Building upon the success and popularity of their 3D-printed TOUR irons, COBRA Golf is releasing a batch of new limited-edition 3D-printed putters.
How popular are COBRA’s 3D-printed irons? The initial run of 500 sold out so COBRA printed another batch. After that batch sold out, COBRA released a third batch this spring.
These irons are as hot as hot can be. If we were talking about books, you know, the things made of paper with words, only the best of bestsellers would be on the third printing inside of a year.
COBRA Golf is hoping the golfing public will have a similar response to these new LIMIT3D putters. Like the irons, these new LIMIT3D are printed using 3D metal printers.
3D printing is a novel golf club manufacturing approach. So novel, in fact, that it allows COBRA to design and build putters that would be impossible with traditional cast or milled manufacturing.
Today, we will explore COBRA’s latest application of their revolutionary production technology.
Why 3D-printing golf clubs is a thing
The new LIMIT3D putters are not COBRA Golf’s first 3D-printed putter offering. The 2020 COBRA King Supersport 30 was their first 3D-printed putter. Since then, COBRA Golf has continued to release 3D-printed models, the most recent of which were released in 2024.
For all of the putter releases, 3D printing allows COBRA to produce designs unlike any other putters.
How is this possible?
Basically, it comes down to how a 3D printer builds a putter. At some level, most traditional putters are either sculpted or molded from metal. A mill carves the putter out of a block of steel or molten metal is poured into a mold.
Both of these traditional manufacturing methods have their limitations. For example, you cannot mill the internal part of a putter while at the same time keeping the external surface intact. This is why many milled putters use sole plates to cover up the cavity created with the mill.
Hollow, completely milled, one-piece putters are not possible.
3D printing opens up the inside of the putter
With 3D printing, many manufacturing limitations go away. Rather than carving the putter out of metal, the metal is assembled incrementally like building a T-Rex out of Legos.
A carved T-Rex would likely need to be solid. However, if you built one with Legos, you start at the feet and build up one layer at a time. With this type of build, you could easily make the inside of the dinosaur hollow, perhaps even creating a complete organ system inside your dinosaur.
It’s possible. Some people are amazing with Legos.
Anyway, since the COBRA LIMIT3D putters are printed in thin sequential layers, COBRA can produce all kinds of intricate internal structures. In doing so, COBRA has a level of build precision that surpasses traditional methods, especially when it comes to weight distribution and manipulation of impact tone.
Once the initial print builds are completed, the heads are surface milled to ensure they meet COBRA’s desired tolerances. The 3D printer builds the body and the mill finishes it off.
LA Golf’s DLT faces
Not only do these LIMIT3D putters feature novel manufacturing but they also feature novel assistive technologies as well. COBRA is continuing to incorporate LA Golf’s Descending Loft Technology (DLT) into their putter faces.
The DLT face has four distinct lofts. At the top of the face, the loft is four degrees. As you move down the face, the loft decreases from three to two to one degree at the bottom.
The idea behind the DLT face is that the variation in loft normalizes loft at impact. The launch angle of the ball will be the same whether you hit down on the ball or up on the ball.
The DLT face essentially removes the need for loft customization as it performs the same regardless of what angle the face impacts the ball.
This should make your impact more consistent and consistency is a really good quality when it comes to putting performance.
The COBRA Golf LIMIT3D ENZO
The ENZO the LIMIT3D 3D-printed mallet. Its footprint reminds me a little of last year’s 3D Agera. Though that wing on the bottom looks like it is an extra piece, remember that these are printed in their entirety.
As the name implies, the LIMIT3D EZNO has a race car look to it. It looks more like the Toulon Indianapolis than a Ferrari Enzo but I still see a putter that would be equally proficient rolling balls or taking laps around a track.
OK, maybe it would be better at rolling balls, but you know what I mean.
The ENZO is a high-MOI mallet that will be offered with two different necks. The ENZO has a single-bend shaft and is face-balanced. If you have more arc in your swing, the ENZO 30 features a short slant neck, giving it about 30 degrees of toe hang.
The LIMIT3D ENZO is manufactured using HP Metal Jet 3D Printing. If you are curious about what that looks like, here is a video I found on YouTube.
COBRA LIMIT3D ENZO
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COBRA LIMIT3D ENZO-30
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The COBRA Golf LIMIT3D PISTA
The PISTA is the blade model in the new COBRA Golf LIMIT3D line. I’m not totally sure where the name comes from. Pistachios? I’ll keep searching and report back.
What I do know is that, in my head, I keep hearing someone with a strong New England accent saying:
“That putter’s a real PISTA!”
The PISTA represents a combination of the exotic-looking original 3D-printed Grandsport 30 and last year’s much more mundane Grandsport 35. I think the PISTA has the correct balance between showing the 3D-printed lattice and looking like a traditional Anser-style blade.
It’s the Goldilocks build between “too unusual” and “too typical.”
Like the ENZO, the PISTA will be offered with two different necks. The PISTA-45 has a plumber’s neck and a toe hang of 45 degrees. The PISTA-60 features a short slant neck which increases the toe hang to 60 degrees.
This time around, COBRA used a slightly different printing technique to manufacture the PISTA: Direct Metal Laser Sintering (DMLS).
Sintering may be my new favorite word. For some reason, the sentence “COBRA just sintered me up a PISTA” keeps floating through my brain and making me giggle.
COBRA LIMIT3D PISTA-45
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COBRA LIMIT3D PISTA-60
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Rolling the COBRA Golf LIMIT3D putters
Novel manufacturing methods mean nothing if the resulting putter doesn’t roll the ball well and/or feels like garbage. Thankfully, COBRA Golf got both of these critical aspects right.
I was not surprised that both the ENZO mallet and PISTA blades put a fine roll on the ball. COBRA’s 3D-printed KING Grandsport 35 was the 2022 Most Wanted Blade after all.
The one area where I found the LIMIT3D putters to truly shine was distance control. To a model, the distance control was outstanding. Most of the time, it takes me a while to get a putter dialed in for distance. Such was not the case with these.
Maybe the weight distribution in the heads just happened to perfectly fit my swing needs or maybe the DLT face is the real deal. Perhaps it’s a combination of the two.
I’ll try and figure out the “why” later. For now, I’ll just celebrate that the LIMIT3D putters, especially the blades, roll the balls in tight little clusters. From the drop, I was rolling balls to my desired distances.
For the record, I had some other “control” putters with me and the COBRA LIMIT3D putters were noticeably more consistent with distance. Some of the other putters were old favorites that I brought out for nostalgic rolls and the COBRA LIMIT3D putters relegated most of them back to garage.
The glorious feel of printed 316L stainless steel
Are you familiar with 316L stainless steel? As far as putters go, it’s rare. You are way more likely to find a putter made from 303 stainless steel. That’s because 303 stainless steel is great for milling. 316L is too soft to be milled extensively.
Since these COBRA putters are printed and not milled, that’s not really a knock against 316L.
My degree in metallurgy from MIT (or maybe Google) says that 316L stainless steel is very corrosion-resistant, making it great for medical and marine applications where resisting rusting is critical.
I’d still wipe down your $600 putter after you use it on a damp green but the 316L steel will fight off the rust monster like a Grand Master of Flowers with a Staff of Striking.
More important than the corrosion resistance is the deliciously soft feel of the 316L at impact. Not squishy soft, that is not delicious. More like taking a bite of a donut and getting that little pop of raspberry jelly. That kind of delicious!
These feel so good, again, especially the blades. The softer steel and COBRA’s intricate internal lattice pattern combine to create a feel so good that it will make you want to practice your putting.
A 3D vision of the manufacturing future?
The success of the 3D Printed Tour irons and this new LIMIT3D putter release demonstrate COBRA’s commitment to 3D printing golf gear. Could this be the next trend that other companies “borrow”?
I suppose it all comes down to numbers. Can a company print enough club heads to replace their usual forged or cast heads? For iron sets where you need seven or eight heads per set, 3D printing may be too slow to keep up with consumer demands. That, or you’ll need a whole bunch of printers.
For putters, though, you only need to print one head. Perhaps this is the arena where we will see an increase in printed construction, both from COBRA and their competitors.
For now, what we have in front of us are four outstanding 3D-printed putters. I feel this is the release where COBRA really got the builds right, moving the 3D-printed putter from a novelty to a hot commodity in the golf marketplace.
I thought the previous COBRA 3D models were interesting but I find the ENZO, and especially the PISTA, compelling. 3D printing gives the LIMIT3D putters unique looks and allows COBRA to manipulate the metal in ways that would be impossible with conventional construction methods.
Don’t forget they come with the roll assistance of the DLT face and amazing feel.
I feel bad going on and on about the feel since COBRA is making just 500 of each model, making it unlikely that you will find one to roll at your local shop. They will be at select retail locations, though, so maybe you’ll get lucky.
If you see one, roll it immediately and report back.
If you miss out on these, like many did with the initial limited-run COBRA Grandsport, don’t fret. Remember that, as with the 3D irons, COBRA followed up the limited runs with non-limited production models. A little patience could be all we need.
Find out more about the COBRA Golf LIMIT3D putters and purchase online at www.cobragolf.com
The post Are COBRA Golf’s 3D-Printed LIMIT3D Putters A Glimpse Into The Future? appeared first on MyGolfSpy.
