Moveable weights, good idea or good marketing?

Hobbit

Hobbit

Mordorator
Moderator
Joined
Sep 11, 2011
Messages
19,992
Location
Espana
Visit site
Do moveable weights really work? Can an 18 gram weight moved front to back on the sole of a club make much difference? 18grams is less than 1 ounce, for us old coffin Dodgers.

where's Scienceboy when you need him? I vaguely remember from the dim and distant past that a weight at the end of a piece of string swung around has a dynamic weight well in excess of its static weight... Force=massXdistance...

But will less than 1 ounce make that much difference, or are we all falling foul of another good marketing ploy?
 
No idea of the science or numbers but we've seen some of the folks on here start dribbling when they pop in a different shaft with nowt like an 18gram difference from standard (acknowledging weight isn't the only variable in a shaft)

I guess its impact in a clubhead is inflated for marketing sake (i.e the measured diff at each extreme setting) & I doubt many would dramatically change it during their ownership of a club but I'd say moving from one limit to the other has got to have a noticeable difference

I think its biggest value is in having one clubhead to manufacture so that players can adjust to set up their own preference (how that translates to an advantage for a player is another thing) Previously a player had sod all choice where the weight was so its unlikely manufactures would've made half a dozen heads with weights in different locations if movable ones weren't permitted so that suggests we've got something more like a bespoke clubhead (if its set correctly)
 
Last edited:
todays composite shaft make it affective I don't think a steel shaft would offer the difference unless the weight was heavier or the steel shaft was flimsy..
 
I think it will make a difference - but whether thats a notable difference or not would be up for debate.

R & D will have shown than that it will make a difference as the club goes through the air
 
Have the weights in position A, put a decent swing on it, move them to position B and put the same swing on it and you'll see a difference.
The problem is putting the same swing on the ball.
I know I don't....
 
Liverpoolphil said:
I think it will make a difference - but whether thats a notable difference or not would be up for debate.

R & D will have shown than that it will make a difference as the club goes through the air
Click to expand...

I hope it does make a difference Phil. I'll be spending an hour on the practice ground with my new Cobra F6+ today in an effort to improve the flight of my worm burners.
 
Hobbit said:
I hope it does make a difference Phil. I'll be spending an hour on the practice ground with my new Cobra F6+ today in an effort to improve the flight of my worm burners.
Click to expand...

Nice new driver :thup:

Have you gone onto a launch monitor to try the settings on there and see what numbers you get ?
 
They are a good idea and I have no doubt they work in the right hands, but I agree that most Handicap golfers will not see much if any difference
 
I'm not convinced they make a difference. I 've had 3 drivers with the movable weights and have moved that around without much difference. Had a try with the M1 on Saturday and the guy that gave it to me said its set for low spin and lower flight. hit a few with it then changed it to the opposite setting and could see no difference TBH
 
Hobbit said:
Do moveable weights really work? Can an 18 gram weight moved front to back on the sole of a club make much difference? 18grams is less than 1 ounce, for us old coffin Dodgers.

where's Scienceboy when you need him? I vaguely remember from the dim and distant past that a weight at the end of a piece of string swung around has a dynamic weight well in excess of its static weight... Force=massXdistance...

But will less than 1 ounce make that much difference, or are we all falling foul of another good marketing ploy?
Click to expand...

Actually, force = mass x acceleration ;)
 
Mizuno jpx850 was the first driver I noticed a change of setting dramatically changed the ball flight.

Forward weights and loft at 7.5 you had better not be hitting way down or the ball goes nowhere.
 
Yes they make a difference, in some manufacturers drivers more than others (I think Cobra's always come out well in the fact that shifting the weights does change the spin more than most). But where you strike it on the face will override all of this if you are not consistently hitting it in the middle. Think weights can only vary the spin by 500 rpm max, usually less. And the strike for most amateurs will completely over ride that. Watch the variation in spin on different strikes people like Crossfield and Shiels get, and I'd say their strike is more consistent than most.

So in response to the OPs original question I'd argue the most amateurs are falling for the marketing guff and for example would be much better off buying a M2 rather than an M1 and saving themselves 100 quid. But then again if you have the money to spend then why not.
 
garyinderry said:
Mizuno jpx850 was the first driver I noticed a change of setting dramatically changed the ball flight.

Forward weights and loft at 7.5 you had better not be hitting way down or the ball goes nowhere.
Click to expand...

Until yesterday I hadn't altered the weights or loft on my JPX850, which was set at 9.5* with the weights at the heel and toe positions, as prescribed at the club fitting. So yesterday, just to test the effect, I moved both weights centre-forward and de-lofted to 8.5*. Huge difference - much more penetrating flight but also much less forgiving. Would be good if I was a more consistent ball striker.
 
PuttPuttSteve said:
Actually, force = mass x acceleration ;)
Click to expand...

Like I said, "vaguely remember." I was alluding to the length of the shaft.

Its should have read work = (mass x acceleration) x distance... thinking of leverage... still not sure my memory of physics 40+yrs ago is accurate...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top