How do you determine what you like in a shaft, vs what works best for you??

[goughy]

Mind out of the gutter folks

While having a few hits before Friday, I've been thinking about what seems to put me off when it comes to club shafts, particularly woods. Does how the club feel to you have much affect on how it works for you all? Some I just can't get a feeling for, and I don't know what I should be looking for.
Currently have a ping g10 driver with projext x 6.0 and I like the way this club feels when swinging it. Also have a 3wood with matrix red tie 4 stiff and I just don't like the feel of this club, even when just waggling it. I have a ping g10 hybrid with tfc129 reg that feels good, and a 4 wood with speeder 57 stiff that also feels nice.
I have no doubt this is very much my head getting in the way, but I don't know what it is about these shafts that I do and don't like, but I also don't really know what the differences are between them.

I also have a proforce 75 r gold fw shaft that I never liked, have a prolaunch blue 65s shaft in a g2 head that was ok (but maybe felt a bit whippy at the end, though that's probably from a waggle test), used to have a graffloy blue reg shaft in a component driver that I liked the feel of, used to have a speeder 757 x that I used in a few different heads (short TM360 tour driver and in a tm 200 3w) that I could feel was too stiff for me but liked how it felt when swinging.

With all these shafts, is there some commonality to the features in them that I seem to like or dislike?

Currently playing my i3+ irons with CS Lite stiff shafts and I like the feel of those. Have had s300's stiff in tm300 heads that were ok, and s200 stiff in some cobra baffler style irons that I played well with.

And just how much does the feel of a shaft affect how well you hit the club - even if it "should" be the right shaft for you?

[virge666]

Shafts really don't do much - not much other than control spin and kick point.
Find one you like the feel of, one you can control, one you can hit different heights with, Then control most of the technical stuff with the head.
The ball is such a rock now - you may be getting half a degree either way in launch, and spin rate will change, but not as much as you might think.

So dont read too much into it.. find one you like, that makes you feel confident and then play around with various heads and settings.
Same with Irons, it makes so little difference technically, just find what you like and play it. then match the iron heads to the kind of ball flight you like.

The old adage rings true - find the HEAD you like and tune it with the shaft. Not the other way around. The nice thing is that the shafts are so close to each other nowadays.. Just find the one type of shaft that gives you confidence.

[markTHEblake]

Use this to compare shafts
https://www.golfworks.com/shaft-mpf-ratings/

If you like a specific shaft, then another shaft rated exactly the same should be fairly close.

The codes represent the 4 characteristics of a shaft like: stiffness, weight, kickpoint and torque, but maybe nor in that order and i might have got one of those wrong. However you can work out what it is yourself by analysing the results on the "find a shaft.. " analyser.

[supo67]

Virge , i cudnt agree more.
I build /play a lot of same heads on woods with different shafts just to see what differences there are.
for the life of me i cant see any discernnable difference in length /distance , esp on smoked it, maxed out sinlge shots but consistency is a big factor for sure .

i play diamana in drivers pretty much exclusively these days , apart form a cpl ive done with daiwa higher kick labospec for wind.
this one laucnhes low and uneringly straight, not ideal for my neck of the woods in summer , need more carry but on Moona open course last week , i wudnt have swapped it out for anything was perfect for that track.

i definitely notice the different characteristics of the shafts.

diamana ilima (red)
lighter feel ,airier , flightier - i dont need to clober it to activate it , play it it winter gets me more airtime when the bods not warm, makes a pretty big differnce when im swinging slower for sure.

Kaili-
flatter, bit stiffer, can definitely climb into this and it improves it, not really that smooth, performs better when i feel strong.
most prob the best all round shaft ive ever palyed.

2014/2017 X ,
( thats what its called) is my gamer.
ive got a bunch of these in all manner of heads, SPOSED to launch low but it doesnt for me , its mid , the arc is perfect, the feel unmathed for tightness with subtlety , theres a big feel difference betweeen this and the KAILI for eg. i can feel the bend point on the kaili much more than i can on the X,
in comps, this is waht i go to all the time bec its got a thing i cant put my finger on but i just feel more confident with it.

its the heads that is the main factor tho , if i dont like the shape of the head im not gonna hit it consistantly, and when i play bad it gets the blame immediatly and ousted, sooooooooooooo many oustings!!!


jbeam 435, epon 101, astro tour, srixon zr30 yamaha v203.
this fuller style heads looks perfect to my eye .
I can NOT hit that fallen back triangle shape that looks like its 70000cc thats all the rage at the moment for love nor money, i tried the TM sim2, hated it HOOKED EVERYTHING , the PING g425 went to the moon. paradym i didnt mind, but the stock shaft i hated

good thing is all my gear is older and saves me a ton o coin.

[AndyP]

Use this to compare shafts
https://www.golfworks.com/shaft-mpf-ratings/

I still can't find the Oban Devotion ($400 shaft) in there over a year after it was recommended to me, so I can look at different options.

[markTHEblake]

... and saves me a ton o coin.

That explains why the supply of used new stuff is drying up.

[Yossarian]

I still can't find the Oban Devotion ($400 shaft) in there over a year after it was recommended to me, so I can look at different options.

As used by Yossarian. Shaft brothers

[bdoug10]

I have just had a mizuno fitting and gained 4 mph swing speed going to a heavier shaft.

Was avg 78mph with current clubs sim 2 kbs max 85
Modus 120 and px lz I was avg 82, highest 84.

So don’t let a heavier shaft make you believe you will swing slower

[goonie]

I have been researching this topic a bit lately, and have been watching a lot of videos from Precision Golf on youtube, watching their videos it made me realise that shaft weight, total weight, SW and shaft balance point can have a massive impact on the swing for some people, to light and you can come OTT, too heavy and you can get stuck behind, when they do there fittings they find the shaft first, then fit the head after. I have watched some of there fitting videos and have been amazed at what a difference 4-5grams or a different balance shaft can make.

Obviously people can get used to a setup, and good players can normally adapt within a few swings, but it can make a huge difference for some.

The Co-founder Simon's fitting videos are the ones I like the most, he can tell a combo doesn't work in 1-2 swings.
https://youtube.com/@precision_golf?si=EcbSDBTIubvxg3yK

[aussieashley]

Shafts really don't do much - not much other than control spin and kick point.
Find one you like the feel of, one you can control, one you can hit different heights with, Then control most of the technical stuff with the head.
The ball is such a rock now - you may be getting half a degree either way in launch, and spin rate will change, but not as much as you might think.

So dont read too much into it.. find one you like, that makes you feel confident and then play around with various heads and settings.
Same with Irons, it makes so little difference technically, just find what you like and play it. then match the iron heads to the kind of ball flight you like.

The old adage rings true - find the HEAD you like and tune it with the shaft. Not the other way around. The nice thing is that the shafts are so close to each other nowadays.. Just find the one type of shaft that gives you confidence.

This might open up a whole can of worms (I get that there is optimal launch & spin numbers), but is the easiest way to reduce driver spin by reducing the loft? say 10.5deg to 9deg - then tune it finer with the shaft?

[markTHEblake]

I have seen a table that says reducing loft by 1 degree cuts spin by about 250 ( but for slow swing speed)

In one simple test i did on trackman, the result was 280 less.

[goughy]

Good stuff here, peeps. Ta.
Typical me, over thinking things most likely. Don't like the feel, don't use it. Do like the feel, use it.
Life was so much simpler when I didn't think I knew anything! Played my best golf, ran my best, did my best triathlons etc etc.
The perception of having knowledge is not a great thing.

[supo67]

I have just had a mizuno fitting and gained 4 mph swing speed going to a heavier shaft.

Was avg 78mph with current clubs sim 2 kbs max 85
Modus 120 and px lz I was avg 82, highest 84.

So don’t let a heavier shaft make you believe you will swing slower

hhhmmmmmm, ive not done a fitting but i think i hit bettter balls with heavier shafts.
light one fell too airy.
ive just re done 2 drivers with 85g shafts to make sure thats right.
they def feel better to me in hand , more stability.
i do have very slow tempo.

[goonie]

This might open up a whole can of worms (I get that there is optimal launch & spin numbers), but is the easiest way to reduce driver spin by reducing the loft? say 10.5deg to 9deg - then tune it finer with the shaft?

Head design will have the most impact on spin, then loft, I have seen people hit HL shafts lower with less spin than LL shafts all because of there swing and delivery, a low spin head design should spin lower for everyone, the shaft depends on your swing.

The best description of the golf shaft I have heard is that it is the shaft is the ‘timing device’ of the golf club, if you get the right shaft (weight, balance, club SW) it will help rather than hinder the swing.

[sheezymaneezy]

This might open up a whole can of worms (I get that there is optimal launch & spin numbers), but is the easiest way to reduce driver spin by reducing the loft? say 10.5deg to 9deg - then tune it finer with the shaft?

Easiest way would be that yeah.
You can also change your angle of attack, eg hit up on it for lower loft.
Hit it higher on the face.
Use a lower spin ball.

[goonie]

Easiest way would be that yeah.
You can also change your angle of attack, eg hit up on it for lower loft.
Hit it higher on the face.
Use a lower spin ball.

I wasn't speaking to the swing and impact just the club, but good point about the ball, it would probably be first or second with head design for changing spin, but keep in mind going with a lower spin ball will most likely drop spin everywhere else in the bag as well.

[bdoug10]

hhhmmmmmm, ive not done a fitting but i think i hit bettter balls with heavier shafts. light one fell too airy. ive just re done 2 drivers with 85g shafts to make sure thats right. they def feel better to me in hand , more stability.i do have very slow tempo.

I would not have thought I would gain any speed let alone that much just with diff shaft.Tempo is fast to so not sure how that works. He did say it helps because I don’t “wait” at the top of the swing?

[davepuppies]

I have always chosen shafts more on how they feel first, performance second

The profile of my driver and fair way shafts (both AD DI 7X) is similar to my irons shafts (Modus 120x) in that they have a softer butt section, and a firmer tip.

I like to feel the shaft load instead of it being a telegraph pole, and i need a firmer tip to knock spin down a bit with my swing speed.

[goughy]

Ok, this is what I'm gonna try after the hit on Friday.
I have an assortment of shafts lying around, so I'm gonna get my proshop to pull the Project X 6.0 from my driver and I'm gonna get them to fit the Fubuki z50 stiff. Just to try something different for now, to see how it feels. I can't really find much in the way of specs for the old PX 6.0 shaft, and only a little about the fubuki but I have seem comments that it's "smooth"..... I know I'm not an aggressive player and will be getting less so over the years, but I have no reg driver shafts to try so this will do for now.
I'll get a grip on my old G2 which still has a prolaunch blue stiff in it, to swing with as well.
I have an old ping G2hl 2i I'll never use again (and doubt I'll use my i3+ 3i again either) and both have cs lite stiff shafts in them. I'm gonna pull the shaft from my 4i and fit the 2i shaft into it! Just for something to try, and see how it feels. If it's ok, I'll put the 3i into my 5i. Will see how those go/feel. These I can do myself here - I've never tried reshafting woods before and not sure I should try to.
What I did find on Friday as the club length/weight goes up I was gripping tighter, and particularly with my hands I found if I really felt like I was going to drop the club I produced better shots. The same goes for my putter, which is pretty heavy too; I really needed to feel like I was going to drop it. So that's something else for me to work on.

Long term I'd like to be back as a club member, playing once a week. Short term for now, I'm going to try and play one morning a month and then hit the farther driving range a couple of times a month; at least you can hit woods and hybrids at it. A mate of mine would probably be keen to try x-golf some times too.

[sheezymaneezy]

What Fubuki have you got goughy? Think there's a quite few different ones from over the years.

[goughy]

Z50x5ct Stiff