Clubmaking - What's the point?

[indacup]

To get into hobbiest level club MAKING (does not include disassembly), there's many inexpensive ways to do so...many cheap alternatives to some costly materials.

Assuming you have basic garage/shop equipment like vise, sandpaper, hacksaw..

You will then need...

Epoxy (strongly recommend club fitting epoxy)
Lamp oil
WD40
Double sided tape
granulated sugar

Then you are pretty much good to go!

[sandtrap]

You will then need...

Epoxy (strongly recommend club fitting epoxy)
Lamp oil
WD40
Double sided tape
granulated sugar

OK I'll bite, what's the lamp oil, WD, and sugar used for? Grip solvent?

[indacup]

You will then need...

Sorry, I am working on my old computer (laptop is in the shop) and it's a pain to type on this antique....LOL

Lamp Oil - is a very low cost substitute for grip solvent. Grip solvent is about $6 a quart + shipping from Golfsmith. You can buy a gallon of lamp oil from Wal-Mart for about $3.00. Lamp oil also doesn't evaporate as fast allowing more time to work the grips on. Two of the most common errors a beginning club maker does seems to be using too much epoxy (which gets messy) and prepping too much material off the shaft (creating poor/weak bond). Granulated sugar which you probably have in the kitchen, is a great substitute for shafting beads that costs about $5 for 4 oz + shipping. If too much epoxy is used in the assembly, as the club cures (drys) the epoxy will expand and leak out...and harden on the ferrule and hosel of the head. Which you will have to cut or sand off which can cause damage to the finished product. Epoxy will not adhere to Silicone. So after you assemble the club, spray some WD-40 on a lint free cloth/paper towel, and apply/wipe a thin layer of silicone over the hosle and ferrule. Then any epoxy that leaks out can be removed with your fingrnail.

[Fourputt]

Sorry, I am working on my old computer (laptop is in the shop) and it's a pain to type on this antique....LOL

Ok.. I have to bite too... what are shafting beads. I've even built clubs (I have Golfsmith's manual on clubmaking) and I've never heard of shafting beads.

[Blades4me]

Ok.. I have to bite too... what are shafting beads. I've even built clubs (I have Golfsmith's manual on clubmaking) and I've never heard of shafting beads.

Shafting beads are one way to shim the shaft tip into the hosel, e.g. a .355 taper tip into a .370 hosel, Personally I don't like shafting beads; I perfer the copper shims b/c IMO they are more accurate and easier to work with. Utimately though, its best to have the same OD (outter diameter) of the shaft and ID (inner diameter) of the hosel. Hope this helps.

[indacup]

Ok.. I have to bite too... what are shafting beads. I've even built clubs (I have Golfsmith's manual on clubmaking) and I've never heard of shafting beads.

One of the biggest problems in club assembly is off-center/mis aligned shafts caused by either removing too much shaft material when prepping or uneven epoxy application..

This can result in either a weak bond or in some (extreme) cases, alter loft and/or lie up to .5*. I don't see this alot when people are assembling new shafts...but it is more common in re shafting when a shaft has been prepped multiple times...primarily in graphite. Rule of thumb is anytime you dry fit(test) the shaft in the hosel and see excessive amount of play, use shafting beads to maximize bond and center the shaft in the hosel. The proper way to do this is on a piece of paper, pour a small lump of beads on the paper, insert the ferrule to fit. Then apply the epoxy to the shaft tip, and roll the tip over te lump of beads...which wil gather a thin coat of beads. Then insert the shaft SLOWLY in the hosel rotating the shaft as you insert it in. Clean excess epoxy/bead mixture and allow to dry (or as mentioned earlier), apply a thin coat of Silicone spray over the hosel to prevent epoxy hardening on the club.

[Fourputt]

One of the biggest problems in club assembly is off-center/mis aligned shafts caused by either removing too much shaft material when prepping or uneven epoxy application..

That explains why I've never used them. I've only built new... never had a shaft puller to even try pulling an old shaft.

[ronaldkuntoro]

Clubmaking is not just changing grips and installing new shaft. They can extend to Loft/Lie bending, swing weighting, shaft fitting, shaft Pureing, and many more. This can be an expensive hobby if you want the real deal. The minimal equipment can cost around $500 USD, such as:
Swing Weight Balance
A long metal ruler
Epoxy
Grip solvents
Vise Clamp
Shaft Puller

It's cheaper if you ask a professional to do the job.