Years back when there were a lot of component companies there was always a running argument as to where did a head cross the line. To back up a bit. There is a concept called follows in design. It means when something becomes a success, the market will follow it. Lee Iacocca's success with the first mini-van caused other manufacturers "to follow in design" meaning to jump onboard with their own mini van.
Ping irons were so successful, they set a design standard meaning, cast heads with a large cavity back. Many component companies did iron heads that were very "follows in design". Well that is all well and good but where does one cross the line? I say they cross it when they give there heads a similar/confusing name. Earlier someone posted a picture of Pal Joey and Dynacraft PC3 iron heads that looked quite a bit like Ping irons. All fine and good as a follows in design but when one tries to confuse people like King Snake iron for King Cobra irons, I say they crossed the line. Pal Joey and Dynacraft do not cross the line. It is impossible to make a black, 420CC, Titanium driver head that does not at a casual glance look like other black, 420CC, Titanium drivers. All well in good as it is a follows in design until you name it Big Brother. Then you are cheating.
In my shop, I had 3 King Snake 5 irons. Each from for a different component company and each one was different in some obvious ways and in some less obvious ways. I had a sticker on each face with the loft, lie, and head weight of each head, and they were all different. I use to say to people if you buy these type things do you want the copy or the copy of the copy or the copy of the copy copy?
There was a hack "alleged clubmaker" in my area (greater Boston back then) that had 6-8 made up sets of King Snake irons displayed on his wall and in the middle of them was one set of real King Cobra irons. Copies at $250 a set for 8 irons. The King Cobra set of 8 irons for the list price of about $500.00. He sold a ton of the copies. He said no only once did someone buy the real ones. It was those copies/clones/knockoffs that gave component clubs a bad name.
The general golfing public only know the names they see and here on TV, see in Golf Magazines, etc. People would come into my shop and pick up a Bob Toski or Harvey Penick or a National Golf original design head and ask what is this a copy of?
