Titleist commented that the launch of the 27 718 six iron matched that of the 712 29 degree, so it still had the same characteristics. The forged irons haven't changed, which can't be said for some of the forged irons of other OEMs. In my case, I'm hitting my AP3 7 iron longer than the 712 AP1 6 iron, so it's not just adjusting the loft to get more distance. Fortunately, Titleist sells by the club, so I don't have to buy a 3 or 4 iron if I can't hit them any better than a 5 iron.

That describes most people I work with. My personal 150 yard club is "x". What anyone else uses, does not matter.

Agreed. I have a set of png eye's that are one complete club weaker lofted than current Titleist AP1's. The png 7 iron is the same loft as the Titleist 8 iron. And, as you would image, I'm one club shorter with the png's than the Titleist's. It's a marketing game.

This is how they market the "longest club yet" mentality in advertising. The GI irons are always touting easy to hit tech. Adding a degree of loft with a wider sole makes it a miracle stick to high handicappers.
Cool article here talks about lofts thru the years (getting stronger).
www.criticalgolf.com/.../

I think Ben Hogan markets clubs by lofts vs. numbers