Irons and golf shafts for seniors

[jjfcpa]

Senior golfer.

 

I've been comparing a 7i in the Titleist T300 and the JPX 923 Hot Metal.  These are both spec'd out the same except for the shaft.  For some reason, the T300 just seems to be more consistent and longer than the HM and yet, it seems that the HM has a hotter face.  I've determined this on a launch monitor and swing speed.  The problem is, the HM is less consistent for me when it comes to swing speed and finding the sweet spot.  I understand that this could come down to playing the T300 for the last year, but I've hit the HM 7i enough that I feel it should be more consistent.

 

I'm guessing this is really coming down to the golf shaft.  The T300 has the Mitsubishi Tensei AV Red AM2 shaft and the HM has the UST Recoil ES 460 F2 shaft.  

 

Curious that the Titleist seems to be the only manufacturer that is using this particular shaft as one of their stock offerings.  

 

Just looking for opinions on what I may be overlooking.

 

 

[bluedot]

FWIW, I used the Recoil in a set of Ping i500's, then got fitted in late 2021 for T200's with the Tensei Blue.  (I haven't hit the red.)  For my money, the Tensei line is just better, though I thought the Recoils were fine.  No idea why nobody else is using the Tensei in irons, unless it's a cost issue.

[bluedot]

Just now, bluedot said:

FWIW, I used the Recoil in a set of Ping i500's, then got fitted in late 2021 for T200's with the Tensei Blue.  (I haven't hit the red.)  For my money, the Tensei line is just better, though I thought the Recoils were fine.  No idea why nobody else is using the Tensei in irons, unless it's a cost issue.  (I'm 70, if that makes a difference.)

 

[bellken]

It sounds like your T300's with the Tensei Red are a good fit for you, and, you should stick with them.

 

The Tensei AM shafts could be a Titleist exclusive. fwiw, I play T200's with Tensei Blue (62 yo).

[RainShadow]

1 hour ago, bluedot said:

FWIW, I used the Recoil in a set of Ping i500's, then got fitted in late 2021 for T200's with the Tensei Blue.  (I haven't hit the red.)  For my money, the Tensei line is just better, though I thought the Recoils were fine.  No idea why nobody else is using the Tensei in irons, unless it's a cost issue.

 Likely the cost. 

The Tensei AM line retails for almost $100 each

[mjf34g]

Well it's another reason there are "horses for courses". LOL. Just as some club/shaft combos are better for one as another. 

If using Maltby's Iron chart (always just a guide and not definitive) he classifies the T300's as "super game improvement. The Mizzys as "game improvement".  The VCOG on the T300's is a bit lower on the face vs the Mizzys. And lastly the Recoils in that weight class launch the ball extremely high with a lot of spin.  The Mitsubushi's while launching high also don't spin as much and while being ascending weight are a little bit lighter in those mid irons with a bit less torgue. 

[erock9174]

Tensei AM shafts to my knowledge are proprietary to Titleist and are lighter in the longer irons and heavier in the shorter irons. Similar to the Nippon AWt shafts in ping irons. 
 

did you check swing weight? 

I recently bought a 923 HM HL 6i with a Recoil esx 460 Reg and while 10g lighter overall than my g425 with Alta CB Reg the ping 6i swing weighted at C9 while the mizuno was D2.5.  Both were identical shaft lengths too. Mizuno felt so much heavier through the ball and just kept hitting it fat. Kept my pings. 

[jjfcpa]

41 minutes ago, mjf34g said:

Well it's another reason there are "horses for courses". LOL. Just as some club/shaft combos are better for one as another. 

If using Maltby's Iron chart (always just a guide and not definitive) he classifies the T300's as "super game improvement. The Mizzys as "game improvement".  The VCOG on the T300's is a bit lower on the face vs the Mizzys. And lastly the Recoils in that weight class launch the ball extremely high with a lot of spin.  The Mitsubushi's while launching high also don't spin as much and while being ascending weight are a little bit lighter in those mid irons with a bit less torgue. 

 

Thank you for the reply and info.  Oddly, the T300's generally have a higher ball flight than the HM and the spin difference has been negligible.  

 

There's a noticeable sound and feel difference between the two.  The T300's are a bit louder and don't quite have the feel of the HM, but with the T300 it's much easier to tell where the contact was at where as the HM seem to disguise this pretty well and have a much more muted sound.  I find the T300's much easier to determine if the contact was solid or not.

 

I don't mean to make the HM sound bad, because they are excellent and I could easily play them, but I have it in my head that I can definitely put a better swing on the T300's.  Psychologically, I'm all in on the T300's.

[jjfcpa]

Would it make any sense to replace the shafts on the HM with the Tensei shafts if I were to get a full set?  Just curious what someone more knowledgeable than me would think.

 

As I said, I think the HM's are a little hotter and would add a 1/2 club to my distances if I could just get used to the feel of them and the shaft change might work.

 

Definitely going to have the swing weight checked on both of these.

[jjfcpa]

44 minutes ago, erock9174 said:

Tensei AM shafts to my knowledge are proprietary to Titleist and are lighter in the longer irons and heavier in the shorter irons. Similar to the Nippon AWt shafts in ping irons. 
 

did you check swing weight? 

I recently bought a 923 HM HL 6i with a Recoil esx 460 Reg and while 10g lighter overall than my g425 with Alta CB Reg the ping 6i swing weighted at C9 while the mizuno was D2.5.  Both were identical shaft lengths too. Mizuno felt so much heavier through the ball and just kept hitting it fat. Kept my pings. 

 

I can relate to what you are saying to maybe it is the swing weight.  The HM's do feel somewhat heavy on the downs swing compared to the T300's.  However, the club doesn't really feel heavier but it may come down to the swing weight.

[erock9174]

4 hours ago, jjfcpa said:

 

I can relate to what you are saying to maybe it is the swing weight.  The HM's do feel somewhat heavy on the downs swing compared to the T300's.  However, the club doesn't really feel heavier but it may come down to the swing weight.

I know unless you ask otherwise, mizuno picks from various weight heads to make sure the build comes out as close to D2 as possible no matter the shaft.  
 

I don’t think Titleist does this so with the lighter graphite I bet those are lighter than a D2.