Replacing 3 Wood Shaft

[InTheRough]

Hi all.  I'm looking to switch out my 3 wood shaft for something a little stiffer.  I currently use a Callaway X2Hot Pro with a Stiff shaft (aldila tour green 43" and 73g, D3 swing weight) but it feels a little too wobbly at the tip which is affecting my confidence and control with the club.  The pro I was taking lessons with earlier in the year recommended that I find the same shaft that I currently have in my Driver, which is an X Stiff Matrix 7M3 Black Tie (also 73g), and have it cut down and put into my 3 wood.  

Since both shafts are the same weight, how much will cutting down another Black Tie shaft to 43" effect the swing weight and feel of the club?  Should I be looking into getting a heavier or lighter weight shaft to maintain the swing weight of the club?  

Also regarding price: I have found a few used X Stiff Black Ties online but should I be wary of used shafts?  I could get a new one however for the price of a new shaft I could probably just find a whole new 3 wood especially with the Holiday deals going on.

[WUTiger]

A couple of things:

• Consider that the "same shaft" as your driver might feel a little different, since your driver is TM. If both the Aldila and Black Tie shafts spec out at 73 grams, the trim shouldn't influence swingweight noticeably.
• Many golfers find the FW has better feel if it has a slightly heavier shaft than their driver's shaft.
• What you might do is tip your current Aldila shaft, and put an extension in the butt to maintain shaft length, and go with that.
• Pre-gluing: A skilled clubsmith can prep the head and new shaft, fit them together without gluing, and check the total clubweight and swingweight (a tray can handle the grip you would install). Also, simple equations exist for computing how much a change in shaft weight and grip weight will influence swingweight. Ask your clubsmith.

(The old website that had the calculations is no longer active.)

Let us know what you finally decide. This is an interesting question.

[InTheRough]

Thanks @WUTiger !

I am really only thinking of going with the Black Tie since it was suggested to me by the pro I was working with but I'm not particularly picky.

I never even thought of tipping the Aldila.  How much would I need to tip the current shaft to change the stiffness profile? 

[WUTiger]

14 hours ago, InTheRough said:

I never even thought of tipping the Aldila.  How much would I need to tip the current shaft to change the stiffness profile? 

A good clubsmith could help you on this. The launch monitor data would help you decide.

Here is a link on Manipulating Shaft Flex, courtesy of the UST staff via GolfWorks. It addresses the dynamics of tipping. UST says that 1" tipping of a UST graphite shaft usually will increase stiffness about 1/2 flex.

Note that your Aldila Tour Green 75 shaft (S-flex) has a curious W21 trim code: W21 means you don't tip trim it for drivers, and tip trim only 1" for fairway woods, regardless of loft. I would contact Aldila and make sure the shaft can be tipped (more than 1") without damaging it.

Caution: If you're going to tip the TG75 1", don't put in a shaft extension of more than 1". And, never use a metal extender in a graphite shaft.

[InTheRough]

10 hours ago, WUTiger said:

Note that your Aldila Tour Green 75 shaft (S-flex) has a curious W21 trim code: W21 means you don't tip trim it for drivers, and tip trim only 1" for fairway woods, regardless of loft. I would contact Aldila and make sure the shaft can be tipped (more than 1") without damaging it.

Thanks for the heads up!  Will definitely reach out to Aldila before making any adjustments to the current shaft.