PORT ARTHUR — Over the years, like most golfers, I’ve upgraded my equipment because of changing technology. New woods, new irons, new putters go in and out of my bag. One constant, however, has been the Spalding Trouble Lover sand wedge I purchased in the golf shop at Tyrrell Park way back in 1967.

For those who are slow at math, the Trouble Lover has been with me 42 years. To put that in perspective, that’s one more year than my wife has been with me.

Trouble Lover and I have traveled the world and escaped some seriously bad spots together. There’s been no hazard, no sand trap, no bad lie that was too much of a challenge for that old club. Now, thanks to a fellow in Grand Junction, Colo., named Jim Kronus, we’re never going to part.

Kronus rode to the rescue recently when I was near panic over the fact I couldn’t find anybody to refinish and regroove my trusty sand wedge. Trouble Lover was again showing its age. Its grooves were getting smooth. There were signs of rust. It was past time for a facelift.

Unfortunately, I’d always gotten that sort of work done through Spalding, but Spalding golf was no longer around. Nobody I asked had any idea where I could send the club. Most suggested I go buy a new sand wedge.

Finally, one day at Belle Oaks, Rufus Mier suggested I try Golfsmith. Next time I was in Houston, I did. Their club guy said Golfsmith quit refinishing irons a couple of years ago. “We have some really good new sand wedges,” he said, after looking at Trouble Lover.

When it was obvious I wasn’t buying, he suggested I Google The Iron Factory. That’s how I got to know Jim Kronus and why my Trouble Lover looks like a brand new club.

Kronus, I learned, has been refinishing irons for some 35 years and his satisfied customers are like a Who’s Who of the Golf World. He’s done work for Tiger Woods, since refinishing a wedge for him when the game’s No. 1 was in high school. He estimates he’s redone four sets of irons for Jack Nicklaus. He recently refinished three sets of old Titleists for Steve Elkington.

“I’d guess I’ve probably refinished a wedge for every top player on tour with the exception of Vijay Singh,” said Kronus.

The inspiration for Kronus’ life work came when he was working in a golf shop at a country club in California when he was a teenager. A member came in and said he had some Wilson Staff irons he’d like to get refinished. Kronus called Wilson and was told it would take four months.

“I thought my goodness, someone ought to be able to do better than that,” he said. “I started doing some research. I read all the books on plating theory, talked to golfers, picked the brain of people selling clubs and finally developed a process.”

Kronus’ Tour Chrome process, which is guaranteed not to chip or peel, eventually attracted the attention of Titleist, MacGregor and Nike, and word of mouth made him the go-to guy when it came to refinishing irons.

Anybody who uses forged clubs had his phone number. People who couldn’t part with a a club or clubs — like me and my Trouble Lover — send them to the Iron Factory.

“In the early years, my greatest satisfaction was being able to bring clubs back to life that people thought were history,” he said. “The business just kept growing and growing. And in those days you didn’t have the Internet to spread the word.”

So what’s so great about the Kronus’ Tour Chrome process?

“It’s the only one that can get a club back to the original weight it was intended for,” he said. “There are others that can make the club look pretty, but they don’t come back the same weight. Some places send clubs out to plating houses. We do everything in house.”

Kronus has scaled back considerably in recent years to where he does 16 to 20 clubs a day and mostly works on wedges. He says he could do more but isn’t so inclined. The cost is extremely reasonable — Trouble Lover’s facelift was $40 — and it usually takes three to four weeks to get a club back.

If you’re looking to save an old friend, call him at 970 245-2444. Or e-mail jkornus@msn.com. When you club comes back, you will feel like you just rolled in a 30-foot birdie putt. Or, if it’s a sand wedge, like you just holed it from the bunker.