EQUIPMENT REVIEW

Redline 460 Dual
driver combines
biggest head and
moveable weights

By Kiel Christianson,
Senior Writer

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (Nov. 24, 2005) - Quick, name the two hottest trends in driver technology. If you said "460cc heads" and "moveable weights," you get a cookie.

Although Callaway Golf pioneered bigger clubheads, and TaylorMade devised the modern version of moveable weights, earlier this year, Adams Golf was the first to combine both features in its Redline 460 Dual driver (MSRP $350).

• Polite Applause for the Adams Ovation • Small companies offer BIG drivers • 'Movable weights' on new Adams driver won't cure your slice, but it's still a fine club • Visit GolfBoards.com

Both of these technologies have seldom-mentioned drawbacks. Contrary to popular belief, big-headed clubs will not eliminate your slice. In fact, the more mass in a clubhead, the harder it is to get your hands closed and the face square.

Enter moveable weights as a way to help the hands close. However, their efficacy is limited by the player's ability to swing the club the same way every time.

Your average duffer's swing plane and angle of attack, though, tend to change from swing to swing - sometimes on-plane, sometimes outside in, sometimes inside-out, sometimes the club face is open, sometimes it's closed, sometimes the ball is struck in the center of the clubface, sometimes the toe and sometimes the heel.

The point is that no amount of weighting is going to fix your slice or hook on every swing. Moveable weights can address tendencies in your swing, but not the sort of wild variation that most of us fight from one tee box to the next.

If you want to see and feel results from moveable weights, you need to spend plenty of time grooving a least a semi-repeatable swing, and then tinkering with the weighting to fine-tune the ball flight.

How it plays

Having established caveat emptor, let's take a look at the Adams Redline 460D. 460ccs of clubhead that feels lighter than most equivalently sized drivers. The club comes with two 7-gram weights, one 2-gram weight, one 12-gram weight and a special tool to screw them in and out of the two weight ports.

The two 7-gram weights are for a neutral bias. For a draw bias, the 12-gram weight goes in the heel and the two-gram in the toe. For a fade bias, it's the opposite. Adding more than 14 grams is okay, but it does mess with the normal swing-weight of the club.

Now, being one of those players who's not only somewhat less than consistent from swing to swing, but also in the process of changing my swing rather significantly to eliminate a vicious hook, it took me a considerable amount of time to figure out which aspects of my problems the Redline could address, and which ones required actual swing changes.

At first, I found the Redline to be too light for my tastes. The graphite-composite crown, titanium face and Fujikura G60 stiff shaft combined to weigh so little that I felt like I couldn't feel the club at the top of my swing. Subsequently, it felt as if I lost track of it on the way down.

However, I did notice that when everything else fell into place, the fade-biased weighting allowed me to hit an almost completely straight ball. With only slight variation in ball position and/or grip, I could - at least on occasion - work the ball both directions in this configuration. And, when struck in the sweet-spot, the ball went very far, very fast, with a towering ball flight.

But to repeat: When my old hook swing resurfaced, no amount of fade biasing could keep it from turning left faster than a NASCAR driver in the final lap.

Who's it for?

We circulated the Adams Redline 460D amongst players of different calibers. Its light-weight, easy-to-swing design was popular with Dave Irwin, a 22-handicap from Champaign. He found it easy to get the ball in the air and commented that the draw bias did seem to mitigate his normal fade/slice.

Better players, including Dave Huber, head professional at Lake of the Woods Golf Course in Mahomet agreed that the weighting would only be helpful as long as one delivered a consistent swing. Overall, though, he found the Redline 460D acceptably workable and longer than average.

In short, if you want to feel like you're taking advantage of both of the hottest trends in drivers today, the Adams Redline 460D is worth a try. It won't fix your swing, but it may allow you to set your mind at ease that in terms of equipment, you are doing all that you can do to help your game. Then you might be better able to concentrate on fixing your swing yourself.

For more information visit www.adamsgolf.com

Any opinions expressed above are those of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of the management. The information in this story was accurate at the time of publication. All contact information, directions and prices should be confirmed directly with the golf course or resort before making reservations and/or travel plans.