions of hitting these but I did because I was curious. (Bio Cell +)
I hit about 25 with the monitor. 7 iron.
I averaged 202 yards in total yards. Longest… 218! With a 7! What? No freaking way!
I couldn't believe these numbers so I grabbed my X Hot Pro 7 iron. Averaged 182 in total yards.
I immediately thought that "well the Cobra HAD to be jacked up in loft." Actually, I just came home and researched. 32.5 Loft with the Cobra vs. 31 on XHP.
Shaft wise it was S300 on Cobra vs. PX 6.0

The question is, do I want to hit THAT far with a 7? Let's say my 9 iron goes 170. Now what? There's going to be a huge gap. I'm ok with hitting 170-180 with a 7 iron.
Ok, in real life with real conditions, I am sure those numbers would be lower.

Unreal though...

They are just plain long but that leaves a lot of room at the bottom of your bag. If you went with the bio cell I would learn to hit your wedges different distances a la the Scor method.

 

[Wonton]

They are just plain long but that leaves a lot of room at the bottom of your bag. If you went with the bio cell I would learn to hit your wedges different distances a la the Scor method.

I just don't see how I can hit 150 with my Gap wedge.

 

[salisboss]

Just playing devil's advocate - have you tried hitting a gap wedge from ythe set?

 

[Wonton]

Just playing devil's advocate - have you tried hitting a gap wedge from ythe set?

just a 7 iron. But I'm sure it will go longer than my gap wedge

 

[salisboss]

Played today outside in wind gusts of 15-20 mph. I only hit the 6 iron 4 times but all four were more than acceptable. I noticed that even though they launch similarly to my burners, the flight was a lot more piercing which made my distance more consistent.

 

[BamBooBender]

Hit a Bio Cell 7i for the first time today, very, very, nice club. The looks don't appeal to my more traditional eye, but I would have to be a total idiot to not be pondering these now based on pure performance.

I really loved the True Temper Dynalite 85 stiff shaft, it seemed to be able to take anything I could dish out today, with no superhooks. It was about a half club longer than my DI-11 7i right off the bat -180 average carry. Might even be a full club longer since I can get away with swinging harder with these then I can the DI's without things getting ugly.

I am building an all new bag for 2014, except putter, and these are on my serious ponder list now. There is currently only one iron that has surprised me more than these so far, but that's for another thread.