Iron Shafts Question

Hey all,

I'm new to the site and new to golf forums in general and would like to get you opinion on a few things. I searched through the forums for a little while and haven't quite found an answer yet but I do apologize if this has been asked quite frequently or if this is a no brainer.

Anyway, until last summer I hadn't golfed seriously in almost 4 years. My uncle gave me a set of Nicklaus Air Bear offset irons since I was 23 and still had my junior set. I played well with them all last summer and the beginning of this summer. Then I got some graduation money and had some cash to throw around. I got excited to update my irons to something a little more modern but didn't want to spend a ton of money since I still wasn't sure how much I was going to get out anyway. Early on in my search a buddy of mine found a set of Nike SQ Sumo graphite R-flex irons for $219 at my local Dunhams. It seemed like a great deal to me. I read about them on the internet, It was hard for me to find a site that didn't give them a great review. They called them "game improvement clubs" and said they were forgiving and easy to hit, seemed like exactly what I needed. I didn't need anything fancy just a set that will last me a while and that will help me improve my game a little. At the time I didn't think to learn about the differences between graphite and steel shafts but I knew that I never played with graphite shafted irons before. I called a another friend of mine who has graphite shafts in his irons and asked if I could hit his around at the range a couple of times. The first shots were a little rough but I thought after a while I was hitting them fairly well. So I pulled the trigger and bought the Sumo's.

Jumping ahead a little, I have now played the the graphite irons for close to 20 rounds and have not like my play at all. I started off okay and actually saw my scores drop a little but it didn't take long for me to notice how inconsistent I was hitting my irons. Everything was leaking right with a slice and couldn't find consistent distances with any club. I recently switched back to the steel Air Bear's and like the steel irons so much better. I'm much more accurate and can have confidence in knowing what iron will go what yardage. I know now my swing speed is too  high for graphite and need to figure something out.

After all that the questions I have for you guys are...

A. Is it possible to have my steel CrankShaft shafts that are in my Air Bear's put in my Nike Sumo club heads? I wasn't sure if the club heads were made with a specific weight or balance to fit specifically with a graphite shaft or if I could just swap them out for a steel shaft. Also, are the Nike clubs that much better that is would be worth doing that in the first place? Or are the Air Bear shafts not good enough to put in the Nike set?

B. Should I try to sell my Nike set and get my Air Bear's re-gripped (for about $55, they need it) and continue playing with those? Are they a good enough set to put a little bit of money into to see how long they will last me?

C. Should I sell both sets and try to get a steel set that will suit me better than either one of those sets? I'm not about to go get fitted, I would just want something updated and that will help me shave some strokes off my game and that is under $300.

Here is some info on my game if it helps

- I consistently shoot between 80 and 90 (my rounds with the Nike's have been between 86 and 104)

- I can hit my Callaway Diablo octane 9.5 degree driver 280-310 fairly consistently

Here are some Iron yardage breakdown that I feel I hit consistently:

AW- anything inside of 100 yards unless I'm using my SW or LW

PW- 100 - 120 yards

9- 120 - 140

8- 140 - 160

7- 160 - 175

After my 7 its just based on feel for me

I know I just wrote you guys a book but I would like to hear what you guys think about my situation here.

Thanks in advance for you responses and look forward to talking more golf with you guys.

Thanks again,

Paul

I'd sell the Nike's since you don't hit them well. With luck you might get most of your money back. You hit the Air Bears well so why not just regrip and play them for the rest of the year? Let your game and swing settle in for a bit before you run out and get new equipment. There is a ton of variability in shafts so hitting one set of clubs with one type of graphite shafts tells you nothing about a different set of clubs with a different brand of shafts. The lesson here should be to ALWAYS hit clubs before you buy. Reading reviews is great but everyone is different so you have to hit them to find out if they'll work for you. Next time you look at irons bring your 6 iron with you so you can compare, preferably on a launch monitor.