13 degree mini-driver experiment

[JamesS]

So I'm not a very good golfer, let's just get that out of the way for starters. In particular, I've always struggled with my driver. Lately I've just been hitting my 3 wood or my hybrid off the tee and that keeps my ball in play for the most part, but I decided to try and build a mini-driver to see if that might be even more forgiving than my 3 wood and maybe a little longer as well. I bought an old Nike Ignite 13 degree driver off ebay and I'd like to shorten it down to around 3 wood length and see what happens. At first I thought I could just go to my local golf shop and have them shorten it, but then I started reading about how shortening clubs messes with the swing weight which apparently is a very bad thing. So, I'd be willing to invest another $40-50 and get a shaft that would keep the swing weight the same.

My question is, if I'm shortening a driver by 2-3 inches, and I want to keep the swing weight the same, do I buy a heavier shaft or a lighter shaft? Do most people notice the difference? How do different swing weight changes typically affect people's swings?

Any advice would be much appreciated!

[DaveGoodrich]

Typical 3-wood length is 43" and typical driver length is around 45." So you are talking about trimming about 2" from the shaft. That equates to about 12 swingweight points. You are not going to make that up with any changes to the shaft (but in answer to your question, you would need a heavier shaft). To keep the swingweight the same (not saying that is what you need to do), you would need to add about 24 grams to the head (using tip weights, lead tape, cotton balls in the head, etc.). This is a lot of weight, and is likely to change the feel of the shaft considerably. Search in the "WRX Club Techs" forum. There have been lots of threads discussing shortening driver shafts.

[driverwedge]

[quote name='JamesS' timestamp='1391117225' post='8566982']
So I'm not a very good golfer, let's just get that out of the way for starters. In particular, I've always struggled with my driver. Lately I've just been hitting my 3 wood or my hybrid off the tee and that keeps my ball in play for the most part, but I decided to try and build a mini-driver to see if that might be even more forgiving than my 3 wood and maybe a little longer as well. I bought an old Nike Ignite 13 degree driver off ebay and I'd like to shorten it down to around 3 wood length and see what happens. At first I thought I could just go to my local golf shop and have them shorten it, but then I started reading about how shortening clubs messes with the swing weight which apparently is a very bad thing. So, I'd be willing to invest another $40-50 and get a shaft that would keep the swing weight the same.
My question is, if I'm shortening a driver by 2-3 inches, and I want to keep the swing weight the same, do I buy a heavier shaft or a lighter shaft? Do most people notice the difference? How do different swing weight changes typically affect people's swings?
Any advice would be much appreciated!
[/quote]

If you really want to use a driver as a 3 wood, as mentioned, you'll need to add weight to the head. Lead tape is the easiest.

That said, there are a lot of strong 3 woods out there (11-13*) that may suit you a bit better without having to mess with anything. Keep your Nike at the driver length and use that. A 13* driver should be plenty forgiving. If you want an actual 3 wood, take a look at the Exotics XCG line. Forgiving and very long. Also, the Adams Super S line.

Good luck!

[JamesS]

So do 3 woods have significantly heavier heads than drivers? How do fairway woods have similar swing weights to drivers with much shorter length shafts?

[MadGolfer76]

[quote name='JamesS' timestamp='1391228461' post='8576176']
So do 3 woods have significantly heavier heads than drivers? How do fairway woods have similar swing weights to drivers with much shorter length shafts?
[/quote]

Combination of things, but generally heavier component parts.

[driverwedge]

[quote name='MadGolfer76' timestamp='1391231990' post='8576430']
[quote name='JamesS' timestamp='1391228461' post='8576176']
So do 3 woods have significantly heavier heads than drivers? How do fairway woods have similar swing weights to drivers with much shorter length shafts?
[/quote]

Combination of things, but generally heavier component parts.
[/quote]

Yep.

[ohioglfr]

Hireko makes a driver called the Thriver. It is 14 deg. loft, is around 10 grams heavier (as a 3 wood would be) but is driver-size, which means you have high MOI and a deep enough face for shot-shaping. Being heavier than a regular driver also means you can use a shorter (3 wood) length shaft without much (if any) swing weight tinkering. I'm seriously considering getting one.


I've used a women's loft driver before (reshafted for my swing) for those narrow fairways, but had to compensate a lot to get the swing weight up.

[Colej]

[quote name='JamesS' timestamp='1391117225' post='8566982']
So I'm not a very good golfer, let's just get that out of the way for starters. In particular, I've always struggled with my driver. Lately I've just been hitting my 3 wood or my hybrid off the tee and that keeps my ball in play for the most part, but I decided to try and build a mini-driver to see if that might be even more forgiving than my 3 wood and maybe a little longer as well. I bought an old Nike Ignite 13 degree driver off ebay and I'd like to shorten it down to around 3 wood length and see what happens. At first I thought I could just go to my local golf shop and have them shorten it, but then I started reading about how shortening clubs messes with the swing weight which apparently is a very bad thing. So, I'd be willing to invest another $40-50 and get a shaft that would keep the swing weight the same.
My question is, if I'm shortening a driver by 2-3 inches, and I want to keep the swing weight the same, do I buy a heavier shaft or a lighter shaft? Do most people notice the difference? How do different swing weight changes typically affect people's swings?
Any advice would be much appreciated!
[/quote]

A heavier shaft will help but you need some extra head weight as well. You can use some high density lead tape and slap it on the bottom of the head. A heavier fairway shaft could work good with your shorter length.

[erock9174]

[quote name='ohioglfr' timestamp='1391296823' post='8580290']
Hireko makes a driver called the Thriver. It is 14 deg. loft, is around 10 grams heavier (as a 3 wood would be) but is driver-size, which means you have high MOI and a deep enough face for shot-shaping. Being heavier than a regular driver also means you can use a shorter (3 wood) length shaft without much (if any) swing weight tinkering. I'm seriously considering getting one.
[/quote]

This !!!

Another option is a Ping g25 driver. They have a head weight around 200-201 grams and the shaft adapter weighs another 5g. If you add 4-5g of weight to the head you essentially have the same weight as the thriver mentioned above. With a std grip and 60 ish gram shaft you will be around the normal swingweight of D1.
Curious, what is your swing speed?
Reason I ask is I have a speed around 90 mph and shortening my clubs don't really effect me swing weight wise. Actually I prefer it as it becomes lighter overall and increases my swing speed.

[JamesS]

[quote name='erock9174' timestamp='1391303052' post='8580844']
[quote name='ohioglfr' timestamp='1391296823' post='8580290']
Hireko makes a driver called the Thriver. It is 14 deg. loft, is around 10 grams heavier (as a 3 wood would be) but is driver-size, which means you have high MOI and a deep enough face for shot-shaping. Being heavier than a regular driver also means you can use a shorter (3 wood) length shaft without much (if any) swing weight tinkering. I'm seriously considering getting one.
[/quote]

This !!!

Another option is a Ping g25 driver. They have a head weight around 200-201 grams and the shaft adapter weighs another 5g. If you add 4-5g of weight to the head you essentially have the same weight as the thriver mentioned above. With a std grip and 60 ish gram shaft you will be around the normal swingweight of D1.
Curious, what is your swing speed?
Reason I ask is I have a speed around 90 mph and shortening my clubs don't really effect me swing weight wise. Actually I prefer it as it becomes lighter overall and increases my swing speed.
[/quote]

Honestly, I have no idea what my swing speed is. I usually hit my 7 iron around 145-155 yards whatever that's worth. I've been hitting my hybrid on a lot of tee shots to keep things in play and I can usually carry it around 200ish. So for this driver, I'd be happy to hit it 220-230 and just keep it in the fairway.

[JamesS]

Thanks for the advice everyone! I was hoping that I could avoid messing with the clubhead and just make the adjustment with a different shaft, but it sounds like I'll need to throw some lead tape on the bottom as well to get things right.

[Ri_Redneck]

The ignite is a glued driver and if the shaft is removed, weight can be added through the bottom of the hosel. Hot Melt would be best, but cotton balls or polyfill will work too.

BT