right tool for the job?

[birly-shirly]

say you want to be self-sufficient for loft and lie adjustments on irons.

how necessary is a full-on bending rig, as opposed to a well-mounted vice and a soft-faced hammer?

I think I recall reading elsewhere that bending rigs are NOT all that accurate for verifying ACTUAL loft/lie specs - and that you'd use a separate gauge anyway. So if you've got an accurate loft/lie gauge, and you're not doing it for a living so speed of adjustment isn't of the essence, is it practical to do the actual bending with judicious use of the hammer?

Something like this (although I'd be practicing with a set of old forged irons rather than a new set of pings first!):

Thanks for all the great suggestions so far. I think "out hands" are probably the most likely scenario.

As for Ping clubs... all you need is a hammer to adjust their angles.

 

[JonWil]

That is an entertaining video; thanks for posting.

 

[mgranato]

I use one of the Mitchell machines referenced in that video. If there's an industry standard, those would be it. It really does make quick and accurate work of loft/lie adjustments. The potential problem I see with using the original industry standard (hammer and vice) is controlling were on the hosel the bend actually occurs. I'm sure you've seen a bent hosel from something like hitting a tree root, it can have a very random "bend point". Some of the older guys would stick the head in a vice, then slide a long piece of pipe over the grip/shaft down to the hosel and go about bending it that way. I suppose they all can work. If you've got a couple old sacrificial heads, clamp 'em up and give 'em a few whacks... what's the worst that can happen?

 

[birly-shirly]

Thanks. I have no problem with a Mitchell machine, other than deciding which kidney should be sold to fund the acquisition.

I like the idea of the long pipe - but was that used with the grip still intact? I'd have guessed that if it was wide enough to fit over the butt end of the grip, it would be too loose a fit at the hosel.