Review of Speed Stik Xccelerator Training Aid

[bluesmandan]

About the reviewer: I am a 40 year old male who has played golf avidly for 30 years. I have a 4 handicap and a a swingspeed of around 100mph.

 

The Review:

The Speed Xccelerator is very well conceived and of durable construction, but in the end it is a poorly executed training aid. The general concept of a device that helps you train a proper tempo/release is very good, however the specifics in the way it has been executed are terribly flawed. I identify 4 areas of concern with this design:

1. It is a heavy club with a very low swingweight

2. It has poor resistance in regards to swingspeed

3. There is a possibility of injury because of the hard 'clack' at impact that has no shock absorption - so the shock is all absorbed by your body.

4. The round head gives no point of reference for face squareness

 

Now to address these problems with a little more detail:

 

1. It has a very confused swingweight! It weighs 440 grams, which is the weight of a 6 or 7 iron, but at 43" it is the length of a 3 or 5 wood. The balance point is in the middle of the shaft (22" from the butt), which makes the club's swingweight too low to calculate, at least with the online tool I use. At 440 grams, it is too heavy to help much with driver speed, as a typical driver should weigh 330 grams, and for the 10% variance recommended for overspeed and overweight/underspeed training it should be 297 grams for overspeed training, or 363 grams for overweight training. The current weight is 33% heavier than a typical 330g driver. Training with something so heavy is likely to decrease a player's swingspeed rather than increase it, at least according to what I've read regarding speed training.

 

2. The device is advertised as having a variable resistance with the magnetic release, so that it can challenge you and help you swing faster. However, the magnet does not hold the weight tight enough to NOT release, at least for me. I measured the swingspeed and release for each setting using a radar device. The lowest setting releases with a swing of 40mph, and the highest setting releases at 60mph. The magnetic release needs to have resistance FAR more effective than what it has. The average golfer has a swing of around 90mph, and a 60mph release is simply not going to increase his swingspeed. I have a 100mph swing, and the magnetic device is simply far too weak to be of any help for me.

 

3. When the weight releases and clacks at the bottom, it is quite jarring and even a little bit painful to the wrists and elbows. This is because the sliding weight and the receiver at the butt end of the club are both very hard (metal mounted to hard plastic) with no shock absorption designed into the device. Ouch. A few swings is no problem, but I wouldn't want to use this thing regularly for training purposes.

 

4. The training grip is not very useful without a clubhead (or some point of reference for face squareness) at the bottom. It helps only in regards to keeping your hands in the right relationship to one another, but do not help with putting your hands in a right relationship to your body -- that is, you can use it and still have a grip that is too weak or too strong. Also, the grip seems a little bit undersize to me, and I don't have particularly large hands.

 

All in all, I think it would be useful for beginners, women, or children, but it is not much use for a man or anyone who swings over 60mph, which is almost everyone.

 

The device needs to be modified in these respects:

1. The length should be the length of a driver: 44-45"

 

2. It should weigh 363 grams and have a removable 66 gram weight, so that it works for both overspeed and underspeed training.

 

3. The clacker at the bottom needs to have a metal washer for the 'clack' but be sitting on a soft silicone receiver so that there is no painful jarring. (The same could be done for the sliding weight.)

 

4. The magnetic release should release between 60mph and 120mph, so as to actually be challenging for most golfers.

 

5. The training grip is fine, but probably needs some point of reference at the butt end to help with the user perceiving some kind of squareness, and it should be of standard size, rather than undersized.

[airjammer]

Great review..I'm sure you have saved a lot of people money that visit this forum. It sounded like a cool idea. Years ago I made something similar but struggled with how to keep the sliding part stay closer to my hands until half of way down..I never thought of a magnet..hmm. I swing a little faster than you so now I know this wouldn't do me any good. Thanks again

[SunkTheBirdie]

Did you post it on that hacker forum too ? Haha. Thankfully you posted here first, so I'll give you that.

 

 

I love a good training aid more than most, but I just can't see how this could improve your game.

[bluesmandan]

Did you post it on that hacker forum too ? Haha. Thankfully you posted here first, so I'll give you that.

 

I love a good training aid more than most, but I just can't see how this could improve your game.

 

Yep, i put it on thp too. I hate to see people get suckered by this well advertised but poorly designed product. It's not completely useless--good for beginners girls and kids, but not for men who already play golf and can hit it over 150 yards. It releases at 60mph. Nuff said.

[Cwing]

Isn't this the same as the Leadbetter Swingsetter? The Swingsetter did help with wrist co*k and release. It also had a training grip and a snap on iron face to check position,

[bluesmandan]

Isn't this the same as the Leadbetter Swingsetter? The Swingsetter did help with wrist co*k and release. It also had a training grip and a snap on iron face to check position,

 

No, they seem to have different designs and purposes. The SpeedStik is all about the release and swing speed and you have to reset it every swing. The Swingsetter is self-resetting, and is all about plane and tempo. I like David Leadbetter. Wouldn't mind trying one of those swingsetters.

[stickner]

Great review! Sounds like a training aid to avoid for sure.

[SunkTheBirdie]

About the reviewer: I am a 40 year old male who has played golf avidly for 30 years. I have a 4 handicap and a a swingspeed of around 100mph.

 

Here is a group of surprisingly positive reviews !

FYI :)

 

http://www.golfwrx.com/forums/topic/1387534-2-training-aids-that-have-really-helped-me/

[bluesmandan]

About the reviewer: I am a 40 year old male who has played golf avidly for 30 years. I have a 4 handicap and a a swingspeed of around 100mph.

 

Here is a group of surprisingly positive reviews !

FYI :)

 

http://www.golfwrx.com/forums/topic/1387534-2-training-aids-that-have-really-helped-me/

 

They seem to be referring to the original speed stik, not the xccelerator I reviewed here. Two very different products. The original has an air chamber with a ball in it and when you swing it the ball moves up through gauged lines to tell you how fast you're swinging. It's been around a long time. The xccelerator was just released.

[games]

About the reviewer: I am a 40 year old male who has played golf avidly for 30 years. I have a 4 handicap and a a swingspeed of around 100mph.

 

Here is a group of surprisingly positive reviews !

FYI :)

 

http://www.golfwrx.com/forums/topic/1387534-2-training-aids-that-have-really-helped-me/

 

They seem to be referring to the original speed stik, not the xccelerator I reviewed here. Two very different products. The original has an air chamber with a ball in it and when you swing it the ball moves up through gauged lines to tell you how fast you're swinging. It's been around a long time. The xccelerator was just released.

 

The site referenced in that thread is for the aid you reviewed. Not for the original Speed Stik...

 

 

[bluesmandan]

About the reviewer: I am a 40 year old male who has played golf avidly for 30 years. I have a 4 handicap and a a swingspeed of around 100mph.

 

Here is a group of surprisingly positive reviews !

FYI :)

 

http://www.golfwrx.com/forums/topic/1387534-2-training-aids-that-have-really-helped-me/

 

They seem to be referring to the original speed stik, not the xccelerator I reviewed here. Two very different products. The original has an air chamber with a ball in it and when you swing it the ball moves up through gauged lines to tell you how fast you're swinging. It's been around a long time. The xccelerator was just released.

 

The site referenced in that thread is for the aid you reviewed. Not for the original Speed Stik...

 

So it is. However only 2 posts give positive feedback on the xccelerator (while combined with the orange whip). The rest are about other products.

[Dr. Bombay]

Isn't this the same as the Leadbetter Swingsetter? The Swingsetter did help with wrist co*k and release. It also had a training grip and a snap on iron face to check position,

 

I agree, pretty much identical concept except SwingStetter gives feedback on takeaway & backswing tempo, in addition to down & through swing.

[Pstar1978]

Thanks for the review bluesmandan. The swing setter is a very good swing trainer IMHO but, as others have said, there's not one swing trainer for everything.

[WidespreadPanic]

So this doesn't increase your swing speed by 8mph just by swinging it 20 times?!?! What????

[SoCal Hacker]

I have a different take on this product, I bought one and am happy with it.

 

The new SpeedStik is different from the Taylormade product that you might have seen VJ use. It doesn't have swing speed gauge, you need to use your own radar. It is not relying on the overload principle. It's about timing and release. As a late releaser due to too much "hold the angle" training by my PGA instructor, I found it very useful to get my speed at the ball instead of well past it.

 

It also helps when trying new things with your swing, where it releases and how loud the "crack" is and of course is used along with a swing speed radar.

 

On the first setting I could not get it to release until around 60 mph. Maybe the OP got a defective model? And I didn't experience any shock or pain from the slider's impact. The high setting released in the upper 80's, would be nice to have higher settings. It's probably not designed for a 100 mph swinger. Swinging faster has improved my consistency, maybe less time for compensations, but I'm in the fairway more often rather than further OAB.

 

While it is heavier than a driver, 440 grams vs my driver's 317 grams, the weight is higher up on the club and doesn't give you the sense of swinging a heavy club. So even though it's just over 25% heavier it's not a direct comparison to swinging a typical overweight club.

 

I've always struggled with my driver speed even though I've made strides with my irons over the years. I've seen pros, tried many drills but the Speedstik actually helped me immediately. Maybe it won't help everyone as these aids are kinda hit and miss in my experience, but I'm happy with it.

 

Regarding the overspeed training aspect, I have some issues with that but will use a separate post for it.

 

New SpeedStik: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=8v8eVrLUigQ

 

Old Taylormade SpeedStik:

[SoCal Hacker]

One criticism of the SpeedStik is it will screw up your swing because it's too heavy. Using a heavy aid can help mechanics or it might screw them up. For me an it actually helps smooth out my swing. Depends on the person and what they're trying to accomplish.

 

I just wanted to post some food for thought, not hijack the thread.

 

Jack Nicklaus said - “I’ve always believed that the golf club should dominate you instead of you dominating the club. In other words, you swing the club, and your body reacts to how you swing it. Doing this forces you to use your lower body to initiate the downswing. Every other sport is played from the ground up. Watch a baseball pitcher: On the windup, he moves his lower body first, then his arm; on the forward motion, he leads again with the lower body, the arm trailing. This used to be true with golf, but today I see it being taught with the upper body dominating, partly because modern equipment is so much lighter. But if kids started with clubs slightly too heavy, it would teach them to swing back and through from the ground up. They would be forced to learn the proper sequencing of motion.”

 

Harvey Pennick suggested using a weighted club at: 22oz - 30oz which is 634g - 850g.

 

Some experts say using 20% or more will slow club head speed and interfere with swing mechanics. There are Russian studies and some US studies that suggest this but there really hasn't been any really comprehensive scientific testing. Using heavier weighted clubs are supposed to cause more injuries, and while I agree it can, I've injured myself physically more with underweight clubs. Though I agree both are beneficial. You need fast and slow twitch training. Guess it's different for everyone depending on your method.

 

It's the same in baseball where they say too much weight will destroy your mechanics. Baseball players have used weighted bats for years. (As well as lightweight bat training these days) A typical bat is 2.5 to 3 times the weight of a driver. I've witnessed a buddy, an ex ball player who is smaller than me, carry over 300 yards. I know of one long drive competitor that hits a tire with a baseball bat for practice. If swinging heavier clubs slows swing speed why don't baseball players have slow swing speeds when playing golf?

 

Strength training is supposed to reduce flexibility and clubhead speed, but there are many studies to support the opposite conclusion.

 

Look at Sadlowski vs Joe Miller. Both have incredible speed, very different size and build.

 

Guess I'm saying is no one has a definitive answer that fits everyone. There are other views to consider even though they may not fit popular opinion. I think claims by various mfgs suggestion that their particular weighting and progression programs is the best is questionable. There is probably a wide range of techniques and weights that work.

[JWalt]

I bought the older design (2016) orange Speed Stik. Loved it. But, as mentioned above, the movable plastic weighted magnet section cracked. They were very quick to send me another newer version, the red model. It is terrible. The magnets are not nearly as strong. With the old orange model I use to be able to have it "snap" at the bottom of the swing when using the strongest setting of 5. Helped my game a lot. With the new red model I can't keep it from "snapping" way too early at the highest 5 setting. It is very, very, very different from the older model. I called Speed Stik and they sent me another new red model. Same problem. I called and talked to the company and they said they have a newer system coming out soon. (No surprise, since this new one is worthless.) Would I be able to have one of them sent to replace this terrible new model? No. So, old model broke (many saw this happen). New model a waste of metal and magnets. Do not waste your money.

[Golfin Irish Lass]

Great review.  I wish I read it before I got sucked into buying this totally useless product.  I'm a woman, age 66, golfer for over 36 years who thought trying to swing faster would give me more distance.  WRONG!!  I actually lost 20 yards using this product.  First, it is a stupid design from a less technical point of view as it is impossible to tell where the noise of the crack is happening in your swing path unless you have someone else watching your club position.  (Don't let them stand in front lest you kill them if the weight comes loose).  When you are trying to swing faster it is impossible to tell where the crack sound occurs.  Also my custom made clubs were designed for my slower swing speed so speeding up caused me to lose distance.  Another bad infomercial purchase.