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Astral Putters Review

cmon man said:
Blake I think you can guess where I already am with my putter choice. I decided to switch to the Astral fairly early in the process because the alignment fits my eye much better, I like the additional weight, love the feel of the Astral, the look of the putter is awesome, and the final reason....who doesn't want to putt better? I can now count on making more putts, especially from more difficult ranges. Like @cringjr I don't change putters often and I have used my (now my wife's) Newport 2 for over a decade. I never thought I would change but performance speaks volumes. I have decided to stick with the copper insert in my mid mallet, and am still deciding on shaft length. I wonder if a 32" would be ideal.

As far as additional features go there is really nothing I would like to see. I like the weight as is, but I am not a tinkerer. I think others would like to be able to customize colors , but I like the classic black look and would not change a thing. This whole process has been an eye opener for me. I appreciate all your help through the fittings and most of all you developing a great product.
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Have someone cut down that 33" shaft for you to see if 32" is the number. That's what I use and love it.
 
cringjr said:
@cmon man @Boosted @leftybob @ScoFoBG

What was the deciding factor for you on which insert to choose? I’m having a difficult time deciding which one works best for me. I really don’t think I could go wrong gaming any of the three. @BC.Astral any advice on how to approach this decision?
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I wouldn't over think it. Performance between the 3 is slightly different, but not enough to pick one over the other. The feel and look characteristics are what really stand out as different. As I recall, you really liked the look of that gold/black combo, so I'd do that unless something else really jumps out.
 
cringjr said:
@cmon man @Boosted @leftybob @ScoFoBG

What was the deciding factor for you on which insert to choose? I’m having a difficult time deciding which one works best for me. I really don’t think I could go wrong gaming any of the three. @BC.Astral any advice on how to approach this decision?
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My approach was pretty mental (in a good way haha). First I liked the feel and muted sound of the copper insert best. They all look great of course but I like the copper look a tiny bit more. The feel carried through into how I felt when standing over a putt, and oddly enough after missing a putt. Did I have second thoughts or doubt myself? Did I feel as confident over the next putt? And even, did I wonder how I would feel with a different insert installed? The copper gives me the most confidence that I am going to make a good stroke on the ball and have the best chance of making the putt. That actually was a result through my testing. Is it the insert? In my mind it is and that's what matters.
 
cringjr said:
@cmon man @Boosted @leftybob @ScoFoBG

What was the deciding factor for you on which insert to choose? I’m having a difficult time deciding which one works best for me. I really don’t think I could go wrong gaming any of the three. @BC.Astral any advice on how to approach this decision?
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I wish I had something smart to say here. I still have to make a decision. I like all the faces for different reasons.

I’m seriously considering doing a coin toss between the copper and brass to see which one stays in the bag for the rest of the summer.
 
cringjr said:
@cmon man @Boosted @leftybob @ScoFoBG

What was the deciding factor for you on which insert to choose? I’m having a difficult time deciding which one works best for me. I really don’t think I could go wrong gaming any of the three. @BC.Astral any advice on how to approach this decision?
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Feel was the deciding factor for me and feel is very personal. What feels good or in my case “right” might not be the same for others. This came after playing with setups and finding the right combo of hozel and setting first.
 
BC.Astral said:
One comment we get a lot from non-owners is the desire for interchangeable weights. Don't think I've spent any time in this thread on the subject, but we don't offer weight adjustability for a couple of reasons, but the primary one is that we don't want to disrupt the center of gravity and balance of the club, as that's a pretty significant area of focus in the design and part of the science behind our ball roll. Is weight adjustability something you are looking for, would the absence of weights deter a purchase, and after playing with the club would you want to adjust weight?
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Went to water world yesterday so I didn’t want to hot take answer this question.

Personally having adjustable weights on a putter has never been a factor for to me. I just started a thread asking about changing the weights in a putter head to see if anyone says yes.
leftybob said:
Question is in the title.

Follow up question: How important are adjustable weights in choosing a putter?
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Other than the Odyssey S2S thread I don’t remember seeing people actually talking about changing the weights. So NGL I’m surprised by how many responses so far are people saying yes they have changed the weights. A question like this is more likely to get answered by people who have played with the removable weights.

One of the responses they changed the weight in the toe to adjust face rotation which is a problem that astral has solved with the adjustable hosel.

There are several responses about adding weight. Astral heads are not light weight. I’m playing 36” putter so if the head got any heavier it would be a sledgehammer. I am contemplating pulling the super stroke counter balance weight out of another putter and trying it in my astral.

@cmon man with a 33” soon to be 32” what do you think? Is there enough heft there?
 
leftybob said:
Went to water world yesterday so I didn’t want to hot take answer this question.

Personally having adjustable weights on a putter has never been a factor for to me. I just started a thread asking about changing the weights in a putter head to see if anyone says yes.

Other than the Odyssey S2S thread I don’t remember seeing people actually talking about changing the weights. So NGL I’m surprised by how many responses so far are people saying yes they have changed the weights. A question like this is more likely to get answered by people who have played with the removable weights.

One of the responses they changed the weight in the toe to adjust face rotation which is a problem that astral has solved with the adjustable hosel.

There are several responses about adding weight. Astral heads are not light weight. I’m playing 36” putter so if the head got any heavier it would be a sledgehammer. I am contemplating pulling the super stroke counter balance weight out of another putter and trying it in my astral.

@cmon man with a 33” soon to be 32” what do you think? Is there enough heft there?
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Definitely enough for me personally. The Astral is heavier than my old Newport 2, and I love the extra weight. I don't see a need to play with weight, and it's never been a factor with me as well.
 
I have no real thoughts either way on the total weight. I went with a heavier grip, so it is kind of counterbalanced on mine. If anything, I'd swap to a lighter grip to balance it out more as opposed to upping the head weight. No need for adjustable head weights for me as it stands.
 
cringjr said:
@cmon man @Boosted @leftybob @ScoFoBG

What was the deciding factor for you on which insert to choose? I’m having a difficult time deciding which one works best for me. I really don’t think I could go wrong gaming any of the three. @BC.Astral any advice on how to approach this decision?
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Personal opinion, it's really tough to decide. I think the performance characteristics on all 3 are pretty similar. You might get a little more juice from the firmest face than the softest face, but it's very marginal.

I'd really go off a feel standpoint: if you like a sifter feel, and a more muted sound, I'd go copper. If you're used to a pretty firm feel, I'd think about the other two faces. To me, they are all firmer than I am used to, but the firmest faces have a distance higher pitch sound and feel like any premium steel putter.

I'd be happy to send you one or two of my faces if you need to try something out and send it back to me when you're done. Send me a DM.
 
ScoFoBG said:
Personal opinion, it's really tough to decide. I think the performance characteristics on all 3 are pretty similar. You might get a little more juice from the firmest face than the softest face, but it's very marginal.

I'd really go off a feel standpoint: if you like a sifter feel, and a more muted sound, I'd go copper. If you're used to a pretty firm feel, I'd think about the other two faces. To me, they are all firmer than I am used to, but the firmest faces have a distance higher pitch sound and feel like any premium steel putter.

I'd be happy to send you one or two of my faces if you need to try something out and send it back to me when you're done. Send me a DM.
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Thanks for the feedback. I was curious to what all of you guys were thinking. I was not able to tell much difference in performance between the three. Feel, distance control, ball response to the strike were all very similar regardless of the insert. Sound is not a characteristic that really impacts my preference and there was only a slight difference in sound anyway. Glad to see my evaluation was not far off from you guys.
 
 
Father in law is in town. Going to get a round in this afternoon.

Taking the copper insert on it’s first trip to the golf course today.
 
Ok. @BC.Astral has made it extremely difficult to pick an insert. At this point it’s down to looks. They all three perform perfectly.

Copper insert looks great in the sun. And the sound is very different outside. It’s a closer to the brass than the steel sound. It got the ball rolling end over end quickly today. I had several longer putts where I had to give it a knock and didn’t notice any skipping off the face.

My lag putting is so much better over the last three rounds. I’ve leaving the ball in much more manageable spots.
 
Going out this afternoon for 18. I seem to be able to dial in distance pretty quickly even with changing ball types. Will test that preliminary observation today. Love the Astral. Get your questions in THPers.
 
cringjr said:
@cmon man @Boosted @leftybob @ScoFoBG

What was the deciding factor for you on which insert to choose? I’m having a difficult time deciding which one works best for me. I really don’t think I could go wrong gaming any of the three. @BC.Astral any advice on how to approach this decision?
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Don’t think you can go wrong either. For the face insert, I’d stop worrying about the performance side and just focus on what feels, sounds, and looks best to you. Know you like the saints color scheme so all things being equal id go with the brass for you.
 
Got another round in Sunday afternoon.

This time I went back to the brass insert. I think I’ll keep this one in there for a while. I like the look, like the sound and it rolls the ball great.

Overall I’ve been really happy with this putter. I’ve been seeing good results on the course and think I’ve found the best hosel setting for me and will ride with this setup the rest of the golf season.

I think the weight of the club head and how the ball reacts to the insert are my two favorite characteristics. The weight has improved my lag putting and the ball gets rolling end over end quick. No skipping or sliding that I have seen.
 
cringjr said:
Got another round in Sunday afternoon.

This time I went back to the brass insert. I think I’ll keep this one in there for a while. I like the look, like the sound and it rolls the ball great.

Overall I’ve been really happy with this putter. I’ve been seeing good results on the course and think I’ve found the best hosel setting for me and will ride with this setup the rest of the golf season.

I think the weight of the club head and how the ball reacts to the insert are my two favorite characteristics. The weight has improved my lag putting and the ball gets rolling end over end quick. No skipping or sliding that I have seen.
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Agree with you on how well the ball rolls and the lag putting. I am sticking with copper but any insert is great. I am just fine tuning the shaft length at this point. I tried the 33" yesterday for 18 with good result. I do like the shorter shaft so will get the 33" cut down to 32". Then make a decision on shaft length.
 
cmon man said:
Agree with you on how well the ball rolls and the lag putting. I am sticking with copper but any insert is great. I am just fine tuning the shaft length at this point. I tried the 33" yesterday for 18 with good result. I do like the shorter shaft so will get the 33" cut down to 32". Then make a decision on shaft length.
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How are you shortening the shaft? I’m thinking I‘d like to lose an inch…. :cool:
 
cmon man said:
Blake just said get someone to cut it down. What length do you have?
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I got 34" but it feels about an inch long. Guess I'll try to blow the grip off and take an inch off the butt of the shaft.
 
Boosted said:
I got 34" but it feels about an inch long. Guess I'll try to blow the grip off and take an inch off the butt of the shaft.
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That is what I was pondering too. I don't want to ruin the grip so was wondering if it could be cut down on either end. A decent club guy could answer, but maybe @BC.Astral is the best source on this one.
 
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