Cloned clubs

FrankGrimes

Has anyone ever purchased cloned golf clubs from the likes of http://www.irishgolffitting.com/ ?

Basically it seems they try and copy the design of top brands and sell them much cheaper, which I'm all for. A mate gave me the URL as he bought a set off them but he can barely hit a ball so I'd be interested to see what anyone in the know thinks of this idea.

Their site says they custom make the clubs based on the info you give in a questionaire, which could be they just pick a certain model off the pile based on your info but its a nice idea.

I'm thinking of getting into golf. Used play the odd time a couple of years back but never played for a club or had lessons. What should I look for in a club? Obviously something forgiving would be good, but how do I identify a forgiving club?

I'm 25, 6ft tall, stocky upper body and am fussy on grips. Any advice on what type of club I should be looking for and would it be wise to go the cloned route? I don't want a total beginners set but then again I don't want to go over about €250 - 300, though a second-hand set would be grand. Nice one.

TheDoc

I'm not one for cloned clubs. Its basicly like pirating DVDs. All companies copyright and patent all their driver types and makes and designs.

Companies jsut havnt got the man power to go out and hunt everyone down, but they do catch most companies. Like a recent company copying the R7 calling it T7.

But you have to understand because of the advanced make up and patents, you really arnt buying the "real" clubs.

I wouldnt trust them at all, plus in 2008 most "cloned" drivers are banned because they are all copies of illegal drivers.

Also it looks likely al ldrivers will have to be stamped wit hthe "approved tour" logo which you will see are two checkered flags over crossing, you can see them on most new drivers today. This certifies they are legal for competition. Companies have to apply for this stamp and cloned clubs will not be given them.

Good i nthe short term cause of price, but usually rubbish=/

Dman_15

[DM]-TheDOC- wrote:

Also it looks likely al ldrivers will have to be stamped wit hthe "approved tour" logo which you will see are two checkered flags over crossing, you can see them on most new drivers today.

The TP logo is marketing boll0x from taylormade trying to cover up the real difference between the pro's equipment and stuff you buy in the shop. Joe soap is happy with the 'same' driver as whoever plays taylormade drivers these days. In reality he gets a clone of the R7 with the same gulf in materials and manufacturing standards that you talk about in relation to the clones.

The clone clubs are good value provided they have decent shafts. I used to own a BB Plus driver with the UST yellow shaft and i couldn't say a bad word about that club.

FrankGrimes

thanks lads.

What type of shafts would you recommend? I hear graphite are not very forgiving but give best length. Right now I'm more worried about accuracy than length so what should I go for? Actually I've just read a site that said graphite are best for beginners as they give more flex, which is apparently a good thing for beginners - now I'm just confussed

Am I right in thinking that oversize irons with large cavities give most forgiveness?

Any pointers on pros and cons of different grips.

I'm thinking €200 on a cloned set of irons is a good move for me cos at least they'll be made to fit me and if the standard matches your average €150 beginners set but I get to choose grips and shaft and have them made to fit me it seems like a winner.

By the way, from what I can find by googling it seems cloned clubs are not illegal as they are not passing themselves off as the originals. Making a clone of the Callaway Big Bertha Fusion and trying to sell it by passing it off as such is illegal.

RuggieBear

are cloned clubs legal? (In other words, should i delete this thread in case it gets boards in trouble?)

Dman_15

RuggieBear wrote:

are cloned clubs legal? (In other words, should i delete this thread in case it gets boards in trouble?)

Not at all, counterfits are illegal but I think the OP is talking about
http://www.mdgolf.co.uk/intro.html
http://www.nickentgolf.com/

and the likes which are perfectly legal.

FrankGrimes wrote:

What type of shafts would you recommend? I hear graphite are not very forgiving but give best length. Right now I'm more worried about accuracy than length so what should I go for? Actually I've just read a site that said graphite are best for beginners as they give more flex, which is apparently a good thing for beginners - now I'm just confussed

For irons, stick by anything by Truetemper in steel, but be sure theyre regular flex. Graphite shafts break more easily in irons and finding a match to replace is often impossible.

RuggieBear

grand...it's something i have admit knowing absolutely nothing about.

TheDoc

You wont get in trouble for talking bout them you get in trouble for selling them.

I jsut feel the same way bout copied clubs as i do with pirate videos and its the same principle, you pay less for less quality =/

FrankGrimes

Cloned clubs do not breach copyright so a comparison to pirate DVDs is a bit of a stretch as pirate DVDs are illegal as they breach copyright laws.

The principle of cloning ideas originally conceived by other companies is in evidence in the SUV market and the personal computer market.

If anyone has actual experience of cloned clubs I'd be glad to hear it and thanks to those who gave usefull advice on club selection.

Angryman

I bought the SYSTEM Q (cloned R7) driver about two years ago from GIGAGOLF.com but they are basically seling the same clubs as irishgolffitting.com and it's probably the best buy i ever made.i can drive the ball 270+ yards with ease. a friend of mine bought irons and has had no problems with them. i checked out the driver on the R&A website and it conforms to the new rules. Gigagolf will ship to ireland for approx $40 regardless of how many clubs you buy so they might be worth looking at.

chicken_food

Iv used the irish golf fitting site as mentioned above. Bought my dad a putter for his birthday. In the end he wanted another one for christmas for his clubs in england,then for fathers day he wanted another one OF THE SAME CLUB! Just in case anything happened to one of his other ones. It has easily saved him 1 to 2 strokes per hole now. Whereas before he would 2 or 3 putt. Now he rarely 2 putts and mainly 1 putts. The club was ideal for those not quite chippable off the green shots.
He then purchased the irons nike slingshot alikes,after trying them out at one of their test days. His girlfriend has the nike sligshots and prefers the cloned ones. The shafts 'feel' alot nicer and more forgiving. Save about 40-50% on them.
So to sum it all up, they are amazing clubs and i repeat DONT skimp on quality. As shown by the grips. Most of the nike grips have turned slippy and ungrippy in under 10 months of use.where as the replica ones have much nicer grips with so much life left in them.

kagni

There is a difference between cloned clubs (which these are) and counterfeit clubs. There is nothing illegal about the clubs on the site listed.

I have a set of "Acer XDS Wide Sole" irons, bought from a similar on-line shop.
They are excellent clubs and, to me, there is no noticeable difference between these and the Callaway Big Berthas they are based on (I have hit both). They're an ideal set for a beginner as they are very forgiving.

As for the custom fitting they offer...You go to the custom fitting link and enter two measurements --your hand size (for the size of grip) and your wrist to floor measurement) for shaft length.
You can then enter the grip size and shaft length when you go to the ordering page.

The main drawback is, if, down the line, you want to trade these in or sell them on they will be worth very little.