KBS TGI 100 vs KBS $Taper 120 Stiff

[Lobber]

Currently playing KBS $Taper 1 inch long in a set of Titleist irons.  Thinking of going to graphite and wanting to know how the KBS TGI 100 Stiff compare?  Any and all feedback appreciated.

 

Thanks!

[taylorx300]

According to KBS the TGI graphite line was built to mimic the KBS Tour but in lighter weights. The $ taper is a lower launch / lower spin version of the original KBS Tour.

[BirdieBob]

On 11/28/2021 at 3:24 PM, Lobber said:

Currently playing KBS $Taper 1 inch long in a set of Titleist irons.  Thinking of going to graphite and wanting to know how the KBS TGI 100 Stiff compare?  Any and all feedback appreciated.

 

Thanks!

 

I had the TGI 110 and they are equivalent in stiffness to the kbs 130 xstiff...a shaft 20g heavier.

-----

Here is some info from Golf Shaft Reviews....

 

"The carbon fiber shafts are stiffer at lower weights. Compare the EI stiffness of the KBS C-Taper Lite and the KBS TGI tapers. You will see the 110 version of the C-Taper lite at 18 while the KBS TGI 110 is 21. Three EI points is a big number. Looked at another way, the 95g TGI has the same stiffness as the 115 C-Taper Lite. The TGI has the same stiffness that weighs 20 grams more. If lighter clubs give you more club head speed and control, then that is a good reason to be looking at quality carbon fiber iron shafts."

 

Edited November 30, 2021 by BirdieBob

[Lobber]

Thanks for the insight and reply!  Very helpful and I think the 100s would be a bit much for me.  Definitely going to get fit for these before taking the plunge. 

[naws-golfer]

I asked KBS this exact question, see below

[Lobber]

Thanks for the replies and info!  

[dmeeksDC]

The KBS TGI shafts play stiff. If you play stiff shafts, I’d recommend the TGI 90 taper as a starting point unless you like a very stout feel. The parallel lighter versions do not play as stiff as the tapers. I would say it is accurate that a TGI 90 feels about the same stiffness as a 110g C Taper Lite stiff in steel. 

[Lobber]

Appreciate the feedback from everyone.  I am fortunate to live in So Cal and close to the KBS Tour experience.  Was able to try the TGI 100 out and loved the feel and performance.  Not overly stiff at all compared to the $Taper120Stiff.  In fact the fitter said that the TGI 110 Stiff is closer to the $Taper 120 Stiff.  Since I just turned 65 I am going with the TGI 100 and not looking back.  Once again, thanks to all for the insights!

[Kingcat990]

Glad you got what you needed that was beneficial. What are you doing with the $ tapers though 🤔

[Lobber]

28 minutes ago, Kingcat990 said:

Glad you got what you needed that was beneficial. What are you doing with the $ tapers though 🤔

Going to most likely sell them or relegate them to back up

[Mike_C]

Reviving this thread, as I was about to ask this exact question.  

 

I've been playing recoils for several years because of joint issues, the past couple of years 95 F4s, before that played it in an F5, and even had a set of recoil protos in F5 before that, but used to play C-taper 120s which I really liked.  

 

About a month ago I found a deal on a new set of Cobra MIM tours with $-taper 120s, thought I could give steel another try. I really like the feel and control, but after several weeks, my elbows are reminding me why I went to lighter graphite in the first place. 

 

Really want to try the KBS TGI, but debating on what weight/flex.  I was ready to go with the 95s,  and that sounds like KBS says that would pair well if I liked the $-taper 120s,  but Lobber seems to disagree. 

 

Anybody have any more feedback? 

[dmeeksDC]

My experience was the 100 felt quite a bit stiffer than the 90. You already being in a 95g shaft should make for an easy transition to either one. If you have anywhere you can demo them, you will know when you hit on the one you like. 
 

If buying blind perhaps buy one shaft to test it out. Feel is so individual. It is hard to know what you may prefer. I do think equating the 95g TGI to the C Taper Lite 115g (x flex) is accurate. So if you liked C Tapers, in the TGI you’re going to fit in there somewhere in the 95g-110g window but it’s hard to know without testing. I matched up best with the 95 straight in but I also played C Taper Lite 115s. 

[Mike_C]

On 5/15/2023 at 6:01 PM, dmeeksDC said:

My experience was the 100 felt quite a bit stiffer than the 90. You already being in a 95g shaft should make for an easy transition to either one. If you have anywhere you can demo them, you will know when you hit on the one you like. 
 

If buying blind perhaps buy one shaft to test it out. Feel is so individual. It is hard to know what you may prefer. I do think equating the 95g TGI to the C Taper Lite 115g (x flex) is accurate. So if you liked C Tapers, in the TGI you’re going to fit in there somewhere in the 95g-110g window but it’s hard to know without testing. I matched up best with the 95 straight in but I also played C Taper Lite 115s. 

Thanks for the input.

 

I am going to demo some Srixon's with the TGI 95, they have this one in their fitting cart.

 

I've been a Srixon guy for the past 5-6 years, I will stick with what I know from that perspective.

 

The MIM tours are very good looking heads, the feel and control with the $-tapers is wonderful, but I played today, and my left elbow and wrist hurt during the round the most they have in the past 4 years, not really at impact, but the steel is taking its toll.

 

I am declaring my experiment a failure, got to go back to graphite......

[ian-500]

On 5/17/2023 at 4:28 AM, Mike_C said:

Thanks for the input.

 

I am going to demo some Srixon's with the TGI 95, they have this one in their fitting cart.

 

I've been a Srixon guy for the past 5-6 years, I will stick with what I know from that perspective.

 

The MIM tours are very good looking heads, the feel and control with the $-tapers is wonderful, but I played today, and my left elbow and wrist hurt during the round the most they have in the past 4 years, not really at impact, but the steel is taking its toll.

 

I am declaring my experiment a failure, got to go back to graphite......

 

How are you getting on with the TGi's? I have the 110's and loving them so far. As close to CTaper x and $Taper 120 hard stepped as it makes no difference apart from the feel/vibration dampening. I've played lot's of graphite irons over the years and these are right up there with the best I've had.

[Mike_C]

18 hours ago, ian-500 said:

 

How are you getting on with the TGi's? I have the 110's and loving them so far. As close to CTaper x and $Taper 120 hard stepped as it makes no difference apart from the feel/vibration dampening. I've played lot's of graphite irons over the years and these are right up there with the best I've had.

Well, here is an update.   After looking at the KBS website, based on my swingspeed and 7 iron distance, I was sort of between the 90 and 95 TGI, decided to order the 95s.   After the order was put in, the store manager at Edwin Watts even called me back to confirm my shaft choice before ordering.   I was expecting 3+ weeks for delivery, but they came in in about a week.  But a big however, they built them with the 90s.   I had Watts double check that they ordered the right shaft, which they did.  They checked with Srixon, they said the 95s "are being discontinued" and are in short supply and are back ordered until the fall.  I contacted KBS and they said that is not the case, they have them in stock to ship that day.  However, OEMs order directly from the factory in Asia, and perhaps Srixon is out and the factory told them they can't get the 95s until the fall...  My biggest question is, if they didn't have the shaft I ordered and wanted, why didn't Srixon contact Edwin Watts to tell the customer, me?   I might have ordered a different shaft, maybe even soft stepped the 100s if they had them.

 

I debated on having them shipped back, Watts said to try them out if I want to and if I don't like them I can always do their 90 day return.  Since I am a bit in between perhaps for the 90s vs 95s on their fitting chart, I decided to give them a try.  I really liked the idea of the 95s since that is the weight I was playing in Recoils, and almost did like the heavier weight of the 120 $Tapers I tried in the Cobras. 

 

I have about 6 rounds with them now and several range sessions.  I do notice that they seem a bit lighter, especially in the short irons, even though the weight differential is not that much.   I looked  up the Recoils again and did notice that they are not a constant weight like the TGIs, the 4 iron specs on the Recoil F4 is 92 grams, and they scale up slightly in weight down to the short irons as the 8-PW are at 96 grams.   To me it is subtle but noticeable in the 8-PW, whereas the 4 iron feels about the same, perhaps even has a slightly heavier swing weight feel. 

 

Having said all that, I have hit them quite well, just have to remember not to try to overswing, and the biggest adjustment is on shots where I like to choke up a bit, when I do that they seem super light vs the recoils.  Shot a 69 with my second round with them, and this past weekend I teamed up to tie for first in a two man 3 day tournament where I did hit them fairly well (we did that well mostly because my partner putted lights out the first 2 days).  I am going to keep playing them, ball flight is nice, dispersion seems as good or better than my previous irons, might just need a lot of reps to get comfortable with the weight.  I'm not getting any younger, I doubt in a year or two I would be needed stouter shafts.......  We shall see.

[Canadian Bubba]

Just picked up a set of Callaway TCB’s AW-4 with TGI 100’s.
 

First waggle with them I thought wow these things are stout!
 

I currently have PX 6.0’s in my 2016 Apex Pro’s and these fell the same or a tad stiffer.
 

I did Hit some balls in my garage hitting bay and they felt great but I will be heading to the range after work tomorrow to test out feel and ball flight.

 

One thing is they look absolutely stunning with the TCB’s!!!

[Mike_C]

11 hours ago, Canadian Bubba said:

Just picked up a set of Callaway TCB’s AW-4 with TGI 100’s.
 

First waggle with them I thought wow these things are stout!
 

I currently have PX 6.0’s in my 2016 Apex Pro’s and these fell the same or a tad stiffer.
 

I did Hit some balls in my garage hitting bay and they felt great but I will be heading to the range after work tomorrow to test out feel and ball flight.

 

One thing is they look absolutely stunning with the TCB’s!!!

Yeah, nothing loose about these shafts.  Even the 90s are pretty stiff, nothing close to an R flex feel, maybe a weak Stiff.  I can't imagine what the 110s would feel like. 

[JoeFrigo]

glad I came across this thread before ordering today. The TGI 110's have been my biggest intrigue for years but you cant find them anywhere used

 

Over the past 4 years ive been fit to both C-Taper Lite 115x and $-Taper 130x. Personally thought the 130g was too heavy and have happily settled in to $-Taper 125 S+. I played the CT Lite's for 2 years before convincing myself that they were the cause of my left miss. Last 2 years ive played either Accra iSteel 125 or $-Taper 125. They've been phenomenal until again I developed a bad left miss.

 

I demoed the C-Taper lite 115x again the other day in a mizuno head and it was giving me tighter dispersion than my cobra mb w/ $taper 125. Saw the same left miss from the $tapers but the CTL's had the smallest push draw with minimal curve.

 

KBS recommends the TGI 110 for 7i speed of 95-100 so ive always thought these have to be pretty stiff to hold up to that speed. Im between 94 - 96

 

all that to say I ordered the new Mizuno Pro 243's w/ TGI 110. It will be a few weeks but once they come in I'll be able to test them against my current cobras with $-taper 125 S+. 

 

Reviews on the 110 are extremely hard to find so hopefully ill be able to help out...unless they completely suck lol

Edited January 16 by JoeFrigo

[golfinbrad]

18 minutes ago, JoeFrigo said:

glad I came across this thread before ordering today. The TGI 110's have been my biggest intrigue for years but you cant find them anywhere used

 

Over the past 4 years ive been fit to both C-Taper Lite 115x and $-Taper 130x. Personally thought the 130g was too heavy and have happily settled in to $-Taper 125 S+. I played the CT Lite's for 2 years before convincing myself that they were the cause of my left miss. Last 2 years ive played either Accra iSteel 125 or $-Taper 125. They've been phenomenal until again I developed a bad left miss.

 

I demoed the C-Taper lite 115x again the other day in a mizuno head and it was giving me tighter dispersion than my cobra mb w/ $taper 125. Saw the same left miss from the $tapers but the CTL's had the smallest push draw with minimal curve.

 

KBS recommends the TGI 110 for 7i speed of 95-100 so ive always thought these have to be pretty stiff to hold up to that speed. Im between 94 - 96

 

all that to say I ordered the new Mizuno Pro 243's w/ TGI 110. It will be a few weeks but once they come in I'll be able to test them against my current cobras with $-taper 125 S+. 

 

Reviews on the 110 are extremely hard to find so hopefully ill be able to help out...unless they completely suck lol

Please report back.  I've been eyeing Srixon irons with the TGI 100.  Went to a couple fittings/demos and have yet to find them.  Did hit the 90 in a different head.  Seemed solid, just on the lighter side of what I prefer.  Currently playing SF i95, but was recently fit in the MMT 105.  I've always been partial to KBS in terms of feel.

[JoeFrigo]

1 hour ago, golfinbrad said:

Please report back.  I've been eyeing Srixon irons with the TGI 100.  Went to a couple fittings/demos and have yet to find them.  Did hit the 90 in a different head.  Seemed solid, just on the lighter side of what I prefer.  Currently playing SF i95, but was recently fit in the MMT 105.  I've always been partial to KBS in terms of feel.

my entire bag is KBS so I have high hopes. 

 

I ordered through FairwayJockey.....I havent found anywhere that carry these, even club champion

 

but ill do my best to review them...... Unless my 3 month old baby has other thoughts of now allowing me to play as much as im hoping

[golfinbrad]

2 minutes ago, JoeFrigo said:

my entire bag is KBS so I have high hopes. 

 

I ordered through FairwayJockey.....I havent found anywhere that carry these, even club champion

 

but ill do my best to review them...... Unless my 3 month old baby has other thoughts of now allowing me to play as much as im hoping

That tends to happen!

[Phabs]

1 hour ago, JoeFrigo said:

glad I came across this thread before ordering today. The TGI 110's have been my biggest intrigue for years but you cant find them anywhere used

 

Over the past 4 years ive been fit to both C-Taper Lite 115x and $-Taper 130x. Personally thought the 130g was too heavy and have happily settled in to $-Taper 125 S+. I played the CT Lite's for 2 years before convincing myself that they were the cause of my left miss. Last 2 years ive played either Accra iSteel 125 or $-Taper 125. They've been phenomenal until again I developed a bad left miss.

 

I demoed the C-Taper lite 115x again the other day in a mizuno head and it was giving me tighter dispersion than my cobra mb w/ $taper 125. Saw the same left miss from the $tapers but the CTL's had the smallest push draw with minimal curve.

 

KBS recommends the TGI 110 for 7i speed of 95-100 so ive always thought these have to be pretty stiff to hold up to that speed. Im between 94 - 96

 

all that to say I ordered the new Mizuno Pro 243's w/ TGI 110. It will be a few weeks but once they come in I'll be able to test them against my current cobras with $-taper 125 S+. 

 

Reviews on the 110 are extremely hard to find so hopefully ill be able to help out...unless they completely suck lol

I hit the 110's in a fitting a while ago and they we're good.  Just got sold on the Accra and Axiom over the KBS.    

 

I bought demo shafts of pretty much everything i hit that day to hit outside to verify and unfortunately nothing was better than my 6.5's.   I hit probably 8 different graphite shafts over the course of 3 months 

[JoeFrigo]

20 minutes ago, Phabs said:

I hit the 110's in a fitting a while ago and they we're good.  Just got sold on the Accra and Axiom over the KBS.    

 

I bought demo shafts of pretty much everything i hit that day to hit outside to verify and unfortunately nothing was better than my 6.5's.   I hit probably 8 different graphite shafts over the course of 3 months 

PX 6.5 is typically my default shaft I go to when my swing feels off. I get better speed and distance with other shafts but the 6.5's are better at about everything else

 

Ive tried steelfiber, recoil proto, and LAGP L-series. I keep trying to find a graphite option but I also keep resorting back to steel being a better fit

 

I have not hit the axiom or new Accra TZI graphite shafts. Based on the TXG video the Acca's are probably what im looking for but im an idiot and wanted a full KBS bag

[PNW]

2 hours ago, JoeFrigo said:

glad I came across this thread before ordering today. The TGI 110's have been my biggest intrigue for years but you cant find them anywhere used

 

Over the past 4 years ive been fit to both C-Taper Lite 115x and $-Taper 130x. Personally thought the 130g was too heavy and have happily settled in to $-Taper 125 S+. I played the CT Lite's for 2 years before convincing myself that they were the cause of my left miss. Last 2 years ive played either Accra iSteel 125 or $-Taper 125. They've been phenomenal until again I developed a bad left miss.

 

I demoed the C-Taper lite 115x again the other day in a mizuno head and it was giving me tighter dispersion than my cobra mb w/ $taper 125. Saw the same left miss from the $tapers but the CTL's had the smallest push draw with minimal curve.

 

KBS recommends the TGI 110 for 7i speed of 95-100 so ive always thought these have to be pretty stiff to hold up to that speed. Im between 94 - 96

 

all that to say I ordered the new Mizuno Pro 243's w/ TGI 110. It will be a few weeks but once they come in I'll be able to test them against my current cobras with $-taper 125 S+. 

 

Reviews on the 110 are extremely hard to find so hopefully ill be able to help out...unless they completely suck lol

 

I'll be curious to hear your thoughts, also compared to the LAGP L series. I've played both TGI 110 and $ Taper 125. TGI is a great shaft

Edited January 16 by PNW

[MrVanillaGorilla]

How do these compare to the C Taper stiff?  I play Stealth irons with 1.25" over standard in the C Taper stiff.  My swing speed on 6 iron is 88 mph.  

[JoeFrigo]

My irons finally arrive today with TGI 110 so hopefully I can get some feedback this weekend

[JoeFrigo]

Ok first session down with KBS TGI 110. These are installed in new Mizuno Pro 243's and weakened 1 degree. 7i is now 33* and PW is 45*. I hit the TGI 110's vs Cobra CB/MB w/ KBS $-Taper 125. The TGI 110's are recommended for 7i swing speeds of 95 - 100. Personally I didnt feel like you need to be that quick in order to swing this shaft. The TGI 110 is definitely very stable and I never had the fear of hitting a big hook. I would say the 110's are very comparable in stiffness to the $-Taper 125 but what I did notice is after 2 hours of hitting balls at the simulator, the 110's were easier to swing due to the lighter weight. A tired, fatigued swing with the 110's gave me better performance than the same tired swing with the $-Taper 125.

 

I swung the TGI 110's on average about 1.5mph faster. The $-Taper's have been my fitted shaft the past 3 years and have always produced for me. The TGI's actually gave me a tighter dispersion and less side spin. I know its only 1 session but so far everything points to the TGI 110's being a better shaft for me

[JoeFrigo]

Gonna post some numbers below with Pro 243 w/ KBS TGI 110 vs Cobra CB/MB w/ $-Taper 125. I know it's not apples to apples but gives a sense of how the clubs performed. The Mizuno's are weakened 1 degree but still stronger by 1 degree. For reference I have a shallow attack angle and typically launch high with lower spin. I used a TP5x which isnt my normal ball and I know spins less than what im used to....

 

Pro 243 PW: 113 ball speed, 147.82 carry, 7620 spin, 26* launch

Cobra MB PW: 110.78 ball speed, 140.42 carry, 8440 spin, 27.4 launch


Pro 243 7i: 128.3 speed, 188 carry, 4892 spin, 20.6* launch

Cobra MB 7i: 125.71 speed, 179.48 carry, 5468 spin, 21.8* launch


Pro 243 5i: 138.58 speed, 214.76 carry, 4050 spin, 17.7* launch

Cobra CB 5i: 136.67 speed, 201.71, 4939 spin, 18.34* launch

[PNW]

9 hours ago, JoeFrigo said:

Ok first session down with KBS TGI 110. These are installed in new Mizuno Pro 243's and weakened 1 degree. 7i is now 33* and PW is 45*. I hit the TGI 110's vs Cobra CB/MB w/ KBS $-Taper 125. The TGI 110's are recommended for 7i swing speeds of 95 - 100. Personally I didnt feel like you need to be that quick in order to swing this shaft. The TGI 110 is definitely very stable and I never had the fear of hitting a big hook. I would say the 110's are very comparable in stiffness to the $-Taper 125 but what I did notice is after 2 hours of hitting balls at the simulator, the 110's were easier to swing due to the lighter weight. A tired, fatigued swing with the 110's gave me better performance than the same tired swing with the $-Taper 125.

 

I swung the TGI 110's on average about 1.5mph faster. The $-Taper's have been my fitted shaft the past 3 years and have always produced for me. The TGI's actually gave me a tighter dispersion and less side spin. I know its only 1 session but so far everything points to the TGI 110's being a better shaft for me

I had the TGI 110 in a set of T100

of couple years ago and now have $ Taper 125. Agree with you feel between the two. TGI 110 are very stable but definitely can work closer to 90 7 iron swing speed.
 

Interesting to see your numbers and that spin and launch came down so much with them. Was height pretty similar? 
 

I’ve been trying to find a good mid weight but stable shaft for my 4 Srixon ZX utility iron. Had a TGI 100 a while back that I loved but felt too soft. Have an Axiom 105X now that is too soft and don’t love the profile. Was considering just going with a TGI 110 which I think you’ve helped make up my mind with! 

[JoeFrigo]

12 hours ago, PNW said:

I had the TGI 110 in a set of T100

of couple years ago and now have $ Taper 125. Agree with you feel between the two. TGI 110 are very stable but definitely can work closer to 90 7 iron swing speed.
 

Interesting to see your numbers and that spin and launch came down so much with them. Was height pretty similar? 
 

I’ve been trying to find a good mid weight but stable shaft for my 4 Srixon ZX utility iron. Had a TGI 100 a while back that I loved but felt too soft. Have an Axiom 105X now that is too soft and don’t love the profile. Was considering just going with a TGI 110 which I think you’ve helped make up my mind with! 

Peak height was pretty similar with TGI still being a little lower. 

 

TGI PW height 42.54 vs $ Taper 43.45

TGI 7i 44.46 vs $ Taper 45.34

TGI 5i 42.7 vs $ Taper 43.68

 

Yea I found the Axiom 105 to play soft also. I  also considered it for a utility. I think the TGI 110's are stable enough that I'm gonna put one in my gap wedge also. I really like the feel and added swing speed without fear of losing it left

 

I see you're playing LA wood shafts. You should really try the L-Series 120 in your irons. They're amazing shafts in they're built properly. The balance point is very high so sometimes they can come out pretty light but those are even more stable than the TGI