Lighter driver shaft and heavier head weight….

[jasonTeI3]

I know this sort of thing has been discussed before but hard to really search(and I have). What is the actual effect on taking, let’s say a 50g shaft, and adding a bunch of weight to the head to get to desired swingweight? I have played a shorter driver for a while and like it but I’ve always used a heavier 70g shaft to compensate for the decrease in SW when shortening the club. My question I guess is will adding weight to the head achieve the same exact effects or will adding the additional head weight actually increase distance? I’m thinking it’s the same concept as using a counter balanced shaft and being able to increase head weight, which supposedly will increase distance. 

[Stuart_G]

16 hours ago, jasonTeI3 said:

I know this sort of thing has been discussed before but hard to really search(and I have). What is the actual effect on taking, let’s say a 50g shaft, and adding a bunch of weight to the head to get to desired swingweight?

 

It's hard to search for because there is no one clear answer.  It's can be very different for different individuals.

 

Second, don't assume that lowering the shaft weight will require a lot of extra head weight to maintain the swing weight.

 

Third, don't assume that if you do change shaft weight that you should maintain the same swing weight value.

 

Anytime you change shaft weight, you really need to refit head weight or swing weight.  Never assume you should keep the swing weight value the same.   That's not something the swing weight system and concept was ever meant to handle.

 

 

16 hours ago, jasonTeI3 said:

 

I have played a shorter driver for a while and like it but I’ve always used a heavier 70g shaft to compensate for the decrease in SW when shortening the club.

 

Not the best thing to do.   It's true there tends to be a rough relationship between playing length and a good fit for shaft weight - but that's very different from swing weight.  It's more about increasing the total static weight as the length gets shorter, not about what happens to the swing weight.  That needs to be managed separately.

 

16 hours ago, jasonTeI3 said:

My question I guess is will adding weight to the head achieve the same exact effects or will adding the additional head weight actually increase distance?

 

Static weight (shaft weight) and swing weight (head weight) can effect the swing, and therefore the results in different ways.  Sometimes one can be used to compensate for the other being changed - but not always.  They are really different fitting specs and ideally shouldn't be used in that way.  But if you do want to experiment - no equation will help you out, you need to do so on the range with a roll of lead tape and dial it in by feel.

 

16 hours ago, jasonTeI3 said:

 

I’m thinking it’s the same concept as using a counter balanced shaft and being able to increase head weight, which supposedly will increase distance. 

 

True Counter balancing (weight added directly to the butt) is actually  something completely different - and much less well understood.  "Counterbalanced" shafts are usually not the same as true counterbalancing and are more about managing the shaft contribution to the swing weight.  And it's not about increasing distance - it's about keeping the swing weight manageable with heavier heads at the longer playing lengths.

 

 

 

Edited June 8, 2022 by Stuart_G

[phizzy30]

It's impossible to say whether a lighter shaft + heavier head will increase distance.  It's very swing dependent and what you feel during the down swing.  As for your idea, it's what Phil used to do when he played the FT9-TA, Razr Hawk, etc. and had those 50 gram fubuki shafts in them.  He had Cally add a ton of hot melt to the heads if I recall correctly.