Antique Golf Club Appraisal – Not A Very Easy Endeavor So Be Cautious
Games Guy | February 6, 2012
Before buying antique golf clubs, you have to get into the practice of evaluating it properly. Unfortunately, many of us at some point have had the experience of giving a club an easy once-over glance and then finding out after we’ve acquired it that it may not be the antique that we believed it was.
Here’s some information to help you appraise vintage wooden shafted golfing clubs. The most important thing is to begin at one end of the club and carefully work along the club, reviewing all of its parts, guaranteeing that you've an antique golf club rating which is sound and trustworthy. As always, if you've got any questions, there are a great number of gurus available who can help you with questions or concerns. There are also many great reference materials which make appraising an antique golf club far easier.
Here in this 3 part series on antique golf club assessment, we take a look at the grip, the end grain of the shaft, and wood rot as factors in figuring out the providence and price of a vintage golf club.
Checking the grip
Only a very small percentage of antique golf clubs have their original grip. The older the club the more chance it's been regripped when in use. Grips on hickory clubs have a tendency to come in two main types: softish suede or hard leather. The most important clue whether a grip is original is to search for tiny tacks (nails) or holes in the shaft from prior fittings at the bottom, and especially, the head of the grip. Prior holes at the bottom may naturally be covered by the newer grip, nevertheless it is awfully tough to disguise totally the holes or tacks at the very top. Do not immediately become concerned if you think the grip isn't original. The proven fact that a grip is not original isn't generally a factor when determining the veracity of an antique golf club. We now move on to an inspection of the wooden shaft.
The End Grain of the Shaft
When viewing the butt end of the shaft head on, with the club face lined up as if hitting a ball, the grain of the wood should generally run left to right and not top to bottom. The grain of the hickory running in this direction also makes it less likely for the shaft to split when the club is employed in play. If the grain isn't in a general left to right direction, it clearly indicates that it was not fitted by a talented club craftsman, and an approval (or not) of its vintage nature.
Wood Rot
It is not uncommon to find hickory golf clubs with wood shafts that have rotten ends at the butt end of the club. The wood may be literally coming apart or it may just be very soft. A mild pressing with a finger on the tip can exhibit any underlying condition. If the tip is falling away then you can consider removing a few inches off but you would need to know by how much before solid wood is reached. Frequently it's going to be clear to you from the beginning, the club isn't, nor will it ever be, playable. That does not prevent you from making it a valuable and appealing display piece. If the wood is really soft then few liberal coats of polish can stabilise it and make it quite hard and interesting for display.
There are several more steps concerned in gauging an antique golf club which we are going to cover in successive articles, enabling anybody to establish precisely what you have.
Andrew Shea has been concerned in Antique Golf, both on a personal level, and in a professional capacity for a few years. If you've got a query or are interested in vintage golf clubs usually, you are frequently welcome at his site.Once you've determined what you have, the very next step is working out what it could be worth. For a clearer description of the antique golf club appraisal process, and to take the next step and establish more exactly what you piece is worth, you can explore the diversity of resources at our site.
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