Shaft help required - KBS Tour C Taper 90 regular.

[richart]

I have just seen a nice set of TaylorMade SLDR irons with KBS Tour C Taper 90 regular shafts. Would these shafts be similar to the Nippon 950 GH regular shafts I currently use in my Mizuno MP52's ? I prefer a light shaft.

Any shaft experts out there ? All help gratefully received.

 

[the_coach]

pretty much - a very similar launch & flight, both high launch shafts both identical weight (95grms) - so guess although the results pretty similar you have to hit both & see which feel you liked best.

"As the lightest shaft in the KBS product line, the KBS TOUR 90 is designed for players seeking higher trajectory, additional spin and maximum distance. The KBS TOUR 90 is 20% lighter than standard shafts, ultimately assisting to increase swing and ball speeds. Independent testing showed that the KBS TOUR 90 averaged 9% more distance than its leading competitors."

but if you wanting a different launch & flight from the 950's, the c-taper 90's wouldn't be what you were looking for.

 

[Hobbit]

Lowflight, low spin. 110g. Bit heavier than what you've currently got 94g. Probably make the longer irons a little harder to hit, although if you're changing to SLDR's that'll probably negate the difference. Stu (Kraxx) has them, and he hits some lovely shots with them.

If you're thinking of switching from mp52's to SLDR's you'll probably find them easier to hit.

I've just put the TM RSi tp irons in the bag today, with KBS tour irons. Will be interesting...

 

[richart]

Thanks guys for the helpful replies. I did try the clubs a while back, and am 99% sure these were the shafts I tried, and got good results. TaylorMade said they were similar to the Nippon ones. Anything heavier felt dead in my hands.

The SLDR's do seem easier to hit, and the fact they are half the price of RSi2's makes them very tempting. £369 for 4- AW.

 

[the_coach]

part of a review of the c-taper 90 below from "plugged-in golf". think it was a version of the c-taper for some of the oem's. you can't actually buy it retail (in the US anyways) weight of the regs is actually 105 grms so tad heavier than the (950gh's)

"With lighter weight shafts, you’re supposed to see an increase in swing speed which should result in higher launched shots. As mentioned before, the original KBS C-Taper shaft was notorious for being low launching and low spinning which was true. In fact, Matt and I frequently commented that we could hit a ball down a long hallway with the C-Taper shaft. With the C-Taper 90, this changed quite a bit. I wasn’t ballooning shots with the C-Taper 90, but I was hitting the ball considerably higher with much softer landings. The higher flight helps the ball stop faster, but there’s also an increase in ball spin which contributes to the ball stopping as well. The slight sacrifice of shot feedback from the lighter shaft was worth the performance gains I received by a long shot."

http://pluggedingolf.com/kbs-c-taper-90-iron-shaft-review/

 

[richart]

Thanks Coach.

I have a low ball flight so it does sound like it is in the right ball park. Will see if I can try the shaft at our Pro shop. I suffered from tennis elbow for years, so played with graphite shafts for a while, less jarring. When I went back to steel shafts the light ones just seem to feel right. I also like to be able to feel the head more.

Thanks again.

 

[the_coach]

think you maybes should have a look too if you able at the kbs tour 90's - steel/chrome finish - not the same color or 'matte' finish as the c-taper 90's, but kbs tour 90 at 95grms is the exact same weight as the 950's and too has a high launch high spin profile.

or from leftfield and bit more $'s see if you can find any aerotech steelfiber i70's or i80's lighter than the 950's but similar high launch high spin. but these are composite steel+graphite, so you still get stability but they could be a tad easier stress-wise on the damaged joint. few of the pga tour guys (including kuch & sneds) play the stiffer heavier version of these.

 

[Ethan]

Funny that, I have the C tapers standard weight and I don't find them low launching at all. Great shaft, though.