All Potter Clay Golf Putter Head

Abstract

A golf putter head is made entirely of pottery clay and can have a glazed body and an unglazed striking face. This putter head is preferably fabricated by forming a basic disc shape on a potter's wheel and then removing a portion of the disc shape away to form a striking face. The putter head can also be formed in a ram press. A putter with a mallet shaped head can be formed or the putter can have an elongate shape other than a mallet shaped head. After drying, the clay can be glazed and then fired. The dried clay is then cut to form a planar striking face. The putter head can alternatively be fabricated using a ram press molding technique or can be initially formed on a pottery wheel and then molded to a final shape in a ram press.

I claim: 
     
         1 . A method of fabricating a golf putter comprising the steps of:
 forming a wet pottery clay into a disc;   drying the remaining pottery clay;   placing an exterior glaze on at least a portion of the exterior of the pottery clay after drying;   firing the pottery clay to a temperature that vitrifies the clay and allows the exterior glaze to melt to form a club head, and   cutting the fired pottery clay to form a planar striking face by removing a portion of the disc to form a club head for use in a golf putter.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1  wherein clay particles are formed into concentric circles as the wet pottery is formed into a disc and ends of the clay forming the concentric circles are exposed on the striking face when the wet pottery clay is cut. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the striking face is unglazed. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the putter head is formed by placing the wet pottery clay in a ram press. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the putter head is formed on a pottery wheel. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the wet pottery clay is initially turned to form a disc and is thereafter the disc is formed into a final shape in a ram press. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1  wherein clay particles are aligned as the wet pottery clay is formed into a disc. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 7  wherein the clay particles slide over each other as the wet potter clay is formed so that the clay particles are flattened and form layers. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 8  wherein the clay particles have hexagonal plate shapes. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 9  wherein the final shape of the pottery clay is formed in a ram press and after firing the clay particles extend from the striking face in a rectilinear pattern. 
     
     
         11 . A method of fabricating a golf putter comprising the steps of:
 forming a wet pottery clay into a first profile;   drying the remaining pottery clay;   placing an exterior glaze on at least a portion of the exterior of the pottery clay after drying; and   firing the pottery clay to a temperature that vitrifies the clay and allows the exterior glaze to melt; and   cutting the first profile after firing the pottery clay to form a planar striking face by removing a portion of the first profile, to form a club head for use in a golf putter.   
     
     
         12 . The method of fabrication a golf putter of  claim 11  wherein the wet clay in the first profile is pressed in a ram press to form a second profile having a shape differing from the first profile. 
     
     
         13 . The method of fabrication of a golf putter of  claim 11  wherein ends of layered clay particles are exposed when the first profile of the wet pottery claim is cut so that the ends of the clay particles form a flat striking face of the golf putter. 
     
     
         14 . A golf club, comprising a putter head, formed in a ram press from an initially wet pottery clay that is fired after being shaped in the ram press, with a shaft attached to the putter head, wherein the putter head including an unglazed clay striking face with the remainder of the exterior surface of the club head being glazed, wherein the fired pottery clay is formed from clay particles ordered in horizontal layers extending rectilinearly and transversely from the unglazed clay striking face into the putter head, ends of the clay particles being cut along the striking face to impart a soft feel when a golf ball is struck by the putter head. 
     
     
         15 . The golf club of  claim 14  wherein the clay particles have hexagonal plate shapes along the horizontal layers. 
     
     
         16 . The golf club of  claim 14  wherein the wet pottery clay is compressed when shaped in the ram press to force the clay particles to flatten the layers. 
     
     
         17 . The golf club of  claim 14  wherein the putter head comprises a blade putter head. 
     
     
         18 . The golf club of  claim 17  wherein the blade putter head includes rearward projections on opposite ends thereof to maintain alignment of the golf club during a putting stroke. 
     
     
         19 . The golf club of  claim 17  wherein the blade putter head includes indentations extending from the striking face toward a rear face along a top face. 
     
     
         20 . The golf club of  claim 17  wherein the blade putter head has a curved rear face.