SIM 2 Max Irons - KBS or True Temper Shaft?

[NoMoreSlices]

I am ordering a set of Taylormade SIM2 Max irons with Stiff shaft. I have the option to order them with the KBS Max MT 85 or the True Temper Elevate 95 VSS shafts. The fitter said that both shafts are pretty similar and looking at the specs, they are within 2g of each other so they are pretty close, I think.

My 7i swing speed is around 92 mph and my average score is around 85-88 just to give you an idea.

If I order the True Temper shafts, it's 4-6 weeks but they are calling Taylormade Monday to confirm timeline. If I order the KBS shaft, I get them in less than a week.

Is one shaft better than the other for the average golfer? If there is really no difference, I'll go with the KBS shaft so I can get them sooner and begin practicing before season really picks up. But, if the True Temper is just that much better, I'll go with them and wait it out.

Thoughts or opinions?

[dennyjones]

Welcome to TST.   Paging @Adam C

[boogielicious]

Those shafts seem really light for a 92 mph 7 iron swing. Did you hit them?

[NoMoreSlices]

Both seem light? I can't remember if I hit the KBS or not. I hit quite a few and can't remember all of them.

I'm hoping to go back this afternoon and hit both back to back to see if there is any difference.

What weight would be more ideal for my swing? I think I read the KBS is 93g and the TT is around 96 for the Parallel shaft. The taper shaft in the TT is 102g.

Edited March 6, 2022 by NoMoreSlices

[boogielicious]

2 hours ago, NoMoreSlices said:

Both seem light? I can't remember if I hit the KBS or not. I hit quite a few and can't remember all of them.

I'm hoping to go back this afternoon and hit both back to back to see if there is any difference.

What weight would be more ideal for my swing? I think I read the KBS is 93g and the TT is around 96 for the Parallel shaft. The taper shaft in the TT is 102g.

I don’t know your swing, but I’m 62 next week, my 7 iron swing is 80-83 and I use 120g shafts. For me, light shafts always seemed harder to control. When I got fit 10+ years ago, the fitter put me in a 95g stiff shaft, Nippon NS Pro 95. They were okay, but the more I played and tried other shafts, the more I moved to a heavier shaft.

I’ve played TT DG XP90, XP95, 105. I’ve tested KBS and Nippon in 105 and 110. I’ve moved to Project X LZ 6.0 which are 120g. I played the 5.5 last year but tested the 6.0 and like it better. 

Fittings are worth the time, but they are just one day. Sometimes the fitter just focuses on speed and distance with shaft selection and not control and feel that you like. I know this is confusing, but there are a ton of shafts out there and they are all decent. If you can swing a 7 iron at 92mph, I would say at least try heavier shafts. Start with True Temper Dynamic Gold S300 at 130g or the KBS equivalent and then go down in weight from there. Take your time too.

[mohearn]

6 hours ago, boogielicious said:

Those shafts seem really light for a 92 mph 7 iron swing. Did you hit them?

I had exact same thought. I don't have my 7i speed, driver is 100 or so. My iron shafts are 120g (KBS Tour)

[NoMoreSlices]

Thanks, everybody.

Can anybody confirm the weight of those two? I thought they were low 90's. The fitter thought they were in the 105 range (he couldn't remember off the top of his head).

He did say that they are having trouble getting other KBS shafts in. He said the Tours are at least June, maybe July until I would get them.

I went back this afternoon and hit the stock SIM2 Max w/ the KBS Max MT 85 (stock lie/loft) and hit my first 8 or so shots dead straight and everything felt good and balanced.

I'm wondering if my 7i speed is really that fast. My driver speed is around 105 and I would have thought my 7i would be more than 10 mph slower. I would have thought it would have been in the mid 80's. It's my fault but I didn't pay any attention to what the 7i speed was when I went back this afternoon (brain lapse on my part). I was too focus on how they felt, straightness, launch, etc.

Should I take into consideration how things feel as well as what the monitors are saying? Also, the shafts on my M2's is the REAX HL 88 in stiff and those weigh 88g. I hit those well but they are just showing their age. Some of the faces are starting to cave in and the little black insert on the faces have broken on some heads.

[Adam C]

Plenty of good points on here. If you do in fact just seem to do better with lighter weight, I will offer this one point. KBS has a bit of history with their lower weight class steel shafts bending at the tip. This becomes more of an issue when you pair it with faster swings.

I might lean towards the TT Elevate shaft for that simple reason since the weight and profile are pretty similar.

[Typhoon92]

How far were you hitting the 7 iron? Height apex, angle of decent. Just curious…. I use a GC Quad everyday and love to see how numbers add up.

Also, with KBS penchant for bent tips, I’d go with the Elevate.

[boogielicious]

4 hours ago, NoMoreSlices said:

Thanks, everybody.

Can anybody confirm the weight of those two? I thought they were low 90's. The fitter thought they were in the 105 range (he couldn't remember off the top of his head).

He did say that they are having trouble getting other KBS shafts in. He said the Tours are at least June, maybe July until I would get them.

I went back this afternoon and hit the stock SIM2 Max w/ the KBS Max MT 85 (stock lie/loft) and hit my first 8 or so shots dead straight and everything felt good and balanced.

I'm wondering if my 7i speed is really that fast. My driver speed is around 105 and I would have thought my 7i would be more than 10 mph slower. I would have thought it would have been in the mid 80's. It's my fault but I didn't pay any attention to what the 7i speed was when I went back this afternoon (brain lapse on my part). I was too focus on how they felt, straightness, launch, etc.

Should I take into consideration how things feel as well as what the monitors are saying? Also, the shafts on my M2's is the REAX HL 88 in stiff and those weigh 88g. I hit those well but they are just showing their age. Some of the faces are starting to cave in and the little black insert on the faces have broken on some heads.

Shaft weights are shown here.

Shafts | The GolfWorks

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Shafts at The GolfWorks

 

[NoMoreSlices]

7i distance on the Trackman was around 185 average.

[boogielicious]

8 hours ago, NoMoreSlices said:

7i distance on the Trackman was around 185 average.

Did you try other shafts?

[NoMoreSlices]

I did and those two were the best of the ones I tried, with the KBS being the best yesterday. 

One thing we did talk about is the inconsistencies in my swing. I'd hit 3 or 4 good ones with shaft A, then some bad ones. Move to shaft B, hit 3 or 4 bad ones first, then a few good ones. Pulls, fat, thin, you name it. 

We also noticed that while my swing path is pretty good, my club face tends to be about 2 degrees closed unless I really force myself to alter my swing. When I really focused on my swing mechanics, every shot was good with most being either straight or a slight draw.

[NoMoreSlices]

On 3/6/2022 at 7:43 PM, boogielicious said:

Shaft weights are shown here.

Shafts | The GolfWorks

---

Shafts at The GolfWorks

 

The KBS MAX MT 85 is not on the site since I believe they are custom made for Taylormade. But, on Taylormades's website, it shows them at 93.3g. The fitter thought they were 85g, hence the name but I'm going to go with Taylormade since that is what is on the website.

I'm not sure if the TT shaft they fit me is the parallel or taper. They range from 98g for parallel and 102g for taper.

I hit both again tonight and the KBS just felt better, even though technically with a 90/91 mph 7i speed, the TT might be a better choice?

I didn't see much difference in shot accuracy and what the trackman was showing as far as launch angle, spin, carry, etc. So, with that should I just go with what is comfortable? Plus, I can get the clubs with the KBS shaft in 3-4 days for 6-8 for the TT (Taylormade said they are having issues getting the TT shaft in)