Iron type golf club head

• US 4,792,140 A
• Filed: 03/27/1984
• Issued: 12/20/1988
• Est. Priority Date: 03/28/1983
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Sumitomo Rubber Industries Limited
• Original Assignee: Sumitomo Rubber Industries Limited
• Inventors: Iwanaga, Takeshi, Yamaguchi, Tetsuo
• Primary Examiner(s): Grieb, William H.
• Application Number:
  US06/593,837
• Time in Patent Office: 1,729 Days
• Field of Search: 273/78, 273/173, 273/DIG. 1, 273/DIG. 22, 273/DIG. 23, 273/DIG. 10
• US Class Current: 473/331
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/04 Heads
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/0416 Heads having an impact surface provided by a face insert
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/0445 Details of grooves or the like on the impact surface
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 53/047 iron-type
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 60/00 Details or accessories of golf clubs, bats, rackets or the like
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 273/01 Carbonate
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 273/10 Butadiene
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 273/22 Ionomer

Abstract

An iron type golf club head having the whole or the central part of a ball striking face thereof, which directly touches a golf ball, fabricated from a material possessing a compression Young'"'"'s modulus (modules of longitudinal elasticity) lower than that of steel.

Claims

1. An iron type golf club head, comprising:

a head proper made of metal; and

a member fabricated from a resin material which possesses a compression Young'"'"'s modulus value lower than that of steel, and occupying at least the central part of a golf ball striking face of said head wherein said ball striking face of said member is not provided with face grooves and is formed to be flat and smooth.

2. An iron type golf club head as set forth in claim 1, wherein a value of compression Young'"'"'s modulus of said member lower than that of steel falls within a range from 0.3 to 5,000 kg/mm².

3. An iron type golf club head as set forth in claim 1, wherein said metallic head proper is provided with a shallow recess at the inner part of said golf ball striking face thereof except the peripheral part and with a member having a compression Young'"'"'s modulus lower than that of steel and serving as an insert to be fixedly embedded into said recess.

4. An iron type golf club head as set forth in claim 3, wherein one through three lines of face grooves are formed on the lower part, near the sole side, of the periphery of the golf ball striking face of said metallic head proper.

5. An iron type golf club head as set forth in claim 1, wherein a member having a compression Young'"'"'s modulus value lower than that of steel covers approximately whole of said golf ball striking face of said metallic head proper.

6. An iron type golf club head as set forth in claim 1, wherein a value of compression Young'"'"'s modulus of said member lower than that of steel falls within a range from 0.3 to 5,000 kg/mm².

7. An iron type golf club head as set forth in claim 6, wherein the compression Young'"'"'s modulus value of said member falls within a range from 30 to 2,000 kg/mm².

8. An iron type golf club head as set forth in claim 7, wherein said member having a compression Young'"'"'s modulus lower than that of steel is made of synthetic resin.

9. An iron type golf club head as set forth in claim 1, wherein the whole of the striking face is fabricated from only a member made of a material having a compression Young'"'"'s modulus lower than that of steel and being flat and smooth without face grooves.

10. An iron type golf glub head as set forth in claim 1, wherein lined face grooves are formed on only the peripheral part of said striking face and are not formed on the central part of said striking face.

11. An iron type golf club head as set forth in claim 1, wherein one through three lines of face grooves are formed on the lower part of the striking face and not formed on other parts of said striking face.

12. The iron type golf club as set forth in claim 1, wherein the resin material is selected from the group consisting of ABS, ionomer, and polycarbonate resins.

13. The iron type golf club as set forth in claim 1, wherein the compression Young'"'"'s modulus value of said resin material is between 200 and 250 kg/mm².

14. An iron type golf club head, comprising:

a head proper made of metal; and

a member formed from a synthetic resin material having a compression Young'"'"'s modulus value of from 30 to 2,000 kg/mm², said member occupying a major portion of the golf ball striking face of said head and said member forming a striking face which is not provided with face grooves and which is smooth and flat over a major portion of said striking face.

15. An iron type golf club head as set forth in claim 14, wherein the compression Young'"'"'s modulus value of said synthetic resin material is about 200 to 250 kg/mm².

16. An iron type golf club as set forth in claim 14, wherein said synthetic resin material is an ABS resin.

17. An iron type golf club as set forth in claim 14, wherein said synthetic resin is an ionomer resin.

18. An iron type golf club as set forth in claim 14, wherein said synthetic resin is a polycarbonate resin.

19. An iron type golf club head, comprising:

a head proper made of metal, said head proper having a shallow recess covering a major porton of the golf ball striking face of said head proper; and

an insert made of a synthetic resin material having a compression Young'"'"'s modulus value of from 30 to 2,000 kg/mm² located in said recess, said insert having a smooth and flat golf ball striking surface.

20. An iron type golf club head as set forth in claim 19, wherein the compression Young'"'"'s modulus value of said synthetic resin is from 200 to 250 kg/mm².