COBRA Limited-Edition Black Drivers and Wedges

COBRA Limited Edition Black Drivers and Wedges

• New limited edition black finish for LTDx drivers and KING COBRA wedges
• Drivers get an all-black color scheme with a white LIN-Q aftermarket shaft.
• Full KING COBRA wedge line gets stain-black QPQ finish.
• Drivers $599; wedges $149
• Available starting today

Today’s release of the COBRA Limited Edition Black drivers and wedges is simultaneously intriguing and predictable.

It’s predictable in that the KING COBRA wedges have been out for a full year now. And OEMs love giving their gear—particularly wedges—a second-year boost with a new look. The new COBRA Limited Edition Black wedges certainly check that box.

What’s intriguing is that kind of an admittedly gimmicky boost is unusual for a driver that’s been out for only about two months. If it was anyone other than COBRA, it’d be eyebrow-raising curious. But since it is COBRA, who has been known to drop limited edition colored drivers like Ted Lasso drops colorful colloquialisms, we can say it’s business as usual.

COBRA Limited Edition Black LTDx Drivers

COBRA is giving the entire LTDx driver family the new blacked-out color scheme. Looking down on the driver, the frame, carbon fiber crown and face are still the same black they’ve been for the past two months. But the white and orange striping on the sides is now gray.

The difference is noticeable once you turn the club over. The traditionally loud orange and white sole accents and orange sole weights are now all black and gray. Now, this is what you call Stealth.

We gave you an in-depth look into the LTDx family over the winter but here’s the Cliff Notes version. The LTDx family is multi-material, with 30 percent more carbon fiber than RADSPEED and a lighter, stronger titanium chassis. PWR-CORE Technology places weight strategically depending on the driver and the target golfer.

The LTDx LS is the low-spin mode for higher swing speed players. It uses a heavy PWR-CORE that pushes weight forward to provide low spin and faster ball speeds. It’s also the least forgiving in the family. The LTDx MAX, as the name suggests, has the forgiveness of a puppy. It uses a lighter PWR-CORE that allows weight to be pushed back and low. It’s also the most draw-biased in the family and has moveable weights.

And the LTDx, as you’d guess, is right in the middle. It’s not quite as forgiving as the LTDx MAX but COBRA says it provides the best combination of ball speed and launch conditions.

Specs and Availability

COBRA says the new all-black color scheme makes the LTDx driver lineup look—and I quote—“sophisticated and edgy.” Sort of a cross between an old David Niven and a young Mickey Rourke. You youngsters can look that one up.

Each driver comes with a custom blacked-out Lamkin Crossline grip and an aftermarket UST-Mamiya LIN-Q shaft in white. I don’t know about sophisticated or edgy but I’d say the combo should look pretty badass.

That sophisticated and edgy badasssery will cost you $599 which is a $100 upcharge from the apparently unsophisticated and whatever the opposite of edgy is standard LTDx lineup.

The new COBRA Limited Edition Black LTDx drivers will be available starting today at retail and online.

COBRA Limited Edition Black KING Wedges

More predictable is the new finish for the year-old KING COBRA wedges. Chapter 6 in the Golf OEM Standard Playbook says it’s perfectly acceptable to give your wedges a second-year sales boost with a new finish. What’s interesting here is COBRA’s choice of finish.

COBRA, along with Hogan, Maltby and a few others, use DBM (Diamond Black Metal) for its black satin finish. DBM is considered ultra-premium in that it’s not a coating but an actual finish that’s embedded into the steel. DBM is roughly seven times more durable than PVD (which, by the way, is pretty durable). And it’s a billion times more durable than black oxide or black nickel which tend to wear off if you speak to them harshly.

However, COBRA is using a completely different part of the alphabet with the Black KING wedges: QPQ.

QPQ stands for Quench-Polish-Quench. As the name suggests, it’s a three-step process. First, the iron head is quenched in a 1,300-degree Fahrenheit molten salt-nitrogen-carbon solution for about two hours. After rinsing and cooling, it’s polished to reduce surface roughness. It’s then quenched again in a new oxidizing salt bath. When it comes out, it has a smooth black finish infused into the surface of the metal.

In terms of finishes, it’s right up there with DBM.

The Black KING COBRA Wedge Lineup

Again, these are the same wedges COBRA released last March and feature what COBRA calls Snakebite Grooves.

According to COBRA, Snakebite Grooves are deeper and wider than the grooves on its older wedges. Additionally, while the lower-lofted 48- through 54-degree wedges feature a standard groove layout, the 56 through 60 models have full-face grooves.

Additionally, the COBRA Limited Edition Black KING wedges will have the same three grind options. The Versatile Grind is what you’d expect, a middle-of-the-road grind with heel, toe and trailing-edge relief for versatility.

The Classic Grind has progressive relief from heel to toe and a cambered leading edge. It’s designed for players with a steeper angle of attack. The grind isn’t that versatile but it does help the club glide through the turf without diffing.

Widelow Grind is also as the name suggests: a wide sole with low bounce. It’s best suited for bunkers and soft conditions.

Specs and Availability

The full KING COBRA wedge lineup will be available in the new black satin QPQ finish in both standard and ONE Length. The full lineup, however, means different things depending on which side of the ball you stand on. For righties, it’s all three grinds in 48- through 60-degree lofts in two-degree increments. For lefties, the full lineup includes the 52-, 56- and 60-degree lofts in the Versatile Grind only.

The COBRA Limited Edition Black wedges come with a standard Lamkin Crossline grip and the KBS Hi-Rev 2.0 steel shaft. Pricing remains the same, at $149 per wedge.

They’re also available starting today.

For more information, visit www.cobragolf.com.