Get used to lighter shafts....could I? Should I?

[wobgon]

This is a pretty important question for me......I have been golfing for a very long time and am getting to the age where i may want to rethink things.

I am told i am a very good ball striker and must say I agree.....I have made a lot of equipment changes as clubs changed over the years and have done pretty well adapting....I have no trouble with length

and actually hit the ball as long as i did years ago.

The one thing as i get older that i have really wrestled with is lighter iron shafts.....I have played 130 gram shafts for a whole lot of years and really think it would benefit me in

the long run to make a change......I have literally had at least 25 sets of irons in the last couple years with light shafts and haven't liked any of them.

After all that, here is my question........If i gave a set of lighter shafts a real chance, could i get used to them....I hit a set one range session and say they are not for me.....Thinking maybe

I should make myself play a set for a couple months.....I also don;t see any benefit in going a little lighter....Would like to go to 110 or 105........What say you?

[dan360]

I switched from S300's to the Modus 105 and Steelfiber 110cw and kinda wish now I'd done Modus 105 in both of them...... a long time ago.

[Fuscinator]

My regular playing partner and I just both switched to heavier shafts in our irons, him from graphite. To me, it's like finally going back to throwing a baseball after being stuck throwing a whiffle ball for a while.

[wobgon]

Did the change come easy or did you have to get used to it?

[the bishop]

I'm more in love with the idea of lighter iron shafts than the reality of them. Everytime I have tried going lighter (less than say 115 grams) it just doesn't work out. I'm a DGS300 guy and probably always will be.

[wobgon]

Thanks for you response.....Are you a good iron player?

[wobgon]

Glad you posted......You say what i always have said.......Did you ever spend more than a little bit of time trying to get used to lighter shafts?

[WristySwing]

I've played almost everything (check post #36 in this thread....https://forums.golfwrx.com/discussion/1818425/graphite-iron-shafts#latest): S300 in 2002-2006, PX 6.0 in 2007, DG SL from 2008 to 2010, GAT 95 from 2010/2011-2013, DG Pro 2015-2016, C-Taper Lite 110 in 2017-most of 2018, Shimada Tours in late 2018, and a smattering of DG105 and graphite in late 2018 to present. I have also played KBS Tours multiple times and a variety of stock shafts like AWT and the like in between. I am currently in Accra i110s. Just from my experience aside, lighter is better for the vast majority of people. I am 90-92mph with a 6i, ball speed is low-mid 120s at 28* of loft.

As a fitter, lighter is better for the vast majority of people. Ask yourself these questions: do you swing faster than about 93-94mph, are you more consistent than Bill Haas, Vijay Singh, and Brooke Henderson (among others)? Now there are so many different profiles out there that are super stable in a light weight package that lighter doesn't have to mean you are playing Nippon 950s or some sort of mystery proprietary graphite shaft any more. Just because you can still move a club at a decent clip (mid-high 80s) conversely doesn't mean you need to stick with 130g shafts, either. I can count on two hands the amount of people I have fit into anything heavier than 120g in the last couple of years, and no complaints. I do keep in contact with all of my clients so I do have data to support this. Most people drastically over-flex themselves (if you don't believe me read Tutelman and a few interviews from Kim Braley), most out of machismo, but also because many correlate feeling a sensation of kick as equaling a shaft being too whippy. The two are not intertwined.

Do yourself a favour and get a decent fitting and go in open minded. Give yourself more than a single range or round to get used to it if you do end up in something lighter. I don't care if a client of mine comes in to pick up their new clubs and hits in the screen and shanks every one of them for 45 minutes. A good fit should be relatively instantaneous, but more often than not there is a general "grow-in" period if they have used the same clubs for a long time or the profile and weight is a bit different from what they are accustomed to. If you can't get used to them after round 5 or so, then there's an issue, but don't give up so fast!

Good luck!

[dan360]

It took a little bit of time; mostly learning how to not need to 'go after it' and attack shots with an aggressive swing. If that makes sense. I consider myself a good iron player--still not sure the 3hybrid is a good idea--and with the Modus 105, I don't really need to use that little extra to 'get after' the swing, coming in to the ball, like I always felt I needed to do with the S300.

That, and, my deteriorating back was slowing me down. I had tried the Dynamic Gold 105 XP and liked the feel, and performance, but did not like the higher ball flight. With the Modus 105, the trajectory is very similar to what I am used to with the S300, and no distance was lost switching to them in my previous clubs. Adams CB3 and Mizuno MP-33.

The steelfibers are a different animal and play stiffer than the Modus 105. I prefer the flight with the baby blades that I get from the steelfibers but am, after some range time with a demo set, pondering switching to the Modus 105 in them as well.

 

The Nippon line up is not just about weight. All the shafts play very different, so some even though lighter weight, are much more stable and play 'more stiff' than their heavier siblings.

 

[wobgon]

Thanks for all that info......MY driver swing speed when playing is around 105, can get up over 110 if i really want to.....No idea how fast i swing a six iron but never swing anything "hard" according to those i play with. When i try lighter shafts, they just feel light i guess......I have always said, "I like light drivers and heavy irons" That being said, i really think it is the time for me to get used to something light or at least give it long enough that i will at least know if it could be for me.......

[wobgon]

Was it an easy change or did you need to give it some time?

[BirdieBob]

This is why I prefer the DG AMT Tour White shafts...heavy in the short end, but lighter in the long end.

Works for me!

 

[dan360]

I answered you in Post #9

[VA golfer]

Switched a couple of years ago to lighter iron shafts I have tried everything from 70 to 115 grams all in stiff. The 70 gram that I have been playing for a while works the best. I was in the same boat as you was totally against the initial feel. My driver swing speed and yours are almost Identical avg around 105 but when I play a scramble it might top 110. I have gained little to no distance switching to light graphite but my iron swing is so much smoother then it used to be as a result better ball striking. I have been a good ball striker but am better due to tempo timing with the lighter shafts. Once I gave it a real chance I found I really like it. I started out with 70 gram shafts worked my way up to 115 and went back to 70's when I found my ball striking to be much better. One of the reasons why when I first went to lighter shafts I didn't like was I felt like I lost control of flight and consistency. Then I went heavier in search of that and did not find it either. I then did a fitting and found out it wasn't the weight but just like any other shaft you have to find a shaft that fits you and your swing. Once I found a light weight graphite that fit my swing I was in heaven.

[WristySwing]

You can have "light" but still feel "heavy", right? You can tinker with the swingweight, the balance points of the shafts, adding some pro soft inserts, using lighter grips, etc. Another poster brought up a good point I didn't think of, AMT is an excellent idea...gives you the beef where you need it but most of the shafts are significantly lighter to soften the joints and ease the effort. If you are 105 on course, you are probably 85-90 with a 6i, unless you have some serious speed traps with a driver. Take a good look at Modus 105/120, DG 120, PX 5.5/6.0/LZ 5.5/LZ 6.0, or $-Taper 120.

[wobgon]

Sorry Dan.....My mistake.......You are giving a lot of good info......I was actually looking at some irons with the modus 105's to give lighter shafts a real chance. As far as what you said about the nippon line not being all about weight, I have it the 105 a few times and the 120 many time and seem to like the 105 much better, although i never hit them for a reasonable period of time.

[wobgon]

All good advice......My thing with the light shafts is the feel or should i say lack of feel of the shaft......I can make an iron E1 withe lead tape, but if it is a light shaft, i can tell it when I swing it.....Again, my intent is to give the lighter shaft a fair try and am hoping to get to like it, just explaining what my take is......Not surprising after playing 130 gram shafts for many,many years and only giving the light ones a range session or two.

[LoopySwing13]

I played PX Satin, PX TT, X100, S300, and C Taper 125 S+ and finally went to steelfiber 110 last year after playing for 15/16 years. I wished I had done it sooner. Biggest benefits for me were much more consistent launch and distance, easier to work consistently and much better on mishits. I have committed to making the game easier and heavier shafts wasn’t doing it for me anymore.

 

I think it is important to try and get fit for the right weight/flex combo. I personally love the 110S in my irons and the 110X in my wedges. Knowing now what I wish I knew then, I would have tried 125 steelfibers an probably switched.

 

I wouldnt be afraid of lighter as long as the flex and launch numbers are good. I also liked the 105 Modus but found a great deal on a set of SF so I went that route.

[dan360]

This video has the most detail of any I've watched about Nippon shafts, and explains the differences of most. The tall guy is the North American distributor for Nippon. Their delivery is Ben Stein at best, but the details are all there.

 

Start at 3:30 for who/what Nippon shaft is, and around 6:40 for the Modus line and around 15:00 they discuss weight preference

 

[Fuscinator]

I used to be, but it's been the worst part of my game in recent years.

[Valtiel]

As far as i'm concerned, only change when you feel like you need to due to tangible factors like loss of speed. There is no sense if trying to force something that isn't working just because you think you should, and you aren't likely to gain anything by doing it "ahead of time".

Another option is experimenting with adding small amounts of head weight if it is the lighter static weight that is throwing you off. If you're dropping 15g of shaft weight, trying adding 4-6g to the head to see if that helps. You still have a lighter club overall, but maybe with a better sense of heft in the head.

[gripandrip]

I swing about the same speeds as you (105-110). I do not have a violent transition, so that may make a difference to some people. A couple of years ago, I made the switch from DGS300 to steelfiber i95s. I didn’t find it to be too difficult to make the change after you commit to it and stop looking back. I think the SFs play pretty much similar to the DGs except for the weight. All in all, I now prefer the lighter shaft in my irons 3-PW.

However, I still play a DGS400 in my wedges.

[cardoustie]

I hated modus 105, I tried them after using Nippon 1150x for a few years. Lighter steel for me was tricky, some brought instant dislike. I do like Ping zz65

i was a long term heavy guy ... s300 to rifle precision 6.5 to s400 to x100 to 1150 and most recently xp115 x100. 10 years back I was 95g in the driver if that helps

Elbows and hands and back surgeries ... forced me to go graphite and I slowly went lighter

(the light first went off when I was tested extensively for a driver - and was as straight with 55x as I was with 85x

in graphite I started heavier and have been working downwards. I love recoil 95 and 110 in stiff ... steelfiber 95s are also awesome in irons (harsher feel than recoils) and the 125 are great for wedges

Been thru aldila prototypes 125x, aldila nv 105x and have some aldila vs proto 85x as well. Also, two sets of Fuji mci in 100 and 120 weights

swing 92 with a 7 iron and 108 driver (up to 112 this winter) fwiw

i have learned to love working less with iron shafts. ... the recoils have really improved my iron play

95 recoil in my 919 and 110 in my 790’s

[wobgon]

Good info.......Looks like your long term list matches mine pretty close.......I think i will start by trying a lighter shaft, whatever it may be for a longer period than i have before just to see if i can get used to it at all......Then i will fine tune to what i want or know to go back to my standard s300 or s400........The thing that always bugged me about graphite was that it was always hard to get the swing weight right without playing over length, although i beleive that is not the case with the recoils.....anyway, i will report how my experiment goes, although i doubt that anyone would be to interested.....

[cardoustie]

My 919t are 1” over and d7 ... same w my p790 set

it takes 5 solid rounds to make the adjustments

wedges all e1

[the bishop]

I'd say the longest I went was about 4 months so that would encompass in excess of 30 range sessions and probably a dozen or so rounds. My issue was always related to consistency of strike and my number of thin strikes would noticeably increase the lighter I went with a shaft. All the reasons people give for sticking with heavier shafts (better tempo, clubhead awareness) seem to resonate with me.

[Itsjustagame]

Have tried lighter iron shafts on several occasions. 30-60 days of using them on the course, and gave up both times.

Lost distance and accuracy.

Last year I did find I could use a lighter driver shaft successfully.

Also use Recoil F4 in my irons, and regular shafts in woods/hybrids.

The heavier/stiffer iron shafts just work better.

 

[Hot Rod 71]

A close friend of mine is 63 years old and a low single-digit player who has played S300 for a long long time. He's still fairly strong and hits hits driver about 240-250. Recently he approached me about going lighter in his irons for a few reasons: 1) he can no longer elevate his irons like he used to, 2) he has lost distance, and 3) he struggles to make good contact with his irons late in the round.

I put a soft stepped XP 95 S300 in his 6 iron and a KBS Tour 110 Regular flex in his 7 iron. After a few rounds and some practice time he loved the XP, hated the KBS. He said the KBS just felt strange and his ball flight was odd. He also said the XP felt very similar to the S300 he'd been playing for years but in a lighter, easier to elevate package that brought him back to his normal distance with that club.

After about a month, he expressed that he had gotten used to the KBS in his 7 iron and now liked that shaft, too. When I asked which he like better, he said he liked each for different reasons. The XP felt like the S300 he's played for so long but provided an ease of swing throughout the round. The KBS launched higher and went further than the XP with the same swing, but dispersion was slightly worse.

I share this information because this is a guy that has played S300 for 30+ years as a competitive tournament player. It took him several rounds and practice sessions to adjust to the lighter weight, softer shafts, but once he did he enjoyed the results. I'm still waiting for him to decide which route to take so we can build the whole set.

[wobgon]

More great input along the lines i am interested to hear.

[jmtbkr]

Tried XP95’s for a month and hated them. Everything went right.

Back to DGR300’s.