Are old clubs just as good??

CamBigCat

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Help! I’ve been on the fence of breaking my piggy bank to get a shiny new pair of Titleist AP1s. I’ve hit them at the simulator and love them, but have seen a lot of talk about people saying 2-5year old AP1s are just as good and could save a boat load for a decent shape set. Let me know your experiences buying slightly used, what to look out for, pros and cons, etc.

I guess my biggest hesitation with used is not being able to try the older models and fear the shafts may not be right for me. Should I get new or old and take them to get fitted?
 
Intrerested to hear the opinions on this also because I have an older set of Mizuno MST irons from way back which i am using. So far so good with them, I think they're pretty awesome actually.
 
Iron technology has changed a bit, but a few year old models should be just fine. Drivers that are 5 years old may not have the latest technology and may cost a few yards. As for fitting, if you need to change grips, lie angles and shafts for the right fit, it just may pay to go new with a fitting in the first place.
 
If you have the money and your are a skilled player get new clubs. If you are a beginner I’d just settle for the older clubs because they won’t make much of a difference in your game if you aren’t that good yet.(y)
 
Forgiveness on off-center hits is the biggest improvement that helps me with current sets from the past couple of years compared to iron sets from 5+ years ago.
 
I believe it is all in your game and in your head. I played a set of used/hand me down Mizuno T-Zoids for YEARS and I feel that I played pretty well. I recently got a set of Wilson D-350, new, and I feel my game has taken a few steps back. But, I'll keep trying to get back to where I was and then some.
 
Intrerested to hear the opinions on this also because I have an older set of Mizuno MST irons from way back which i am using. So far so good with them, I think they're pretty awesome actually.
I up graded from a 20 year old set of DCIs to an 8 year old set of Mizunos and I'm hitting the ball so much better. Need to upgrade to woods now...
 
My last few sets have been lightly used and I think I will go this route from now on. Everyone wants something new and shiny but I am perfectly content with a generation or 2 older iron set. For me they perform well and the savings is really a no brainer. Only issue is if you don't know your shaft, lie, etc I don't know if the cost savings are entirely there.
 
A couple years old wouldn't be a deal breaker, but, as has been said, the same isn't true for drivers (throw fairway woods and hybrids in this camp, too).
 
After 3 years with a set of Callaway X Tours (2006), I took the plunge into a set of Callaway Rogues. I instantly got an average of 10 more yards on my 7 iron. Of course that might be because they basically put a "7" stamp on a 6 iron, but who's keeping track? :p

But to be honest, the Rogues feel so much better and I'm more consistent, and I think that's what's important.
 
I've been playing my Joe Powell PGI's since 1989 and I still break 70 from time to time. I tried a couple of new clubs recently and felt almost no difference. More important with new shafts and grips. If you're playing a blade that is... :)(y)
 
i upgraded my hand-me-down set of taylor made supersteels, purchased new in 2002, to hardly used apex irons from 2017. improved on distance and accuracy, i think upgrading anything older than 10 years ought to show improvement in ones game
 
I would say that the biggest advancement with the newer clubs is ball speed retention on miss hits, so yes new club tech is better.
 
I believe new clubs probably have a negligible difference over 2-5 year old irons. Last year I went from MP60s (10 years old) to Hot Metals. When taking loft alone into the equation there was on averages maybe 5 yards max gain. And as others have said, today’s 7 iron is yesterday’s 6 iron.
I actually preferred my old 60s to the HMs, feel, workability, sound.
 
Going from one generation of irons (Callaway Apex CF16) to the next (Callaway Apex ‘19) I’ve noticed what I consider to be a big improvement! The newer Apex’19 are longer, more forgiving and far more consistent than the previous version.

Years ago when I used to play Ping irons I noticed little difference when testing out the latest version at the time vs the previous one so what one experiences with a newer version of irons vs a previous version may differ based on the brand.


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i upgraded my hand-me-down set of taylor made supersteels, purchased new in 2002, to hardly used apex irons from 2017. improved on distance and accuracy, i think upgrading anything older than 10 years ought to show improvement in ones game

That's a YUGE step up!
 
Id save money and buy an older set of AP1s. Ive played old clubs and Ive played new clubs and other than the newer ones hitting the ball a bit farther, theres no difference.
I could go out today and put my set of Titleist DCI 981s in the bag and compete just fine with any modern set of irons. Honestly, if the grooves on them were still legal, Id keep playing them.
 
Just my 2cents, was on the same bandwagon you are now. Went with a used set of 718 Ap1s off eBay for a quarter the cost of new. Best investment in the line of golf clubs I ever made great set of clubs to hit!
 
I switched from my CF16 to my old 714 AP1 for the simple reason, the shafts. I wasn't hitting my Recoils all that well in my 16's so I just took a few AP1 irons to the range and found that I had better dispersion with steel than Recoils. I don't know how long I'll keep the AP1 in the bag because I do like the Recoils better for my elbow. I probably need to get refit for shafts but that will happen with new irons. So to answer your question, there's nothing wrong with using older clubs.
 
Is a new car better than an old car?

There is technology at play in clubs now that wasn’t there last year, that will likely translate to some gains, and some better results. It’s a matter of what you’re comfortable spending I think. I was lucky enough to win a full bag of gear, last year, and it’s definitely better than what I was using previously. I liked my old clubs, and I did ok with them, but I still had fun playing and getting better.
 
1 or 2 generations and you won’t notice a difference in actual scores from your iron play.
 
I’m not a big believer that iron technology has improved that much. Being fit properly is the key. I could substitute my Taylormade irons from 1980(and do at least once a year) and shoot the same scores. Ping Eye 2’s from 37 years ago are certainly more forgiving than many of todays irons.
 
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Not just as good in most cases, but still plenty good enough IMO.
 
If you know the basic specs that fit you - stiff shaft, upright, flat, face offset etc clubs that are 4-7 years old can be very good for swing and scoring improvement. If they don't feel or fit the way you want they can always be resold or traded for close to what was spent. I buy, try and resell/trade clubs all the time kind of fun to find the deals and a lot of times I've gotten equipment that will be in the bag a couple of years.
 
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