Shaft Stiffness

[stevek1969]

I'm currently playing TM R9TP irons with Rifle 6.0 shafts in them, i have a driver swing speed of 102mph measured on Trackman at Taylor Made.

I find that i hit the ball really high with these irons and feel im getting a loss of distance ,ie 8 iron just went 135 yards are these shafts the right ones for me.

Any help would be appreciated.

 

[NWJocko]

Subjective due to different nature of different swings but, just going from the numbers I would say they are too stiff.

My driver swing speed was 115mph iirc and I tried the PX 5.5 and 6.0 recently when getting new irons and the 6.0 were too stiff for me (although that may well be due to feel).

I felt like I was in between the 2 and stayed with S300s.

Ethan gave me an excellent answer to a shaft query a wee bit back, sure he'll be along soon to correct me!!

 

[stevek1969]

Cheers for the reply NWJocko,i have used the Mizuno DNA and it recommended DGS300,px5.5 and KBS Tour S,.

The DG S300 i dont get on with they produce to much spin but both PX and KBS I feel are to stiff with no feel ,with your swinf speed of 115 mph i would have thought PX6.0 would have been spot on for you, i'm sure Ethan will help me out again

 

[Ethan]

Lots of issues with choosing shafts. Swing speed, tempo, feel preferences etc are all important.

One misleading issue is that the numbers used by Rifle and Project X shafts do not line up exactly. The old style Rifles play softer than PX, so the closest equivalent Rifle to the PX 5.5 is a Rifle 6.0.

That only deals with frequency though. Rifle is also a higher flight and higher spin shaft, so that may explain the high flight. High flight is usually not associated with the shaft being too stiff.

KBS were designed by the same guy who designed PX. They are intended to give a mid launch and a flat flight with lowish spin. KBS feel rather stiff, but don't really play as stiff as they feel.

Funnily enough, I have a swing speed almost exactly the same as stevek1969, and I have a few sets of irons on the go, shafted with, you've guessed it, KBS stiff, PX 5.5 and TT DG respectively.

My personal take on them is as follows:

TT DG feels heavier and there is more of a kick. I tend to hit them a bit high sometimes, especially into wind.

KBS feel quite stiff, especially at the top of the swing, but they perform. They seem more consistent and produce quite a penetrating flight, not low but it keeps going well. They seem a bit light at first but you soon get used to it.

PX feel a bit harsher than the others, but that is how they were designed. The play similar to KBS, although perhaps go a bit lower.

I have a chart comparing shaft flex and will post it later.

 

[Junior]

Hi Steve, I had the.exact same problem with the rifle 6.0's in a set of mizuno mp52's. The ball just seemed to balloon. My 8 iron was 135-140 whereas it had always been my 150 yard club. Switched to the ping awt stiff shaft and it gives me a much better flight. Also tried some taylor made r9's with dg S300 and they flew nice too. I just preferred the i15's.

 

[stevek1969]

Thanks for the replies guys, i feel i loss alot of ditance which when your 42 you need all the ditance you can .I find they go no place as my course is always windy they do tend to ballon abit, junior never tried the AWT in stiff do you have a comparison on them between the other shaft makes.?

 

[JT77]

Recently bought irons with px 6.0 in them, find that i get a great flight from them, and distance is similar to the other irons I had with s300 shafts.
My driver swing speed floats between 105 and 109, but I tend to try and hit my driver, my irons are much smoother swung, mizuno dna suggested x100, px6.0 or kbs x, only tried kbs stiff and found them a bit wobbly, s300 are a bit heavy feeling, but 6.0 feel spot on.

 

[NWJocko]

Good to see Ethan didn't let me down Top man.

As you can see from jamestaylor, different swings lead to different shaft types and recommendations I suppose.

I like the heavy feel of the s300 and just seemed to feel much better than the 6.0 when hitting irons. I was a bit out of the norm with my driver fitting as every man and their dog got the Aldila RIP but I got the Diamana Kah'li....

 

[Junior]

Thanks for the replies guys, i feel i loss alot of ditance which when your 42 you need all the ditance you can .I find they go no place as my course is always windy they do tend to ballon abit, junior never tried the AWT in stiff do you have a comparison on them between the other shaft makes.?

Hi Steve, the AWT's are lighter and for me had a bit more feel in them. I think they are only available in Pings. I'm also a sucker for spiel and I liked the idea of being able to get the long irons up in the air easier, which is what the AWT technology is about. From memory, i did hit them both OK though.

 

[thecraw]

Steve AWT is a decent shaft, similar characteristics, well same idea as the Project X Flighted.

I really like the Ping AWT shaft.

 

[stevek1969]

Cheers mate, do you still have the Rifles in your Pings or have you gone back to the AWT.?

 

[thecraw]

Still got the Rifle's.

 

[Ethan]

Hi Steve, I had the.exact same problem with the rifle 6.0's in a set of mizuno mp52's. The ball just seemed to balloon. My 8 iron was 135-140 whereas it had always been my 150 yard club. Switched to the ping awt stiff shaft and it gives me a much better flight. Also tried some taylor made r9's with dg S300 and they flew nice too. I just preferred the i15's.

But that is switching shaft and head, and the i15 head is a rather different beast to the 52s. Not clear which one made the difference.

The AWT is a decent enough shaft, but unless getting fitted for a Ping, there are plenty of alternatives in a lighter weight shaft available.