50 Words or Less
The Miura CB-302 irons have the wonderful feel you expect from Miura. Not long, especially compared to modern irons. More forgiveness than you might expect.
Introduction
Plugged In Golf is for the people, so when we received a request for a review of the Miura CB-302 irons, we jumped into action. The CB-302 is one of Miura’s latest releases, an update on the CB-301 [review HERE] which was released about four years ago. This is purported to be their longest forged cavity back ever, so we were eager to see where it stood in today’s landscape of high tech irons.
Looks
At address, the Miura CB-302 irons straddle the line between players and game improvement irons. Forced to choose, I’d certainly say they have more of a players look, but these are not in the same league as the Miura MB-101 [review HERE]. The blade length is longer than expected and there’s a healthy amount of offset. That said, the top line is fairly slim, and I’m a sucker for the squared shaping and straight leading edge.
In the bag, the Miura CB-302 irons are predictably restrained. The iconic Miura logo is engraved on the toe side of the cavity opposite “CB-302”. Both are paintfilled in black. The design of the cavity is traditional and clean – just one plane below a thicker perimeter.
Sound & Feel
People pick up a Miura iron expecting transcendent feel. Some of their sets deliver, some don’t. The Miura CB-302 irons fall into the earlier category. On center, these irons are soft and heavy on the face. It’s exactly the kind of connected, traditional feel that golfers expect from this brand and this style of iron.
The sound of impact complements the feel. With a urethane-covered ball, contact is quiet and dull, a “thud” against the face. This enhances the soft sensation in the hands.
Feedback through the hands is predictably precise. You can feel exactly where the ball met the club face even without tremendous focus. There is a diminished impact sensation when you mishit the ball, but these irons won’t sting your hands or ears.
Performance
I referred to the cavity design of the Miura CB-302 irons as “restrained,” but it has nothing on the tech notes for this iron. There are no buzz words, no clever portmanteaus, just the simple statement that this is “the longest forged cavity-back iron Miura Golf has ever produced.” Miura said the same of the 302’s predecessor, the CB-301, and both irons have the exact same lofts. Those lofts are a bit strong by traditional standards, but they’re quite typical of players or players distance irons today.
How you view the ball speed and distance of these irons depends a lot on your point of comparison. If you compare them to any modern club*, they’re poor. The ball speeds I was seeing were some of the slowest of the year, and the distances reflected that. However, if you compare the Miura CB-302 irons only to forged players clubs, the ball speeds are closer to average.**
Moving to the “optimized forgiveness” of these irons, I did find them to be more consistent than expected. Small mishits only lost a few yards, but bigger misses will end up well short of the green.
Finally, these irons are mid-launch and mid-spin which allows for a lot of creativity, if that’s your game. These irons are happy to flight the ball high or low, as long as you present a quality strike. Similarly, they’re very capable of shaping shots left and right, though the additional offset may be a small hindrance to those who fight the lefts.
*I’m using modern here not to mean “released in 2023” but to mean clubs that use modern construction methods – multi-material, thin faces, etc.
**To the Miura fanboys, you’re welcome to leave comments about how you found incomparable distance in this set, but remember that profane or disrespectful posts go straight in the trash.
Conclusion
Ultimately, the Miura CB-302 irons are likely to be a hit among the faithful but unlikely to expand the tent very much. These irons require fairly strong ball striking to get the most out of them, but they do reward that with exceptional feel.
Visit Miura HERE
Miura CB-302 Irons Price & Specs
Matt Saternus
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The KM 700 are the most interesting set that Miura has released, recently. Any chance that we will get that review? You guys do great work and I really enjoy the content. Thanks.
Shad,
Thank you.
We will put the KM 700 in the queue.
Best,
Matt
Glad you reviewed these, Matt. Your somewhat muted review leaves me feeling…..these are great, maybe wonderful irons for a chosen few. The chosen few that are willing to spend $ 400 per club with an even modest shaft upgrade. That said, your reviews of premium clubs such as these are truly welcomed. They give us a look behind the curtain at these and other boutique clubs for us to compare to more “mainstream” sticks.
Great review. I appreciated reading this one, as it was one of the irons in my shortlist when I upgraded. I ended up going with the Proto Concept C05s. I’d love to read all your thoughts on those as well. Keep up the great content, thanks!
Nice review! I’ve hit these and the previous 301 and really loved them both. Initially the offset and blade length looked to be a touch too much, but after a few swings I didn’t notice at all. They were the best feeling irons I demoed and I tried almost everything. The Mizuno forgings surprisingly didn’t even feel a close second. In the end though the TM P770 (which I’ve never seen in anyone else’s bag) won me over with as good performance, great feel and a much lower price despite still being relatively expensive. Still if I kept my clubs 10 years I might have shelled out for these.
Thank you for taking the time to review the 302’s! They are a great looking iron. It has probably been a while since you’ve hit the MC-501 or MC-502, but how does the forgiveness of the 302’s compare to those irons or something like the TC-201? The perimeter weighting is substantial on this model compared to many of their other models. I’m curious if this translates to the 302s being better on toe or heel strikes versus thin strikes. The 501/502 seem to handle the bottom groove shots very well. Thanks!
Kitz,
You hit the nail on the head – it’s been a while since I hit any other Miura iron. I think the 302 handles all types of misses pretty well and pretty equally – there was no miss that had me thinking, “Wow, that performed well” or “Yuck, I don’t want to hit it that way again.”
Best,
Matt
As a self proclaimed and now “Matt proclaimed” Miura fanboy, I appreciate the review. I game the 301s and they truly changed me into a green hitting and stopping machine. Golf is an investment boys and if you love it like we do, you’re worth it!
Matt thanks for reviewing more than the “ standard 4 “ companies products.
Matt,
Like my fellow commentary, I was thrilled to see a review on Miura products. As a more average golfer, I’ve been stalking the PI-401 irons but haven’t found a fitting location in Florida that even stocks them. Could you add that iron to your queue?
If I pulled that trigger, I’m sure I would be on that same 10 year hiatus. Insight would be great.
Thanks,
Tom
Tom,
We will certainly look into the PI-401.
Best,
Matt
Tom,
I recently bought a set of 302’s from Matt at Aspen Golf Direct (in Orlando, FL). He sent me some demos (I’m in Denver) to try before buying and it was amazing (made me feel super confident in my shaft and club selection before pulling the trigger) I tried the TC-201’s and the Cb-302’s but landed with the 302’s. I don’t think anyone else does something like that, so maybe give him a call?
Matt,
Great write up as always! You are spot on about a few things for sure. Glad to see some Miura irons in your hands! Would love to see Proto Concept get on board as well.
-Nerdy
I have been playing Miura irons for over 20 years. The feel and consistency of Miura irons are unmatched by any other club I have ever played. I recently bought the CB 302 irons and I am quite impressed with the feel and consistency of these irons. I’ve learned that repeatable and predictable iron shots truly help my scoring. High powered irons that result in different distances really don’t improve my scores. I also ordered the KM700 irons. I can’t wait to see that review. I know Miura irons aren’t for everyone, but they are certainly a great iron for me.
I’ve been playing the CB-302’s for about a month now and have them fitted with Fujikura Axiom 105 stiff shafts. They are the best feeling irons I’ve ever hit on sweet spot contact and still feel pretty good on mishits. I was playing Mizuno Pro 225 irons with LA Golf A-Series 105 stiff shafts and my distances (PW-130, 7I-170, 5I-195) are equal with these irons, but my spin rates and launch are both higher. I had never owned Miura irons before and knew very little to nothing about them, but after hitting the CB-301’s in a store and feeling the feedback you get with Miura’s forged steel heads, I am now a certified “Miura Fan Boy”! I am also looking forward to your review of the KM-700 irons, which I think are beautiful but probably require a little more consistently precise ball striking than I am capable of. Thanks for the great review again Matt, and really great to see a small low volume company like Miura get tested. Hope to see Proto Concept, Vega, Epon and other brands tested as well.