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TaylorMade SpeedBlade Irons Review Thread

SuperStroke
DevRickus said:
First practice session with these today and I couldn't have been happier. These are a fantastic all around iron. Was hitting my iron consistently 10-15 yards longer than with the CB's and with a beautiful penetrating high ball flight unlike I have never produced before. Cannot wait to get these on course.
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Power past that temptation to try to horse them that we all experience when we start to see them scream. And beware that SB's go extra far when hit off a mat because you'll tend to catch them all low on the face, where the SB's like to be flushed. They're sort of cheater clubs off of mats, in fact. The speed pocket really kicks in. But then you get on grass and you start hit them a bit fatter and high on the face and you find they don't go anywhere.
 
I was just fitted for these and the TM rep wants to put me in a +.5, stock stiff shaft, standard lie. He states that he wants me to stand up taller and I'm almost 6ft so that +.5 should fit me better. Here is my worry, I have been hitting my 10year old nike slingshots very well and if these clubs by default are longer shafted and he is adding more length, this could be a big switch. Do you thing I have a valid Concern or do you think I should trust him?
 
Striker said:
I was just fitted for these and the TM rep wants to put me in a +.5, stock stiff shaft, standard lie. He states that he wants me to stand up taller and I'm almost 6ft so that +.5 should fit me better. Here is my worry, I have been hitting my 10year old nike slingshots very well and if these clubs by default are longer shafted and he is adding more length, this could be a big switch. Do you thing I have a valid Concern or do you think I should trust him?
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I'm 6'3" and play the speedblades at stock length with no problem.
 
Yeah that's what I am worried about. So you think it will be long then. If they are long is it expensive to shorten them? Guess I could just choke up 1/2 inch.
 
Striker said:
Yeah that's what I am worried about. So you think it will be long then. If they are long is it expensive to shorten them? Guess I could just choke up 1/2 inch.
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Idk it does seem a tad long but I can't really say because they may work for you. Any chance to see a clubfitter? They'd know best
 
Striker said:
I was just fitted for these and the TM rep wants to put me in a +.5, stock stiff shaft, standard lie. He states that he wants me to stand up taller and I'm almost 6ft so that +.5 should fit me better. Here is my worry, I have been hitting my 10year old nike slingshots very well and if these clubs by default are longer shafted and he is adding more length, this could be a big switch. Do you thing I have a valid Concern or do you think I should trust him?
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the nike slingshots from 2004 (you said 10 years old) were actually almost identical in club length to the current speedblades. according to multiple sites I was able to find with exact specs, the slingshots are actually about 1/4"-1/2" *longer* than the speedblades in stock form, up through the 7 iron. So, if those numbers are correct, you're only gaining 0-1/4" in length over what you had, which should be nearly imperceptible for most amateurs. Only in the 4, 5 and 6 iron will these .5" extended speedblades be physically more than 1/4" longer than the equivalent numbered iron in your slingshots. If you have the 4D, then half the set will be the same length, and half will be a tiny bit longer... it all depends on what you actually have now.

slingshots (this is the 4D, I suspect yours are the older set and may actually be longer):
ClubLoftLieLength
4 iron23°61°38.75"
5 iron26°62°38.25"
6 iron30°63°37.75"
7 iron34°63.5°37.25"
8 iron38°64°36.75"
9 iron42°64.5°36.25"
PW46°65°36"
AW50°65°36"

speedblades:
tm_specs_SB-mens.jpg

Club length is something that people freak out a lot about, but in reality you can and do swing 12-13 different length clubs every time you go out. You will be able to swing these just fine. It might take a bit of range time to get the feel for them, but that will be the case with most any equipment change. It's really about finding the longest and shortest length you're comfortable with, then staggering in between to help with gapping.
 
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Wow you guys are very helpful. That was a lot of Info for you to look up to help. The guy did fit me (only with a 7i), it just made a nervous because it sounded like he was trying to fit me for where he thinks I should be in the future rather then where my swing is now (not saying that is a bad thing). I feel better now I will give it a shot.
Thank you!
 
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Striker said:
Wow you guys are very helpful. That was a lot of Info for you to look up to help. The guy did fit me (only with a 7i), it just made a nervous because it sounded like he was trying to fit me for where he thinks I should be in the future rather then where my swing is now (not saying that is a bad thing). I feel better now I will give it a shot.
Thank you!
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I too am 6'3" and play stock length Speedblades. +5 Speedblades do seem a tad long to me. But I agree that you will hit them better if you stand taller on them. I'm constantly adjusting my posture to stand taller, closer, and with less knee bend. When I do, my results are better.
 
Striker said:
Not sure if this adds any insight but I found this on the web. It states that 6ft to 6-3 should be playing +.5 (at 5 11 3/4 I guess I'm close enough to 6ft). Although I'm sure there is more too the lenth of the club than your height.

http://blog.hirekogolf.com/2007/11/what-length-golf-clubs-do-you-need/
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I agree that there is more to fitting club length than just your raw height. Length of arms and distance of finger tips to the floor is probably more important. You can have tall guys with short arms (like me) and short guys with long arms. If your Pro did some tape measuring in your fitting, he's probably taking this into consideration. Be aware if he is not measuring you, since stock SB's are 1/2 to 3/4" LONGER than what most folks would consider a "standard" club to be. So a +.5" SB is a pretty long iron. Going from old "standard" to long SB will feel awkward. I play stock SB's only because when I leaned 'em up against a wall next to my custom long set of Pings, they were the same length.
 
Just got fitted last week for some new clubs. I haven't played much in the last 10 years but decided to get back into golf. I used to be a 10 handicap but always played with standard irons. Since I'm 6'3" I decided to get fitted for a custom set of clubs. Dale at golfsmith spent 1 1/2 with me going over my measurements and swing. After measuring my height and distance of wrist to the floor he said I should be swinging a 1 inch longer club. After swinging several models went with the speedblades at 1/2 inch over standard, stiff metal shafts with standard lie. Can't wait to get them. Already been out to the range 3 times and played a round. Reading all the posts makes the wait even longer. I can't compare them to other clubs since I haven't played in so long but I'm excited to finally have a set that fit my swing.
 
Good luck with your new clubs. Let us know how they work for you.
 
GolfJunkie1965 said:
Just got fitted last week for some new clubs. I haven't played much in the last 10 years but decided to get back into golf. I used to be a 10 handicap but always played with standard irons. Since I'm 6'3" I decided to get fitted for a custom set of clubs. Dale at golfsmith spent 1 1/2 with me going over my measurements and swing. After measuring my height and distance of wrist to the floor he said I should be swinging a 1 inch longer club. After swinging several models went with the speedblades at 1/2 inch over standard, stiff metal shafts with standard lie. Can't wait to get them. Already been out to the range 3 times and played a round. Reading all the posts makes the wait even longer. I can't compare them to other clubs since I haven't played in so long but I'm excited to finally have a set that fit my swing.
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I think you were served well and he has put you in the right clubs. +.5 SB are equal to about 1" long on the Ping scale, which is about where I always measured out on Ping and I'm 6'3". Did he bend the lies for you or measure your lie angle? You'll probably come in at about 1 or 2 degrees up, but play them a while and see which direction they tend to go, then bend.
 
I am jumping on the SB bandwagon To be honest these were not even on my radar this year as I really didn't care for the rocketbladez at all. Boy was I surprised with the performance and feel of these irons . Oh my word.. so so easy to hit and straight . Now I am not completely taken by the color of the cb, but really like the look at address.
The 50 * gap wedge is fantastic for chipping and pitches around the green.
Anyway I snagged a set with stock regular steel shafts . Can't wait to get to the range tomorrow and a round with them Saturday.
gb
 
LEFTY57 said:
I am jumping on the SB bandwagon To be honest these were not even on my radar this year as I really didn't care for the rocketbladez at all. Boy was I surprised with the performance and feel of these irons . Oh my word.. so so easy to hit and straight . Now I am not completely taken by the color of the cb, but really like the look at address.
The 50 * gap wedge is fantastic for chipping and pitches around the green.
Anyway I snagged a set with stock regular steel shafts . Can't wait to get to the range tomorrow and a round with them Saturday.
gb
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They really did a good job with the way they look vs the RocketBladez much cleaner
 
Has anyone currently gaming these ever gamed Ping G10's?
I've actually been hitting my G10's well this year, but feel like I may be missing out on a few extra yards from the latest iron offerings. Being a short hitter, I could definitely use a few extra yards if I can get them.
 
Arkie_3_fan said:
Has anyone currently gaming these ever gamed Ping G10's?
I've actually been hitting my G10's well this year, but feel like I may be missing out on a few extra yards from the latest iron offerings. Being a short hitter, I could definitely use a few extra yards if I can get them.
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I played G10's as part of a combo set with the i10's back in the day. These look better to my eye and the distance is certainly better.
 
Arkie_3_fan said:
Has anyone currently gaming these ever gamed Ping G10's?
I've actually been hitting my G10's well this year, but feel like I may be missing out on a few extra yards from the latest iron offerings. Being a short hitter, I could definitely use a few extra yards if I can get them.
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Define short hitter. g10s are great irons. I had a friend that had g10s and he said he was a short player because he couldn't hit the 4-5 irons of the set. So after 165 yards he was pretty much out of the game.

He got the speed blades, the 165 club went from being a 6 iron to a 7 iron. Now he cant hit the 4-5-6 irons In the new set. Same problem.

His issue is more related to controlling the shaft... These long irons are long (shaft)... The 4 iron speedblade is as long as my R11 3 iron. If you are a short player because the stroke quality with your long irons, i don't see how these will help. G10s are as forgiving as any club in the market.

Now, if your stroke is bad because you hit it low on the face, thats were these SBs are special.

Then again, get fitted, you might end up with Mizzunos, who knows what Mr Trackman or Mrs GC2 could say..


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
ddec said:
I played G10's as part of a combo set with the i10's back in the day. These look better to my eye and the distance is certainly better.
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Thanks for the info. The Speedblade as well as the Amp Cell and Amp Bio Cell irons are at the top of the new iron candidate list for me right now.
 
Porky said:
Define short hitter. g10s are great irons. I had a friend that had g10s and he said he was a short player because he couldn't hit the 4-5 irons of the set. So after 165 yards he was pretty much out of the game.

He got the speed blades, the 165 club went from being a 6 iron to a 7 iron. Now he cant hit the 4-5-6 irons In the new set. Same problem.

His issue is more related to controlling the shaft... These long irons are long (shaft)... The 4 iron speedblade is as long as my R11 3 iron. If you are a short player because the stroke quality with your long irons, i don't see how these will help. G10s are as forgiving as any club in the market.

Now, if your stroke is bad because you hit it low on the face, thats were these SBs are special.

Then again, get fitted, you might end up with Mizzunos, who knows what Mr Trackman or Mrs GC2 could say..


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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I'm a short hitter because I swing easy and often choke down on my irons, mostly out of habit.
This year has been a little better as I've made a bit of an effort to not choke down and to also try and swing a bit faster. My 7 iron is now back in the 140 - 145 range rather than the 135 yards I was hitting it last year.
Also, I'm a bit of a sweeper and don't usually take much of a divot, so that probably doesn't help much with distance.

As for my long irons, I usually hit them decent enough, though we have gone through a few spells where we didn't get along.

I would really love to try and demo some irons and get fitted, but the nearest demo's are anywhere from 1.5 to 2.5 hours away and so far they have been scheduled on days that I can't attend.
 
Arkie_3_fan said:
Thanks for the info. The Speedblade as well as the Amp Cell and Amp Bio Cell irons are at the top of the new iron candidate list for me right now.
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I play the AMP Cells right now. In my experience the Speedblades are slightly longer. However there is a lot to like in the AC line. Have you gotten a chance to hit the 3 you are looking at?
 
ddec said:
I play the AMP Cells right now. In my experience the Speedblades are slightly longer. However there is a lot to like in the AC line. Have you gotten a chance to hit the 3 you are looking at?
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You want me to throw a few of these in the bag for you tomorrow?
 
O'Carroll said:
You want me to throw a few of these in the bag for you tomorrow?
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I might ask you to bring the whole set. Might be fun to go around with those tomorrow. I'll let you know.
 
ddec said:
I might ask you to bring the whole set. Might be fun to go around with those tomorrow. I'll let you know.
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I'll just bring a complete second bag of stuff for you to choose from. :D
 
ddec said:
I play the AMP Cells right now. In my experience the Speedblades are slightly longer. However there is a lot to like in the AC line. Have you gotten a chance to hit the 3 you are looking at?
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I have not. I suppose that is one of the drawbacks of living in such a rural area. Hopefully I can make it to either a demo day at one of the larger driving ranges or at least make a visit by a few retail shops where can a few swings in on one of the monitors.
 
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