Economy club builders where you at?

[BabyCarrot]

Economy club builders where you at? You do things like search price low to high on sites Monark, Diamond tour, grips4less, hireko, valuegolf, golfworks. Use a pipe cutter and Dremel to prep and trim. Get wet with regrip starter packs for the first time. Measure lengths with a tape measure. And the list of experiences goes on. That’s why I’m starting this thread. To talk about any experience we've had as a new club builder. Preferences, new discoveries, fails, regrets and current tinker.

 

I got into building March of 2020.

 

Latest build is an Ancer 5 wood with a Grafalloy supercharged blue stiff. My hosel finish looks like a**. Built to 42.5 edge of grip cap and was D4. Added 8 grams just beneath the grip to make D2. It’s a fairway finder however the face looks like it sits closed at neutral address.

 

What are you all up to?

[Red4282]

10 hours ago, BabyCarrot said:

Economy club builders where you at? You do things like search price low to high on sites Monark, Diamond tour, grips4less, hireko, valuegolf, golfworks. Use a pipe cutter and Dremel to prep and trim. Get wet with regrip starter packs for the first time. Measure lengths with a tape measure. And the list of experiences goes on. That’s why I’m starting this thread. To talk about any experience we've had as a new club builder. Preferences, new discoveries, fails, regrets and current tinker.

 

I got into building March of 2020.

 

Latest build is an Ancer 5 wood with a Grafalloy supercharged blue stiff. My hosel finish looks like a**. Built to 42.5 edge of grip cap and was D4. Added 8 grams just beneath the grip to make D2. It’s a fairway finder however the face looks like it sits closed at neutral address.

 

What are you all up to?

Do not use a dremel to tip prep… two things likely to happen… it will come out TOO smooth and the epoxy wont take, or it is very easy to take out too much of the shaft.  For lengths just get you a 48” yardstick at lowes for like 15 bucks. Much better than using tape measure. I would also advise you to learn to blow grips on and off. Will save you a lot off money, mess, and time.

[ckay]

When I was younger, I was lucky enough to have free reign on my father's workbench and his tools.  Vice, drill press, bench grinder, air compressor, and anything else.  Then came a lull in my 20s and 30s when I had stuff done in the interest of time and lack of any equipment at all.  Problem is I always found something I wasn't happy with whether it was crooked grips or dried epoxy.  Little things, but if I am paying you to do it, do it perfectly.

 

Then came Covid, and I was looking for things to keep me sane.  Got back into clubmaking with existing golf clubs I have had.  Had a set of MP33s stripped, and then I went searching for a swingweight scale.  Unfortunately, I guess everyone else had a similar idea as I couldn't find any in stock.  Luckily I found one on FB Marketplace and had the person ship it to me for a reasonable price when factoring in shipping cost.  Rebuilt them to proper swingweights, and finished them with BB&F ferrules.

 

I have since rebuilt 3 sets of irons, did a blind bore install on an old 975D, bunch of wood shafts on adaptors but that was always something I did on my own.  Also had a nasty rock ding on the leading edge of a custom wedge that bothered me for quite a while.  I ended up hammering the metal back where it came from and smoothed it out with some flat files.  I weighed it before and after and did not lose any weight so I was very happy with the end result.

 

Since then my lean set up consists of:

 

1-Golfsmith swingweight scale

2-Various BB&F ferrules

3-Variety of lead tip weights

4-Tape and solvent

5-Epoxy

6-Ferrule installer which was a waste of $

7-Various grits of sandpaper

8-Ball peen hammer

9-File set with a variety of radii

10-Hacksaw with a bunch of extra blades(save yourself the hassle and use a new blade when cutting graphite)

11-Shaft cutter for steel shafts

12-Hosel brushes, buy a number of them because paying Golfworks shipping is the worst

13-Digital gram scale

14-Acetone

15-Old clean t-shirts for clean up

16-Mini butane torch

17-V grip, must have over the long run

 

Aside from the golf specific stuff, I found that Harbor Freight is a great place for incidentals.  It's inexpensive and they replace anything that isn't up to snuff.  For organization, I have one of their tool boxes with different compartments with lids and it was like $7 that I am able to organize weights, ferrules, sandpaper strips, loose grips, etc.

 

https://www.harborfreight.com/12-inch-polypropylene-toolbox-96602.html

 

Very happy with my set up, and aside from the swingweight scale and ferrules I am in for very few bucks and can handle anything I need to for myself or a friend.

 

[mcounci2]

Used to obsess over swingweight, and try and correct for the grip tricking the scale. 

 

Once I got over that, and started focusing nearly 100% on the head weight and shaft length contribution to swingweight, my clubs got a LOT better. 

 

Also- the fact that I ever tried to make a ferrule look nice without a belt sander....

[Ger21]

A little over 30 years ago, I discovered Golfsmith in the back of a GOLF magazine, and embarked on years of low tech building for me, friends, and coworkers.

I've never owned a swingweight scale. I'm not that sensitive to swingweight, and can adjust to most anything fairly quickly.

For my last two "good" sets I've built, I bought a kitchen scale to weigh the heads, and used tip weights to get even 7g increments. But that's as far as close to "swingweighting" as I get.

 

I've always cut steel shafts with a $10 tubing cutter.

I have a full woodworking shop, and use those tools for most of my work. I cut graphite shafts on my miter saw or table saw. Yesterday I used my band saw, as the other saws were buried under junk.

I have a combination 12" disc / 6"x36" belt sander that I use for prepping steel tips.

For graphite tip prep, I just scrape the paint with a razor knife. No sanding. The exception is for my current Fuji Pro shafts, which needed to be sanded from .370 to fit a .355 taper. Just lightly sanded by spinning the shaft in my hands, using the 6" belt.

For grips, I just use a rubber shaft clamp in my woodworking vise. I've actually gripped most shafts  (100+) with just the rubber clamp, clamped to a table with a woodworking clamp.

 

I've always used lacquer thinner for grip solvent, as I always have a gallon or two in the shop.

 

I always do my ferules with nothing more than acetone and a t-shirt. I get results as good as any I've seen.

 

I don't own a shaft extractor. When I've need to pull graphite shafts, I just cut them off and drill them out. If I want to save the shaft, I'll pay a shop to pull it.

 

Edit: I also measure with a tape measure.

Edited August 22, 2021 by Ger21

[weavej1]

Let me know if you hit these new lows.

 

I have pulled good grips and installed less desirable grips before selling .

 

I’ve bought clubs for the sole purpose of pulling the shafts for other projects.

 

 

 

[Socrates]

I've got a lot of good and expensive tools (I never did get around to buying a freq. machine for some reason) and although I use some of them some of the time, you can do a lot of really good things with just a few basic tools.

 

Here are the basics:

• several X-Acto knives (cutting stuff and scraping shafts)
• good drill with a good variety of sizes
• 3" vice anchored to something sturdy
• dremel with 1/4" stone (I buy them buy the in qty's of 50 from an industrial supplier) to clean hosels
• 30" belt sander
• 1/8" cut-off wheel attached to some kind of motor (you can use other things to cut with, but this is the way to go)
• SW scale
• gram scale
• digital caliper
• 48" measuring device (with 60º block at end)
• Acetone, thinner, 100% isopropol alcohol
• metal files (good ones)
• 100 and 60 grit foam sanding blocks

That's about it.  Other than the SW scale, you can buy the rest cheap locally and don't cost a lot.  The best tool you have is your brain.  Don't be afraid to Google stuff and make stuff to fit your needs.   I've made a ton of things from scrap because I needed something that I couldn't get immediately or didn't exist.  Doesn't have to be pretty - just functional.

 

Edit: Shaft puller.  Doesn't need to be top of the line.  Just has to work.

Edited August 23, 2021 by Socrates

[Nessism]

There is a big difference between being a clubmaker and a club gluer, and I encourage everyone to be the former.

 

In the world of $50 a dozen balls and that much or more for one round of golf in my view it doesn't make sense to build on the super cheap.  

 

A nice vice bolted to a work bench is a given.

 

Specialized equipment include a club length ruler and swingweight scale.  Plus a good shaft clamp.

 

A bench grinder with cut off disc is hard to beat, and like the workbench and vice, it has multi purposes that goes well beyond building clubs.

 

Supplies include grip tape, tip weights, shafting epoxy, sandpaper roll and cartridge rolls w/mandrel.  Of course, a drill motor to spin the mandrel is needed.

 

Depending on how you shop you can spend several hundred on all this stuff.  But it pays off in the long run because now you can reshaft at will.  It's a great feeling to be self sufficient.  

[bvanlieu]

Good points by Nessism, some places you don't want to skimp 🙂 I still make cuts with my dremel but I don't build in quantity  else I would have a bench grinder and appropriate wheel.

 

Simple tools are fine, spend money on quality parts when it makes sense. Biggest investment for me was a Mechanix loft/lie machine. 

 

Next is a good vice and proper clamp for removing graphite shafts since I am near 100% graphite now (no more heat and twist 😄 )

 

Spend money on proper ferrules, weights etc...to make assembly clean and dial in the specs you need. 

 

- b

 

[Stuart_G]

Being able to accurately measure playing length is important but there is no need to buy one.  DIY rulers are cheap, easy to build and just as accurate.

 

For graphite tip prep, a basic flat file is best tool one might have around the shop already to do the job.

 

 

14 hours ago, Ger21 said:

Yesterday I used my band saw, as the other saws were buried under junk.

 

I always use a band saw for graphite and prefer it over the table saw due the thinner blade.  You just want to keep a dedicated blade for it as after a few shafts, they get too dull to work well again with wood.

 

 

[joostin]

As someone who spent a long time in an apartment without much space or a workbench, and developed some barebones building skills for my own clubs and some family, here's the deal:  Buy real club building equipment when you want to make life easier.  Otherwise true economy can be done as below without heads ever coming loose and tight specs if you have the time, meticulousness, and enough handiness.  Even with a bigger space and garage now but no need to build many clubs, I still go pretty barebones because of habit.

 

- Measuring:  Gram scale (to 0.1g), 48" ruler (with mm), DIY fixture for ruler at 60°, masking tape, knife/scissor edge, fine point Sharpie, online or Excel swingweight calculator, calipers are helpful but not needed.. no tape measure eyeball technique if you want precision.

 

- Grips:  Grip saving tool, solvent, double sided tape, hook blade, heat gun for tape removal, DIY grip scraper if tape gets stuck in grip 😒.  No vice needed, just elbow grease, newspaper on ground, alcohol, paper towel, gloves, no air compressor needed.  We're talking barebones here!

 

- Ferrules:  Blade, acetone, industrial paper towel, no sanding belt needed, little pick set to scuff up inside if ferrule is a little loose, hot water if a little tight.  For correct sizing this is where calipers help.

 

- Steel shafts:  Pipe cutter, old shaft to support wall when cutting, easy on pressure to prolong wheel life, flat file, oven flame, yup!, don't even need a torch (as long as you have a gas oven of course, I've even protected heads that had elastomer with a wet rag tied around, successfully haha)... oven mitt, work gloves.  Again, barebones here, not building for customers!  Epoxy, stick

 

- Graphite shafts:  Rotary tool (don't need Dremel brand... Harbor Freight!) with cutoff wheels, or hand saw with rod saw blade and masking tape, sand paper to prep tip.  If you don't have a shaft puller, DIY one, or just take it to a shop, or cut it off and drill it out with a cordless drill and drill bit set.  I've pulled a few in the past with a vice, rubber shaft clamp, heat gun, and adjustable wrench as a pry bar (small pry, adjust, repeat) but wouldn't trust it if not a straight pull.  Otherwise "value" puller and torch.

 

- Heads:  Set of small round and half round files, sand paper, and alcohol to clean out hosel, beer or soda can and little precision scissors or X-acto knife to make shims, good ol' roll of lead tape

 

Hireko, Monark, other is fine, but used route on ebay/other is my preference. 

 

No workbench, no vice, no torch, no SW scale, just resourcefulness, being detailed, and elbow grease... That's economy my friends!

[mvhoffman]

I started golfing in 2004 at the ripe age of 24.  After getting a price for club re-gripping I quickly learned how to do it.  Over the years with help from Tom Wishon, @RyanBarathWRX @Stuart_G, @Nessism, @Howard_Jones and numerous others here on GolfWRX. I learned the art of club building.  I'm not a certified anything.  I consider myself a member of the Basement Builders here at GolfWRX lol.  The journey continues with posts and messaging between members.  I will be a WRX'er for life.  

 

My Basement Build shop supplies:

Workbench

Vise

Golf Works Swing Weight Scale

Grinder(mainly for sharpening lawnmower blade, but sometimes a wedge and polishing)

Drill Press (used for mounting ski bindings, but drilled out 1 hosel with it so far)

Air Compressor

Measuring tape decal on top of bench

Tape: Double sided, Blue, Standard masking for build up.

Solvent: Ronsonol lighter fluid

Glue: Golf Works 24hr, JB Weld(preferred), Gorilla Glue

Accessories: milk crate full of grips, toll box full of ferrules, 2 pipe cutter, acetone, Goo Gone, sand paper, Lowe's blue bucket filled with extra shafts, bin with extra/old heads

Edited August 23, 2021 by mvhoffman

[SwingBlues]

I started building and repairing my own clubs ever since a local Pro shop destroyed by $100 shaft, may be about 7 years ago. As well, recently, I pulled off a grip on one old shaft he built for me as a driver (An Aldila Protopype which was hard to get) and which he also destroyed, it had a metal extension...this was a new shaft. SOB. Now, NO ONE touches my clubs...

 

Having said that:

* Invest in a foldable work bench. My wife found a $5 one at a garage sale - best $5 ever spent. It's ages, lil rust but it's still in great shape.

 

Must have tools. I get most of my tools from either GolfWorks (GW) or Harbor freight including:

* Harbor Freight circular chop saw

* GW graphite shaft puller (can't tell you how many times this has come in useful). Back in the days when I was switching OEM adapters (but no more, thank you All-Fit Universal).

* GW Quick-Release shaft clamp. I use to have a vice and rubber shaft holder but the quick clamp solves everything and as the name says, quick clamp & release. I rarely use the vice.

* Harbor Freight 50" belt sander for ferrule work

* Cordless drill & a drill bit wire brush for irons (source bit from GW)

* Propane torch. 2 schools of thoughts - go the blue propane commonly found at Home Depot/Lowes or use the micro one. The latter gives you smaller flame but you have to refill its tank. I use the larger blue propane torch.

* Swing weight scale. I got the economy version from GW.

* Golfworks "Exact measuring tool" to measure shafts and club lengths

* Digital weight scale - pick any jewelry weight scales with 2 decimal precision and 500gm max limit. It's good enough to weight my driver and iron heads and I like the better precision. Source, ebay and it comes with a 200gm measuring weight to ascertain the precision.

 

 

Must have supplies:

* Masking tape. Use this a lot

* Heat shield gel from GW. Just in case.

* Grip solvents and double sided tape from GW

* Acetone from any Home Depot

* High impact, max strength GW epoxy and gun. This was a recent change based on experience and also talking to another pro club builder here. I had issues with the slow set GW epoxy but this solved my problem. 3M epoxy is popular here but no experience with it.

* Graphite & iron shaft tip weights from Billy Bobs.

* Collared and non-collared ferrules from Holy Grail (ebay), Billys or GW

* Fishing line. Use this for the dry fitting if you want the head to stay still.

* Sand paper. Anything from 5000 to 50 grit. I use  2000 and above to fix any scratches to the driver heads and anything below to work on graphite tips. For prepping irons tips, I just use the belt sander, its WAY FASTER. Graphite tips, I hand prep with sand paper.

* Hobby model paint - Black, white, semi-gloss to flat. Great to touch up any nicks to driver or putter. If you have Ping driver, might be best to buy the paint specialized for this head (google search it).

 

Here's another thing, shipping with GolfWorks is expensive ($8.99) if you buy 1 or 2 things. Try Billy Bob's first as their shipping is more reasonable, things like tip weights

 

Yeah, if you need help, GolfWRX is a great source. Great posters like like @Stuart_G @Nessism has been great help to me in the past, thanks guys 👍

Edited August 23, 2021 by SwingBlues

[rsballer10]

18 hours ago, Nessism said:

There is a big difference between being a clubmaker and a club gluer, and I encourage everyone to be the former.

 

In the world of $50 a dozen balls and that much or more for one round of golf in my view it doesn't make sense to build on the super cheap.  

 

A nice vice bolted to a work bench is a given.

 

Specialized equipment include a club length ruler and swingweight scale.  Plus a good shaft clamp.

 

A bench grinder with cut off disc is hard to beat, and like the workbench and vice, it has multi purposes that goes well beyond building clubs.

 

Supplies include grip tape, tip weights, shafting epoxy, sandpaper roll and cartridge rolls w/mandrel.  Of course, a drill motor to spin the mandrel is needed.

 

Depending on how you shop you can spend several hundred on all this stuff.  But it pays off in the long run because now you can reshaft at will.  It's a great feeling to be self sufficient.  

 

Nailed it. I think it's important to start somewhere, but at some point to get a decent build the correct tools need to become a part of the build. Couple thoughts:

1). I prefer a chop saw with a tile blade. Definitely tape all graphite shafts before cutting them, no matter what tool used. I've never been able to make a straight cut with a hand tool.

2). Do not cheap out on epoxy. Buy the highest strength you can find, avoid 5 min epoxies for full swing clubs. It's not worth taking a chance, and there isn't much work time. You don't need the epoxy gun, but I prefer it because again this is not the area to take chances. At a minimum, hobby club builders need to make sure that our clubs are properly bonded and do not cause injury to others.

3). Iso alcohol is your friend. Clean all surfaces after sanding, especially surfaces with epoxy. Hosel/shaft prep goes along with point #2. Acetone is useful when alcohol doesn't do the trick, but I only use it when I absolutely have to.

4). Get a bunch of different grit sandpapers. Turning down ferrules does not affect the playability - but is a clear way to spot a hack and glue job. Start with a coarse grit, and work up to a 1k/2k sandpaper for a smooth finish.

5). Buy a $10 kitchen scale, or a cheap swing weight scale, or both. Anyone can glue a club together like Nessim says above, but building clubs is more than that. Being able to weigh clubheads before assembly makes QC/swing weighting a lot easier.

6). Get a reliable club length ruler. I recommend the mitchell even if it's a little pricey - you will never have to buy it again. I recommend mitchell for most tools, very simple to use and very high quality.

 

Everyone starts via the hack and glue method, but like Nessim I would encourage people to expand past that. The details are what turn a playable build into a good build.

 

[Mych]

I was fortunate enough to live near two golf stores that closed (first a Golf Galaxy, then a Golfsmith... then another Golf Galaxy opened up about a block from the old one). 

 

Each time one closed, I bought a bunch of their repair supplies. Adapters, ferrules, tool boxes, epoxy guns, tape, solvent, tools, swingweight scale, rulers, shims, etc.  Also bought the Golfworks club repair bible for a couple bucks and spent some time reading it when I was starting the hobby.

 

I agree with lots of the things stated before... especially about Harbor freight being a great source for tools you want to keep in your golf kit (like hook blades, sanding stuff, pipe cutter, drill bits, pipe cleaners). 

 

The two big missing pieces in my tool setup are a belt sander and a loft/lie machine. For shaft extraction, I made one from a Harbor Freight can crusher a few years ago and it's still going strong. Instructions are posted somewhere deep in the guts of the forum.

 

 

 

 

Edited August 23, 2021 by Mych

[webwarmiller]

Started building (late '90s) when we still had the 'big 3' of quality components: Golfsmith, Dynacraft, & Golfworks.  I recall pulling my first set of steel shafts by heating the hosel and then standing on the head to twist the shaft off.  Swingweight scale was probably the first club building specific tool/device I bought and at some point I was lucky enough to acquire a digiflex freq meter for cheap.  Switched to blowing grips on way back and couldn't imagine ever using solvent again. 

 

I'd say it's hard to be an 'economy' builder today as component costs have skyrocketed.   It was pretty easy to build a quality set of irons at ~ $20/club back then you could get plain ole Dynamic shafts for $8, name brand grips for $2, and decent heads for $10 ($20 for forged).  Fond memories of Dynacraft tour caliber and GS tour cavity.  Outside of Golfworks and some niche higher priced components, all that's left is a bunch of crappy component heads. 

[Ger21]

3 hours ago, rsballer10 said:

but at some point to get a decent build the correct tools need to become a part of the build.

A skilled builder can do a great job regardless of the tools used. Expensive tools just let you do it a little faster, and a little easier.

[drumdude96]

On 8/22/2021 at 5:26 PM, weavej1 said:

Let me know if you hit these new lows.

 

I have pulled good grips and installed less desirable grips before selling .

 

I’ve bought clubs for the sole purpose of pulling the shafts for other projects.

 

 

 

Three years ago I bought a driver just for the Rogue Silver 125 MSI shaft. Paid 90 bucks for a 2015 Big Bertha when the shaft alone was worth about $300 or so. I've also swapped grips before selling. Ain't no shame in my game.

[BabyCarrot]

Thanks everyone for the your time, energy and input. All great advice. 

 

For me, club building is all about the experience and each one off club build is a personal journey of self discovery. 

 

My dad has been into RC planes since childhood and has a complete workshop for it. My brother is a mechanic with his own set up. So I figured I would make club building by constructive hobby. 

 

Accumulating so much niche stuff seems like a burden sometimes but man is it nice to get it done yourself.

 

Thanks again all.

 

 

 

 

[rsballer10]

13 hours ago, Ger21 said:

A skilled builder can do a great job regardless of the tools used. Expensive tools just let you do it a little faster, and a little easier.

Who said expensive? I said correct tools.

[JCAG]

On 8/22/2021 at 8:05 PM, Nessism said:

There is a big difference between being a clubmaker and a club gluer, and I encourage everyone to be the former.

 

In the world of $50 a dozen balls and that much or more for one round of golf in my view it doesn't make sense to build on the super cheap.  

 

A nice vice bolted to a work bench is a given.

 

Specialized equipment include a club length ruler and swingweight scale.  Plus a good shaft clamp.

 

A bench grinder with cut off disc is hard to beat, and like the workbench and vice, it has multi purposes that goes well beyond building clubs.

 

Supplies include grip tape, tip weights, shafting epoxy, sandpaper roll and cartridge rolls w/mandrel.  Of course, a drill motor to spin the mandrel is needed.

 

Depending on how you shop you can spend several hundred on all this stuff.  But it pays off in the long run because now you can reshaft at will.  It's a great feeling to be self sufficient.  

Sound advice.

[ChristopherMcDonald]

I've regripped a lot of clubs for friends, built a couple for them as well. Put together a RBZ 3 wood for a friend not too long ago. I personally can't hit it very far so watching him nail the green from 265 out on a par 5 was fun to see. 

 

Currently on the workbench is my PXG driving iron that I bent to around 22*. PXG unfortunately ignored my request for .5" over standard so it came in the same length as my 5 iron. Going to have to extend it and re-grip. Probably going to do the rest of my clubs at the same time. Just swingweight'd everything last week so getting really close to having this bag set.

 

I got a modest setup for myself, all of it is mobile/can be torn down since I live in a small apartment. Off the top of my head it consists of:

1. Suction Vice with shaft attachment for the clamp (harbor freight, cheap and works well)

2. Dremel for steel shafts

3. Economy GolfWorks saw for graphite

4. Economy GolfWorks Swingweight scale

5. Lots of tip weights/lead tape

6. Kitchen torch (Jo Chef is the best I've come across, Amazon and cheap)

7. Solvent/Grip tape

8. Stockpile of everyone's preferred grips for me and my friends

9. Blades/Hook Blades

[Nessism]

On 8/23/2021 at 5:18 PM, drumdude96 said:

Three years ago I bought a driver just for the Rogue Silver 125 MSI shaft. Paid 90 bucks for a 2015 Big Bertha when the shaft alone was worth about $300 or so. I've also swapped grips before selling. Ain't no shame in my game.

 

I did a similar thing; bought a Wilson Triton  just for the Rogue 125.  Still using it to this day.

 

Once you get your shop set up the worlds your oyster as far as shaft changes and such.

 

When shopping clubs on ebay you can get good deals sometimes on clubs with mismatched shafts.  For example, I bought some Mizuno Hot Metal's with X-stiff shafts.  Very few GI iron players also use X-flex.  I swapped the shafts myself and loved those clubs.  Of course, being that this is GolfWRX, I was able to easily sell the X shafts too.  Good fun.

[Forrest Sanchez]

On 8/22/2021 at 6:46 PM, ckay said:

When I was younger, I was lucky enough to have free reign on my father's workbench and his tools.  Vice, drill press, bench grinder, air compressor, and anything else.  Then came a lull in my 20s and 30s when I had stuff done in the interest of time and lack of any equipment at all.  Problem is I always found something I wasn't happy with whether it was crooked grips or dried epoxy.  Little things, but if I am paying you to do it, do it perfectly.

 

Then came Covid, and I was looking for things to keep me sane.  Got back into clubmaking with existing golf clubs I have had.  Had a set of MP33s stripped, and then I went searching for a swingweight scale.  Unfortunately, I guess everyone else had a similar idea as I couldn't find any in stock.  Luckily I found one on FB Marketplace and had the person ship it to me for a reasonable price when factoring in shipping cost.  Rebuilt them to proper swingweights, and finished them with BB&F ferrules.

 

I have since rebuilt 3 sets of irons, did a blind bore install on an old 975D, bunch of wood shafts on adaptors but that was always something I did on my own.  Also had a nasty rock ding on the leading edge of a custom wedge that bothered me for quite a while.  I ended up hammering the metal back where it came from and smoothed it out with some flat files.  I weighed it before and after and did not lose any weight so I was very happy with the end result.

 

Since then my lean set up consists of:

 

1-Golfsmith swingweight scale

2-Various BB&F ferrules

3-Variety of lead tip weights

4-Tape and solvent

5-Epoxy

6-Ferrule installer which was a waste of $

7-Various grits of sandpaper

8-Ball peen hammer

9-File set with a variety of radii

10-Hacksaw with a bunch of extra blades(save yourself the hassle and use a new blade when cutting graphite)

11-Shaft cutter for steel shafts

12-Hosel brushes, buy a number of them because paying Golfworks shipping is the worst

13-Digital gram scale

14-Acetone

15-Old clean t-shirts for clean up

16-Mini butane torch

17-V grip, must have over the long run

 

Aside from the golf specific stuff, I found that Harbor Freight is a great place for incidentals.  It's inexpensive and they replace anything that isn't up to snuff.  For organization, I have one of their tool boxes with different compartments with lids and it was like $7 that I am able to organize weights, ferrules, sandpaper strips, loose grips, etc.

 

https://www.harborfreight.com/12-inch-polypropylene-toolbox-96602.html

 

Very happy with my set up, and aside from the swingweight scale and ferrules I am in for very few bucks and can handle anything I need to for myself or a friend.

 

Thank you for sharing your experience. I've been interested in economics since my high school days. I've always wanted to understand how the economy works and why some people can afford everything, and some live below the poverty line. I periodically visit the site https://samplius.com/free-essay-examples/economy/ where I read interesting studies related to economics, with different aspects of market functioning.

Edited October 27, 2021 by Forrest Sanchez

[woodriff]

Much the same as many have mentioned. A couple of things I use. 

Oversize ferrules. I use them exclusively for irons. Simply slide on. Acetone clean up. 

 

Centering beads. There’s a product that you can shake on painted steps to provide grip. The product is basically white. Ive used these rather than shims from time to time.

 

Prepping tips. Rolls of sanding tape with the shaft held in a vice. Both graphite and steel. Cut off 6 inches and go to town. 
 

Ive got a $500 bending machine. I check lofts with a protractor. 
 

Shaft vibration. Used round foam insulation with great success. 

 

Edited October 20, 2021 by woodriff

[Ger21]

I wanted to add 5/8" length to my TW-X 3 iron. The Vizard shaft seemed to be an odd size, so I 3D printed a shaft extension. I made it in two pieces to avoid using supports when printing.

Should do the job just fine.

[Flacoman]

A 9mm / 38 cal pistol brush works like a champ for cleaning hosels ; clamp in a drill.

[teddyironboy]

https://www.amazon.com/BLACK-DECKER-WM125-Workmate-350-Pound/dp/B000077CQ0

 

I don't know anything about workbenches, would this work? Want to pull heads from graphite shafts and also change loft/lie.

[JCAG]

11 hours ago, teddyironboy said:

https://www.amazon.com/BLACK-DECKER-WM125-Workmate-350-Pound/dp/B000077CQ0

 

I don't know anything about workbenches, would this work? Want to pull heads from graphite shafts and also change loft/lie.

Lowes has several:

 

Kobalt 45-in W x 36-in H 3-Drawer Wood Work Bench in the Work Benches department at Lowes.com

 

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Kobalt-72-in-W-x-38-5-in-H-Wood-Work-Bench/50227193

 

Also easy to build your own from 2x4's and a 3/4in thick plywood top. I use to cover my workbench tops in carpet runner and once a year or so, replace the runner.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Tenex-HiLo-27-in-W-Cut-to-Length-Pepper-Extruded-Polyester-Utility-Runner-By-the-Foot/1000258919

 

[PJE]

I wouldn't call myself a builder as I have only done regripping, shaft cutting on couple of drivers and then changing head weights, and a set of shaft extensions.  Now, I'm preparing to reshaft a set of irons for the first time.  I've been reading this forum for quite a while and also reading articles on internet websites about club repairs, e.g, Golfworks, etc., so I'm pretty excited about it and I think I will be successful. 

So far, I've acquired: a swingweight scale, a digital scale, calipers,  a butane torch, a pair of thick gloves, a club ruler, epoxy from Golf Works, a hosel brush from Golfworks, and I already got other stuff like sandpaper, acetone, tube cutters, hacksaws, etc. 

I've been thinking about getting a chop saw but I'm not sure I can justify the expense. I don't want to buy power tools at Harbor Freight but the saws available at Home Depot and Lowes are more expensive and better than what I need. 

So, we will see how it goes.