Lets talk about shafts

[mosnas]

Ok so I have a metric tonne of questions to ask about shafts (new to the whole fitting thing) and was wondering a few things.  I am not talking about specific brands and models of shafts necessarily just the differences of different flexes.  (trajectory, distance, and direction of shots)

1) What will a shaft hit like if it is too stiff?

2) too whippy?

3) How does the length of shafts affect shots.

[Andrew Gibson]

this is my understanding of your questions.

1. A shaft that is to stiff will result it not loading the shaft properly in the down swing and also result in shorter shots then with the proper flex shaft for your swing speed.

2. A shaft that is too weak will cause timing issues and really screw with your timing. Also shot dispersion can be all over the place, in other words shots will go right and left when they would have gone closer to your target with the proper shaft. shots will also be shorter unless you have a very smooth tempo and can control the shaft, but most likely will result it distance lost because of slower swing speed to control the shaft.

3. The length of the shaft, to my understanding will affect the fit of the club. A longer club will cause the Lie of the club to be upright which will usually result in shots going left. but will also dig at the heal and cause shots to go further left out of rough and poor lies. Lie angle can be adjusted somewhat, but more then a degree or 2 and the geometry of the club will be changed and cause issues with to flat of a shaft plane, this would seem to me to cause all sorts of swing dynamics to get into an unnatural position at impact... this may be false but seems to make sense to me right now. Finally a longer shaft will affect the swing weight of a club and can make it very difficult to "feel the head" during the swing, also resulting in loss of control in the swing. any gain in distance for a slightly longer shaft would be trivial in my opinion and not worth the trade off in control and consistency.

[WUTiger]

Both Ralph Maltby / the GolfWorks and Golfsmith have some useful links on shafts.

Maltby...

• Shaft Selection Tool: http://ralphmaltby.com/265
• The Clubhead and the Shaft: http://ralphmaltby.com/38

Golfsmith... http://www.golfsmith.com/cm/

Hireko has an interesting blog: http://blog.hirekogolf.com/ .

[mlf16507]

Originally Posted by WUTiger

Both Ralph Maltby / the GolfWorks and Golfsmith have some useful links on shafts.

Maltby...

Shaft Selection Tool: http://ralphmaltby.com/265

The Clubhead and the Shaft: http://ralphmaltby.com/38

Golfsmith...http://www.golfsmith.com/cm/

Hireko has an interesting blog: http://blog.hirekogolf.com/.

Good links WU Tiger.  Also, here is a link to Tom Wishon--- http://wishongolf.com/golf-shaft-fitting-selecting-the-shaft-so-you-dont-get-the-shaft/

[Jon Robert]

I have 20 some years under my belt having tried probably every variation that there is. I have even filled the entire shaft with lead in my experiments. I will boil down my hard learned lessons.

"OK so I have a metric tonne of questions to ask about shafts"

A Your swing is a bazillion times more important than your shaft. Spend far far more time perfecting your swing than even thinking about shafts at all. Let the shaft force you to deal with it via an issue that surfaces that you cannot ignore otherwise ignore the shaft.

Q  3) How does the length of shafts affect shots.

A  Length is far more important as a comfort factor in your wedges. Your Driver should NEVER be over 45 inches unless you are prepared for disastrous consequences and the lessons you will learn.. I have played with plus 8" (trigonometry said so) and was fully willing to suffer what may happen. I am now thinking of settling on my driver at women's length and my wedges plus 3  The plus 3 forces me to use a 6 degrees flat lie for the clubs (if plus 3)

Perhaps this WE I will break out the saw and shorten them. Length is not your friend. It is required but should be as short as possible for comfort (wedges) and distance maximization needs some length on the longer clubs.

!!!!!! sweet spot % on longer clubs is often better at shorter not longer length so more distance is the result. Longer requires serious physical skills and training. The average length of pro players who's income depends on scoring is about 45" (44 1/2)

Q (1) What will a shaft hit like if it is too stiff?)

A  I am am going to experiment with women's flex STEEL shafts for my longer clubs. I am seeking a more pronounced loading action to take place. I swing my irons at about 90 mph or so and according to the "book" I should be using regular or stiff flex.  I remember in 1989 using a women's set and feeling a distinct flex/loading sensation.    I will NOT be using women's flex in a graphite shaft. graphite twists too much if "whippy" Too  Stiff any shaft will cause you to not get any flexing, a subtle loss of connection or feel of the club head, perhaps less twisting and less spraying shots all over for more accuracy if you are an aggressive hitter.

Your swing is a bazillion times more important than your shaft. Spend far far more time perfecting your swing than even thinking about shafts at all. Let the shaft force you to deal with it via an issue that surfaces that you cannot ignore otherwise ignore the shaft.

But if you must then this is the only resource that you need to study.  Mine is very worn form constant referral.  About $10.00 http://www.amazon.com/The-Golfsmith-practical-clubfitting-program/dp/0913563056