Kbs tour 90 vs Nippon NS Pro 950GH

[greenknight9]

Fellow wrxers - I know there is some dated debate out there on these two shafts. I am wondering if anyone has an updated view or opinion. Looking for differences in feel, flight, flex, etc.

 

Appreciate the help. TGIF.

[Lord Helmet]

I do not have experience with the Nippons. I have played the tour90 a couple times. Launched them high and with way too much spin. Shot were falling out of the air. I had to switch.

I hope you have better luck!

[RedDevilWheezy]

I tried both in SpeedBlades at the Kingdom. Really liked both shafts, dispersion was slightly better for me with the KBS that day but the Nippons felt GREAT. Distance was similar with each as well. I would have been happy with either, but chose the KBS because of the lower ballflight -- KBS peak 6i was around 90 ft where Nippon was around 100 ft -- again, for me. Both were higher than my PING G15s w/ AWTs (around 80 ft at apex). I live in Texas so wind can be a real issue, but the even with a higher ballflight I haven't felt like the wind has hurt me as badly as id did with the AWTs. YMMV.

[gpleonard]

I really like my Callaway X2Hot Pros with the KBS Tour 90 in stiff. Distance and control is outstanding. I would like to get my Mack Daddy 2 wedges reshafted or order new with KBS wedge flex shafts to complement the feel.

[pmcuk]

Haven't played KBS Tour 90 but have tried Nippon 950GH in:
- AP1
- Cobra S9
- Adams Redline

They are all good, but the Redlines are probably best, followed by the S9s and then the AP1. Great shaft, but there's clearly a synergy between head and shaft going on.

The S9s may be better with GS95 if my experiment with the 6 iron applies to the whole set. Liked the dispersion and the flight. So it also goes to prove that the stock shafts are not necessarily the best for a particular player - hardly anything new there.

The Nippon 950 is neutral and SMOOTH. You'll get that word all the time and it's true. Sometimes you want a little more spice, and the GS95 is a bit more nervous and may bring the S9s to life a bit more. They're very smooth too, and the combination is..... well, smooth....

[NFD]

The 950's are a great lightweight mid-high launching shaft. Very smooth and easy on the body vs other steel shafts. Probably the best lightweight shaft out there.

[Noble6]

[quote name='NFD' timestamp='1400275030' post='9310445']
The 950's are a great lightweight mid-high launching shaft. Very smooth and easy on the body vs other steel shafts. Probably the best lightweight shaft out there.
[/quote]

This. My experience exactly in my JPX 825's in stiff. These are my favorites. Play the KBS Tour 90's in a PW and 7i in a 6 club Sunday bag, and like them too, the Nippon's are smoother and for me have a slightly tighter dispersion.

[greenknight9]

Thanks all for chiming in. Anyone know how these two shafts frequency? I think in stiff kbs tour 90 are around a 4.7? No clue on the nippons.

Again appreciate the feedback.

[dunn]

gamed tour 90 several times and as recent as 3 months ago, gamed nippon 950 for half a year......tour 90 is softer shaft and slightly higher ballflight, plays weaker than nippon.....

[tdelam]

KBS Tour 90's are nice shafts. I found I could control them very well, much better than the Nippon 950's. The Nippon 950's were hook machines for me. I have a small draw and those 950gh's accentuated it making it harder to control shots, also, I found it tough to control the spin with them. I didn't like the 950's.

[Golf64]

I found the 950s a little 'softer' than the KBS. Both great shafts! Can't go wrong with either.

[oneaugusta]

The Nippons are a higher quality shaft and more consistent. I've repaired several KBS 90 wedge shafts that broke off inside the hosel from normal play.

[greenknight9]

As you can see there is a lot of differing opinions which is why I need to go hit them both side by side. I was just curious to get everyone's thoughts. I am a low ball hitter and could use a little help getting the ball in the air. I love kbs tour shafts, but am thinking of reshafting to a lighter weight option to help ball flight. I have heard that you can't beat the feel of nippons though, and when I heard that I was shocked because kbs is hands down the best feeling shaft I have swung. It's not the easiest to find a nippon though.

[neilc]

[quote name='greenknight9' timestamp='1400332434' post='9313471']
As you can see there is a lot of differing opinions which is why I need to go hit them both side by side. I was just curious to get everyone's thoughts. I am a low ball hitter and could use a little help getting the ball in the air. I love kbs tour shafts, but am thinking of reshafting to a lighter weight option to help ball flight. I have heard that you can't beat the feel of nippons though, and when I heard that I was shocked because kbs is hands down the best feeling shaft I have swung. It's not the easiest to find a nippon though.
[/quote]

Australian distributers based in Melbourne and Asian distributer in Kuala Lumpur,Malaysia

I am customer of Asian distributer and they have full stocks]

[Rebel420]

I've played graphite, heavy steel (rifle 6.0, DG x100, c-tapers, and KBS tour). But for me, the Nippon gives me about 90% of the shock-absorbing characteristics of the graphite, with a ball flight and dispersion similar to the KBS tour(120g model) for me. The KBS tour 90 were also smooth, but not as smooth as the Nippon, but the flight and dispersion was closer to graphite than any of the others.

[greenknight9]

I had a chance to hit these side by side today at a range. For context, I normally hit my 7 iron 145-155, so not a big hitter. I couldn't tell much of a difference between the two to be honest. Both felt smooth. Both felt the same in terms of stiffness. I was on flight scope and I was slightly longer with kbs tour 90 than nippon, less spin too. But the nippons seemed easier to hit consistently. The reason for this May have been the nippons were a half inch shorter. Ball flight when hit pure was very close. Nippon may be slightly easier to turn over, but again may be due to length difference. Nippons also maybe launched slightly higher. I think there is slightly more forgiveness baked into the nippons.

Of course, I still don't have a solid decision. Maybe I should just get both

[Hawkeye77]

I went with the heavier KBS Tour instead of the Tour 90 version, when I switched from the NS Pro 950GH. Brought spin down and better ball flight for me.

[24hrclown]

To the OP, have you looked at TT XP 95? They are pretty close to the Tour 90. I'm looking at both of those, moving from the discontinued TT GS95. I've only played the Nippons in wedges, but they felt dead to me. I have the Tour 90s soft stepped in my wedges and they feel much more responsive and lively.

[pmcuk]

[quote name='24hrclown' timestamp='1400396591' post='9317231']
To the OP, have you looked at TT XP 95? They are pretty close to the Tour 90. I'm looking at both of those, moving from the discontinued TT GS95. I've only played the Nippons in wedges, but they felt dead to me. I have the Tour 90s soft stepped in my wedges and they feel much more responsive and lively.
[/quote]

Was there something you didn't like about the GS95?

[Hawkeye77]

[quote name='24hrclown' timestamp='1400396591' post='9317231']
To the OP, have you looked at TT XP 95? They are pretty close to the Tour 90. I'm looking at both of those, moving from the discontinued TT GS95. I've only played the Nippons in wedges, but they felt dead to me. I have the Tour 90s soft stepped in my wedges and they feel much more responsive and lively.
[/quote]

Echo the feel difference, albeit with a different KBS vs. the Nippon. I'd say kind of mushy instead of dead with the Nippons.