HOW EXPENSIVE AND RARE ARE THESE PING COPPER IRONS!? 

According to the book "and the putter went Ping" by Jeffery Ellis "All Eye 2 irons produced after April 1, 1990, bear either a dot or plus sign" which indicate that the grooves comply with USGA Rules in effect on that date. In the settlement with the USGA it was stated that "all Ping Eye 2 irons made before April 1, 1990 were ruled to be conforming to the USGA Rules of Golf forever". I have a copy of the book and have enjoyed reading about all the lawsuits between Ping and the USGA. Hope this sheds a little light on your clubs. Beautiful set!!!

Thanks for keeping the value real! And not encouraging the flip and price gouging !! Great review of a great club!!

I just flipped a set of these irons on Ebay. Sold them for 400$. Glad you did a video on these. Keep up the great work!

Currently using these beautiful copper sets. My dad gave it to me (back when I started playing golf about 15 years ago) since he didn't use it anymore. And I agree about the clubs being a tank. Pick up golf a few years back after a long long time and it is still works well,and still loving it more than my iron sets It is still works better than my iron sets imo.

Great video Simon! One of your best. These are the gold standard of irons!

I'm glad I found this channel. You put out great videos man. Keep up the great work - Jack from US

Gamed these for a bit when I was a junior in 1994, amazing irons, way ahead of the game for their time. 👌🏻👌🏻

Another great video mate! Just seeing when your going to start the left handed series again? Keep up the great work Simon

The $3000 set you showed have 'patent pending' in the cavity, meaning earliest model with V-grooves. These were so agressive they would shred the cover off the golf ball. The cheaper have variances of U-Groove (also called Square Groove confusingly). The later model had a + to show conforming. + clubs also had stronger lofts, especially in the wedges. I have older 'radialised u-grooves' (made prior to April 1st 1990 so considered 'grandfathered' under the rules, aka non conforming but allowed anyway for goodwill) which squeeze 19 grooves onto each wedge face. Modern wedges have around 15 grooves per face. More grooves means more friction and more spin. It was argued they gave golfers an unfair advantage from the rough too (as more grooves can collect more debris and still produce spin) so new rules were brought in to stop everyone's fun. Its confusing to say the least but I absolutely love my becu's.

I played these from when I started playing at 14 all through H.S. golf, my time playing D1 golf, all the way untill I got fitted earlier this year. Only reason I switched was because I wanted a different profile less offset. I bought the new level 623-m. I still pull them out four my 4.5.6 iron when my back is stiff such an easy iron to launch in the air.

Hi Simon, I play be-cu Ping ISI and have done for 25 years, wonderful clubs. I also have a full set of be-cu Ping Eye2 which I bought on looks alone in the early '80s. I was just learning golf and decided not to play the Eye2's until my golf improved. The years passed and my golf did improve but I still left the Eye2's on display in my white Ping golf bag in the hallway and that's where they still sit looking absolutely gorgeous with their original 'tumbled' finish and medium copper patina. BTW Beryllium is only toxic in its powdered form and once smelted into the finished product is fine. Cheers, Russ

Great video, convinced me to pull the trigger on my own set from eBay. They play amazing, money well spent and I love playing with them. It's like an old Toyota pickup, you can't hurt them and they appreciate while you use them.

Simon i used to have a set of these for about 27 yrs and was fitted at the ping factory in Gainsborough. The legal performing Ping eye 2 copper beryllium irons have a + sign on the club as the square grooves were deemed illegal. I still have the original 3 iron with me with the tectured spiral grip. This grip never wears away.

Hi Simon really like the chanel, and I'm just getting back in to golf after 20 yrs, and have purchased a set of ping zing becu clubs for under £100 delivered using your methods

Great timing, as last week I found a Ping Eye 2 double coloured ( orange/lime) ball on my local course. I remember these being much sought after items in the early eighties.

Thanks for the video! I recently bought a set (2 thru SW) and love them. They look great (I think their patina is great so I’m not going to clean them with coke or anything else). Mine are non-conforming as they don’t have a + stamped on the back (yours have). It doesn’t matter to me as I simply take them out to play with my golfing buddies.

Have a set of 1-LW. So enjoyed your stroll through PING history

The 2 iron is my favorite club. I love to use it when I hit the ball under trees.

I knew a pro that played these for a while. I owned the isi version and I'm not sure why. But they were just easy to hit. And spun well. It's TRUE. They're just one of those "all time" great sets.

I had a set of the BC Eye 2 + back in 1992 and like a fool I traded them for some Mizuno Grads. I wish that I still had them. To make them look new again give them a good overnight soaking in some coke. You can also use ketchup too. Keep them and play with them for a while. Great video! 🇺🇸⛳️🏌️

I play a fully refurbished set of the Ping isi beryllium copper irons. Cost me a around $800AUD total with brand new grips and x100 shafts. Love them.

Thanks For Watching Guys, leave a like for that awkward long pause at the start of the video 🙈

I play a set of Ping Zing BeCu irons 1-SW and I love them! Great Video!

I got a set of these. 2 to sw. Thanks for the video. I was tempting selling it before....

These were very nearly my first set of Ping irons! My pro had an immaculate set, I went home to decide came back the next day and they had gone! I ended up with a brand new set of, the new at the time, i3 blades which were my first fitted set! Still playing Ping irons!

I've got 2 sets. Love em and will never sell. I've had many very good offers.❤ Bought both sets for $150. I knew what they were new, and knew it's a good investment.

Good stuff Simon, I like rare older sets and different manufacturers technological features. A Japanese company Yonex started making their own graphite shafts back when iron shafts were the industry standard. I have always wondered how Yonex's late 90's LTB600 boron reinforced graphite iron shaft stacks up to todays graphite shaft. I own 2 sets of Yonex ADX Tour forged irons with the original LTB600 shafts. They're the best irons I've ever used and would put them up against any iron set of like lofts. You should check into them.

Just bought a Ping Eye 2 plus Red Dot (+1°flat)BECU full set 2-SW off 2nd swing. Thank to you for your video. : ) Cheers. 🍻

I've tried scouring some of your content looking for info on Daiwa. I know they were a lesser known company, but they made great clubs in the late 80s to early 90s. Now they are ONOFF as Daiwa only makes fishing gear now. I like their Coach collab bags, and recently snagged a set of irons 3-PW for $40 to clean refurb and game.

As some others have said, the ➕ sign in the cavity means they are confirming. I had a set of non confirming ones back in the early 90s and sent them off to ping, who replaced them free for a conforming set. Great clubs.

I have the matching 2-iron for that set in my closet. I love it, but it goes almost same distance as my g410 4-iron, but the g410 is more forgiving. Also, I used to have a set of Beryllium Nickel Ping ISI’s but they burned up in a fire.

I still play the Ping BeCu ISI irons. I can't imagine changing irons. If they're ever stolen, I'll be sure to go online and buy another set. Great clubs!!!

One of first set of irons I owned were Wilson barrilium copper irons back in the early 80’s- best feeling irons EVER. And I’ve owned MIURA etc.

Own a full set of Ping Zing BeCu’s. Lovely feel. Play them or my cobra II IQ irons, which don’t feel as good but seem to hit the a bit straighter.

I actually bought a set with matching numbers. 2-lw for 175. Scared to hit them cause they look so pretty

Massive fan of my ping zing 2s. Awesome set

I refinished set 1-lw . Pulled heads and rock tumbled them till they shone like a penny. Over time the nice clean brown patina has come back👍

Thank you for the great deal of perspective and info on these. I really wanted a set of these in the early 90s coming out of college and never could afford them. Now 25 years later I just picked up a very inexpensive set of these beautiful irons. Missing the 7 iron unfortunately. Anyone with an extra eye2 CuBe 7 iron black eye please let me know. Lol

I used to have a 1-LW set of both the + and none. Key words being used to. They got extremely popular about 13-14 years ago and made a couple of grand off of selling both. Had maybe $350-400 in both sets so a pretty good profit.

I have the 2 iron and 4-SW, they were my first set of irons.

I put together a set of these for about $300 US last year, 3 through W, Eye2 + just like these, and just added a BeCu Anser putter to the set. They don’t get regular play, but I do take them out to the driving range frequently and get lots of compliments. My set was purchased in two groups, 7, 8, 9, SW, and W, and then 3 through 6. I was able to have the lies tweaked back to factory standard 0 degrees (black dot), but in chatting with the club techs at my local shops, all said that they would not swap or replace any shafts due to the toxicity of fumes when the copper is heated. That’s the only downside. They are very nice and have a great feel, but I can’t say that for me they are as forgiving or as controllable as the Callaway XR irons I normally play.

I've got a full set of Ping Eye 2 Irons, 1-SW. Been tempted to sell my set recently but haven't a clue on the price. I still use them as my main clubs 😂

Great review. There is A LOT of information on these clubs on the internet. Very hard to find a concise wrap up. The facts you've provided are pretty good. Ping made them from 1986 to 1999 in the BeCu finish and ceased when they discovered how toxic Be is. They're perfectly safe until grinding etc occurs. As you mentioned extremely tough material also used to make bullets!! BeCu came out in Patent Pending, Ping Eye 2, Ping Eye 2 + no +, Ping Eye 2 dot and Ping Eye 2 + Generally they're all valuable and desirable if you are a collector. Shaft options were Red stripe which is considered stiff and Blue stripe being regular. Apparently Lee Westwood still uses the same shaft as the Ping Eye 2s, not sure if it's the Red or Blue. The extreme ends of the bag are hard to find as most people didn't order a 1 iron, 2 iron or lob wedge. The L wedges are particularly desirable. Serial numbers can definitely be looked up by ping. Ping also made putters in BeCu which are very collectable. Most people don't clean them as the patina is valuable and it comes back anyway. They're polarizing clubs due to their quirky design but I personally think they look great. Ping Eye 2 irons are Pings most successful iron ever and still get produced new by ping to this day. Revolutionary design with perimeter weighting, offset head to shaft, progressive head design, high toe etc. Basically all the stuff current iron manufacturers are trying to claim as revolutionary was already present in the Ping Eye 2 design over 30 years ago! I'm lucky to own a set of Ping Eye 2+ irons in BeCu 1-L and will never sell them!

Great Clubs and Awesome Video!

I have a set of Ping Zings in Copper Beryllium, that are somewhat more rare than the Eye2s. Mine look much better than the ones shown on this video and mine have the original Karsten Adila 101 graphite shafts. I love the feel of these when I hit the ball. After watching this video I checked on prices on the the Zings, they ranged from $400 to $1900 depending on the condition and number clubs offered. On other note, these irons are much weaker in lofts and will take some adjusting for club selection.

I have a left hand set, 2 iron through sand wedge. I like them also. I was missing the 3 iron, so I bought one for 110.00 back in the ninetys. Bar keepers friend and hot water, makes them look brand new.

Simon, I hope all is well with the kids. I just picked up 2-Lob Wedge. Missing the 6 iron. WOW!! Played them for 9 holes and was amazed. $200 less $30 for discounts. I was able to source the 6 iron from ping to match the serial #s. $150 for that. I’m going to leave these to my son. I’m moving some of my other sets on.

I have a full set of the eye 2 BC irons. Have the Advantage tour series graphite shafts and these things are the greatest. Smooth, long and buttery.

I just had a set given to me. They are the old grove pattern and hit greens like a bullet. Tons of spin and they look amazing. Leave the patina on. That is what collectors look for.

Three years ago I saw a set of these at Golf Galaxy here in NY for $100. 3 thru Sw in my specs, red dot. I Almost bought them, now watching this vid I’m sorry I didn’t Simon!

I have a set of I3 irons and woods they are so nice to hit ping has always made great equipment

Since Jan 2020 I own and play (in winter) a same serial number BeCu 3-S Ping Eye-2+ set. Original JZ shaft and orinal grip. The grips need changing. Recommendations? In 1985 my 1st real set was a Ping Eye-2 and without woods, but with a 2-Iron got to a single hdc. Mizuno blades, woods and a lot of practice got me to scratch, but my Ping Eye-2 W, S and L were still my wedges because of the bounce and loft gap. In warmer weather. I love my Mizuno MP-67 because of the feel, thus feedback. The only other iron that comes close to that feel are the Pings, for me. Did you play more with the BeCu?

Didn't have the copper ones but in 1993 I got a set of ping eye 2 irons 2-sw for Christmas...I was in my sophomore year of high School and couldn't wait until spring gold started ....I had been on the high school golf team since the summer before my freshman year and I had a decent set of clubs but at the time the ping eye 2 and the tommy armour 845s were the club to have ....and I will say they were very good clubs but I did have square grooves which as we all know eventually were determined to be illegal to use in competition play ....

First irons I bought when I started playing were a set of BeCu Eye 2+ 1-lw. Cost me $350ish aud.

got these as a high school graduation gift almost 30 years ago and still use them!

Rebuilt a 1 iron with a kbs c taper for a trip down memory lane. Only trouble was carried as far as my 4 iron, experiment over!

So crazy, I was just researching these yesterday.

I have the regular Ping Eye 2 irons and love them. Would like to find a set of these copper irons at a reasonable price.

Had a set of Ping Eye 2 BeCu when I was a member at Wentworth in the 90s. Still have BeCu 2-L, BeCu 3-S, and Std 1-S. To clean the BeCu to an insane pink they can be left in two cans of coke overnight.

I love my BeCu’s. I have the Blueprints now but I still love to hit the Eye’s

I play copper beryllium Lynx Parallax 1989 model, which is similar to the Ping Eye2. On my Lynx the lofts are much weaker than the new cavity back irons made today Example, my 9 iron is 44 degrees where many PWs on the newer sets are 45 degrees some are even 43. Regardless, I prefer my older Lynx to any of the new irons I have owned (Ping G25, Cobra F8, Wilson Staff C200, Callaway Big Bertha). I have retired the 3 and 4 iron and instead use hybrids but the remaining 5- Sw are my daily playing irons. It’s stunning what a grove tool and a new set of grips can do for these older clubs.

0:14 The + sign on the back indicates this is a legal club. Square groves were never illegal, but the closeness of the groves in the Ping Rye 2 were.

Looked up on gumtree in Oz, 1-SW, price is $829 $AU, so for you around the $410 pound mark, only one set advertised, interesting video thanks, cheers

I have the 2 iron to this set looks amazing

In the 1980’s I bought the Eye 2 BC Pings, but found out about the illegality of them, traded for eye2 plus in standard form. Still use the old Eye 2’s , but I miss the feel I had with the BC Pings tho. But, boy did they rip the S..t out of the ball. Dee from Oz.

I’ve got a full set and it has a 1 iron. Freaking love it off the tee honestly 😂

Hi mate big fan of your channel, do you know where i can get a cobra f9 3 wood shaft? Im wanting to try it in my f9 driver for more consistancy and cant seem to find any online.

I got a set of these today from a guy that was throwing them out. 2 iron to SW . Looking forward to see how they play.

Any update on these? I bought mine in Vegas February 1991 2-SW (10 irons) all matching serial numbers. I haven’t played for 10 years but during the 20 years I did use they were re-shafted and gripped multiple times. Now reaching the ripe young age of 60 I’ve more time for golf again and was going to get measured for new Ping Irons, but would it be worth getting fitted for my own irons? I’ve also the Anser 2 in barrylium, purchased when I bought the irons.

Recently picked ip 8 of these at goodwill for $2 each😁. Here to learn about them.

I rather like the patina on those clubs

I have a set of BC ping ISI’s in the garage which I bought new 30 years ago. Do they have the cache?

Beautiful clubs , if I had a set definitely would not sell and would play with now and again 👍

Simon, would you do a comparison video with a standard set of Ping Eye 2s ? Or Ping Zing 2s? Much appreciated!

Rare, but still many sets on the market. Just picked up 3-SW in good condition for $300 CAD. Had a set prior with titanium shafts that I regret selling. Going to customize my new set to game. Love the feel of BeCu irons.

My Dad has a set of these. Very soft to hit as I used to use them.

Have you tried Gary Player Anvil Grand Prix Beryllium Copper irons 3 - SW or seen?

As a junior playing in the '80s, I dreamt of getting my father's set of these as hand-me-downs once he inevitably upgraded as he always did, however, I quit golf in 1990 as I turned 16 and was told I had to pay my own fees because I had left school and I was working. Oddly enough, beer and girls were much more interesting, so they won-out. 33 years on and I started playing golf agian in January. I never thought I would. My wife bought me a cheap set of clubs for Xmas. I out-grew the woods within a week, so bought some good, modern ones, and I had to buy some good wedges are there were none, but I've been trying to work out what irons to upgrade to when the time comes, and I might just satisfy that childhood fantasy of getting my hands on the amazing looking byrilium copper clubs. As a boy they really did look like something special. Like the Excalibur of golf! 😂 Ah, to be young again! I've certainly found that I don't have the same body as I did at 16! 😩😂. Thank you so much for the blast from the past!

i have 2-lw and take them out once in awhile. i play mizuno, but get more smiles on my face when i use these.

I was lucky enough to pick up the hamburger with the lot,1to pw,played them for about a year and moved up to I3's, play them for a while moved up to G700.The G700 go further,higher. the i3 with Nippon shafts, are absolutely great,must suit my game, but the eye 2's have the best feel, and really you could own a new Ferrari,but the moment a E type is parked next to it, the Ferrari just becomes another expensive car,same with the Copper eye 2. And he is right about the short iron,very good, as you move up they become a little less manageable but that is the case with most clubs. Interest to know if there is a weight difference between the Copper and the cast heads?

I have the original non plus BeCu.I find they are hard to use in windy conditions their flight is just not penetrating enough and often find well hit shots coming up short. They have the illegal grooves so maybe they just spin too much. In mild conditions these easily compare to modern irons the shafts are excellent and as Simon says the wedges are brilliant. I have had 3 sets sold 2 but keeping these. Unfortunately the BeCu putters in my opinion don’t stack up against modern ones but obviously look great.

Just bought a set for £140, I'm so happy. My dream irons and I finally got them in my lie...red dot. They're just fantastic irons, karsten was a genius

Did you ever do a video on cleaning them up? Any success? Would love to know how to go about it.

The best looking vintage clubs ever made are the Northwestern Thunderbird Irons. Northwestern used to be the biggest golf company in the world, mostly entry level stuff BUT in the 70's they manufactured a high end line of stainless forged "Thunderbird Irons" that are still regarded as excellent classics today. You can still get them at a reasonable price IF you can find the originals with the Thunderbird inside the blue diamond with the cursive lettering. They ARE excellent Irons that are among the best looking clubs ever made. A family owned company, Northwestern originally made very expensive boutique clubs when it first began making golf clubs in a tough economy (1930's). After pricing themselves out of the market they changed course and started mass producing cheap clubs for department stores with great success. The Thunderbird Irons were a return to the owner's (Nat Rosasco) love of quality Irons once the company became successful.

On the back of the club bottom left there's a + (plus sign ) which means it's comforming

Hi Simon, hope you and yours are all well, i have some ping clubs sitting around, they need a new home, 2 sets , Ping blue eye, 5-pw, in great condition and a set of the older version 3-pw, are you now fulltime in Sandford springs? Anyway if you want to buy em let me know , all the best, Fraser

Quality try them with an balata ball an watch the spin go off the charts 👍🏌️‍♂️⛳👍

I have a mint, unused, never struck a golf ball or touched the turf, Eye2 BECU irons.The 5 iron actually still has the sticker on the original grips. I spoke to Ping on the phone and the guy was flabbergasted. He told me to keep them as is and not use them, as they are very, very rare in Mint condition

I have a set of these that were a hand me down from my dad. I still use them. But my friend and I lost the 8 iron many years ago at the driving range (they were still my dad’s at the time- he was PISSED). I found an identical 8 iron on ebay for 50 bucks recently to replace it. Serial numbers don’t match, but it’s better than not having one

I've always wanted a set of them they look brilliant. Are they as good as today's clubs ??

What you think of a left handed iron set of BeCu 1 to LW for $1,200 usd

Put the heads in coke cola to clean them up like new. I agree with the ping glide eye 2 wedges

Had a buddy of mine in HS pick up a set of the berylliums back in 1994ish from a lady in a garage sale for $100. Have to find out if he's still got them.

Simon I think the ones you have with the + on are conforming

you should try to get the copper set from Cleveland that was made in the late 80s. Very attractive club.

Lovely! Would you be interested in swapping for a set of blue dot? I used to be blue but now im black! Mine have new Ping grips fitted though 8 only have 3-9i

You can pick-up an Lwedge for $40.00 us in very good condition-mainly because most duffers did not practice enough to control this wonderful L wedge, I bought 4 of these wedges so I can play with them for the rest of my days

I have 3-pw,1993, copper orange dot,or black dot your choice, 200$ , both are in excellent condition.

Simon I have a set 3-PW blue spot would you be interested?

For anyone’s reference picked up a set of eye2 becu in stiff graphite for 365$….3-pw