COBRA KING F8 AND F8+ DRIVER - A BEAUTY AND A BEAST
Posted by GolfBox on 1st Dec 2017
COBRA KING F8 DRIVER
Get ready to have a smashing good time out on the golf course with the new Cobra King F8 driver.
The F8 is Cobra's longest and straightest driver to date and if first impressions count, you'll be more than impressed when you see the new CNC milled face.
While the CNC milled face stands out purely because it has never been seen before on a driver, it's not there just to look pretty - it actually helps you smash your drives longer and straighter than ever before.
With enhanced aerodynamics, an updated sole and a reconfigured weighting system, the new Cobra King F8 driver is both a beauty and a beast off the tee.
Cobra’s decision to go with a CNC milled face on the F8 driver meant the face could be three per cent thinner and 10 per cent lighter than the preceding Cobra F7 driver.
The thinner face means more flex across the entire span, resulting in a more efficient energy transfer at impact and greater ball speeds off the face.
The weight saved in the face is redistributed elsewhere in the Cobra King F8 driver to maximise the high launch, low spin ball flight that basically means your drives will be flying a proverbial country mile.
And while it’s probably not foremost in your thoughts when you’re laying into a drive with the Cobra King F8 out on the course, the CNC face milling also makes the manufacturing process more precise.
When margins of a gram are a big deal in the latest driver designs, Cobra’s new construction procedures ensure every F8 driver adheres 100 per cent to the original design - whether it’s the F8 demo you try or the actual F8 you buy, every Cobra King F8 driver is identical.
Cobra have also added some new aerodynamic elements to the F8’s sole and crown to help it cut through the air more efficiently, reducing drag to increase clubhead speed.
Weight saved by using a lightweight carbon fibre crown means more mass can be redistributed lower, to optimise the CG (centre of gravity) for the best possible launch and spin characteristics.
The aerodynamic strips atop the crown also form a channel to focus your eye into the optimum hitting zone, which is also visually prominent with the round ‘bullseye’ milled into the sweet spot on the Cobra King F8’s face.
The weighting system on the Cobra King F8 also gets an overhaul, with the three ports on the Cobra F7 now being rolled into just two.
The forward port that was on the F7 has been deleted - the Cobra King F8 only has a rear and heel port to make adjustments for a higher ball flight or a draw bias.
Cobra’s MyFly hosel also gives F8 users the ability to tailor the loft, which is adjustable from 9 to 12 degrees, and links in with the Cobra Smartpad sole to sit flush and square with the ground no matter what loft is selected.
COBRA KING F8+ DRIVER
The F8+ driver is Cobra’s lower trajectory offering, designed for players with faster swing speeds that require less spin.
At 440cc, the Cobra King F8+ is a hair smaller than the 460cc F8 and shares most of the same features, like a CNC milled clubface, aero package and composite carbon crown.
Where the two drivers differ is the sole weights, with the F8+ having a forward and rear port. Adjustments to the forward weighting port will change the CG to reduce spin and create a lower trajectory. And being slightly more compact also helps to shape the ball to a certain extent.
The Cobra MyFly hosel on the F8+ is adjustable from 8 to 11 degrees.
COBRA CONNECT
The entire Cobra King F8 range comes with the Cobra Connect sensor that fits into the top of the grip. Powered by the Arccos game tracking system, it lets users track and keep stats on every club via a smartphone app for a detailed analysis of the club's performance.
COBRA KING F8 AND F8+ OPTIONS
The Cobra King F8 and F8+ drivers are available in black or a new grey shade called Nardo, and come with a choice of premium shafts: the MRC Tensei CK Blue 50, Adila NV 2KXV Blue 60 or Green 65 or the Project X Hzrdus Yellow 75.
COBRA KING F8 AND F8+ FAIRWAY WOODS
The new Cobra King F8 and F8+ fairway woods share parallels with their driver equivalents, with the F8 slightly bigger in head size and better suited to lower speed swings than the more compact F8+.
The Cobra King F8 and F8+ fairway woods have wider sole rails for a smoother interaction with the turf at impact. The rails get progressively more pronounced the higher the loft of the fairway wood – the rails on the 5-7 wood protrude slightly more than those on the 3-4, mainly due to the fact that players will have a steeper attack on the ball as lofts increase. The rails have been moved closer together compared to the Cobra F7 fairway wood to boost performance out of longer grass and other less than ideal lies.
The Cobra King F8 fairway wood has just the one weighting port, now located at the back of the club, instead of a front and rear port like the F7.
If you're confused by this change, don't be concerned: it has actually meant the CG can be made lower and shifted more towards the rear because of the weight saved, with no need for the internal structures to accommodate an extra weight port.
Meanwhile, the Cobra King F8+ fairway wood has a single port at the front to produce a lower spinning ball flight for higher swing speeds.
The Cobra King F8 and F8+ fairway woods also feature a new carbon fibre crown to reduce weight and the stainless steel face will extract the maximum distance out of off-centre strikes.
The Cobra King F8 can be ordered as a 3-4 (13-16 degrees), 5-6 (17-20) and 7-8 (21-24). With the F8+ being a lower trajectory option, the lofts are one degree stronger but it is only available in a 3-4 (12-15) and 4-5 (16-19).
The Cobra MyFly hosel is fitted to Cobra King F8 and F8+ fairway woods and lofts can be altered by three degrees, with three draw settings also included.
COBRA KING F8 HYBRID
Just like the Cobra King F8 fairway woods, the Cobra King F8 hybrid has the same elevated rails on the sole that help to stabilise the club through impact.
Given the extreme range of lies and conditions that hybrids are designed to be used from, the new sole rails mean the Cobra King F8 hybrid will perform even more effectively and the steel head (no carbon crown in the F8 hybrid) is built for distance.
The Cobra MyFly hosel has been omitted from the F8 hybrid but Cobra have added an extra loft into the F8 hybrid range – it comes in 17, 19, 22 and 25 degrees.
A fixed weighting port keeps the weight low and to the rear of the F8 hybrid for a high spin ball flight to assist players who struggle to get the ball up in the air quickly.
COBRA KING F8 ONE LENGTH HYBRID
Also available in the Cobra King F8 range is the Cobra King F8 One Length hybrid.
For those who don’t know, the Cobra One Length range has identical shaft lengths that equate to a seven iron, which follows Cobra staffer Bryson Dechambeau’s unique approach to the game.
The Cobra King F8 One Length hybrid has the same head as the F8 hybrid but it comes in only three lofts – 19, 22 and 25 degrees with the shorter 37.5 inch shaft.
The Cobra King F8 Hybrid One Length is a breeze to hit with a piercing high trajectory, but is also a great addition to the bag for tight chip and run shots around the green with its shorter shaft.