Who here has made their own putter?

[kthomas]

I'm dabbling with the idea myself, and wondering who else has done so. I have a friend who owns a 5-axis CNC machine (amongst other CNC machines), mills, etc., which I would have access to. I would love to make an Anser 2 style putter for myself and my wife, and maybe some family members.

 

- Did you design your putter head yourself from "scratch"? Did you grab an "open source" file on a putter head and tweaked that?

- What program did you use to design your putter head? My friend with the machine shop recommends Master Cam

- How many "prototypes" did you have to make on the CNC before having a finished product you were happy with?

- What were the biggest hurdles you had to overcome in the creation of your putter? Anything you would do differently in the process if you were to do it all over again?

- Feel free to show off what you've made here, and what the process entailed (if you care to).

 

 

The idea of making a putter head myself for me and my wife is pretty intriguing, and I imagine could be a pretty rewarding experience. I would love to present myself a putter head that I made myself - I think that would be a cool gift. I'm lucky to have the machines and the brains behind the machines available as a resource - I would just have to provide a file for them to start with, and see where we need to go from there. I've never used software such as Master Cam, CAD, Solid Works, etc before, so initially there's going to be a big learning curve for that.

 

Let me know your thoughts and your experiences. I'm still at the initial phase, and trying to determine if it's worth my time and energy, be cool to hear some of your experiences to build up some further motivation.

 

 

 

[cforselius]

I have made a putter which I designed from scratch. I looked at photos of the Scotty Timeless as inspiration and went from there.

 

I used Solidworks, mostly because I already spend 8 hours a day working in Solidworks so for me, it was very easy.

 

I have only made one prototype so far, even though I have a few designs I would like to create in the future. The one I made, Im very happy with, looks perfect behind the ball with a nice feel.

 

For me, finding a manufacturer was very tough, but since you got that covered, it should not be an issue. I would have made the putter more detailed, I left out alot of smoothening since it was cheaper, but I regret that now.

 

Here is a few pics on my creation, if you have any questions, pleask ask.

 

[kthomas]

> @cforselius said:

> I have made a putter which I designed from scratch. I looked at photos of the Scotty Timeless as inspiration and went from there.

>

> I used Solidworks, mostly because I already spend 8 hours a day working in Solidworks so for me, it was very easy.

>

> I have only made one prototype so far, even though I have a few designs I would like to create in the future. The one I made, Im very happy with, looks perfect behind the ball with a nice feel.

>

> For me, finding a manufacturer was very tough, but since you got that covered, it should not be an issue. I would have made the putter more detailed, I left out alot of smoothening since it was cheaper, but I regret that now.

>

> Here is a few pics on my creation, if you have any questions, pleask ask.

>

>

>

>

>

 

That looks great, love how that turned out!!

[cforselius]

 

> That looks great, love how that turned out!!

 

Thank you!

 

[jokerusn]

I used OnShape for CAD and made it from scratch. Had eMachineShop.com mill it.

 

 

[jrieger]

Wow jokerusa that looks amazing. Would love to know how long that took and if your going to sell any in the future?

[longball]

> @jokerusn said:

> I used OnShape for CAD and made it from scratch. Had eMachineShop.com mill it.

>

")

>

 

How much did emachine charge you to mill it?

[Jagpilotohio]

I wish the legendary Opinder was still around to join in this discussion. ?

[kthomas]

Awesome, another great head! Love seeing these, gives me great inspiration!

 

Now I just need to stumble my way through a software to design the head...

[jokerusn]

> @jrieger said:

> Wow jokerusn that looks amazing. Would love to know how long that took and if your going to sell any in the future?

 

Thanks! I'm very happy with how it turned out. The CAD started off as just a fun hobby. Didn't plan on building it but then the design had matured enough to where I got a quote. Took about a month of just design work, then a month of waiting for the machining. I got the pieces back a couple weeks ago and have been messing with them - sanding, grinding, etc. - ever since. I don't think I'll sell any going forward but it's not off the table.

 

> @longball said:

> > @jokerusn said:

> > I used OnShape for CAD and made it from scratch. Had eMachineShop.com mill it.

> >

>

> How much did emachine charge you to mill it?

 

I'll PM you about it. No price talk allowed in the forums.

 

[kmay__]

I've made one but its nowhere near to the level of some of these examples above. I had no access to any machining equipment so I made mine with torches, grinders, and a welding machine.

 

 

[cforselius]

> @kmay__ said:

> I've made one but its nowhere near to the level of some of these examples above. I had no access to any machining equipment so I made mine with torches, grinders, and a welding machine.

 

I think yours is the coolest one here!

 

 

[kmay__]

^ Haha thanks man, hope to make a more refined version if I ever get any down time at work.

[jtitleist12]

Really, REALLY impressive work fellas!

- Josh

[cforselius]

> @kmay__ said:

> ^ Haha thanks man, hope to make a more refined version if I ever get any down time at work.

 

I have a similar model waiting to be milled but my wallet does not agree.

 

[bripgall3265]

> @kmay__ said:

> I've made one but its nowhere near to the level of some of these examples above. I had no access to any machining equipment so I made mine with torches, grinders, and a welding machine.

>

>

>

 

Absolutely beautiful!!! May I ask what type of steel you used???

[kmay__]

^ Just your most basic common hot rolled carbon steel flat bar, and the neck is made from a grade 8 steel bolt.

[Elliott2]

I’ve started the designing on solid works and am stuck on groove design. Are there anyways to get the groove patterns without knowing physics that work well

 

[lefthack]

On 4/22/2019 at 7:03 AM, kmay__ said:

I've made one but its nowhere near to the level of some of these examples above. I had no access to any machining equipment so I made mine with torches, grinders, and a welding machine.

 

 

 

This was what I had in mind, I think it looks great.