What tip weights to use for graphite iron shafts - specifically Recoils?

[sm_watts]

I'm about to start a build with some Mizuno 900 Forged heads and Recoil 95's.  I'm still experimenting with an 8 iron and seeing how much lead tape to get just the right feel, but I anticipate wanting to add between 2-6 grams on some heads to match swing weights.  I've read some reviews (including on golfworks) about people having to bore out the shaft tips a little to get graphite tip weights to fit properly.  Does anyone have any experience with Recoil shafts in particular?  What brand/style of tip weights fit the best, or would you recommend?  Or will I end up having to bore out the tips a little no matter what brand I buy?

[mcounci2]

I buy brass dowels that are just a touch smaller than the shaft tip ID.  Cut them to the right length for the weight needed, then peen over the end so it doesn't fall down the shaft or add tons of length,  epoxy that in place.  Works better for me than trying to have a bunch of weights on hand, and the set of brass rods is something like $10 for a 20 pack on amazon.

[mcounci2]

https://www.amazon.com/Eowpower-15Pcs-2-8mm-Brass-Assorted/dp/B0748DCBHQ/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?dchild=1&keywords=brass+rods&qid=1619456072&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEyT1ZZTFlQNjRCRFVIJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwMzYzNzU4M1VBSEdTWkpKNlNVUCZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwNTk3Njk4MVJMT0pQM0k1WVZIOCZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=

[Stuart_G]

25 minutes ago, sm_watts said:

I'm about to start a build with some Mizuno 900 Forged heads and Recoil 95's.  I'm still experimenting with an 8 iron and seeing how much lead tape to get just the right feel, but I anticipate wanting to add between 2-6 grams on some heads to match swing weights.  I've read some reviews (including on golfworks) about people having to bore out the shaft tips a little to get graphite tip weights to fit properly.  Does anyone have any experience with Recoil shafts in particular?  What brand/style of tip weights fit the best, or would you recommend?  Or will I end up having to bore out the tips a little no matter what brand I buy?

 

For 2gm and 4gm I'll use the lead tip weights for graphite from golfworks.com

 

for anything heavier I use these (actually I just get the biggest ones and cut down as needed for less weight).

https://store.billybobsgolf.com/product/brass-swingweight-for-heavy-graphite-shafts-with-small-mandrel-hole/

or

https://store.billybobsgolf.com/product/brass-swingweights-for-graphite-shafts/

 

For these brass weights, the positive is that they take up only a tiny amount of hosel space unlike many other styles of graphite tip weights.

 

The negative is that they are a pain to remove from the shaft if you ever need to pull and change the weight since the epoxy from the head install will result in them being effectively glued into the shaft.  So make sure you know what you got the amount right the first time.

 

 

[sm_watts]

15 minutes ago, mcounci2 said:

https://www.amazon.com/Eowpower-15Pcs-2-8mm-Brass-Assorted/dp/B0748DCBHQ/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?dchild=1&keywords=brass+rods&qid=1619456072&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEyT1ZZTFlQNjRCRFVIJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwMzYzNzU4M1VBSEdTWkpKNlNVUCZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwNTk3Njk4MVJMT0pQM0k1WVZIOCZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=

Looks like these come in a pack ranging from 2mm to 8mm thick; what size works the best for graphite shafts?

[Stuart_G]

46 minutes ago, sm_watts said:

Looks like these come in a pack ranging from 2mm to 8mm thick; what size works the best for graphite shafts?

 

For reference, the diameters of the two billy bob weights are 3.8mm and 4.4mm.

 

But as an FYI - the billy bob's weights have air channels to help prevent an airlock when gluing the head onto the shaft.

Edited April 26, 2021 by Stuart_G

[TwistedSister]

Ebay listing number. 

201289691432

[sm_watts]

58 minutes ago, dhacker56 said:

Ebay listing number. 

201289691432

I've seen these on golfworks too, but I refer back to this question:

[TwistedSister]

7 minutes ago, sm_watts said:

I've seen these on golfworks too, but I refer back to this question:

Well they are just under 1/8" in diameter.  I think they will fit 95's  if not take a 1/8" drill bit and drill the tip slowly.  They easily went into my 660's

[Stuart_G]

4 hours ago, sm_watts said:

I've seen these on golfworks too, but I refer back to this question:

 

The bigger problem is how much of the hosel space they take up and reduce the insertion depth of the shaft.   That can weaken the glue joint  (and requires tipping of the taper tip shafts to maintain a proper fit between the shaft and bore).  One can get away with it for a deep hosels (need at least 1.25" bore depth - preferably more).

 

Drilling out the ID of the recoils isn't that big of a deal.  I've gone to 11/64" (4.4mm) with no problems in the 95's and 110's when using the larger diameter billy bob's weights.   Just work up in size slowly (not all at once) and make sure the drill bit doesn't get too hot to touch.

 

Edited April 26, 2021 by Stuart_G

[sm_watts]

2 hours ago, Stuart_G said:

 

The bigger problem is how much of the hosel space they take up and reduce the insertion depth of the shaft.   That can weaken the glue joint  (and requires tipping of the taper tip shafts to maintain a proper fit between the shaft and bore).  One can get away with it for a deep hosels (need at least 1.25" bore depth - preferably more).

 

 

That's also one of my fears with the bigger heads on those tungsten weights.  I stopped by Dicks on my way home today and checked my 8 iron: with NO extra weight on it at all, it was about 1/2 point higher than my 7 iron that has who-knows-what tip weight in it with a KBS Tour 90 stiff shaft.  However, the entire club feels a little light to swing, so I'm still going to add a couple of grams and try it out.

[dmbrill719]

I just got done building a set of Honma's with Recoil 125's.  This is my third build for my personal clubs using heavy graphite.  I've used recoils and steelfibers in the previous builds.

 

Anyway, in this last build, I abandoned tip weights all together and just went with lead tape.  Unfortunately with graphite its tough to get a tip weight that either doesn't add length (lead) or basically become a fixed piece of the shaft (brass).

 

I've used the lead weights before, but seeing as how only some of the heads needed weights, I wound up having to tip trim the shafts a bit so that they all still played the same.  That then resulted in a set of shafts that weren't consistent in length if I wanted to put them into another set of heads.  I'd rather not have a set of shafts that would only work with 1 specific set of heads.  Just my thoughts from my recent builds.  Good luck.

[Sparty4202]

20 hours ago, sm_watts said:

I'm about to start a build with some Mizuno 900 Forged heads and Recoil 95's.  I'm still experimenting with an 8 iron and seeing how much lead tape to get just the right feel, but I anticipate wanting to add between 2-6 grams on some heads to match swing weights.  I've read some reviews (including on golfworks) about people having to bore out the shaft tips a little to get graphite tip weights to fit properly.  Does anyone have any experience with Recoil shafts in particular?  What brand/style of tip weights fit the best, or would you recommend?  Or will I end up having to bore out the tips a little no matter what brand I buy?

The Billy Bob 1/8” OD weights that Howard talks about work great. I’ve used them on a number of graphite iron shaft build. Also it is very easy to open up the hole with an 1/8” drill, there is plenty of material and if done properly this will not affect the shaft integratey. 

[Ger21]

I just bought some from Ebay, #271581390472, that I'm using on some Fujikura Pro Irons. From the listing, it looks like the diameter is .148? The hole in the Fujikura's is 5/32", or .15625, so they should work fine. I'll trim them to the final weights I need, which will vary from 2-6g.

[sm_watts]

30 minutes ago, Ger21 said:

I just bought some from Ebay, #271581390472, that I'm using on some Fujikura Pro Irons. From the listing, it looks like the diameter is .148? The hole in the Fujikura's is 5/32", or .15625, so they should work fine. I'll trim them to the final weights I need, which will vary from 2-6g.

How tall are the heads on those?  Seems like you would lose a fair amount of insertion depth.

[Ger21]

I don't have them yet, but going by the picture, I'm guessing about 3/16". I only need one at the full weight, and plan on removing the weight from the end on the rest, so all but one should end up about 1/8" or less.

[Stuart_G]

5 hours ago, sm_watts said:

How tall are the heads on those?  Seems like you would lose a fair amount of insertion depth.

 

Can't speak to the ebay ones but they look the same as the ones from golfworks and those are 1/4"

 

[sm_watts]

Here's the next question - What if I wanted to raise the overall static weight of the club a little without changing the swing weight?  I haven't had a chance to actually hit my test 8 iron again (it's nice today, so hopefully this afternoon), but I'm thinking more than changing the swing weight, I might just want to add 6-10 grams of total weight.  Is there a magic relationship between how much weight I add to the head and how much I add to the grip end (planning on putting some lead weight directly on the shaft just below the grip) to keep roughly the same swing weight?  Like, 2 grams to the head for every 4 grams to the grip?

 

Or I could read the VERY FIRST POST on the pinned swingweight related to parts thread: if 2 grams on the head raises 1 point, would 5 grams on the grip cancel it out?

 

OR do I add lead weight 14" from the butt end of the shaft? (courtesy of Howard's old DIY Driver Tune Up thread)

Edited April 28, 2021 by sm_watts

[ARL67]

Since a SW scale has its fulcrum at 14" from the butt, adding weight at that point should have zero affect on SW measurement.

[Stuart_G]

3 hours ago, sm_watts said:

Here's the next question - What if I wanted to raise the overall static weight of the club a little without changing the swing weight?  I haven't had a chance to actually hit my test 8 iron again (it's nice today, so hopefully this afternoon), but I'm thinking more than changing the swing weight, I might just want to add 6-10 grams of total weight.  Is there a magic relationship between how much weight I add to the head and how much I add to the grip end (planning on putting some lead weight directly on the shaft just below the grip) to keep roughly the same swing weight?  Like, 2 grams to the head for every 4 grams to the grip?

 

Or I could read the VERY FIRST POST on the pinned swingweight related to parts thread: if 2 grams on the head raises 1 point, would 5 grams on the grip cancel it out?

 

OR do I add lead weight 14" from the butt end of the shaft? (courtesy of Howard's old DIY Driver Tune Up thread)

 

I don't think there really is any right or wrong location.   Howard's test and the use of the 14" point is really in the context of testing if you should get a heavier shaft.   Not a lot of people would want to use that as a longer term solution.   But the important point is that whatever you do, you shouldn't try to avoid the need to refit the head weight,  i.e. don't assume you should try and keep the same swing weight value you were previously fit to with the original weight shafts.

 

If you're not interested in increasing the static weight with those shafts (not replace those shafts with a heavier shaft), then I'd probably suggest trying butt weights first (or a heavier grip of the correct size).  That will increase the static weight with out noticeably effecting the MOI.  You'd be less likely to need to change the head weight with that route - but you should test to be sure anyways.

[sm_watts]

7 hours ago, sm_watts said:

Here's the next question - What if I wanted to raise the overall static weight of the club a little without changing the swing weight?  

Alright, I had a chance to hit my test 8 iron this afternoon with lead tape here, there, and everywhere in all combinations I could think of.  In the end, it was an easy call: I didn't like any lead tape on the club, period.  It all felt weird and bad.  Sooooo, I'm going to go ahead with the build with Recoils, but weigh all the heads first and only add 2-4 grams of weight here or there if needed to keep a 6-8 gram difference between each iron.  I need more epoxy and could always use more grip tape, so I'll just go with the little ones from golfworks in one order.

[Ger21]

Just to follow up, the weights I bought are actually Golfworks GW01076, and are .29" long. Longer than I was expecting.

[sm_watts]

17 hours ago, Ger21 said:

Just to follow up, the weights I bought are actually Golfworks GW01076, and are .29" long. Longer than I was expecting.

Good to know, thanks for helping with this!

[ARL67]

The Wishon / Diamond Golf  9g tungsten are still the best IMO.  The butt end is only 1/8" deep so does not affect insertion depth much. 

 

The rubber tungsten ones are a good 1/4" deep on the butt, and usually too thick requiring either drilling out the shaft tip, or sanding down the rubber stalk to fit.

Edited April 30, 2021 by ARL67

[Red4282]

On 4/26/2021 at 6:07 PM, Stuart_G said:

 

The bigger problem is how much of the hosel space they take up and reduce the insertion depth of the shaft.   That can weaken the glue joint  (and requires tipping of the taper tip shafts to maintain a proper fit between the shaft and bore).  One can get away with it for a deep hosels (need at least 1.25" bore depth - preferably more).

 

Drilling out the ID of the recoils isn't that big of a deal.  I've gone to 11/64" (4.4mm) with no problems in the 95's and 110's when using the larger diameter billy bob's weights.   Just work up in size slowly (not all at once) and make sure the drill bit doesn't get too hot to touch.

 

Stuart, instead of starting a new thread, ill necro this and ask you a question about this. Building a set for my aging father. Gone graphite shafts. With a dry fit, they are swingweighting light. C8. Bought some 6g lead weights for graphite from golfworks. Those weights take away nearly a 1/4 inch of bore depth? The irons should be fine, almost 1.5 inch bore depth… Will this be an issue with say a 3 wood with only one inch bore depth?

[Stuart_G]

10 minutes ago, Red4282 said:

Stuart, instead of starting a new thread, ill necro this and ask you a question about this. Building a set for my aging father. Gone graphite shafts. With a dry fit, they are swingweighting light. C8. Bought some 6g lead weights for graphite from golfworks. Those weights take away nearly a 1/4 inch of bore depth? The irons should be fine, almost 1.5 inch bore depth… Will this be an issue with say a 3 wood with only one inch bore depth?

 

Yes, If you do get a full 1.5" insertion depth w/o the tip weights, then you most likely will be fine.  I like to make sure I get at least a full 1" of the shaft inserted after considering how much space the weights take up.  So if there really is 1" insertion depth with the 3wd to start with that could be a problem.   But what fairway only has 1" insertion depth before the weight?  That's extremely rare.  Ping adapters are about the only thing I can think of that would be in that ball park.

 

[Red4282]

41 minutes ago, Stuart_G said:

 

Yes, If you do get a full 1.5" insertion depth w/o the tip weights, then you most likely will be fine.  I like to make sure I get at least a full 1" of the shaft inserted after considering how much space the weights take up.  So if there really is 1" insertion depth with the 3wd to start with that could be a problem.   But what fairway only has 1" insertion depth before the weight?  That's extremely rare.  Ping adapters are about the only thing I can think of that would be in that ball park.

 

Old school. Taylormade v steel, .350, 1 inch deep. He loves it but it has a steel shaft, so switching to graphite. Gonna just go no tip weight c8 shouldnt be too bad. 

Edited February 10, 2022 by Red4282

[Stuart_G]

7 hours ago, Red4282 said:

Old school. Taylormade v steel, .350, 1 inch deep. He loves it but it has a steel shaft, so switching to graphite. Gonna just go no tip weight c8 shouldnt be too bad. 

 

I guess that's old school - but nothing wrong with that if he likes it.   Just be careful to make sure the reason he likes it so much wasn't in part due to the heavier shaft.

 

You should never swing weight during a build by any old swing weight value when changing shaft weight.  There is no way to know how any value will or wont work until they can test it out.  So swing weight (or really head weight) should always be refit on the range with lead tape after such a change.   Then you can measure the value of the test club and use it for the rest of the set (in the case of irons).    irons and woods should be fit independently.  Don't use value from one for the other.

 

 

If needed, you can still use these tip weights  (or of course there is also the option of just leaving the lead tape on the head after you refit for head weight).

 

https://billybobsgolf.com/product/brass-swingweights-for-graphite-shafts/

or

https://billybobsgolf.com/product/brass-swingweight-for-heavy-graphite-shafts-with-small-mandrel-hole/

 

Edited February 10, 2022 by Stuart_G

[JCAG]

Billy Bobs flange on the brass weights is so thin that it is not an issue on insertion depth. Also the air hole is a nice feature. I know some that will epoxy the weight and let it cure and check the air vent is clear before assembly.