My Hogan Precisions

[Foozle]

Beautiful set of irons. I am lucky enough to have a set (2-E) and a "Sunday Set" 2+4W, 4,6,8 + E. Over here they were made by Slazenger for Hogan. I rate them very highly but have always been curious about how the Slazenger versions compare to the Ft Worth versions? The question was asked about bounce. I cannot measure this either but the answer must be very little if any! I do find they dig in on soft turf but come into their own as the season progresses and the fairways firm up.

[renix]

Another version of the Hogan Precisions - long hosel - and distributed in Europe. Note the Slazenger on the sole. I have the entire set, including Equalizer and Exploder. The Equalizer is a replacement though.

[Foozle]

15 hours ago, renix said:

Another version of the Hogan Precisions - long hosel - and distributed in Europe. Note the Slazenger on the sole. I have the entire set, including Equalizer and Exploder. The Equalizer is a replacement though.

Renix, enjoy your clubs!

I am still interested to hear from anyone who has played both the Ft Worth and Slazenger versions to see if there are any differences?

Over 60 years these have barely been improved on. Other than perhaps a softening of the leading edge and addition of a smidgen of bounce to improve the axe like turf interaction, Precision irons remain as good as anything produced today. Sometimes things are just right first time!

There is a clear bloodline to the MP14's Tiger played as an amateur, through Nike and to Taylormade.

Iconic and a superb set of irons.

[Don7936]

If anyone is looking for mint/reconditioned Hogan iron sets, I thought I'd share this link to a guy in Denmark who reconditions Hogan irons.  Some absolutely beautiful stuff here....

 

https://www.benhoganvintage.com/shop/ben-hogan-1980-89-10c1.html

 

[TheDeanAbides]

19 hours ago, Don7936 said:

If anyone is looking for mint/reconditioned Hogan iron sets, I thought I'd share this link to a guy in Denmark who reconditions Hogan irons.  Some absolutely beautiful stuff here....

 

https://www.benhoganvintage.com/shop/ben-hogan-1980-89-10c1.html

 

I have spent more time than is healthy drooling over the sets he has available! 

[Don7936]

Yessir; had visions of ordering the entire inventory if I were Bill Gates or similarly wealthy with fun money to spend as desired.   And compared to the cast misfit-looking things available today, they are functional art.

[TheDeanAbides]

4 minutes ago, Don7936 said:

Yessir; had visions of ordering the entire inventory if I were Bill Gates or similarly wealthy with fun money to spend as desired.   And compared to the cast misfit-looking things available today, they are functional art.

Functional art. Yep, that's the best description of these incredible irons. 

[Joe S]

So I have this fantasy where I walk in to the thrift shop and see a Hogan Precision iron sticking out of the rack, then search through the irons to find the rest of the set.  I have this thought pretty much every time I walk up to a thrift store.  Three times now I've seen a Precision iron only to be disappointed when the rest of the set didn't materialize.  The most recent was two weeks ago.    I'm now the proud owner a 3 ring Precision 7 iron, 6 iron and two 3 irons.  

 

Well, today was the fourth occurrence and it got me the closest yet.  I went in to the basement of a golf course that I only play occasionally and walked past the pile of donated First Tee clubs.  I saw several crescent hosel Precisions sticking out of the pile, which I searched through and found a 2 through 7 iron in pretty decent shape.  The guy working the desk agreed to let me take them for a reasonable cash donation to the First Tee.  Here's what I found.

 

 

Now I have enough irons to work with, I should be able to find an 8 & 9 eventually.  If anyone knows someone that has some that they might be willing to part with let me know.  

 

I did notice a couple of things that surprised me.  I thought that they crescent hosel Precisions were the long hosel version.  These are the same as the three ring version that I have and my 59 Sabers.  Is the long hosel thing, a myth or are there more versions of this than I was aware of.  I thought there were two Precisions and two Sabers.  Also, the paint fill of the number and Ben Hogan's name are red on the 2 iron and black on all of the others.  Another variation?  My three ring Precisions have red paint fill.  The ferrule on the 2 iron is also shorter than the others, but that club appears to have been re-shafted based on how the pin hole is mangled.  So it's probably related to that.   

 

Anyway, wanted to share my good fortune with the few other people in the world that would appreciate this sort of thing.  

 

[TheDeanAbides]

9 hours ago, Joe S said:

So I have this fantasy where I walk in to the thrift shop and see a Hogan Precision iron sticking out of the rack, then search through the irons to find the rest of the set.  I have this thought pretty much every time I walk up to a thrift store.  Three times now I've seen a Precision iron only to be disappointed when the rest of the set didn't materialize.  The most recent was two weeks ago.    I'm now the proud owner a 3 ring Precision 7 iron, 6 iron and two 3 irons.  

 

Well, today was the fourth occurrence and it got me the closest yet.  I went in to the basement of a golf course that I only play occasionally and walked past the pile of donated First Tee clubs.  I saw several crescent hosel Precisions sticking out of the pile, which I searched through and found a 2 through 7 iron in pretty decent shape.  The guy working the desk agreed to let me take them for a reasonable cash donation to the First Tee.  Here's what I found.

 

 

Now I have enough irons to work with, I should be able to find an 8 & 9 eventually.  If anyone knows someone that has some that they might be willing to part with let me know.  

 

I did notice a couple of things that surprised me.  I thought that they crescent hosel Precisions were the long hosel version.  These are the same as the three ring version that I have and my 59 Sabers.  Is the long hosel thing, a myth or are there more versions of this than I was aware of.  I thought there were two Precisions and two Sabers.  Also, the paint fill of the number and Ben Hogan's name are red on the 2 iron and black on all of the others.  Another variation?  My three ring Precisions have red paint fill.  The ferrule on the 2 iron is also shorter than the others, but that club appears to have been re-shafted based on how the pin hole is mangled.  So it's probably related to that.   

 

Anyway, wanted to share my good fortune with the few other people in the world that would appreciate this sort of thing.  

 

Finding sets of Hogan irons in thrift stores is one of the only reasons I'd consider moving across the pond!

[Foozle]

10 hours ago, Joe S said:

So I have this fantasy where I walk in to the thrift shop and see a Hogan Precision iron sticking out of the rack, then search through the irons to find the rest of the set.  I have this thought pretty much every time I walk up to a thrift store.  Three times now I've seen a Precision iron only to be disappointed when the rest of the set didn't materialize.  The most recent was two weeks ago.    I'm now the proud owner a 3 ring Precision 7 iron, 6 iron and two 3 irons.  

 

Well, today was the fourth occurrence and it got me the closest yet.  I went in to the basement of a golf course that I only play occasionally and walked past the pile of donated First Tee clubs.  I saw several crescent hosel Precisions sticking out of the pile, which I searched through and found a 2 through 7 iron in pretty decent shape.  The guy working the desk agreed to let me take them for a reasonable cash donation to the First Tee.  Here's what I found.

 

 

Now I have enough irons to work with, I should be able to find an 8 & 9 eventually.  If anyone knows someone that has some that they might be willing to part with let me know.  

 

I did notice a couple of things that surprised me.  I thought that they crescent hosel Precisions were the long hosel version.  These are the same as the three ring version that I have and my 59 Sabers.  Is the long hosel thing, a myth or are there more versions of this than I was aware of.  I thought there were two Precisions and two Sabers.  Also, the paint fill of the number and Ben Hogan's name are red on the 2 iron and black on all of the others.  Another variation?  My three ring Precisions have red paint fill.  The ferrule on the 2 iron is also shorter than the others, but that club appears to have been re-shafted based on how the pin hole is mangled.  So it's probably related to that.   

 

Anyway, wanted to share my good fortune with the few other people in the world that would appreciate this sort of thing.  

 

Don't know if anyone here watches "Stacked Golf" on You Tube? It is all based on buying golf clubs from thrift stores, garage sales etc. They are a young couple so focus on gear from the last 20 years or so but Jon claims to be a Hogan fan with a Hogan collection and they occasionally pick up older Hogan stuff.

However......in one episode they stumbled across a set of Precisions. Jon looked at them, proclaimed he had never heard of them and walked on! I was almost apoplectic shouting at the screen! Never mind a fantasy, it was a living nightmare to see the opportunity of a life time being missed. Almost bought a transatlantic ticket to try and grab them for myself!

They are out there.....

 

[WRXinThailand]

7 hours ago, Foozle said:

Don't know if anyone here watches "Stacked Golf" on You Tube? It is all based on buying golf clubs from thrift stores, garage sales etc. They are a young couple so focus on gear from the last 20 years or so but Jon claims to be a Hogan fan with a Hogan collection and they occasionally pick up older Hogan stuff.

However......in one episode they stumbled across a set of Precisions. Jon looked at them, proclaimed he had never heard of them and walked on! I was almost apoplectic shouting at the screen! Never mind a fantasy, it was a living nightmare to see the opportunity of a life time being missed. Almost bought a transatlantic ticket to try and grab them for myself!

They are out there.....

 

Which episode?

[northplatteriver]

The long hosel vs short hosel has also been a question I have had.  I have a set of what I believe are 1954, long hosel precisions 2-9 plus the Equalizer.  There is no question the 2-9 clubs have longer hosels that what you see on the 1957 three ring Precisons and the 58 and 59 Sabers.  Where it gets slightly fuzzy for my set is the Equalizer.  The Equalizer from this set appears to have a hosel that somewere between the length of the hosel from the 54 to the 57's.  I am still thinking this Equalizer is a long hosel 54, but that is just how they made them.  I do not have a 57 Equalizer anymore to check and see if they are the same.  If anyone has a picture of an actual long hosel equalizer next to a 57 Equalizer I would appreciate it.

 

What you see in the picture from left to right...

1954 Precision Equalizer

1959 Hogan Saber

1954 Precison 4 iron

1959 Hogan Saber 4 iron

1954 Precision 2 iron

1957 Precison 2 iron

1959 Hogan Saber

 

You can clearly see the longer hosel length  on the 54's but as mentioned before it is not as long on the Equalizer as it is on the 2-9 irons.  This makes me wonder if it is a 54 regular hosel Equalizer or if it is a 54 long hosel Equalizer, or if they are one and the same and that Equalizer was used for all sets of Precisions until they changed the hosel lenth and started using 3 rings insted of cresent stampings.

 

[Joe S]

5 hours ago, northplatteriver said:

The long hosel vs short hosel has also been a question I have had.  I have a set of what I believe are 1954, long hosel precisions 2-9 plus the Equalizer.  There is no question the 2-9 clubs have longer hosels that what you see on the 1957 three ring Precisons and the 58 and 59 Sabers.  Where it gets slightly fuzzy for my set is the Equalizer.  The Equalizer from this set appears to have a hosel that somewere between the length of the hosel from the 54 to the 57's.  I am still thinking this Equalizer is a long hosel 54, but that is just how they made them.  I do not have a 57 Equalizer anymore to check and see if they are the same.  If anyone has a picture of an actual long hosel equalizer next to a 57 Equalizer I would appreciate it.

 

What you see in the picture from left to right...

1954 Precision Equalizer

1959 Hogan Saber

1954 Precison 4 iron

1959 Hogan Saber 4 iron

1954 Precision 2 iron

1957 Precison 2 iron

1959 Hogan Saber

 

You can clearly see the longer hosel length  on the 54's but as mentioned before it is not as long on the Equalizer as it is on the 2-9 irons.  This makes me wonder if it is a 54 regular hosel Equalizer or if it is a 54 long hosel Equalizer, or if they are one and the same and that Equalizer was used for all sets of Precisions until they changed the hosel lenth and started using 3 rings insted of cresent stampings.

 

 

So I though that the crescent stamps were only on the original long hosel Precision and it wasn't the release of the three rings that the hosel that it was shortened.  But, I was proved wrong with this partial set that I just bought.  The hosel length on these Precisions is exactly the same as my 59 Sabers.  So there must have been another release in between the two. Here's a picture of the two three irons together.  So I would think that if the hosel length on your Precision Equalizer is the same as your Saber Equalizer then you have the Equalizer from the same year as mine were released, not the long hosel year.  

 

 

So after I typed that up I remembered that this has come up in the forums before.  I couldn't find the post but I searched through some photo's that had downloaded from these forums and found this picture of two different Precision Equalizers.  The one on the left has crescents on the hosel and I believe it is the short hosel version.  Unfortunately you can't see the crimping on the one on the right, but if I remember correctly it is the long hosel Equalizer.  It has a much more narrow sole than the subsequent versions.  

 

[northplatteriver]

Joe, thanks for the pictures.  I am guessing that my 2-9 are actual long hosels (ferrule number A311P) while my Equalizer (ferrule number A311) is from the cresent hoseled models that were shortened to the length we see in Precision models thereafter.  Until I can see a true long hoseled Equalizer that is the same length as a long hoseled iron I will have to go on that assumption.  

[Foozle]

23 hours ago, WRXinThailand said:

Which episode?

It goes back a bit but eventually found it. Not sure how to insert a link but it is the "The most golf clubs we have ever found in a store (10 complete sets)" episode from 16 Sept '19

They pass over a number of clubs that would have us classic / vintage guys drooling but this was the most painful for me.....😱

[Joe S]

6 hours ago, Foozle said:

It goes back a bit but eventually found it. Not sure how to insert a link but it is the "The most golf clubs we have ever found in a store (10 complete sets)" episode from 16 Sept '19

They pass over a number of clubs that would have us classic / vintage guys drooling but this was the most painful for me.....😱

 

I just watched it. My heart was racing.  He said "I'm probably going to get them, I'll have to ask the Mrs.?  I hope she said okay.  She already turned him down on that gator boat so I don't think it looks likely  

[Joe S]

On 11/28/2020 at 6:41 PM, Joe S said:

So I have this fantasy where I walk in to the thrift shop and see a Hogan Precision iron sticking out of the rack, then search through the irons to find the rest of the set.  I have this thought pretty much every time I walk up to a thrift store.  Three times now I've seen a Precision iron only to be disappointed when the rest of the set didn't materialize.  The most recent was two weeks ago.    I'm now the proud owner a 3 ring Precision 7 iron, 6 iron and two 3 irons.  

 

Well, today was the fourth occurrence and it got me the closest yet.  I went in to the basement of a golf course that I only play occasionally and walked past the pile of donated First Tee clubs.  I saw several crescent hosel Precisions sticking out of the pile, which I searched through and found a 2 through 7 iron in pretty decent shape.  The guy working the desk agreed to let me take them for a reasonable cash donation to the First Tee.  Here's what I found.

 

 

Now I have enough irons to work with, I should be able to find an 8 & 9 eventually.  If anyone knows someone that has some that they might be willing to part with let me know.  

 

I did notice a couple of things that surprised me.  I thought that they crescent hosel Precisions were the long hosel version.  These are the same as the three ring version that I have and my 59 Sabers.  Is the long hosel thing, a myth or are there more versions of this than I was aware of.  I thought there were two Precisions and two Sabers.  Also, the paint fill of the number and Ben Hogan's name are red on the 2 iron and black on all of the others.  Another variation?  My three ring Precisions have red paint fill.  The ferrule on the 2 iron is also shorter than the others, but that club appears to have been re-shafted based on how the pin hole is mangled.  So it's probably related to that.   

 

Anyway, wanted to share my good fortune with the few other people in the world that would appreciate this sort of thing.  

 

 

 

I'm one club closer to completing this set of Precisions.  The Golf Shop in Cincinnatti had one, along with a few other clubs that I've been looking for.  I thought the Equalizer might be the unfindable club from this set, but her it is.  Hopefully the 8 and 9 won't be too far behind.  

 

On 11/29/2020 at 2:38 PM, northplatteriver said:

The long hosel vs short hosel has also been a question I have had.  I have a set of what I believe are 1954, long hosel precisions 2-9 plus the Equalizer.  There is no question the 2-9 clubs have longer hosels that what you see on the 1957 three ring Precisons and the 58 and 59 Sabers.  Where it gets slightly fuzzy for my set is the Equalizer.  The Equalizer from this set appears to have a hosel that somewere between the length of the hosel from the 54 to the 57's.  I am still thinking this Equalizer is a long hosel 54, but that is just how they made them.  I do not have a 57 Equalizer anymore to check and see if they are the same.  If anyone has a picture of an actual long hosel equalizer next to a 57 Equalizer I would appreciate it.

 

What you see in the picture from left to right...

1954 Precision Equalizer

1959 Hogan Saber

1954 Precison 4 iron

1959 Hogan Saber 4 iron

1954 Precision 2 iron

1957 Precison 2 iron

1959 Hogan Saber

 

You can clearly see the longer hosel length  on the 54's but as mentioned before it is not as long on the Equalizer as it is on the 2-9 irons.  This makes me wonder if it is a 54 regular hosel Equalizer or if it is a 54 long hosel Equalizer, or if they are one and the same and that Equalizer was used for all sets of Precisions until they changed the hosel lenth and started using 3 rings insted of cresent stampings.

 

 

NorthPlattRiver, have you ever measured the loft on your Precision Equalizer?   I thought this was a 52 degree club but this one measures 55.  I know lofts drift over time from hitting on rubber matts and such, but 3 degrees seems like a lot.  I don't want to risk bending it to 52 if that's not what it is supposed to be.  

[northplatteriver]

MIne measure out at roughly 54 degrees, but I am using a less than exact device from Harbor Freight.

[WRXinThailand]

On 12/1/2020 at 6:42 AM, Joe S said:

 

I just watched it. My heart was racing.  He said "I'm probably going to get them, I'll have to ask the Mrs.?  I hope she said okay.  She already turned him down on that gator boat so I don't think it looks likely  

In the comments.....

"Toby Horsh

yeah man...those hogan precision were the first model hogan's...made for 3 years i think...

REPLY

Stacked Golf

1 year ago

Yeah I missed the boat on those 👍"

 

He also followed the comment you (Joe) quoted a few seconds later saying that "It doesn't look like there is anything worth anything here" lol and I also loved the bit at 5:40 where his other half, Ashley, was really astounded that a club (SW) had a dot punch face instead of grooves! He replied "That's weird, ha, I wonder if that's even legal"!  lol

[Joe S]

So this happened today.

 

 

I stopped by a peddlers mall that I rarely go to and have never found a decent golf club.   Saw a set of irons leaning against a wall with no other clubs in it.  When I saw what they were I must have done a Jim Carry style over the top double take.  If I woke up tomorrow with my head sewn to the carpet, I wouldn't be more surprised than I was to see these irons.   So after years of wanting to find a set of these with no luck, in the last four months I've found two almost complete partial sets and several individual irons on separate occasions.

 

This set was 2, 4 through 9 and I have a 3 iron at home that matches.  So now I have a complete set to take out on the course.  They are a little more dinged up than the crescent hosel set I found a few months ago.  Good candidates for eventual refinishing.  Still on the lookout for that 8 & 9 crescent hosel to complete the other set.  

[NRJyzr]

1 hour ago, Joe S said:

So this happened today.

 

 

I stopped by a peddlers mall that I rarely go to and have never found a decent golf club.   Saw a set of irons leaning against a wall with no other clubs in it.  When I saw what they were I must have done a Jim Carry style over the top double take.  If I woke up tomorrow with my head sewn to the carpet, I wouldn't be more surprised than I was to see these irons.   So after years of wanting to find a set of these with no luck, in the last four months I've found two almost complete partial sets and several individual irons on separate occasions.

 

This set was 2, 4 through 9 and I have a 3 iron at home that matches.  So now I have a complete set to take out on the course.  They are a little more dinged up than the crescent hosel set I found a few months ago.  Good candidates for eventual refinishing.  Still on the lookout for that 8 & 9 crescent hosel to complete the other set.  

 

Goooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooollllllllllllllllllllllll!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Joe S]

6 hours ago, Joe S said:

So this happened today.

 

 

I stopped by a peddlers mall that I rarely go to and have never found a decent golf club.   Saw a set of irons leaning against a wall with no other clubs in it.  When I saw what they were I must have done a Jim Carry style over the top double take.  If I woke up tomorrow with my head sewn to the carpet, I wouldn't be more surprised than I was to see these irons.   So after years of wanting to find a set of these with no luck, in the last four months I've found two almost complete partial sets and several individual irons on separate occasions.

 

This set was 2, 4 through 9 and I have a 3 iron at home that matches.  So now I have a complete set to take out on the course.  They are a little more dinged up than the crescent hosel set I found a few months ago.  Good candidates for eventual refinishing.  Still on the lookout for that 8 & 9 crescent hosel to complete the other set.  

 

This got even better.   The three iron I had at home not only had the same leather grip and stiff Rocket shaft, it had the same serial number.  IT'S FROM THE SAME SET!  I found the 3 iron at a christian mission thrift shop in November.  I scoured the store for the rest of the set and came back for a few days after, but no luck.  Whoever runs this booth at the peddlers mall must have found what I was looking for.  Further proof that everything always works out for club hoarders.  I'm all in on this set for $22.  

[drewspin]

Congrats on your find.  Hogan precision serial numbers were not specific to individual sets.   

[Joe S]

20 minutes ago, drewspin said:

Congrats on your find.  Hogan precision serial numbers were not specific to individual sets.   

 

Do you know how to interpret them?  These are B3140.  

[Jack Pearsall]

in all the goodwills and gin joints Jack Pearsall's been, aint never found this sort of booty 

 

nicely done 

[Bantam Ben]

Hi, Bantam Ben here to share my unrestored 1954 pre-production Hogan Precision S431 2 thru 9 irons.

 

I met Mr. Henrik Bech via email, who suggested that I should share my good fortune with others:

 

A former PGA tour professional, Dale Andreason, took me to meet Mrs. Lloyd Mangrum in Apple Valley, CA one day.  Dale told me I'd see some rare Hogan Precision irons.  We then met Mrs. Mangrum, who was selling her husband’s golf stuff.  We missed out on his tour clubs, shoes, and the like.  She told us that Ben (first name basis – pretty darned cool) was much more social more so prior to his accident,  but became obsessed in the early 50s with designing and manufacturing golf clubs.  She said her husband was of the same cloth, and that he lived in fear of nightmares from his deployment in WWII.  

 

FYI, Mr. Mangrum fought on the front lines in Europe in WWII, and received 4 battle stars and 2 purple hearts.  Thank you, Sir.

 

I am unaware of a written COA of any type existed between Mr. Mangrum and Mr. Hogan, but Mrs. Mangrum told us that Ben offered several of the pre-production sets to his PGA tour player friends for feedback. 

 

The S431 precisions are indeed a thing of beauty, and have not been messed with…always in my possession.  They have not been restored or altered in any way during my 40 years of ownership.  The condition of this set is as they were when I took ownership, and they look awfully good for being older than I am (I don't look anywhere NEAR that good). 

 

The hosels, 3-color ferrules and the printing are not discolored, clean and easily recognized.  And, the green band True Temper shafts are far better than most I have seen in my search to discover a fair value for this set.  Then, there’s the heads, which tell a great story.

 

I'd look forward to your thoughts and comments...

 

[Joe S]

5 hours ago, Bantam Ben said:

Hi, Bantam Ben here to share my unrestored 1954 pre-production Hogan Precision S431 2 thru 9 irons.

 

I met Mr. Henrik Bech via email, who suggested that I should share my good fortune with others:

 

A former PGA tour professional, Dale Andreason, took me to meet Mrs. Lloyd Mangrum in Apple Valley, CA one day.  Dale told me I'd see some rare Hogan Precision irons.  We then met Mrs. Mangrum, who was selling her husband’s golf stuff.  We missed out on his tour clubs, shoes, and the like.  She told us that Ben (first name basis – pretty darned cool) was much more social more so prior to his accident,  but became obsessed in the early 50s with designing and manufacturing golf clubs.  She said her husband was of the same cloth, and that he lived in fear of nightmares from his deployment in WWII.  

 

FYI, Mr. Mangrum fought on the front lines in Europe in WWII, and received 4 battle stars and 2 purple hearts.  Thank you, Sir.

 

I am unaware of a written COA of any type existed between Mr. Mangrum and Mr. Hogan, but Mrs. Mangrum told us that Ben offered several of the pre-production sets to his PGA tour player friends for feedback. 

 

The S431 precisions are indeed a thing of beauty, and have not been messed with…always in my possession.  They have not been restored or altered in any way during my 40 years of ownership.  The condition of this set is as they were when I took ownership, and they look awfully good for being older than I am (I don't look anywhere NEAR that good). 

 

The hosels, 3-color ferrules and the printing are not discolored, clean and easily recognized.  And, the green band True Temper shafts are far better than most I have seen in my search to discover a fair value for this set.  Then, there’s the heads, which tell a great story.

 

I'd look forward to your thoughts and comments...

 

 

Thanks for sharing.  Those are amazing clubs to have in your collection, especially with the story on their history.  There has been some speculation on these forums as to what "Experimental" means on the ferule.  That explanation makes a lot of sense.  Truly a rare set you have there.

[Bantam Ben]

Joe, 

Thanks very much; I am only the caretaker of these fine instruments (much like a Patek watch).

It's my hope that the next owner will enjoy them as much as I have!

[Bantam Ben]

Joe,

I have had many discussions with those who are/were in the know on the experimental thoughts.  

 

Mr, Henrik Bech shared his thoughts on several fronts:  a) that at this late date, no one really knows how many pre production experimental iron sets were built or found their way out of the factory, and b) what the coding was implemented at the time.
I have two alternate theories:

1. That the S431 may have reflected #31 out of so many sets, but that may not hold for the other codes which have surfaced;

2. That Henrik may be on to something with the S being the production foreman, followed by year or shaft stiffness, etc.

 

Feel free to chime in everyone...

 

[Joe S]

22 minutes ago, Bantam Ben said:

Joe,

I have had many discussions with those who are/were in the know on the experimental thoughts.  

 

Mr, Henrik Bech shared his thoughts on several fronts:  a) that at this late date, no one really knows how many pre production experimental iron sets were built or found their way out of the factory, and b) what the coding was implemented at the time.
I have two alternate theories:

1. That the S431 may have reflected #31 out of so many sets, but that may not hold for the other codes which have surfaced;

2. That Henrik may be on to something with the S being the production foreman, followed by year or shaft stiffness, etc.

 

Feel free to chime in everyone...

 

With regard to the code I was looking around online and I found a picture in an article from Persimmon Golf Today that shows the same code and word, "Experimental".  So, as has been pointed out above in this thread, the codes don't seem to be unique set identifiers.  I would assume the code would have something to do with the build, shaft stiffness, swing weight... things like that.  Would love to know.

 

What I find more interesting is that the Experimental Precisions appear to have the "short" hosel, 2.5" rather than 3".  The original public release, with the crescent stamps had a 3" hosel, then on the later release with three rings it was 2.5".   I found a partial set with both crescent crimping and the 2.5" hosel last year.  (Still looking for the 8 & 9 to complete).  I'm assuming that this set was released between the first two that I mentioned.  This makes me wonder if the Experimental sets might have come after the original release, but before the release of the other short hosel versions?  

 

Somebody let me know if I seem too obsessed with hosel length.