# Cutting down shafts / effecting swing weight



## pauljames87 (Feb 11, 2017)

Decided to take the plunge and cut down my M2 from 45.75 inch to 44.5 I have been gripping down on and off with it , have much better results when I grip down. (plus when trying out the club the guy did say grip down on it, should have done all these changes then but nevermind)

been doing my research came across a few threads

every 1/4 inch off shaft affects the swing weight by 1.5 so I will have affected it by 7.5

to combate this I have ordered a golf pride 25g grip , found out every 5g taken off the grip weight will affect the swing weight the other direction by 1 so approx 4/5 swing weight taken off the 7.5 leaving me with 2.5/3.5 total off

I have then ordered a 8g weight for the head to replace the stock 4g weight as every 2g of weight adds 1 point so the 4g difference will take 2 off the either 2.5/3.5 

I will end up with a shorter M2 shaft (can always buy a replacement shaft if I ever want to go back and keep the weight in a draw) the swing weight of which should be either 0.5 or 1.5 out.. or inbetween .. so only 1.. I can live with that


Next is my 3 wood, TM M2 high launch.. I want it set up as more of a 4 wood. cut the 43.25 shaft down to 42.5 affecting the swing weight by 4.5, again I have ordered the lighter grip to balance this out by between 4 and 5 (depends on the weight of the old grip)

whilst im there my pro is taking the M2 grip and sticking on my older 4 Hybrid just because then all my grips would be the same age (within 3 months) so when comes to changing I will just do them all in one hit

wish me luck!


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## Lord Tyrion (Feb 11, 2017)

I've very little idea of what you've just posted but it sounds great. I'm someone who would prefer a shorter shaft on their driver so I like the sound of shortening the shaft. That is quite some thought you have put into it. Good luck, please post how you get on :thup:


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## Maninblack4612 (Feb 11, 2017)

This may help you once you've completed the job http://www.leaderboard.com/SWINGWEIGHT 
I've compared the results with measurements made on a swing weight machine &  it's fairly accurate.


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## pauljames87 (Feb 11, 2017)

Maninblack4612 said:



			This may help you once you've completed the job http://www.leaderboard.com/SWINGWEIGHT 
I've compared the results with measurements made on a swing weight machine &  it's fairly accurate.
		
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Cheers MIB will look into it more when Ive completed my little project!

LT ill keep the thread posted.. time to find more fairways


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## fundy (Feb 11, 2017)

having an inch lopped off an M1 shaft this week, will see how it feels before making any adjustments to weighting


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## pauljames87 (Feb 11, 2017)

fundy said:



			having an inch lopped off an M1 shaft this week, will see how it feels before making any adjustments to weighting
		
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Glad I am not the only one chopping some off the sharp of the driver.. bloody long things!


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## fundy (Feb 11, 2017)

pauljames87 said:



			Glad I am not the only one chopping some off the sharp of the driver.. bloody long things!
		
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Been doing it for years mate, stock length is utterly ridiculous and im all but 6ft5!


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## pauljames87 (Feb 11, 2017)

fundy said:



			Been doing it for years mate, stock length is utterly ridiculous and im all but 6ft5!
		
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Must have some success aswell to keep returning to it aswell im guessing

Its annoying that tour pros average 44.5 shaft length however we mer mortals are sold stock shafts that are all longer.. how are we to control this if the pros prefer not to? god knows

Ill defo change the grip to a nice new 25g grip, might not use the head weight but least ill be happy in my mind.. (for a week lol)


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## fundy (Feb 11, 2017)

pauljames87 said:



			Must have some success aswell to keep returning to it aswell im guessing

Its annoying that tour pros average 44.5 shaft length however we mer mortals are sold stock shafts that are all longer.. how are we to control this if the pros prefer not to? god knows

Ill defo change the grip to a nice new 25g grip, might not use the head weight but least ill be happy in my mind.. (for a week lol)
		
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success is a matter of opinion, its straighter than a longer one, still not straight enough lol

for someone who uses a mid size grip (plus 4 so thicker on bottom hand too) light grip not really an option for me will get it swingweighted if i feel the need after a few weeks


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## pauljames87 (Feb 11, 2017)

fundy said:



			success is a matter of opinion, its straighter than a longer one, still not straight enough lol

for someone who uses a mid size grip (plus 4 so thicker on bottom hand too) light grip not really an option for me will get it swingweighted if i feel the need after a few weeks
		
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Im lucky in a way, I have tiny girl hands so normal grips are fine

id take straight over long any day.. better to be 240 yards on the fairway than 280 yards in a tree as my mate says


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## Qwerty (Feb 11, 2017)

Considering the emphasis on custom fit nowadays and the current crazy price of drivers I'm surprised altering the shaft length and adjusting the swing weight accordingly isn't an option unless you go to a specialist club fitter.. They should at least include different weights. 

Id imagine longer shaft doesn't always = faster swing speed, Theres got to be an optimum length before length starts to become detrimental. 
Im 6ft and I usually just cut 1/2" off, I agree though, the standard length of most driver shafts is ridiculous as is Â£350+ for the club itself.


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## Oddsocks (Feb 12, 2017)

I have the xr16 driver and when I tried it I also tested the shorter shaft from the fusion, the difference was unreal.  

I managed to find another speeder in the same stock spec off line and had to cut almost 1.75 inches off to get it to the fusion spec.

What was funny is after all that it's still only the same length as a stock g30 and g30 sf tech.  Maybe this explains why the G range is so successful at club level


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## pauljames87 (Feb 12, 2017)

Ordered a different weight off ebay (9g) paid Â£9.99 instead of Â£6.99 that I paid for the 8g weight however didnt realise the other was from a hong kong seller.. plus will take few days longer to arrive lol would rather pay the more and get the 9g .. slightly better gramage aswell

takes the formula to 7.5 re added to a club that will have lost 7.5 with cutting down

well approx.. may add 6.5 but worth doing to keep the m2 at its best whilst cutting down

im nights this week so perfect time to play about.. once the grips arrived ill get the clubs cut down

weight can be added in the week


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## Deleted member 16999 (Feb 12, 2017)

pauljames87 said:



			Ordered a different weight off ebay (9g) paid Â£9.99 instead of Â£6.99 that I paid for the 8g weight however didnt realise the other was from a hong kong seller.. plus will take few days longer to arrive lol would rather pay the more and get the 9g .. slightly better gramage aswell

takes the formula to 7.5 re added to a club that will have lost 7.5 with cutting down

well approx.. may add 6.5 but worth doing to keep the m2 at its best whilst cutting down

im nights this week so perfect time to play about.. once the grips arrived ill get the clubs cut down

weight can be added in the week
		
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How do Titleist deal with just offering weigh kits for the head? I'm confused as the 917 weights can be as much as 10g diferent, but shaft length won't change.


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## pauljames87 (Feb 12, 2017)

pauldj42 said:



			How do Titleist deal with just offering weigh kits for the head? I'm confused as the 917 weights can be as much as 10g diferent, but shaft length won't change.
		
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they prob have a guide to use of the weights (maybe online based) where if they add this it will make it X swing weight etc etc

like their old adjustable 3 woods where you could take it down loft or draw/fade basis based on which setting you put on the hossel thing


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## Deleted member 16999 (Feb 12, 2017)

pauljames87 said:



			they prob have a guide to use of the weights (maybe online based) where if they add this it will make it X swing weight etc etc

like their old adjustable 3 woods where you could take it down loft or draw/fade basis based on which setting you put on the hossel thing
		
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I have the 917 Driver and 3 Wood and have considered buying different weights to see if it makes any difference, your posts about weights compensating for shaft length has intrigued me as I can't find any information online as to how it would affect the Club, it recommends being fitted correctly to the "best" weight.


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## Maninblack4612 (Feb 12, 2017)

G



pauldj42 said:



			I have the 917 Driver and 3 Wood and have considered buying different weights to see if it makes any difference, your posts about weights compensating for shaft length has intrigued me as I can't find any information online as to how it would affect the Club, it recommends being fitted correctly to the "best" weight.
		
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This is quite interesting

http://tutelman.com/golf/clubs/headweight1.php#constant_length_cochran


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## Deleted member 16999 (Feb 12, 2017)

Maninblack4612 said:



			G
This is quite interesting

http://tutelman.com/golf/clubs/headweight1.php#constant_length_cochran

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With the Titleist weights ranging from 8-16grams and reading the article, I'm not sure it would make any difference at my level.

Cheers Bill.


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## Junior (Feb 12, 2017)

What's  swingweight ? Does it make a lot of difference?

So if you order a custom driver/fairway with a shorter shaft (as you can do on Clubhousegolf.co.uk) will the swing weight be effected ?  Does anyone know if they do anything to correct it ?


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## pauljames87 (Feb 12, 2017)

pauldj42 said:



			I have the 917 Driver and 3 Wood and have considered buying different weights to see if it makes any difference, your posts about weights compensating for shaft length has intrigued me as I can't find any information online as to how it would affect the Club, it recommends being fitted correctly to the "best" weight.
		
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oh dear what have I started lol

I found the little formula on another forum which is 

every 1/4 inch cut off shaft is 1.5 is swing weights reduced

every 5g removed from grip weight is 1 swing weight added

every 2g added to the head of the club 1 swing weight added

so I worked with the figures just so in my OCD head the swing weight is the same as when I started (so I have nothing to blame but myself!)

when I saw a 9g weight I was in heaven as that's the missing 0.5 lol

deciding between 14 degree loft and 12 degree loft at the moment.. before didn't overly mind because the grip didn't have an alignment with the face as it was (tour velvet 360 grip) so could switch as I liked

now I think lock the loft into place and go for it from there

leaning towards 14 as that's what I was hitting at AG, was told to "choke down" and keep the loft

I did for months keep the loft (hardly choked down) , changed the loft a month ago and lost some distance.. (switching to hovering aswell as teeing up to help me hit more on up) so thinking 14 degree loft and just swing easy

My next club is 16.5 degree loft anyways so might be good gap to have of 2.5


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## Deleted member 16999 (Feb 12, 2017)

pauljames87 said:



			every 2g added to the head of the club 1 swing weight added
		
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So if I change my 10g weight to a 16g weight in my Driver head, I shoud be adding 3 swing weight?


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## pauljames87 (Feb 12, 2017)

pauldj42 said:



			So if I change my 10g weight to a 16g weight in my Driver head, I shoud be adding 3 swing weight?



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Apparently so

However adding weight to the grip (lead tape under the grip apparently works well) will balance this out, every 5g added to the grip is 1 swing weight reduced by 1 so that 3 you add to the head in theory add 15g to the grip and would return to the same

that said us mere mortals in theory wont notice a change in swing weight that much and that 16g might be perfect for you, trial and error it seems

might be worth going to a fitter and asking advise on it and hit into a monitor get all the data 

for me I am gonna go for it just because my swing is so inconstant it will be useless on a monitor lol


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## Region3 (Feb 12, 2017)

pauldj42 said:



			So if I change my 10g weight to a 16g weight in my Driver head, I shoud be adding 3 swing weight?



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Maybe worth asking your pro if he has the weights, or where you bought it from?

My pro had a weight kit on loan from the rep and he let me take them out for a round. I definitely preferred the feel of the lighter weights but couldn't make my mind up which one. At >Â£30 per weight it's a bit expensive to start guessing!


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## Deleted member 16999 (Feb 12, 2017)

Region3 said:



			Maybe worth asking your pro if he has the weights, or where you bought it from?

My pro had a weight kit on loan from the rep and he let me take them out for a round. I definitely preferred the feel of the lighter weights but couldn't make my mind up which one. At >Â£30 per weight it's a bit expensive to start guessing!
		
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Cheers Gary, I'm more confused by the theory if I start with my 10g weight and fitted shaft that to see the proper difference I should in theory use a longer shaft with the16g or add 15g of weight to my existing shaft. (I think)


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## Region3 (Feb 13, 2017)

pauldj42 said:



			Cheers Gary, I'm more confused by the theory if I start with my 10g weight and fitted shaft that to see the proper difference I should in theory use a longer shaft with the16g or add 15g of weight to my existing shaft. (I think)
		
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Or just play with the altered swingweight. You might like it


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## JT77 (Feb 13, 2017)

I cut my M2 shaft, aldila rogue silver to 43 inches, tip to adaptor, club plays about 44 inches or so, it feels fine, no flaffing with swing weights or counter balancing, just popped off a bit and stuck a grip on, work fine.


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## fundy (Feb 13, 2017)

JT77 said:



			I cut my M2 shaft, aldila rogue silver to 43 inches, tip to adaptor, club plays about 44 inches or so, it feels fine, no flaffing with swing weights or counter balancing, just popped off a bit and stuck a grip on, work fine.
		
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just had the same shaft in an M1 lopped the same, lets hope I find it the same!


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## pauljames87 (Feb 13, 2017)

Had a chat with my regular playing partner who knows my game well

we agreed 14 degree loft will be best for me.. I was hitting better shots with it than the 12 (which I changed to just because)

anyways cut down the M2 to 44.5, stick the lighter grip on and the 9g weight and leave it at 14

then the 3 wood cut down just 0.25 inches and leave the grip as it is normal weighted one rather than the light.

I used to hit my old 3 woods pretty well off the tee so going to same shaft length as them

Nice to finally talk to someone in person about it aswell! the Mrs just glazes over


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## Oddsocks (Feb 13, 2017)

fundy said:



			just had the same shaft in an M1 lopped the same, lets hope I find it the same!
		
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JT77 said:



			I cut my M2 shaft, aldila rogue silver to 43 inches, tip to adaptor, club plays about 44 inches or so, it feels fine, no flaffing with swing weights or counter balancing, just popped off a bit and stuck a grip on, work fine.
		
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I've done exactly this and only seen positive results. :thup:


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## JT77 (Feb 13, 2017)

Good luck fundy the shaft feels very stable to me and club sits perfectly behind the ball. I couldn't be bothered with hassle and messing about with counter balance etc.


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## p33j4y (Feb 13, 2017)

1. Cutting down the shaft changes the swingweight, because of the shorter distance from your hands to the clubhead. Gripping down on the longer shaft does the exact same thing. I.e. if gripping down works well, do NOT add weight to change the swingweight after you cut the shaft.


2. Using a lighter grip (or adding lead) changes the swingweight because of the way swingweight is measured. It effectively tricks the swingweight scale. It doesn't change the feel of the club.


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## Yosser (Feb 14, 2017)

I've never got on with Taylormade drivers, I've ownedtwo, a 13Deg Burner 2.0 and a 12Deg RBZ Tour and hired various models that feltunwieldy and had a tendency to slice if you got it slightly wrong. The only onethat I thought was alright and felt comfortable was an R11 I had recently inTenerife, although at 10.5 the loft was a little high for my swing.
Since then Iâ€™ve had two Ping G20â€™s, a 12Deg and then a 10.5Degand now have a G30SF set to 9Deg and it just goes straight and long (by mystandards) unless itâ€™s a bad swing, even then it tends to be a fade rather thata massive slice and itâ€™s so forgiving. If I do hit a bad drive with the G30, Iwould look at myself rather than the club.
I seem to remember that the Taylormade drivers I had somethinglike a 46â€ shaft length and felt really long? However looking at the specs, itseem the G30 is 45.75â€ which isnâ€™t much less but it just feels so much morecomfortable and much lighter.
Whatâ€™s the miss you guys are getting with the driver? Aslice?


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## fundy (Feb 14, 2017)

Yosser said:



I've never got on with Taylormade drivers, I've ownedtwo, a 13Deg Burner 2.0 and a 12Deg RBZ Tour and hired various models that feltunwieldy and had a tendency to slice if you got it slightly wrong. The only onethat I thought was alright and felt comfortable was an R11 I had recently inTenerife, although at 10.5 the loft was a little high for my swing.
Since then Iâ€™ve had two Ping G20â€™s, a 12Deg and then a 10.5Degand now have a G30SF set to 9Deg and it just goes straight and long (by mystandards) unless itâ€™s a bad swing, even then it tends to be a fade rather thata massive slice and itâ€™s so forgiving. If I do hit a bad drive with the G30, Iwould look at myself rather than the club.
I seem to remember that the Taylormade drivers I had somethinglike a 46â€ shaft length and felt really long? However looking at the specs, itseem the G30 is 45.75â€ which isnâ€™t much less but it just feels so much morecomfortable and much lighter.
Whatâ€™s the miss you guys are getting with the driver? Aslice?    

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the M1 was 45.5", ive cut it down to 44.5" for now, it may well go shorter in future lol


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## JT77 (Feb 14, 2017)

My M1 430 came with the rogue shaft in playing 45 inches, I changed it to m2 but had cut the shaft half inch, and put it in m2, then I cut a further inch off so it plays about 44 but the shaft is 43, had an r5 years ago, and its the only other tm driver I've ever got on with, tried quite a few as well, definitely feel the shorter shaft gives better control and haven't lost any noticeable distance


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## pauljames87 (Feb 14, 2017)

still waiting for the grip so until it arrives I cant cut the club down..

head weight arrived today.. wrong blooming weight.. got a 9g weight for a m1 now lol hopefully the ebay seller will sort this out

if not ill still cut down and sort the grip to put the weight back in the head.. should take the swing weight from a D3 to a D0 so could be easier to hit without faffing around with the weight in head


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## fundy (Feb 14, 2017)

first impressions having hit balls today is its ok as it is though i think id prefer a little more weight in the head, will see how it fares on the course tomorrow

certainly nice to get a proper grip on it rather than the condomesque stock TM one!


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## Alex1975 (Feb 14, 2017)

fundy said:



			first impressions having hit balls today is its ok as it is though i think id prefer a little more weight in the head, will see how it fares on the course tomorrow

certainly nice to get a proper grip on it rather than the condomesque stock TM one!
		
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I saw someone who had changed their back weight for another front weight to add the additional head weight required.


Edit, just googled it and seems lots of people sell the weights.


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## fundy (Feb 14, 2017)

Alex1975 said:



			I saw someone who had changed their back weight for another front weight to add the additional head weight required.


Edit, just googled it and seems lots of people sell the weights.
		
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ah ok hadnt considered that, if i do change it i expect i will give to a friendly club builder and let him do his thing


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## pool888 (Feb 15, 2017)

I had considered shortening my driver and fairways about 3/4 inch as I'm away to replace the grips with MCC4 midsize ones, being midsize I assume these will be heavier than standard grips, so by he looks of it cutting the shaft and heavier grips will be a double whammy, do you think this will be very noticeable?


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## ger147 (Feb 15, 2017)

Oddsocks said:



			I have the xr16 driver and when I tried it I also tested the shorter shaft from the fusion, the difference was unreal.  

I managed to find another speeder in the same stock spec off line and had to cut almost 1.75 inches off to get it to the fusion spec.

What was funny is after all that it's still only the same length as a stock g30 and g30 sf tech.  Maybe this explains why the G range is so successful at club level
		
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Standard length of a G30 driver is 45.75in where as the Fusion with the shorter shaft is 44.5in.


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## pauljames87 (Feb 15, 2017)

Grips arrived today

I popped down to see my mate (a local pro) in the end I went for..

Driver Cut down 1.25 inches.. added the new golf pride lightweight grip on

3 wood cut down 0.25 inches.. kept the grip thats on it

4 Hybrid whilst he was there got him to put the old grip from the driver on it.. just because it was going to get binned and that was my oldest club in my bag

total cost Â£5

just waiting for the 9g weight to replace the stock 4g weight and then ill go test it (seller off ebay is sending the correct weight out today so should be here by friday)


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## fundy (Feb 15, 2017)

pool888 said:



			I had considered shortening my driver and fairways about 3/4 inch as I'm away to replace the grips with MCC4 midsize ones, being midsize I assume these will be heavier than standard grips, so by he looks of it cutting the shaft and heavier grips will be a double whammy, do you think this will be very noticeable?
		
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personally not a great believer that grip has that much effect on how the club feels when swinging it weightwise. Have just lopped an inch off and put on a midsize mcc4, head is a little lighter feeling but not massively so


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## Oddsocks (Feb 15, 2017)

ger147 said:



			Standard length of a G30 driver is 45.75in where as the Fusion with the shorter shaft is 44.5in.
		
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Correct. 

But, we had a fusion recoil shaft side by side and that's what the measurements come out, I cut off the 1 3/4 inches and it's now the same size as a standard SF TECH


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## ger147 (Feb 15, 2017)

Oddsocks said:



			Correct. 

But, we had a fusion recoil shaft side by side and that's what the measurements come out, I cut off the 1 3/4 inches and it's now the same size as a standard SF TECH
		
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Sorry, I don't really follow what you're saying? Not sure how cutting 1.75in off a shaft which gives a playing length of 44.5in when fitted to the head makes it 45.75in long all of a sudden?

Apologies if I'm not following something correctly but that just doesn't make sense to me.


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## Imurg (Feb 15, 2017)

Oddsocks said:



			Correct. 

But, we had a fusion recoil shaft side by side and that's what the measurements come out, I cut off the 1 3/4 inches and it's now the same size as a standard SF TECH
		
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ger147 said:



			Sorry, I don't really follow what you're saying? Not sure how cutting 1.75in off a shaft which gives a playing length of 44.5in when fitted to the head makes it 45.75in long all of a sudden?

Apologies if I'm not following something correctly but that just doesn't make sense to me.
		
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Fusion also comes with a 45.5" shaft as well as a 44.5.........


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## ger147 (Feb 15, 2017)

Imurg said:



			Fusion also comes with a 45.5" shaft as well as a 44.5.........
		
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It's the same question tho' i.e. how do you make a shaft a quarter of an inch longer by cutting 1.75 inches off it? And I'm thought the earlier post referred to a shorter Fusion shaft.


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## Deleted member 16999 (Feb 15, 2017)

ger147 said:



			It's the same question tho' i.e. how do you make a shaft a quarter of an inch longer by cutting 1.75 inches off it? And I'm thought the earlier post referred to a shorter Fusion shaft.
		
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Isn't the club meausured from bottom of face to top of shaft once fitted.


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## Oddsocks (Feb 15, 2017)

All I can tell you is if you take a stock xr16 460cc fitted with a speeder 565 shaft, cut that shaft by 1.75" to mirror the fusion length shaft (measured side by side) it becomes the same length when compared to a stock SF TECH ping g30.


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## ger147 (Feb 15, 2017)

Oddsocks said:



			All I can tell you is if you take a stock xr16 460cc fitted with a speeder 565 shaft, cut that shaft by 1.75" to mirror the fusion length shaft (measured side by side) it becomes the same length when compared to a stock SF TECH ping g30.
		
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Interesting.

Is the G30SF still longer once both shafts are put into their respective heads?


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## shewy (Feb 15, 2017)

The ping g30 has the same length shaft as the callaway xr16 45.75" taken from manufacturers website


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## Oddsocks (Feb 16, 2017)

ger147 said:



			Interesting.

Is the G30SF still longer once both shafts are put into their respective heads?
		
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I didn't compare with them out of the heads, only fitted side by side on the first tee.  I was talking to a playing partner saying that o had cut 1.75" from the speeder to match the fusion length, he went to compare it against his sf tech as he was curious, this was when we discovered it was now playing the same length.

He just laughed.

Maybe this also highlight why the ping sf tech is easier to control


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## ger147 (Feb 16, 2017)

Oddsocks said:



			I didn't compare with them out of the heads, only fitted side by side on the first tee.  I was talking to a playing partner saying that o had cut 1.75" from the speeder to match the fusion length, he went to compare it against his sf tech as he was curious, this was when we discovered it was now playing the same length.

He just laughed.

Maybe this also highlight why the ping sf tech is easier to control
		
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A standard SF tech is 45.75in and so is an XR16, so if you chop 1.75in off an XR16 it is not the same length as a standard G30 SF Tech so you must be mistaken.

The SF Tech is not easier to control because it has a shorter shaft because it does not have a shorter shaft, it is 45.75in as standard, the same length as a standard XR16 that hasn't had 1.75in chopped off of it.


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## SAPCOR1 (Feb 16, 2017)

I moved from an Callaway XR a Cobra F6 and the shaft was about 1.5" shorter and it has made a huge difference

Never thought about getting the shaft on the XR.  Might see if I can get one cheap-ish and have a go


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## JT77 (Feb 16, 2017)

could the ping have had a tour 65 or tour 80 shaft in?  I had an LS TEC G30 with a tour 65 and it was at least an inch shorter than standard.


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## ger147 (Feb 16, 2017)

JT77 said:



			could the ping have had a tour 65 or tour 80 shaft in?  I had an LS TEC G30 with a tour 65 and it was at least an inch shorter than standard.
		
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A tour shaft is 0.5in shorter than the standard TFC shaft in a G30, so still 45.25in long.

When I had a G30, mines was 44.5in but that's because I had 1.25in chopped off it as I found it too long at the time.


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## Maninblack4612 (Feb 16, 2017)

Here's a scientist's experience of using a longer driver with a light head 

http://tutelman.com/golf/clubs/headweight3.php#experience

The main conclusions,  for anyone who can't be bothered to read it are:

1. The best drives go 10 to 15 yards further

2. On average,  the drives don't go as far due to missing the middle of the club

3. Surprisingly,  accuracy wasn't adversely affected

4. Interestingly,  he hit the shorter driver better when he went back to it. 

Conclusion: Practice with a long driver but don't use it in normal play.


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## Oddsocks (Feb 16, 2017)

ger147 said:



			A standard SF tech is 45.75in and so is an XR16, so if you chop 1.75in off an XR16 it is not the same length as a standard G30 SF Tech so you must be mistaken.

The SF Tech is not easier to control because it has a shorter shaft because it does not have a shorter shaft, it is 45.75in as standard, the same length as a standard XR16 that hasn't had 1.75in chopped off of it.
		
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Thanks for being sure I did it wrong, I'll ensure I find the 1.75" I chopped of and get pictures!


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## ger147 (Feb 16, 2017)

Oddsocks said:



			Thanks for being sure I did it wrong, I'll ensure I find the 1.75" I chopped of and get pictures!
		
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I didn't say anything about you doing anything wrong.

I am simply pointing out that your statement about an SF tech being easier to control due to its shaft length is not true as the SF Tech has one of the longest shafts currently on the market. It is longer as standard that the latest TM M1/M2, the GBB Epic drivers, the Titleist 917 drivers, the Cobra F7 etc.

The XR16 and Ping G range (and before the G30, G25) are in the minority now still being made at 45.75in as standard.

I also have no idea what playing length your chopped driver is now but if you have chopped 1.75in off a standard XR16 then that would make its playing length 44in. If that's the case it's not the same length as a standard G30 SF Tech. If it's the same length as your PP's SF Tech then his driver isn't standard length.


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## pauljames87 (Feb 16, 2017)

Shaft cut

light weight grip on

head weight arrives and bamn weight won't come out.. thread of screw all gone trying and tried a removal bit didn't work made it more stuck

went down range it hit decent enough.. similar distance but all in same place

Got swing weight checked by the shop

somehow d3?!!! So will leave at that lol

dumb luck


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## pauljames87 (Mar 9, 2017)

Bit of an update.. indifferent results on the course... had a few good drives with it like this.. much more of a fairway finder but putting it back up to 14 at time of cutting adding a lesson on top of this last week has seemed to have me sending my drives very high with a fade.. (we had been working on opening the clubface at address) anyways I went the range today with a mate to try his new driver.. again very high fade lost a lot of distance so cranked the loft down to 10 degree. (opens the face by 2* apparently) I proceeded to hit 10 constantly straight drives.. the first 20 yards further than the furthered with the 14.. and by the end I was 30 yards further

going to keep with it and see how it goes


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## Deleted Member 1156 (Mar 9, 2017)

How are you able to see an extra 30 yards hitting it down the range? I've never been able to do that &#129300;


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## moogie (Mar 9, 2017)

pauljames87 said:



			Bit of an update.. indifferent results on the course... had a few good drives with it like this.. much more of a fairway finder but putting it back up to 14 at time of cutting adding a lesson on top of this last week has seemed to have me sending my drives very high with a fade.. (we had been working on opening the clubface at address) anyways I went the range today with a mate to try his new driver.. again very high fade lost a lot of distance so cranked the loft down to 10 degree. (opens the face by 2* apparently) I proceeded to hit 10 constantly straight drives.. the first 20 yards further than the furthered with the 14.. and by the end I was 30 yards further

going to keep with it and see how it goes
		
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So....you were hitting high fades with the loft cranked up,  thus closing the face.

You then ,  knocked the loft down ,  which opens the face ,  and you hit straight drives....??

Confusing 
But if it works.......stick with it


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## pauljames87 (Mar 9, 2017)

drive4show said:



			How are you able to see an extra 30 yards hitting it down the range? I've never been able to do that &#27138;
		
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Protrace fitted to half the bays

(with the naked eye I could have told roughly just because of which target I landed near) however as the bay I was in was fitted with protrace I could see clearly the distance and shape of the shot between the 2 lofts


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## pauljames87 (Mar 9, 2017)

moogie said:



			So....you were hitting high fades with the loft cranked up,  thus closing the face.

You then ,  knocked the loft down ,  which opens the face ,  and you hit straight drives....??

Confusing 
But if it works.......stick with it
		
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baffling isnt it? however I did have a lesson monday just gone and we focused on opening the clubface to path at address trying to hit draws with my irons. (previously had a very closed clubface encouraging a either hook if I took the correct path, or a slice if my grip was out as I would come from the outside) anyways he worked on this for an hour with me with much better flight

so im wondering if opening the face with the change in loft has given me what he was showing me on my lesson.. i.e im addressing it the same as before but having the face correct (to what he was teaching me)


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## Deleted Member 1156 (Mar 9, 2017)

pauljames87 said:



			Protrace fitted to half the bays

(with the naked eye I could have told roughly just because of which target I landed near) however as the bay I was in was fitted with protrace I could see clearly the distance and shape of the shot between the 2 lofts
		
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Cool, must try one of those ranges some day they sound like fun &#128077;


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## pauljames87 (Mar 9, 2017)

drive4show said:



			Cool, must try one of those ranges some day they sound like fun &#62541;
		
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Has its downsides and its upsides.. Downside right now is the range is so darn busy most of the time due to the novelty of this (is starting to wear off though which is good) upside is when you can get a bay you get much more than just hitting down a range can play a simulation of 18 holes or a points game etc etc

another downside seems to be distances, protrace seems to be more on "actual" distance hit rather than what the targets on the range give you. For example the 70 yard green (they have 4 main greens) is about 60 yards away according to protrace.. so if im hitting to that green it says ive hit only 60 yards rather than 70 that the chart on the bay says.. 

must get a bucket of lake balls and smack them down one time see how far I can actually hit! this 30 yards on top was good but would be good to see total carry on a real ball 

that said they do use top of the range sixron range balls


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## fundy (Mar 9, 2017)

pauljames87 said:



			Has its downsides and its upsides.. Downside right now is the range is so darn busy most of the time due to the novelty of this (is starting to wear off though which is good) upside is when you can get a bay you get much more than just hitting down a range can play a simulation of 18 holes or a points game etc etc

another downside seems to be distances, protrace seems to be more on "actual" distance hit rather than what the targets on the range give you. For example the 70 yard green (they have 4 main greens) is about 60 yards away according to protrace.. so if im hitting to that green it says ive hit only 60 yards rather than 70 that the chart on the bay says.. 

must get a bucket of lake balls and smack them down one time see how far I can actually hit! this 30 yards on top was good but would be good to see total carry on a real ball 

*that said they do use top of the range sixron range balls*

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sounds like theyre knock off Srixons to me 

before using them for yardages Id check they are 100% balls, most range use lower % balls


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## pauljames87 (Mar 9, 2017)

fundy said:



			sounds like theyre knock off Srixons to me 

before using them for yardages Id check they are 100% balls, most range use lower % balls
		
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yeah they are defo lower % balls, ive used a range finder on the flags of the greens myself in the past to find them out by 10-15 yards , need to get myself a bucket of normal balls and get proper yardage

however one thing I plan to do once my swing changes have bedded in is go down to my other range and pay Â£25 to get gapped on their launch monitor. Get it printed on a A5 bit of plastic that can be hung on your bag so you always know which club hits what


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## pauljames87 (Apr 27, 2017)

More experimenting , should call me the mad scientist, anyways i have changed my swing.. my loft is back up to 14 as my pro wants the faced to start more closed than the 10 was offering me.. so I have bought a 10.5 head off the for sale part of the forum to try at 12.5

going for a shaft fitting in a couple weeks aswell

will be able to try both heads, all different shafts..

expensive way to do things but could end up with 2 drivers lol


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## delc (Apr 28, 2017)

I had a TM Burner 09 driver with a longish shaft a few years ago and hit it beautifully. It's swing weight was a relatively heavy D6 and it was almost impossible to swing it other than smoothly and rhythmically, which is probably where the distance and accuracy came from. Unfortunately my clubs were stolen and I have never since found such a good driver, although my Cobra comes close. We also had a relatively small Indian guy at our club who had a 48" Cobra Long Tom driver, with which he hit beautiful long accurate drives with just a hint of draw. Unfortunately the rest of his golf was pretty rubbish and I think he was still off 28. I am not convinced that shortening your driver is the answer to more accurate driving. You are just giving up length and will probably muck up the balance and swing weight of your club. Some longer hitting pros probably cut down their drivers because they are already longer than they need to be, and have the professional back up to re-balance and re-weight them.


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## chip barm (Apr 28, 2017)

just been through this thread and saw you post this at the beginning, james._ 'Its annoying that tour pros average 44.5 shaft length however we mer mortals are sold stock shafts that are all longer.. how are we to control this if the pros prefer not to? god knows.' _not being funny or disrespectful because i don't know what level you play at or what your handicap is, but can the average golfer really even tell the difference? i feel it's like fitting F1 spec tyres to a family saloon. in the nicest possible way...


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## pauljames87 (Apr 28, 2017)

I spoke with my pro before I did it and he agreed that majority of golfers would be better suited to a driver that plays an inch shorter than your standard shaft for more control

Certainly has improved my fairway finding

Companies make them longer to promote distance but the epic comes with a shaft option for a 44.5 shaft so must be something in it

Going for a full shaft fit with lee porter soon (a club fitter near me) and he will advise the best shaft length for me and I'll be testing with my m2 current 12 degree head Against a 10.5 head I purchased last night to see what's best 

And delc after all the changes I got the swing weight checked in the pro shop it was spot on what I started at so was happy with that


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## 3565 (Apr 28, 2017)

pauljames87 said:



			I spoke with my pro before I did it and he agreed that majority of golfers would be better suited to a driver that plays an inch shorter than your standard shaft for more control

Certainly has improved my fairway finding

Companies make them longer to promote distance but the epic comes with a shaft option for a 44.5 shaft so must be something in it

Going for a full shaft fit with lee porter soon (a club fitter near me) and he will advise the best shaft length for me and I'll be testing with my m2 current 12 degree head Against a 10.5 head I purchased last night to see what's best 

And delc after all the changes I got the swing weight checked in the pro shop it was spot on what I started at so was happy with that
		
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I will gaurentee that he will advise on a shorter shaft. In fact I think most good club fitters would say go shorter, the only ones that don't are the OEMs who are just taking money off joe public on length as it sells clubs. 

As for who say you'd be losing distance? Every thought about how much distance you'd lose with off centre hits on an OEM length driver? Ive just cut a Ping driver down to 44" for a bloke at my club, and he says it like night and day the difference it's made to his driving. hes now got a driver length that he feels fully in control of.


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## Face breaker (Apr 28, 2017)

Running a 44.5" shaft in my X2hot, also shortened my 3-wood and as of today my irons are running .5" shorter than my recommended measurements...

I'm 5'9 and was measured as standard 'lie/length/stiff shaft' but I just couldn't get any consistency out of my irons (kept pushing right) so I'm now running a half inch shorter with regular shafts and std lie...

I've got arms like a gorilla and an average swing speed which I think is why I think the shorter/regular shafts work better for me...


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## pauljames87 (Apr 29, 2017)

I am going to be interested in what a club fitter suggests for me when I go for a fit. I've got my 44.5 shaft in a 12 degree head at the moment 

I have bought a 10.5 head which if I crank to 12 will close the face slightly so might have a winner there and then he might suggest even shorter shaft

Could accidentally have bought an entire new driver lol


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## pauljames87 (May 4, 2017)

Marked improvement with the driver today

I switched the loft down to 12 on the 12 head.. leaving the 10.5 until next week

found 62% of fairways and only missed 30% right


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## Orikoru (May 5, 2017)

Never thought about this before but it might help me with my driver. I was having real problems with it, until I figured I might be standing a bit too far away from the ball, causing me to reach and push or slice it or just miscue it generally, so I started standing a bit nearer to the ball and had much better results - however with the occasional miscue off the heel end. Perhaps if my driver shaft was a touch shorter I'd be more likely to find the right stance every time. Could almost eliminate the likelihood of me standing too far away from it for a start anyway. Something for me to think about I guess.


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## pauljames87 (May 5, 2017)

Orikoru said:



			Never thought about this before but it might help me with my driver. I was having real problems with it, until I figured I might be standing a bit too far away from the ball, causing me to reach and push or slice it or just miscue it generally, so I started standing a bit nearer to the ball and had much better results - however with the occasional miscue off the heel end. Perhaps if my driver shaft was a touch shorter I'd be more likely to find the right stance every time. Could almost eliminate the likelihood of me standing too far away from it for a start anyway. Something for me to think about I guess.
		
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Go for it , really cheap way of improving your driver .. I've cut mine down 1.25 and increased distance


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## Orikoru (May 5, 2017)

pauljames87 said:



			Go for it , really cheap way of improving your driver .. I've cut mine down 1.25 and increased distance
		
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I might experiment this weekend then with gripping half an inch or an inch lower down than I normally do and see what happens. If there's potential I'll think about making the change permanent.


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## pauljames87 (May 5, 2017)

Orikoru said:



			I might experiment this weekend then with gripping half an inch or an inch lower down than I normally do and see what happens. If there's potential I'll think about making the change permanent. 

Click to expand...

I am going to a local club fitter with my 12 degree head and the 10.5 one and then going to ask him what one suits me best and try all lengths of shafts

least then I know if I have gone too far with the 44.5 or not enough


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## pauljames87 (May 12, 2017)

The 10.5 head is now on the driver

12 is sold!

finding so many fairways and distance is very good.. clearing 200 yards on most drives and straight

shaft fitting is cancelled 

no more tinkering!


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## pauljames87 (Jun 14, 2017)

May have another convert to cutting down

played a bounce round with my mate yesterday.. he hit his driver a grand total of once... which he hooked left onto another fairway

on a 296 down hill par 4 I drove to 30 yards short of the green, he asked to borrow my driver.. boom hit same shot just 10 yards further than mine

he also borrowed it on a 270 par 4 and almost drove the green

he never uses his driver and its older so pretty worthless so he is now considering cutting it down to same as mine


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## xcore (Jun 14, 2017)

Anyone stuck a 3w shaft in a driver before?


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## fundy (Jun 14, 2017)

xcore said:



			Anyone stuck a 3w shaft in a driver before?
		
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yep many times 

shorter and a bit heavier, works great


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## pauljames87 (Jan 7, 2019)

Just bringing up an old thread as I have just made a change (note my last change 18 months or so ago)

So I drive better with the cut down shaft and the 10.5 head.. however I am prone when not getting my best swing to ballooning my drives and them losing a lot of distance.

So I have bought a Prolaunch red off eBay for Â£45, got my normal grip for Â£5 and gonna get it cut down to same length as the original shaft to see the difference. Itâ€™s suppose to be a low launching shaft so Iâ€™m hoping. Iâ€™ve set the loft to 11.25 as it closes the face on my driver which my pro likes me to set up because of my grip.. (long story)

Anyways going to use game golf to track the difference. Worst case Iâ€™ll go back to my normal driver

Iâ€™ve been finding a lot more fairways since the set up.. prime example was last week.. 50 yards difference between the balloon shots and the ones that had the nice flight

Just hoping this can help me find more consistent flight


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## Parsaregood (Jan 7, 2019)

Why don't you spend 50 quid and get fit ? Would save you money and lots of tinkering with shafts unless you are changing technique to reduce spin. I'm trying to increase attack angle to reduce my spin loft and get my smash factor up for more ball speed, still getting reasonable numbers at the moment though


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## Wolf (Jan 7, 2019)

pauljames87 said:



			Just bringing up an old thread as I have just made a change (note my last change 18 months or so ago)

So I drive better with the cut down shaft and the 10.5 head.. however I am prone when not getting my best swing to ballooning my drives and them losing a lot of distance.

So I have bought a Prolaunch red off eBay for Â£45, got my normal grip for Â£5 and gonna get it cut down to same length as the original shaft to see the difference. Itâ€™s suppose to be a low launching shaft so Iâ€™m hoping. Iâ€™ve set the loft to 11.25 as it closes the face on my driver which my pro likes me to set up because of my grip.. (long story)

Anyways going to use game golf to track the difference. Worst case Iâ€™ll go back to my normal driver

Iâ€™ve been finding a lot more fairways since the set up.. prime example was last week.. 50 yards difference between the balloon shots and the ones that had the nice flight

Just hoping this can help me find more consistent flight
		
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Good luck hope it goes well for you, I've recently put a shorter shaft in my driver as per a fit I had years ago to see if I could regain my straight  driving consistency. Since I've done it I have lost about 10 yards in distance but I have found my swing is better and I'm hitti g a lot more fairways again. Hopefully it works out the same for you.


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## pauljames87 (Jan 7, 2019)

Parsaregood said:



			Why don't you spend 50 quid and get fit ? Would save you money and lots of tinkering with shafts unless you are changing technique to reduce spin. I'm trying to increase attack angle to reduce my spin loft and get my smash factor up for more ball speed, still getting reasonable numbers at the moment though
		
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Next driver I buy in a few years Iâ€™ll get custom fit for sure, right now Iâ€™ll just try this experiment . Just about to embark on a loft extension so keeping my out goings as little as I can lol


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## Parsaregood (Jan 7, 2019)

pauljames87 said:



			Next driver I buy in a few years Iâ€™ll get custom fit for sure, right now Iâ€™ll just try this experiment . Just about to embark on a loft extension so keeping my out goings as little as I can lol
		
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If you have a tm or Callaway there's guys that will fit shafts on your old driver to maximise it for you, if your in Scotland, Scott Gourlay in Edinburgh is very good


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## pauljames87 (Jan 7, 2019)

Parsaregood said:



			If you have a tm or Callaway there's guys that will fit shafts on your old driver to maximise it for you, if your in Scotland, Scott Gourlay in Edinburgh is very good
		
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Down in sunny Essex Iâ€™m afraid lol


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## Roops (Jan 8, 2019)

If your in Essex, go to Lee Porter or David Laffar at Hylands. They will sort you out. It's Â£50 for a fitting, and worth every penny. Just had a driver fitting done, absolute game changer for me.


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## pauljames87 (Jan 8, 2019)

Roops said:



			If your in Essex, go to Lee Porter or David Laffar at Hylands. They will sort you out. It's Â£50 for a fitting, and worth every penny. Just had a driver fitting done, absolute game changer for me.
		
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Might give Lee a go have heard good things

Tried the shaft last now.. put the loft back down to 10.5 and just worked at it. Felt very heavy compared to my old shaft however i was carrying (my range has toptracer) over the total distance of my â€œlob drivesâ€ from the round before so the theory behind it seems steady

Once my swings even more stable I will go for a fitting


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## dronfield (Jan 8, 2019)

A few years ago i asked a local golf shop to cut 1" off my driver.
I had read a lot of internet comment on how this would affect swingweight and so questioned what adjustments should be made - the guy asked me what my handicap was, and when i said 19, he said i would not notice any swing difference!

To be fair he was probably right - i did put one of the Tour Velvet lightweight grips on to act as a counterbalance, but not sure if it really made any material difference.

Now i just play a TM Mini Driver with the 43.5" standard shaft in it.

Rich


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## Lump (Jan 8, 2019)

Iâ€™ve gone the other way, had a 3 wood shafted driver for years. There abouts regards distance and direction. Just started using a full length driver again (45.5â€) and Iâ€™m loving it. The extra length of the shaft has meant I have to swing flatter and more up at the ball. Iâ€™m now carrying hazards and bunkers that have always been bang on my range.


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## pauljames87 (Jan 8, 2019)

Lump said:



			Iâ€™ve gone the other way, had a 3 wood shafted driver for years. There abouts regards distance and direction. Just started using a full length driver again (45.5â€) and Iâ€™m loving it. The extra length of the shaft has meant I have to swing flatter and more up at the ball. Iâ€™m now carrying hazards and bunkers that have always been bang on my range.
		
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Morning, been playing almost 2 years now with the 44.5 shaft and noticed an increase in distance from the off however have now changed to a lower launch shaft because I sent my drives too high at times. Tested out last night and was carrying where my average drives normally finish after roll out so added say 20 yards with a nicer flight 

I gripped down the shaft to make it same as my old shaft and tomorrow Iâ€™m going to have it cut down and regripped as I played undersize grips. Then Iâ€™ll go out with my game golf and compare the shaft to the old one

If doesnâ€™t work the old shaft will just screw back in lol


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