Bombtech Grenade 2 Driver Review

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The Bombtech Grenade 2 driver claims to have superior aerodynamics for more club head speed.  Stock shaft felt soft-to-flex.  Very high spin numbers.

Introduction

We all know that professional golfers get paid a ton of money by OEMs to play their gear and wear their logos.  That cost gets passed along to the consumers who buy those clubs.  Bombtech Golf aims to provide golfers with high performance clubs at lower prices by selling direct to consumers without sponsoring pros or spending big money on marketing.  But can a small shop really compete with the big OEMs in the high tech world of drivers?  We tested the Grenade 2 to find out.

Looks

At address, the Grenade 2 presents a matte black crown, round and symmetrical, with a white alignment aid.  The silver face is of average height and conventional shape.

Bombtech carries the green and black color scheme from top to bottom, most notably in the vibrant green shaft.  Flip the driver over and you’ll see the signature dual cavities painted in green and “Bombtech” and “Grenade 2” in bold lettering.

Sound & Feel

The Grenade 2 is loud at impact.  I would describe the sound as being between a crack and a sharp pop with a medium pitch.

My one complaint with the Grenade 2 is that I found the feedback lacking.  I had a hard time figuring out when I had hit the ball well or poorly.  This does speak to the stability of the design, but it makes it difficult to identify problems.

Performance

The Grenade 2 was developed with a combination of feedback from the first Grenade and original research done at the University of Vermont.  Engineers found that the new dual cavity profile is 50% more aerodynamic than the original Grenade, and it positions the center of gravity deeper and lower for higher launch and lower spin.

In my testing, the defining characteristics of the Grenade 2 was high spin.  Regular readers know that I’m a very low spin player.  My angle of attack is always positive, I generally hit balls high on the face, and I don’t add loft at impact.  This all adds up to spin rates that are usually below 2000 RPM.  With the Grenade 2, however, I was living in the mid-2000’s and occasionally going north of 3000 RPM.  This cost my drives a significant amount of distance.

I chalk up a lot of my troubles with the Grenade 2 to a mismatch with the stock shaft.  We’ve written endlessly about the importance of the shaft, so I know how much difference that can make.  The stock shaft is a little lighter than I prefer, and I found it to be one of the softest X-flex shafts I’ve ever used, particularly in the tip.  This led me to get tentative with my swing which led to poor results.

Conclusion

There’s nothing that we say as often as, “Get fit for your clubs.”  When you buy off the rack, anything can happen.  That was the story of me and the Bombtech Grenade 2 driver.  It simply wasn’t a fit.  Bombtech does offer a 60-day money back guarantee, but with only one shaft option, it’s an all-or-nothing proposition.

Bombtech Grenade 2 Driver Price & Specs

Matt Saternus
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2 Comments

  1. Mikey B
    May 11, 2017 at 2:57 pm  ·  Reply

    Interesting review. I always review the data provided, and usually see some anomalies. Yours is no exception. With 151 mph ball speed on 104 mph of club head speed, your smash factor was 1.45. Easily within the realm of most recreational golfers. So the club actually seems easy to hit.
    You say your swing doesn’t add loft, but the launch angle for a 9 degree head was 16.4. So you are saying you have an angle of attack that was +7.4? Something higher than virtually any PGA pro, and denotes a swing mechanic of a long drive competitor.
    Since your swing speed is not 125 mph, and the shaft was not XXX Stiff, I’m going to suggest that maybe the club head was passing your hands at impact, adding both dynamic loft and spin to the shot.
    I’d also like to know what the fairway conditions were as well, because a ball spinning at less than 3,000 rpm should be rolling out more than the 6 yards you recorded to generate the Total Distance number.
    You published however what you recorded, and the numbers don’t lie. I’d be curious to see what other numbers could be generated with different swing mechanics, and a firmer fairway.

    • Matt Saternus
      May 11, 2017 at 7:27 pm  ·  Reply

      Mikey,

      Your assertions are based on a lot of assumptions. I’ll leave it at that.

      Best,

      Matt

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