Shaft Confusion

Ok, so I am brand new here, but have read several threads, and this seems like a good place for advice. I hit regular shafts, throughout my bag.  In a round the other day, I hit a buddy's rocketballz 3 woo, stiff shaft.  And I killed it.  I borrowed the same club, hit a bucket with it, and played a round with it today.  Same results....  25 to 30 yards more than my Cleveland black regular shaft 3 wood.  I also hit the RBZ at a local sporting goods store, with a regular shaft, and killed it.  I plan on buying the club...  On some holes, it is almost as long as my driver.  The problem is, I am not sure which shaft to get, the regular or the stiff.

Been playing 8 months after 12 years off.  Swing speed with the club averaged 92 (regular shaft).  Driver speed is slightly higher.  And, my speed has been on the increase  (85 just a month or so ago).  Which one do I pick?

Loved the Cleveland Black til I hit the Rocketballz.  But 25 yards is 25 yards.

Think about the bad shots rather than the good. Is there a bad shot that you play with either club more often?

If so, let me know and I will give you my best advice.

The bad shots tend to be a result of me, and not the club.  If I trust the simulator (and I have some reservations there), the regular shaft may have a higher ball flight.  I do know the misses travel further with the RBZ than the Cleveland, but they tend to be a bit more off line.  Probably answering my own question, but I suspect the best way to figure this out is a side by side with the 2 shafts on the sim or the range.  And, I think also, with the stiff shaft, if I miss it a bit, it stays right.  I feel like I am on the border of stiff/regular.

If you are on the border then my best advise, apart from trying other shafts, is to hard step the regular shaft Have the pro or repair shop cut the tip of the shaft half the three quarters of and inch and then add the lost length to the but end. This may be an added expense but it is a way of getting that in between stiffness. If you are a bit of a DIY expert, you could always do it yourself. Have a look on golfclubshaftreview.com for details on reshafting. Picking th correct shaft is a big question and takes a lot of thought as it can become pricey. ebay is a great way of buying clubs with different flexes without spending a bomb.

Good luck

If you played the original standard RBZ 3W with a stiff shaft, be aware that the shaft was only 45 grams. Because it is so light, the S.flex might be the best way to go.

I played the R.flex RBZ FWs last season, also with 45 gr. shafts.The ball went a long way, but I had a lot of hook misses, some of which flew OB.

I traded in the RBZ for another brand of woods with a 60 gr. shaft. Much tighter dispersion patterns.

I went through something very similar. I originally purchased the rbz 3w regular flex and was hitting it great further than my previous 3w but the dispersion was way off. I was able to return the club and get the tour version that comes with a heavier and stiff shaft and in turn have slowed my swing speed just a tad bit and let the club do its work. It has been amazing for me since. I'm able to get the insane yardage and maintain consistent straight shots. The tour is 14.5 degrees instead of 15 but if you're not as comfortable hitting it just go with the 15 and stiff shaft. I can tell you through personal experience after going to a rbz 3w stiff I won't be swapping this club out for a long time.

The lighter "stiff" shaft may be the answer.  I ordered a reg on e bay.  Will see how it works, but the shaft 'change' might be the way to go.

It's really funny:  as a kid, I played blades, because there was nothing else (til Ping).  While they may have existed, there was NO shaft options.  We played the crap we had, even though I could fit TWO of my old driver in the head of my current.  When I first hit a 460 cc driver, I felt like I was cheating.  I was still short :) .  But felt I was cheating none the less.  Burner bubble was new tech then.  And, while rambling, I appreciate the results of the convo.  I will try the reg, and change it as needed.  I am 43, and don't expect any huge gains in  club head speed..   LOL I was suspecting my new clubs to be marked  "A".

Depends on the company. You might get a stiff shaft from Taylormade, but i might be measured a regular shaft by calloway. The big problem with golf is, there's no standard for golf shaft properties. The only true metric is frequency matching, but they don't publish that on the club. I have a set of taylormade irons, and they are stiff, they are frequency measured as regular flex. So, it depends.

Saevel25 is right. You can't assume the flex is the same between companies. I recently hit some cobras with regular flex and they had the same ball flight that the taylormade stiff flex had. One other thing though, it's not always that the frequency of flexes is the same but different kick points in the shaft have a large impact on ball flight as well.

Thanks.  I have noticed, also, that 2 of the same club from the same manufacturer marked 'R' will not necessarily have the same flex.  The only way, I guess, is to keep hitting til I find the right one.

This is exactly what happens if the kick point is in a different spot. The shaft still flexes at the same speed but in a spot that changes the ball flight. You are right, no one can tell you what's best for you, even an expert fitter. The best they can do is give an educated guess.

My driver of choice for the last several years was a Powerbilt Air Force One, 10.5* with regular Fujikura shaft.  I then put a Project X 5.0 shaft (pulled from a Callaway) off ebay $40.  Wow, what a difference it made.  I was both longer and straighter.  That was my setup for the last 6 months (I play weekly in florida).

Two weeks ago, I hit several versions of the Nike covert, reg, stiff & tour Kuro Kage....and pulled the trigger on the Regular.  My SS is 87-95. I also got the 3 wood after trying the stiff & tour.  Seems the weight of the shaft definitely makes a difference.

I played 7 rounds last week in Sebring, FL on a Buddy Trip......and the Covert definitely was a good choice.....all my drives were right down the middle of the fairway, except for one or two that I pulled left.  The course was 6500 yards; I normally play 6000.  Yet I was consistently able to get par & birdie chances....shooting 89, 93, 93 & 90.

My flight is much lower now, even though I adjusted the loft from 10.5 to 12.5......seems the kickpoints are much different.  When I tee it up higher (2 1/2") I can get a higher flight when I need it as when the wind is at my back....

One starting point for initial testing of a shaft is clubhead speed. One big factor on clubhead speed is the weight of the shaft.

Until spring 2009, I played irons with a Dynalite S300 stiff shaft (FCM = 5.8), which weighted about 127 grams. I switched to R flex (Uniflex initially) average weight about 112 grams. I picked up clubhead speed, and didn't have to swing the club as hard.

As the fitter said, "You're not fighting the shaft anymore."

The last year or two, however, I have tested clubs with lightweight (100 grams or less) steel shafts with S flexes. I seem to be able to handle some lighter stiffs quite well, whereas it's real work to hit an iron with the heavier, S300 shafts in Dynamic Golf or Dynalite.

You mention that all stiffs are note created equal. The guys at GolfWRX.com came up with a Flex Chart that compares different OEM's shafts using FMC. This allows you to compare stiffness across different shaft manufacturers.

Kick Point : Finally, don't over play this. Kick point (or flex point) is a minor fine-tuning factor to consider when picking shafts. I've talked to different clubfitters and, more recently, one of the Wilson Staff designers, and all say kick/flex is only a minor factor is shaft selection.