Ive been using my Loco Pro driver for 18 months and its simply the best club in the bag and has been for all of that time.
But yesterday after a game i noticed my shaft had 2 faint lines on it near the club head, i think these are hairline fractures where the shaft is starting to die on me.
Basically i have 2 options, buy another Loco Pro (not the cheap non Pro version) or buy a new driver...
Despite my love for the Loco Pro i saw a deal in my local pro shop for a Cobra 440 SZ... £80, 9 degree stiff, i guess what i would like to know is do you think i may be better served buying the Cobra?
Ive never really used anything other than a G2 (i found it accurate but not long) and a Loco Pro (accurate and very long) so i value your opinions please, i dont fear the driver, its my favourite club by far, i just need to get a good replacement if i can.
Thankyou.
PS: i should say that i would not want the Loco Pro reshafted with anything other than the same shaft it currently has, the shaft is perfect for me, its a Harrison striper mid-firm, without it the club would be trash, i fear that getting it reshafted may be difficult, you dont see may of these things around, not the Pro titanium versions anyway (this is NOT the cheap thing that sports soccer sell).
Any pro worth his salt will do the reshafting for you,it's really easy and should take no more than 10 mins. Don't be afraid to try new shafts some great new ones out there,maybe exmax can give you some advise on it.
I will be 100% honest with you at this point, im half terrified of losing my Loco Pro and half excited at the prospect of using a new driver, im like a little boy whose favourite toy just got broke.
Ive booked my self in with the local pro shop to demo the Cobra, he says its a better quality club (he would say that, he's trying to sell it).
If i dont get along with the 9 degree stiff Cobra i may look into reshafting the Loco Pro, like i say im half excited and half scared right now, its a really funny feeling, afterall its just a golf club.
Its where the lines are that most concerns me, they are right by the hosel, i think at the point where the shaft is most under stress during the swing/impact, im not really sure.
You are right tho, the driver is my best club in my bag, i think its a combination of 2 things, 1. the shaft is lovely, just seems to feel right during a full bodied swing and 2. like most people, i just love smacking drives, which i think is what makes it my best club.
I am taking the club to get checked out to see how bad the lines are, to me they look like fractures, they were not there last week, i clean my clubs often and they was not there the previous round, hence my concerns.
Maybe theres the not knowing how i would hit a different driver thats making me think about trying the Cobra, the pro really does think it would be better for me, i have no idea.
I may just end up doing that, i did however buy the Cobra 440 SZ for £80 2 days ago, i havnt played yet, i think the Cobra is slightly closed at address, this does concern me, i dont slice the driver (or at elast didnt slice the Loco) so i dont know if i need a 'draw biased' driver, i hope i dont start pulling the ball with the Cobra.
The Loco really was/is a great driver for me but there was always a nagging thought in my head about how far i could potentially hit a 'better quality' driver, a driver with more foregiveness, a driver that has thousands of people all saying how great it is and not least a driver that dont look Fisher price.
Yes my Loco has got a bright yellow shaft, it never really bothered to me but i tell you one thing, when you stnad on the tee at the first hole with upto 8 people all waiting to tee off behind you and you are holding a bright yellow shaft, well, you had better be good with it or you just hear the laughs ringing in your ears all that day... the Loco DID add pressure to some shots in instances like that, it DID attract attention, sometimes when the swing isnt so hot you are left looking and feeling stupid, having just topped the ball 80 yards to the ladies tee with a bright yellow shaft (it happens !!).
Anyway, im not trying to put the Loco down, its a wonderfully great driver, i rarely miss a fairway with it (truly i hit on average 12/14 per round with it) just at the price of the Cobra i had to give it a go, these Cobras are supposed to be long, my Loco is long... i'll see what happens.
PS: i bought the stiff 9 degree Cobra, an odd choice maybe, this snake could just turn round and bite me.
Played with the Cobra today, its just a little longer than the Loco (maybe 10 yards max) but as yet not quite as accurate, i guess it takes time to adjust to a different driver having been used to just one in 18 months, i think i hit 8/14 fairways, thats pretty poor, but i will say that i did mishit the Cobra 2 or 3 times and it still flew a long way, the same shot with the Loco would have punished me distance wise, the Cobra is more forgiving, thats for sure.
Watched a chap (son of pro shop owner) yesterday hit an ancient John Daly driver where the top of the face had completely cracked along its length from the face. He hit it fine. The face then cracked so bad it was hanging off. Hit it fine. Then the entire top of the clubhead, the crown, fell off so all was left was the face and sole of the club, hit it fine. Then the sole and half the face fell off, again still he hit it fine, then the face fell off and all that was left was about an inch of face attached to the shaft, not quite so fine now :) The guy plays off 12 so aint some wonder striker of the ball.
A couple of minscule crasks aint gonna make the slightest of difference, keep belting it!
Yes it is a Harrison, mid-firm shaft, it just feels perfect if that makes sense, not too whippy not too stiff, just nice.
The head sat behind the ball at address just nice too, i think all these aspects are why i hit the club with confidence, it just felt and looked right.
I played with the Cobra again today in the wet, it is longer than the loco by roughly 10-15 yards but i do occasionally pull the cobra, im sure this is user error not the club itself, although the cobra is noticably shut address which cant help.
Ive not bothered to check either to be honest, i dont play in competitions, ive only played in one before, weekends are not good for me really.
You have me curious now tho so i will check.
Edit: Ive just checked randa and it seems both the Dunlop Loco Pro and the King Cobra 440 SZ are legal after 2008.
That is assuming ive checked correctly... which im not 100% certain of.
Edit #2 Ive rechecked my Cobra, it seems that the unlimited 440 SZ is ilegal after 2008, mine is NOT the unlimited version, so i think my Cobra is perfectly legal.
Good for you Sir. My SS370 Unlimited will become illegal so i'll be spending this year looking for a replacement or wait until 2008 for the new gear - it never ends!
