Miura MC-502 Irons

Brand new: Miura MC-502 irons!

Miura really only very rarely changes anything on existing irons, but especially when they are extremely successful. And that is exactly what can be said of the Miura MC-501, which has now found a worthy successor in the MC-502. In purely visual terms, there has hardly been a more beautiful iron in recent years, and the new MC-502 also adheres to the recipe for success: a modern blade with an "edgy" design, traditional lofts and a narrow sole. Thus, the MC-502 is considered the somewhat "friendlier" version to the MB-101, Miura's classic blade.

The MC-502 is a typical "player's iron" and is best suited for fairly consistent ball strikers and players who want direct feedback. This means that you can estimate very well where you hit the ball and how the club interacts with the turf. This is a feature that many players really appreciate, which is why they already loved the Miura MC-501. It is likely that this feature will prove beneficial in fittings with the Miura MC-502 as well.

The Miura MC-502 will be available soon, can be fitted in our studio or configured directly on ExactGolf.com as desired.

One small thing that has changed minimally is the amount of offset, which is somewhat lower with the new MC-502 and thus - in our opinion - fits the actual target group much better. If we could find fault with the MC-501, it was that the offset was a bit too much. Miura seems to have changed that now.

Send us an email: info@exactgolf.com or call us: +49 8031 7986088 or use the following contact form:

Miura MC-502: Club Data

Buy the Miura MC-501 online

The Miura MC-501 is a very unusual iron set. It looks damn sharp and hard to play. But it's not like that. The relatively large offset and the low center of gravity make this club a very playable iron. Nevertheless, the MC-501 is more aimed at good players in the single handicap area. You can buy the whole set online from us, but there are certain things you should be aware of before you buy. We'll go into that in the following.

Iron set starting from 3 or 4-PW?

The most important decision concerns the number of irons you want to add to your set. And there is no right or wrong here. The MC-501's 3 iron has 22° loft, the 4 iron 24°. So who likes to play hybrids and is relatively close to the 22° will probably be better advised to take the set from iron 4. This is also the standard set we offer on ExactGolf.

Shaft selection for the Miura MC-501

The nice thing about Miura irons is that we build them for you individually. That means you have free choice of shafts and grips. Our range of shafts is correspondingly diverse. Something we do not do is to use inferior shafts. We leave this to other club makers who try to make the price as attractive as possible. However, we consider the shaft to be as important as the head and therefore do not compromise on quality.

A very good choice is e.g. the Shimada S-Lite which offers a very decent price/performance ratio. This basically applies to all Shimada shafts that you can add at no extra cost. This shaft has a high launch and is rather on the light side. Therefore ideal for players with a slightly lower club head speed who still want to carry the ball well into the air.

Another important option is the Nippon Modus 3 shaft which is available in four different weights. The bending profile is relatively smooth, even a seemingly hard X-Stiff shaft feels more like a normal Stiff shaft. However, the result is still constant. Not for nothing the Modus 3 Tour 120 is one of the most played shafts on Tour. Unfortunately the Modus 3 shaft is relatively expensive, so we have to charge a small surcharge for it.

For all those who find a steel shaft too hard, we offer the Fujikura Vista in three different weights. This shaft is meant for relatively slow club head speeds and offers a similar performance as a steel shaft with significantly less weight at the same time. So if you are looking for a low swing weight, this shaft is the best choice.

Shaft length

Speaking of swing weight: this changes when you decide to adjust the shaft length. This should be considered accordingly. However, we have a lot of experience with this and are one of the few clubmakers who pay meticulous attention to the swing weight - and don't just shorten shafts. The best way to discuss this is to contact us via email, live chat or telephone.

The Lie

The good thing about Miura is that we can easily bend the lie. That sounds radical, but this high quality steel can handle this process without flaws. This means that if it turns out that the current Lie does not suit you, we can change it at any time. Since you are interested in a MC-501, we assume that you are advanced and know which Lie should suit you. If not, we will be happy to help you.

Grip selection and strength

When it comes to grips, you have free choice and we can basically install anything - even grips that are not in the selection. However, this only makes sense if you absolutely want to have a certain grip. The offered grips leave nothing to be desired and belong to the most frequently used grips on Tour.

We mount the grip with up to three tapes - depending on the grip thickness you prefer.

Miura MC-501 review and comparison to CB-1008

The Miura MC-501 is definitely something special from a purely optical point of view. There is hardly an iron that looks so aggressive and clean. And the good thing about the MC-501 is that it plays much easier than it looks. We tested the Miura MC-501 over several sessions and compared it to the Miura CB-1008 which is a very classic cavity back. The MC-501 is a compromise between Cavity Back and Blade and that's exactly what you notice after the first shots.

The look of the MC-501

Something that quickly stands out is the relatively high face of the MC-501 which definitely distinguishes it from any blade. If you setup your stroke you will notice that the face is quite thin - especially compared to a CB-1008. The face itself is not really smaller. In any case, it already conveys a very sporty feeling in setup position. Nevertheless, the MC-501 delivers significantly more self-confidence than a blade.

Feeling

After a few balls you already notice that the MC-501 forgives many mistakes and hits outside the sweetspot don't really feel much worse than center hits. This clearly distinguishes the MC-501 from a blade where bad hits give a much worse feedback. On the other hand, the really good shots with the MC-501 are not necessarily perceived as soft butter. You can easily see how the clubface is constructed and that Miura was mainly interested in increasing the sweetspot and to not punish balls hit outside too much. However, if you hit the ball rather fat and on the upper part of the club you quickly notice that the clubface of the MC-501 is quite thin here. These hits don't necessarily feel good even if the result is still absolutely okay and certainly better than with a blade.

Interaction with the turf and launch

Now we come to a point which should not be unimportant for many players. The MC-501 is more of a blade than a cavity back in this regard. The sole is much thinner compared to the CB-1008 and you can feel that with steeper swings. These are punished a bit more than with a cavity back. It's not like the MC-501 is milling its way into the ground, but you can feel that it doesn't have a wide undercut to help reduce ground contact. In this respect the MC-501 is like a blade which of course can have advantages if you want to have as much "unadulterated" ground contact as possible or if you don't reach the ball too steeply.

Comparison of the soles: CB-1008 on the left and MC-501 on the right

This is also noticeable with the launch, which is much flatter with the MC-501 than with the CB-1008. The weight in the face underneath the ball is missing, which is given by a cavity back. You can feel this even with thinly hit balls. They develop very well with the CB-1008 and feel absolutely fine. The MC-501 is not able to compensate these shots so well. However, the launch is no problem with the right shaft and loft selection. At this point only the difference to a cavity back should be explained.

Offset and shaping

Offset is an important issue for players for whom the MC-501 is suitable. This is clearly present in the MC-501 and can be a knockout criterion for a certain type of player. Players with strong draw tendency and dispersion more to the left the offset might cause more harm than good because this strengthens the draw again.

The offset is also noticeable when it comes to shaping. For a proper fade it needs a lot more "effort", especially with a relatively steep Angle of Attack. It's not impossible, but if the fade is not considered a standard stroke, the MC-501 might have problems using it if needed. The CB-1008 has much less offset and is therefore the better choice for players with a clear draw tendency.

Our conclusion with recommendation

The Miura MC-501 is without a doubt a beautiful and unique club that combines the advantages of cavity back and blade. There are two types of players for whom the MC-501 is only suitable to a limited extent: draw players and those who get to the ball relatively steeply (or of course both). The offset of the MC-501 is relatively large, which can make life more difficult for players with draw tendencies. Steeply hit balls are not compensated very well by the quite thin sole and a club with a wider sole would be advisable. In both cases, the Miura CB-1008 is a good choice as it perfectly meets these criteria.

The MC-501 is especially interesting for players who are looking for a compromise between blade and cavity back and don't meet these two criteria, i.e. don't have to fight against a draw, maybe prefer to fade the ball and don't get to the ball too steeply. Then the MC-501 is not only a beautiful club, but also a very effective one to consider.

About Miura

There is a reason why Miura has achieved cult status in the golf scene and this is mainly due to the traditional company history and the innovative forging process. All Miura clubs are forged, even player's irons are forged with several pieces. Other manufacturers go the easy way with such irons and screw the components together. Miura remains true to the forging process as far as technically possible. And who knows the Japanese manufacturer will think "typical Miura".

What is so fascinating about Miura is the fact that the forging process has hardly changed for decades. Miura remains true to themselves and the performance of their irons proves them right. Innovations are not necessary everywhere and thus Miura prefers to optimize its portfolio and the shapes of the club heads without changing anything in the forging process.

Maximum pressure is exerted on the steel. This presses out trapped air bubbles - no wonder at 20 tons, which hammer two to three times onto the club head. This makes the irons particularly stable and clean. Other manufacturers do not take this detour and include these air bubbles - at least most manufacturers do.

What also distinguishes Miura irons from most of its competitors is the steel that is used, which is particularly soft. This, along with the manufacturing process described above, is why Miura irons feel so damn soft in impact and why they allow us to adapt. So we can build clubs that fit you 100%. With most other irons this would not be possible at all.

All Miura irons are still made by hand. This is something that will hopefully never change. After all, it simply belongs to the tradition of this manufacturer. Of course Miura could produce and sell much more and cheaper clubs but that contradicts the vision of Miura. Therefore Miura irons will always remain something exclusive that you can't find in every second bag.