Miura: Pursuit of Perfection

One of the most exciting brands we have online here at Scottsdale Golf, is Miura. Nowhere else in the industry will you find this level of craftsmanship, attention to detail and feel from an iron.

The Miura story is one of family, passion, and precision. It’s one focused on the power of touch and a belief in meticulous attention to detail. It’s one grounded by an unwavering commitment to the pursuit of perfection.

Incepted in Himeji, Japan, drawing upon the art and discipline of the samurai, Miura are widely renowned for crafting some of, if not the, finest hand made clubs on the planet. Their founder, Katsuhiro Miura, set out to not only bring to life something that performs above all at the highest echelons of the sport, but also to create something beautiful with the highest degree of integrity, something you wont see anywhere else. Each club in the Miura family is hand-crafted, one-by-one, and touched by Katsuhiro Miura or one of his two sons Shinei or Yoshitaka ensuring only the highest standards of quality control and perfection.

Keeping such elite standards and craftsmanship does not come easily. Miura follow a rigorous design and forging process to ensure each and every club that leaves their workshops fits the mould. During their design process Miura look at two main pillars for their irons: Technical Design & Transitional Design.

Technical Design: The performance of every iron is determined by features such as weight, size, centre of gravity, and bounce, meaning that constructing a consistent and reliable club head is paramount. Although it is impossible to create a club head that is perfect, Miura strives to achieve weight tolerances of +/- .5 g, a number that exceeds current industry standards. While time consuming, Miura’s commitment to technical precision is carried throughout the meticulous design process.

Transitional Design: Creating an exceptional standalone iron is not the goal during the design process. Miura’s ambition is to produce an entire set of 8 to 10 well-designed clubs that work together effortlessly. From short to long irons, the transition between Miura clubs is seamless. Achieved through a precise combination of adjustments to the loft, lie, weight, and design, every player can feel as confident using a 3-iron as with a 7-iron.

In the non-stop pursuit of perfection Miura have dialled in their club crafting process to ensure that every single Miura iron is constrained by the finest of margins.

Forging: Miura-san believed the manufacturing process of forging irons was fundamentally flawed. So, he changed it. This resulted in revolutionary new techniques that elevated Miura irons to the highest industry standards with the tightest tolerances.

1 - Raw Material: Miura uses raw material called S20C, which is also referred to as premium soft carbon steel. This premium steel is delivered to the Miura factory in various girths and lengths from which billets of steel are measured and cut to correspond with the desired weight of the individual models. Achieving the highest tolerances in the industry starts here.

2 - First Forging: Once prepared to the desired length and thickness, the billets are heated to 1200°C. The first strike compresses the billet into a flat shape which allows the raw material to be placed easily into a die. The proprietary Miura process forges the club head without a hosel attached. This technique allows the Miura craftsmen to manipulate the grain structure and create the renowned Miura look and feel.

3 - Second Forging: Within seconds of the first strike, the heated steel is placed into a second die where the subsequent strike forges the steel into the golf head.

4 - Deburring: The innovation of the deburring technique is what separates Miura from its competition. Following the second strike, the club head is placed in a tray where it cools before beginning its journey to the next stage. Heating the club head once while delivering the first two strikes significantly improves the precision of the forging process.

5 - Accurate Forging: During this stage, the club head is reheated to a temperature of 800-900°C. By allowing it to cool and then be reheated, the shape of the head is maintained while still allowing the grain structure to be manipulated. This is an additional and time-consuming step but is responsible for what Miura refers to as W.D.D. Accurate Forged. During this step the weight, distribution, and density of the club head are defined. In order to reach this stage, the Miura factory has produced three individual sets of dies for each model and loft. Dies alone will not deliver a quality iron—each model needs a precise amount of heat and force. Forging also requires the skill, patience, and experience of a Miura craftsman.

6 - Stamping: Stamping an iron includes marking the Miura logo, numbers, and scoring lines. A variety of proprietary machines and techniques are used to perform the steps without compromising the club head’s integrity. The most critical part of this process is the stamping of grooves and scoring lines. Due to the golf industry’s dimensional standards, the Miura craftsmen must be precise. Additionally, the scoring lines become the foundations for the lie, loft, and offset of each iron. If the scoring lines are imperfect, they affect the club head’s integrity.

7 - Pressing: the pressing step is unique to Miura, because it’s when the separately forged head and hosel meld together perfectly with attention to accuracy in the lies, lofts, and offsets. This carefully crafted forging process produces a club that far exceeds the golf industry’s standards. Every club is handmade by expertly trained forgers who were mentored and guided by Katsuhiro Miura himself.

When all is said and done you are left with a product that provides an unrivalled feel alongside some incredible aesthetics, crafted to near perfection. Have a look below to see just a few of the Miura offerings we have available online now:

KM-700: Miura's newest model epitomizes Katsuhiro Miura’s endless pursuit of perfection. While drawing on 65 years of design excellence, Miura-san also nurtured the input of the talented Miura craftsmen. The result is a model so special, you can find his personal Hanko stamp each iron. The KM-700.

Miura irons are highly regarded for their ability to deliver performance on off centre hits. The KM-700 has taken this to another level. The innovative toe-cut grind works in concert with the hosel / heel to optimize the centre of gravity position, effectively producing a larger “sweet spot”. The toe-cut grind is also visible on the sole. It delivers a stable head, optimized impact loft, and unparalleled turf interaction all while promoting a return to square at impact. This revolutionary club head design will benefit golfers of all levels.

MC-502: The MC-501 was one of Miura's most popular models. Ever! The “modern blade” was popular with so many players because it was easy to hit and delivered a great ball flight. The MC-501 proved that forgiveness was attainable in a blade iron without compromising performance. Subtle design enhancements enabled Shinei Miura and his design team to improve both forgiveness and performance in the MC-502, meeting the discerning needs of all players.

New to the MC-502 is an increase in face progression (less offset), which has always been a welcomed look for the better player. Additionally, a softer, more rounded top line and toe profile found their way from the sketch pad to the final product. The result is an iron that is easy to align while delivering an unrivalled level of confidence and playability.

There were no compromises when it came to the new design. The sound, feel and performance, which have been hallmarks of Miura irons since 1957, embodied the finished product.

CB-302: Introducing the Miura Golf CB-302, the longest forged cavity-back iron Miura Golf has ever produced.

Featuring the largest sole width (19mm / 7 iron) we’ve ever produced at the Miura factory, the CB-302 rewards the golfer with optimized forgiveness. A precise amount of camber, leading and trailing edge relief, featuring Miura’s iconic Y grind, deliver improved performance regardless of a golfer’s swing trajectory.