Any strong players here playing graphite iron shafts?

[SJL1216]

I have been toying around with the idea of a heavy graphite iron shaft, I launch the ball high as is and swing the high 90s with a 6 iron. Any one here in my position but has made the switch?

[metaldog]

not at your speed (92mph with 7 iron, 112 driver), but i play aerotech steelfiber i95 cw x-stiff no issues, absolutely love it

[doc52]

Switched to graphite, LAGP 5x 120gs and love them. Feel a lot better on my repaired elbow.

[Wham49]

on a whim I out a steelfiber in my 3 i and it plays pretty well

[Is Golf Fun or Work]

Recoil Protos or MMT are good options to evaluate

[pingfool]

SF i110 stiff holds up pretty well. Maybe tip a bit if you’re worried about launch

[SJL1216]

51 minutes ago, Is Golf Fun or Work said:

Recoil Protos or MMT are good options to evaluate

I wish I could find a used set of 125 SF or Recoils, hard to come by

[texcellence86]

Nunchuk 110g autoflex. Fatigue has drastically reduced since I made the switch.

[Thoroughbrewed]

I play MMT shafts in my irons and wedges and I am very happy 

[BombinJim]

I play the MMT 125TX in my 3i and it is pretty awesome.

[SJL1216]

29 minutes ago, BombinJim said:

I play the MMT 125TX in my 3i and it is pretty awesome.

how stiff does it play?

[BombinJim]

52 minutes ago, SJL1216 said:

how stiff does it play?

For me it plays a little less stiff than X100’s. But very similar.

[Pepperturbo]

I am probably older, a feel player and haven't checked my SS in years.  For years, I played 120g PX 6.0.  Decided to look into composite in hopes of relieving my body of steel abuse; it was a good decision.

 

The easiest transition from steel was Steelfiber.  I started and stayed for a year + with SF i110cw in 2i-PW in my 620 MBs & CBs, and SF i125 stiff in Vokey wedges.  Then switch to a smoother profile: MCA - Tensei AV White AM2 Iron S in 2i-4i (90g-94g), and MCA - MMT 125s in 5i-LW, and 2 Vokey with MMT 125 TX 8i shafts.  I have been with that setup for some time now.  MMT TX and stiff are much smoother than PX 6.0 and X-100.

 

Though I still play to 3-5 index, age is catching up, thus testing sub 100g composite shafts in irons.  I may buy a set of T100s too, not sure.

 

Edited October 7, 2022 by Pepperturbo

[Drivingrangehero]

I’m around 92 mph with a 7 iron and I play Steelfiber i110 Regular flex 

 

I don’t think there is an equation for my speed equals ……mph, therefore I play ……. Weight……. And …… flex! 
 

I have found that weight is key for me, and then profile would be second, flex would be third..

 

My question is what steel shaft do you currently play now? 
 

If you hit the ball high now, going lighter could increase height, although everyone is a bit different, and has different influences. 
 

I launch a 110-115g shaft higher than a 130g shaft ………. sometimes, depending on flex and profile. I launched my XP 115 x100’s  a little higher than my DG x100’s and I launched my Modus 105 stiff at D4.5 a little higher than my XP 115’s, but there are times where stiffer and heavier launch higher than softer and lighter. ⬇️ 
 

 For instance, if a shaft is a softer flex like a Steelfiber i110r than a C-Taper 130x, I will launch the SF i110r  lower…….. the C-Taper 130 is too stiff for me, so I have a hard time getting the action I want through the ball, and that causes me to release earlier, launching the ball higher, same with the PX 6.5. 

 

So for me, too stiff causes high launch due to its influence of my release, same goes for too light, even if it’s a softer flex ⬇️ 

 

If I have a 7 iron that is very light with a Modus 105s or a DG 105x, and the swingweight is light (D0), I will launch them very high 19.5* at  120-125ft, but if I get the same shaft and swingweight them to D4 I will launch them around 17.* at 110-115ft

 

my approach now to fitting is a weight range that is comfortable (I’m arthritic 46 and get tennis elbow now and then) so that’s 110-120g, next I dial in the swingweight, which is around D3 in that weight range, after that I fine tune with flex, which is a Regular in Steelfiber i110, or Stiff in Modus 105.

 

I find the softer flex with a heavier SW helps me release later to better control launch and spin. YMMV

 

 

 

[SJL1216]

Can anyone compare the steelfiber 125 vs recoil F5 125?

[Is Golf Fun or Work]

20 minutes ago, SJL1216 said:

Can anyone compare the steelfiber 125 vs recoil F5 125?

Can't say for certain on the 125s, but when I went to graphite shafts, tried the 110 versions, to me the SF felt boardy, where Recoils were much like my KBS Tour (steel) I was coming from.

[dmeeksDC]

Playing Fujikura Pro Iron Tour Spec Stiff 95s and they’re outstanding. Swing weight like steel and tight feel. The graphite iron shafts I like the feel of are these Fujis, Paderson Ballistic, Project X Catalyst 100 and KBS PGI 90/100 (OP may be more TGI but those feel stiffer than I like.) A lot of graphite iron shafts feel sort of lifeless to me vs steel but these four I enjoy as much as steel. 

[ChipNRun]

Not on WRX, but Bryson DeChambeau (PGA tour guy) plays all graphite shafts in his clubs. He has worked with LA Golf to develop the Bryson shaft model.

 

And here on WRX...

 

19 hours ago, Pepperturbo said:

The easiest transition from steel was Steelfiber.

 

SteelFiber shafts are definitely solid. Heavier SFs have a feel similar to traditional Project X steel shafts.

[av1084]

Steelfiber is the easiest transition. Agreed that it feels like a playable Project X. 
 

MMT second best bet, feels like a much smoother Dynamic Gold to me, but not with that DG “thump.”  

[NRJyzr]

I disagree on the PX analogy.  The profile is pretty close to DG.

 

Here's DGS profile compared to Steelfiber models.  As the weight goes up, the bottom half of the shaft gets stiffer, but it otherwise looks to me like it's sticking with DG.

 

I've got i125 in a GW and i95 in a 2 iron.  Neither feel like PX to me, a shaft I don't care for (for what little that's worth).

 

Here's Wishon profile data, the numbers across the top row are the beam length for each reading:

 

 

edited to add C Taper stiff, surprised me

 

Edited October 8, 2022 by NRJyzr

[Pepperturbo]

3 hours ago, av1084 said:

Steelfiber is the easiest transition. Agreed that it feels like a playable Project X. 
 

MMT second best bet, feels like a much smoother Dynamic Gold to me, but not with that DG “thump.”  

Agree with the first statement, feel similar to PX, but ball trajectory and angle of descent are different.  Disagree with the second statement, but trajectories are similar.  Long ago, started playing S300 then X100, then 6.5, then PX 6.0 for 15+yrs, to Steelfiber.  I have stiff sets of i95cw, i110cw and i125cw, and had the i110cw in 2-PW and i125cw in wedges.  Now play MMT 125s in 5-LW...they do NOT feel anything like DG in my hands. 

[B.Easy]

I have played the MMT 125TX's since the Feb of 2021 in New Level PF2's.  They feel very smooth and definitely save elbows.  Very little harsh feedback makes it into your hands.  Just enough to let you know where you struck it.  The launch and spin characteristics were similar to DGTI X100's, which is what they were targeting.  Definitely not a high launch shaft. I would put it on the low end.  I have played DGTI X7's for years in my Ping S55's.

 

One anecdotal thing-  These shafts did not fit my swing when I first got them.  I would get this weird sensation like the club was getting caught in the turf with a harsh toe strike.  When I checked strike and divot, it wasn't that severe, but it felt like it.  I'm pretty steep w/ my AOA and a little over the top, but was taking lessons to address that.  As my swing improved, these shafts became so good.  It's actually a barometer of sorts to let me know where my swing is at.  

 

Last thing-  It seems that ball speed retention is higher on toe strikes with these shafts compared to steel shaft comparisons.  I expect to lose distance with a toe strike, but I have observed very little when using my irons with these shafts installed.

 

Sorry for rambling.

[Ger21]

On 10/7/2022 at 10:57 PM, dmeeksDC said:

Playing Fujikura Pro Iron Tour Spec Stiff 95s and they’re outstanding.

 

Agree 100%. Love mine. Probably a bit lower flight than the DG S300's I've always played, and  very straight ball flight.

For the OP, I'd consider the Tour Spec X. And probably the 115's

The Fujikura are very smooth feeling, but still plenty stiff. And at only $45 each, they are a LOT cheaper than everything else.

[av1084]

That's the beauty and frustration in some senses with golf equipment - everyone subjectively perceives things differently.

 

DG and Steelfiber should be the same (for the most part) based on physical analysis - but to me, they do not feel at all like each other.  To me.

 

I play Steelfiber 110S HSx1 and it feels like a non-harsh (I don't want to say smooth or otherwise as I don't think the feel is that great personally, but it is very effective for me) PX 6.5.

 

MMT 125S feels softer and whippier to me than an R300, but feels amazing to me.

[Pepperturbo]

On 10/7/2022 at 1:32 PM, SJL1216 said:

Can anyone compare the steelfiber 125 vs recoil F5 125?

I have a set of i125cw stiff shafts, had them in 5i-LW.  To me, they felt similar to my PX 6.0 at 120gms, which I played for 15+ years.  I didn't feel any resemblance to DG.  SteelFiber 125 stiff feels harsh (like PX), as opposed to smooth MMT 125 stiff shafts that I am playing now. 

 

I have been testing some sub 100g recoils, but that's going nowhere; too light and don't get along with bend profile.  It's easy to guess, SF 125 shafts feel different from recoil 125, mostly because of SF shaft profile vs recoil.  I am not sure if that helps...

Edited October 10, 2022 by Pepperturbo

[gioreeko]

I play the MMT 125/105 TX, and they feel great. My 6 iron SS is around 98, and these hold up well, and the vibration dampening has really helped me take better divots because I don't fear that jolt on my elbow anymore.

[Andygolderson]

  

On 10/7/2022 at 9:49 PM, SJL1216 said:

I have been toying around with the idea of a heavy graphite iron shaft, I launch the ball high as is and swing the high 90s with a 6 iron. Any one here in my position but has made the switch?

i'm in the same boat - 90mph with irons and always launching very high. I have a set of 120 steel, and another in 110 recoils. I feel like graphite in general is launching higher.

 

Trying out another set of steelfiber 95, however, they're still going very high. Going to continue with the Steelfibers, but up the weight of the shaft to check for improvement.

 

Another option would be to increase some tipping to lower the launch and stiffen up the shaft in the bottom.

[Stuart_G]

On 10/7/2022 at 9:49 AM, SJL1216 said:

I have been toying around with the idea of a heavy graphite iron shaft, I launch the ball high as is and swing the high 90s with a 6 iron. Any one here in my position but has made the switch?

 

That's about where I was when I made the switch to graphite to manage hand pain.   But that was 22 years ago and didn't have much choices for heavy weight shafts (nor did I know much about the importance of shaft weight back then).   So I made the jump from 130 gm DG's to a 95 gm graphite shaft.

 

To be honest, I was so happy to be able to play pain free, I didn't really care about anything else at the time.   And over the years, I adjusted to the lighter shafts without any real problems.

[driveandputtmachine]

I played Brunswick 7.0 through high school and a few years afterwards.  Switched to Project X Flighted 6.5's and then finally KBS Tour's in X.

 

Because of a wrist injury when I was a kid and now I am old I needed to switch to graphite.  I tried a pile of them, I mean every shaft out at the time and eventually went with standard Recoil 110 in F5.  I had connections with UST at the time and tried the 125 in standard and prototype, and the 110 in both as well.  I tried them all, had a club connex in a Bridgestone J40CB 7 iron at the time and access to a LM.  

 

Since then whenever new graphite shafts are released I order a 7 iron and 6 iron shaft to try.  KBS, MMT, Accra, Catalyst and countless others, the Recoil still wins the spot in my bag.  All were fine with pain mgmt, however I know what weight tends to fit me the best and ordered the correct weights, but I also know my dispersion pretty well and what my ball flight should look like from so much time on the LM's I have used.

 

I know what I equate each shaft to in terms of steel counterparts, but that doesn't mean I am correct.  I am sure that someone has the profile data for these to help out.

[coloradogolf72]

MMT are easy to build with, LA Golf L Series have a higher balance point so the SW ends up being light. I have used SF in the past, but much prefer the feel of MMT over the others. I'm about 97 with a 6 iron. I ended up going to MMT 105TX though instead of 125TX.