Old brands - which ones would yo ulove to see back or back to their best

[Foxholer]

I think John Letters would be annoyed to see their name in your list as 'from the past'

Well, given that they went into receivership in 2005, I'm not sure they'd be 'annoyed' so much as 'sad'! Especially as the company that bought them from the receivers subsequently also went under - in 2015 - to be bought from receivers by Sports Direct!

Only a single 'clearance' line on either site, so I'm afraid JL would seem to be a 'from the past' brand!

 

[jim8flog]

Well, given that they went into receivership in 2005, I'm not sure they'd be 'annoyed' so much as 'sad'! Especially as the company that bought them from the receivers subsequently also went under - in 2015 - to be bought from receivers by Sports Direct!

Only a single 'clearance' line on either site, so I'm afraid JL would seem to be a 'from the past' brand!

Just shows that I do not read enough.

It's funny I have got a brand new John Letters club only bought 2 weeks ago so I assumed they were still in existence.

 

[Jacko_G]

Just shows that I do not read enough.

It's funny I have got a brand new John Letters club only bought 2 weeks ago so I assumed they were still in existence.

They have tried to "re-invent" themselves a few times to no avail. From Hillington to St Andrews, even with marketing and endorsements from Sam Torrance they just can't break back into the golf scene. Very hard to get a foothold in the golf market unless you have the money of Bob Parsons at PXG!

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

soft spot for Macgregor clubs - and when JL tried to re-launch ten years ago I went for a set of their F-7s - but relaunch seems to have faded out

 

[HomerJSimpson]

Would love to see Dunlop come back in a big way. Loved their Maxfli Australian blades. Same with Slazenger and their B51 irons. Another brands that have gone from my youth are Petron, I had a set of Impala irons as my first ever clubs, Ben Sayers, and their Ray Floyd irons which I used to good effect as a teenager and Macgregor as these were the irons my dad use to play

 

[p33j4y]

Adams Golf.

 

[Crow]

Please dont let Crow see this thread!

What are you saying?

I like the old UK manufactured clubs but it's sad to see some of the big names that we've lost.

MacGregor were huge and used to produce some of the best woods and their irons were pretty decent too!

The reasons for failure usually go back to the name being sold and the new owners are only interested in the bottom line.
To make more profit they start shipping in cheap components (not necessarily poor quality but often are) and the brand name starts to suffer. The downward spiral has begun and it's incredibly hard to recover as shown by the likes of John Letters, Wilson, Dunlop, etc.

 

[Crow]

They have tried to "re-invent" themselves a few times to no avail. From Hillington to St Andrews, even with marketing and endorsements from Sam Torrance they just can't break back into the golf scene. Very hard to get a foothold in the golf market unless you have the money of Bob Parsons at PXG!

The problem is that most people are so brand conscious these days, if it ain't going to impress their playing partners it's not going into their bag.

And the rapid new product cycle makes it very hard for small companies to keep up with the investment required to bring out a new range every 2 or 3 years.

When John Letters relaunched they got some pretty good forgings for their top of the line blades but without the brand cachet they were never going to recover the glory days.

 

[Crow]

Some of the names I'd like to see producing their best again are Dunlop, Slazenger, Penfold (although they were more of a ball specialist, I just like the name), John Letters and Ben Sayers.

Forgan had a very long history but never really found their feet after the second world war.

Harold Bird & Sons were only ever a budget brand but made plenty of clubs in Aldridge near Birmingham.

Ryder were another Scottish maker, appearing relatively late on the scene in the 1970s but they made good quality clubs and were very popular.
Similar with Swilken who came about after the collapse of Spalding's UK operation, Swilken are probably best remembered now for their Q2 clubs made from the propeller blades of the QE2.

 

[Crow]

Modern clubs have killed the small maker. Exotic, multi-material heads for woods and irons can't be produced by smaller craftsman based companies.

If I had my way the whole club market would take a step back.
Woods would have to be wooden and irons would have to be produced from a single piece of one metal.
:rant:

 

[Crow]

That alright Murph?

 

[One Planer]

What are you saying?

I like the old UK manufactured clubs but it's sad to see some of the big names that we've lost.

MacGregor were huge and used to produce some of the best woods and their irons were pretty decent too!

The reasons for failure usually go back to the name being sold and the new owners are only interested in the bottom line.
To make more profit they start shipping in cheap components (not necessarily poor quality but often are) and the brand name starts to suffer. The downward spiral has begun and it's incredibly hard to recover as shown by the likes of John Letters, Wilson, Dunlop, etc.

The problem is that most people are so brand conscious these days, if it ain't going to impress their playing partners it's not going into their bag.

And the rapid new product cycle makes it very hard for small companies to keep up with the investment required to bring out a new range every 2 or 3 years.

When John Letters relaunched they got some pretty good forgings for their top of the line blades but without the brand cachet they were never going to recover the glory days.

Some of the names I'd like to see producing their best again are Dunlop, Slazenger, Penfold (although they were more of a ball specialist, I just like the name), John Letters and Ben Sayers.

Forgan had a very long history but never really found their feet after the second world war.

Harold Bird & Sons were only ever a budget brand but made plenty of clubs in Aldridge near Birmingham.

Ryder were another Scottish maker, appearing relatively late on the scene in the 1970s but they made good quality clubs and were very popular.
Similar with Swilken who came about after the collapse of Spalding's UK operation, Swilken are probably best remembered now for their Q2 clubs made from the propeller blades of the QE2.

Modern clubs have killed the small maker. Exotic, multi-material heads for woods and irons can't be produced by smaller craftsman based companies.

If I had my way the whole club market would take a step back.
Woods would have to be wooden and irons would have to be produced from a single piece of one metal.
:rant:

That alright Murph?

Should have used :sbox: instead

 

[Leereed]

Who wouldn't want a Pringle jumper.

 

[Deleted member 18588]

Modern clubs have killed the small maker. Exotic, multi-material heads for woods and irons can't be produced by smaller craftsman based companies.

If I had my way the whole club market would take a step back.
Woods would have to be wooden and irons would have to be produced from a single piece of one metal.
:rant:

Why stop there?

Why not a return to featheries and hickory shafted clubs?

Not all clubs of the past were classics, like now some were rubbish.

 

[srixon 1]

Hippo, as used by John Daly, what happened to them?

 

[Robster59]

Hippo, as used by John Daly, what happened to them?

You get the feeling they'll come back again.

How about Tommy Armour. Their 845 irons where very popular at one time, especially in the US?

 

[Crow]

Why stop there?

Why not a return to featheries and hickory shafted clubs?

Not all clubs of the past were classics, like now some were rubbish.

I'm with you there, it would be great to go back to featheries and hickories but the cost of making featheries would be too high and it would take a long time to grow enough hickory to meet demand.

I also agree that there was a lot of tat made in the past, I've bought some of it on ebay! But for me it's still more fun to play than today's stuff.

 

[Crow]

Hippo, as used by John Daly, what happened to them?

I played with a few of our seniors the other week and one of them had some Hippo woods and irons in his bag, first I'd seen for a good few years.

 

[tugglesf239]

Has to be Adams for me.

Taylormade want shooting for killing that brand off

 

[garyinderry]

You get the feeling they'll come back again.

How about Tommy Armour. Their 845 irons where very popular at one time, especially in the US?

tommy armour being relaunched by dickies sports in the US.