A Tale of 3 demos - 2 TMs and 1 Callaway *WARNING - LONG POSTS W PICS*

Good to be back in the USA.

Drove 45min to check out an Edwin Watts golf store thats located at a golf club to see if there were any goodies to be had or bought.

I chanced upon 2 demo carts side by side - a TM and a Callaway.

Went up to the sales person and asked if they had the new TM irons for demo. He went out of his way to build up 2 of the clubs in the demo 6 irons. The TM MC and the TM MBs. Both in KBS S. Unfortunately, he din have both heads in 1* flat so I made do with what was available.

The good news is that both heads were totally brand new and still in wrapper. Pretty awesome even for demo clubs.

Before I left for the grass driving range to demo them, asked him if he can also build a Callaway Razr Hawk to try out too. He did it in a matter of mins and also tossed in a complimentary token of 25 range balls for me to hit.

Here they are:



1st up the TM MB:

Impressions. I like the fact that they made these satin just like the Cobra S3 MBs. They just exude more class with that finish.



Bounce was not too much. I didn't have too much of a diggin issue when testing them. Would be very accurate since I was hitting off grass.



Address position-wise, I will prefer the S3 MBs over this tho. Its a more rounded, curvy look whereas the Cobras had a sharper, cleaner look. Topline was acceptable. No hidden thickness in this clubs unlike what Callaway has been doing of late...although its still thicker than what their 2005 TP MBs were.




Grooves look decent. The range was gusting strong winds about 12-15mph with a 5 o'clock direction and they still sat ok after landing.



Now the lowdown:

Feel: As much as I am not a TM fan. I would say these MBs trumph their previous blades in the feel dept. It was very positive, not clicky like what you would expect from a Titleist blade but soft enuff for very decent feedback. Now, before you start wondering which great forging house crafted these, I am sorry to report that they are forged in China...pretty much like the Cobra S3 MBs.

Trajectory: Hard to give an objective outlook when the wind was howling from the back but I must say that they might be just a touch higher than their previous blades.

Distance: Can't be objective when its playing downwind.

Overall: Very good. Very solid feel. The only gripe I had was with how it looked at address. I would prefer a much sharper look which will be easier to set up the ball but thats just me.



Next: Onto the MCs.

I never knew much about the difference between the MCs and the CBs till I had a look up close. You would think that the CBs will be the next in line in terms of playability and forgiveness but the MCs are actually the in-between line.

The main diffs are that the CBs are a bigger iron, offer a hollow cavity near the sole and has a lot more noticeable offset.

1st impression: That Carbon-like thingy in the cavity feels plasticky. Not sure if its real Carbon or just plastic trying to look like carbon.




The bounce is pretty much the same as the MBs. Hard to tell the diff from here.



Address-wise. A touch more offset that is hardly noticeable if you dun pay attention. Very acceptable as a player's iron.



Here's the comparison side by side (MB on the left and MC on the right). As you can see, the extra offset is almost unnoticeable.




Feel: Again! I prefer the MBS over the MC's feel but unlike the Cobra S3 CBs, these had a feel I can get used to again quickly. Not sure if that plastic behind had anything to do with it but it feels pretty soft.

Trajectory: Compared to the MBs, these go a touch higher. I would say mebbe up to a max of 2* more hitting the same type of shots.

Distance: No diff from what the MBs could cough up. I would think they will be great as a long iron set as what some of the TM-sponsored players are doing. Anyway, you can mix-and-match the set here in US when ordering.


Conclusion: If you are a TM player, these are definitely what you should be playing. As much as I do not like any TM irons they have released over the past 6 yrs, I must say these make me almost wanna put a set in play. I say almost.
That weight port at the back has had reports of coming loose sometimes and that might distract u if it happens during play and u dun have a wrench in hand.

Also, Between the Cobra MBs and the TM MBs, I would think the Cobra wins out in feel by just a tinge but if you play TM mostly, it wouldn't matter at all. Take note that I am a fan of neither brands.

They are very well priced in the US Market: $789.99 for a set of 4-P regardless of the combo you pick. I would expect more ppl to pick these up than other brands given that a popular brand like TM is goin back to forging irons after the crazy crap they came up with the past few years like the R7 TPs etc....the worst being last model's R9 TPs which were a horror set and very easily found in the 2nd hand area of US golf stores.

Now onto the Callaway.

I don't think Sg has the i-Mix version out but I think its just so that fitting can be done from the cart.



The shaft that I thought can be a potential winner....left disappointed.



Feel: This i-Mix version has a hotter impact feel than my FT-Tour. Feels pretty explosive BUT...there's something about the sound which I felt it was weird. A tingy dampened sound not heard before in other drivers.

Trajectory: This whippy rotan gave me some high ball flights. However, after slowing down my swing, I started hitting some nice draws which should be fairway-finding.

I only hit about 5 balls here as I concentrated more on the irons. The feel of this club is very very different from the tour version I tried. Compared to the white drivers, I think these feel more controllable with more forgiveness and despite the funny sound, still more acceptable to me than what my SFTP sounded like at impact.

A very decent driver IF you are fitted correctly.

thanks S70B!

and the callaway driver?

eagerly waiting for other clubs reviews

nice reviews. the TM MBs look very nice. Almost tempting.

S70b, the MBs macham made for u, the STO word looks like S70 from far.

Fwahhhh

Exciting to get your hands on these babies for demo so quick!

I have the Razr Hawk (non Tour) draw version. Gonna be gaming it tomorrow.

Looking good, buddy... I definitely will give it a try, but I doubt it will replace my Adams (either one of the Adams) anytime soon. I used to play and love TM though, so who knows...

duffader wrote:

S70b, the MBs macham made for u, the STO word looks like S70 from far.

STO? hahaha I thought it's STD for standard lie, and the other -2*...

Dunno.. my brain.. not wired to read too many words.. like to see pic only..

FWAHHHH.....! TIME TO CHANGE IRONS...

nice review bro....
love the MBs....

Ssquirrel wrote:

duffader wrote:

S70b, the MBs macham made for u, the STO word looks like S70 from far.

STO? hahaha I thought it's STD for standard lie, and the other -2*...

Dunno.. my brain.. not wired to read too many words.. like to see pic only..

Yah.. make sense... Taylormade STD.....

wow.. nice review.. drooling at the MCs..

When will it be out in sg?

Bro,

The TMS already out. Was told by the demo guys at Laguna 2 weeks back.

I just went to a golf shop. Not out in sg yet leh.

But think can order liao bah coz I saw some chaps ordering at the demo day.

Hmm... Wats the diff between MC n CB?

Bro Aloyboy, I just seen it last Sunday at Isetan Scotts

got all models CB - Cavity Back, MC - Muscle Cavity, MB - Muscle Back... you name it... all there

can go have a look and hold the clube and see...

i've not been to the TM concept shop in Cathay but I'll be surprised if they dun have...

Aloyboy wrote:

Hmm... Wats the diff between MC n CB?

MC is a cross breed between cavity back and muscle back \.

Among these 3 I tried, I like the MC best.
But all in, will not get these irons.

Prefer my current KZG or maybe down the line, Cobra S3.

pocketace wrote:

Bro Aloyboy, I just seen it last Sunday at Isetan Scotts

got all models CB - Cavity Back, MC - Muscle Cavity, MB - Muscle Back... you name it... all there

can go have a look and hold the clube and see...

i've not been to the TM concept shop in Cathay but I'll be surprised if they dun have...

Bro how much are they going for?

Everywhere have already, but the shafts that accompany the irons are nothing short of embarrassing. WTF! NS Pro 950.. Aiyoh!!! Mati!

TheFocalPoint wrote:

Everywhere have already, but the shafts that accompany the irons are nothing short of embarrassing. WTF! NS Pro 950.. Aiyoh!!! Mati!

I think its to cater for the mass. Not everybody can hit with PX shaft like you.

They do offer other shafts. Have to order and with upcharge.

Tm concept store got club fitting. Can do any shaft you fancy.

Bro aloyboy, never took much notice to prices, my impression is that they are competitively priced. In the low $1k ish region bah. What I saw mainly ns pro and dg shafts I believe