Old School Shafts

[Rosco1216]

IMO it depends on the speed of the player and the weight they used then vs now.  Slower speed guys, no, performance wise probably the same. 
 

Back then I had to use 80g+ ultra stiff shafts to gain control. Nowadays they can make 50/60g graphite shafts that are stiff and stable enough to handle 120cs and higher. That is where the difference is now.  
 

Side note: I may try and find one of my all time favorite(axivcore green 75x) and throw in a current driver just for a good time. 

[JD3]

Anyone remember the Wilson fat shaft irons? Looked gimmicky at the time, but with the emphasis on achieving that with a stiffer típ thru thicker walls these days, maybe they were onto something 

[RobS]

13 minutes ago, JD3 said:

Anyone remember the Wilson fat shaft irons? Looked gimmicky at the time, but with the emphasis on achieving that with a stiffer típ thru thicker walls these days, maybe they were onto something 

I played a set of the fat shaft RM forged back in the day and loved them.  I compared them to the RM's with the conventional shafts and found the fat shaft to perform favorably.  They didn't feel quite as nice as the .355" tip but they were remarkably stable with a consistent flight that didn't have much movement to it.  I think there was really something to the concept  but in the end it was probably too much of an extreme change to take hold.

[Wooderson]

This is one of those subjects that I wish I could test with a robot. Would love a definitive answer to cheap versus expensive shafts. 

 

Have the newest version of an NVS coming this week. Would be great if an $80 shaft out performs my $250+ ones. 

[hagimihale]

NV, YS6+ and Proforce V2 were the first shafts I recall standing out to me as being clearly better than anything else I'd hit. And few shafts in the decade or so since then measured up.  

 

I have a few OG shafts in my garage that come out to play every once in a while.  'ahina, RIP'd NV and Tour Green come to mind.

 

Then again, I'm currently gaming a Tour Blue (21* hybrid) and Rogue Silver 125 (4W).  Both do exactly what I want in those clubs.

Edited April 28, 2023 by hagimihale

[JoeHatesSnow]

I've always been a big Aldila fan, mainly the NV.  I'm currently playing NV85 in my hybrid and Rogue Silver I/O in my woods, which I think is pretty similar.  One of my all time favorites that I still have in backup clubs is the Royal Precision Saber Tour Vector.  Fantastic shaft that just never caught on.

[rbpwrx]

I mostly play classic older shafts (Tour Green TX, Diamana whiteboards, UST stuff, Penleys, Accra SC, etc)
A/ b/c they are affordable;

B/ b/c they won pro tourneys not long ago;
C/ b/c I generally prefer heavier weights, so I don't need space age materials; and

D/ b/c I'm not good enough to justify $500 shafts.
I.e. the swing matters more than the gear, at my skill level.
If I can't get a decent result with the same shaft Tiger won majors with, then my action needs work, not my clubs.

However, the right gear encourages a confident move.
I find I'm learning a lot about which profiles and weights I like in which clubs, without breaking the bank. When I've got that dialed, I *may* be able to justify a few modern sticks.
Other favorites are/were an OG Graf Blue X I just snapped (SAD), a nice Elements Chrome TX I've been favoring lately, several weights of Tour Green TX, a couple 'Ahina X hybrids, and my totally OG Accra SCs (which I'm appreciating even more, head to head).
V2 is definitely on my short list. UST makes nice crisp shafts.

Edited May 2, 2023 by rbpwrx

[BIG STU]

On 4/14/2023 at 5:39 PM, Cwebb said:

 

That was like your own personal "auto-flex"

The R flex one in my 7 wood was a mistake. I have had that 7 wood since it was new and it had the stock stiff MAS shaft which was fine until it broke at the tip one day. That was probably 12 years ago. I had a bunch of take out UST 65s. I found one in .350 checked it out installed it and butt trimmed to length. It is basically a soft tipped regular and that is why I can still hit it now. Not as good as I used to but still hit it well. 

 

[BIG STU]

22 hours ago, hagimihale said:

NV, YS6+ and Proforce V2 were the first shafts I recall standing out to me as being clearly better than anything else I'd hit. And few shafts in the decade or so since then measured up.  

 

I have a few OG shafts in my garage that come out to play every once in a while.  'ahina, RIP'd NV and Tour Green come to mind.

 

Then again, I'm currently gaming a Tour Blue (21* hybrid) and Rogue Silver 125 (4W).  Both do exactly what I want in those clubs.

The last line is the key. If it works it works

[JDennis]

I still have a couple drivers with prolaunch red shafts, they still have it for me. 

 

Also the OG gen 1 Kuro Kage's. Silver in a driver/3w and black in a 5/7w....  I still play them in a radspeed 3w and 5w. 

[kix]

I miss my GD purple ice shaft! My 3 wood game has never been the same. 

[Bobb3rdown]

Playing OG kai'li in my driver and 3wd currently. Aldila Tour Blue in my f6 baffler. VS Proto in my hybrid.

 

Played og nv for a long time, 

 

Also got along with proforce axivcore black in my old adams a7 3 hybrid. I never should've gotten rid of that club.

Edited May 2, 2023 by Bobb3rdown

[golfschnell]

Played the 757 speeder for 15 years, ‘til Father Time slapped me up side the head. Outstanding driver shaft. Also played them in my Mizuno pro II irons for a decade.

Edited May 2, 2023 by golfschnell

[deadsolid...shank]

Probably the best driver I ever had was an old Ping G2 with a ProLaunch Blue. I keep thinking I should buy another one. Still have a Aldila NV and a Diamana in old drivers. And just bought an old used Callaway driver for $30 just for the Funuki shaft. They would probably all perform just as well as the RDX Blue that’s in the bag now. 
 

Like others, I really wanted to play the Proto, but when I finally got one, it just didn’t work. 

[dwboston]

The older shafts that stood out to me were the True Temper EI70, Aldila VS Proto, and Grafalloy ProLaunch Blue.  I've got some older (but still relevant) shafts in my bag with the Oban Devotion, GD Tour AD BB, and Diamana Ilima.  They just work.

Edited May 2, 2023 by dwboston

[rbpwrx]

On 4/29/2023 at 5:35 PM, JDennis said:

I still have a couple drivers with prolaunch red shafts, they still have it for me. 

 

Also the OG gen 1 Kuro Kage's. Silver in a driver/3w and black in a 5/7w....  I still play them in a radspeed 3w and 5w. 

How would you describe the KK? I've been curious to try an XT in TX.

[golfinbrad]

On 4/26/2023 at 1:17 PM, JD3 said:

Anyone remember the Wilson fat shaft irons? Looked gimmicky at the time, but with the emphasis on achieving that with a stiffer típ thru thicker walls these days, maybe they were onto something 

Hahahaha.  I remember them.  If you had a higher swing speed you could actually hear them swoosh during your swing.

[charliebrown]

On 4/14/2023 at 1:13 PM, Mike_C said:

About 20 years ago I had a UST Pro Force Gold 65 in an Orlimar HipTi driver that I just bombed and hit straight.   For some reason I never looked at it that close.  One day I did, and realized I had an R shaft.  I couldn't possibly be an regular shaft guy, so  I swapped it out for a stiff, never hit it nearly as good as I did the R......

Not trying to be a smarta**, but if it's not broken, don't fix it. I still play my old HipTi with the stock Aldila NV Regular shaft. It's always worked so no reason to change it. 

[Is Golf Fun or Work]

I remember these and when I was young/strong enough to play it, EI-70.

 

Graffalloy ProLite was a great shaft, as well as OG Blueboard and Speeder 757

[jacob7071]

I still take this bad boy out every once in a while, when I'm feeling nostalgic.  I have a whole nostalgia set - couple of old Pings, TaylorMades, a Cleveland RTG wedge from before anyone ever heard of Vokey.  

[swgolf12]

Y'all are my people!  I went to a newer driver shaft but I will game a Matrix Ozik 8M2 in just about every 3 wood I own until I stop playing. I've tried Tensei Orange, White, Blue, Ventus shafts, al the nwe stuff Before that I was a big EI-70 guy in fairways.  2020 Golf Season I was gaming Pro Launch Blue in my driver and had my best tournament season.  As many said the biggest advancements are in lighter shafts that can now handle higher speeds and offer better stability. If you like 80G fairway shafts there's so many good older options out there for cheap.

[JDennis]

On 5/2/2023 at 7:21 AM, rbpwrx said:

How would you describe the KK? I've been curious to try an XT in TX.

 

The KK shafts are stable with a nice kick. The black launches pretty high so it is great in a fairway wood.  Never tried the XT though,  but the tini silver is one of my top 5 favorite shafts. 

[Howard_Jones]

On 5/4/2023 at 8:01 PM, Is Golf Fun or Work said:

I remember these and when I was young/strong enough to play it, EI-70.

 

Graffalloy ProLite was a great shaft, as well as OG Blueboard and Speeder 757

Good shafts, i still play the EVO model of Pro-Lite, the Grafalloy TOUR, a very overlooked shaft that was in production almost as long as Grafalloy ProLaunch Blue. Thats my 5W/19* shaft. (Performance Fitting Center only model, and not good enough marketing, a BIG shame for such a high performance model in this segment (Low/Low).

In my driver i play the EVO version of the OG BLUE - Grafalloy ProLaunch RED AXIS. OG BLUE players should look for that model, now discontinued, but its "even better" then the OG BLUE due to the advanced carbonfiber frame. It should have been a few grams lower for me, but its the best driver shaft i EVER had, and ive tried "a few".
 

Edited May 6, 2023 by Howard_Jones

[Wardonation]

40 minutes ago, Howard_Jones said:

Good shafts, i still play the EVO model of Pro-Lite, the Grafalloy TOUR, a very overlooked shaft that was in production almost as long as Grafalloy ProLaunch Blue. Thats my 5W/19* shaft. (Performance Fitting Center only model, and not good enough marketing, a BIG shame for such a high performance model in this segment (Low/Low).

In my driver i play the EVO version of the OG BLUE - Grafalloy ProLaunch RED AXIS. OG BLUE players should look for that model, now discontinued, but its "even better" then the OG BLUE due to the advanced carbonfiber frame. It should have been a few grams lower for me, but its the best driver shaft i EVER had, and ive tried "a few".
 

Howard why did I like the Aldila Tour green 85 x so much? I should have never got rid of it, best 3wood shaft ever for me and have been searching since...

[NRJyzr]

12 minutes ago, Wardonation said:

Howard why did I like the Aldila Tour green 85 x so much? I should have never got rid of it, best 3wood shaft ever for me and have been searching since...

 

I'm not Howard, but wanted to chime in to say you can still find one...

 

[hagimihale]

15 minutes ago, Wardonation said:

Howard why did I like the Aldila Tour green 85 x so much? I should have never got rid of it, best 3wood shaft ever for me and have been searching since...

 

Stable butt, not completely linear but the mid-shaft bump in stiffness gives it a hint of hinge without feeling loose. 

 

@NRJyzr is correct, you can find them on the 'bay if you look.

 

Other shafts with similar profile:  Aldila RIP'd NV, Aldila Rogue 125, Aldila Rogue Silver 130, Aldila Rogue White 130 (in TX), VA Composites Raijin Black, Graphite Design MAD, LA Golf Olyss, LA Golf DJ, LA Golf Bryson.

[Howard_Jones]

53 minutes ago, Wardonation said:

Howard why did I like the Aldila Tour green 85 x so much? I should have never got rid of it, best 3wood shaft ever for me and have been searching since...

Weight, balance point, over all flex and EI profile, combined with play length and head weight + head specs combined is what makes "the magic", where it simply works.

We should dial in ALL parameters to make it right, but YES, the shaft is a major part of it.

[Howard_Jones]

1 hour ago, Wardonation said:

Howard why did I like the Aldila Tour green 85 x so much? I should have never got rid of it, best 3wood shaft ever for me and have been searching since...

 

I NEVER played that shaft, and those profiles is no good for me



Its a "weak mid section" model, im to shaft in the opposite end, STIFF mid section, soft butt and moderate to stiff tip sections....for short, the OG Project X profile, or Grafalloy BLUE EI profile (softer tip vs PX). The shafts in my bag has a EI profile equal to PX SS1 and FCM 4.9 as average





The OG BLUE, even stiffer MID, softer tip.

All profile between this 2 works for me.
So in gerneral, SOFT butt section, very stiff mid section, medium to stiff tip section

Edited May 6, 2023 by Howard_Jones

[Booker]

13 hours ago, JDennis said:

 

The KK shafts are stable with a nice kick. The black launches pretty high so it is great in a fairway wood.  Never tried the XT though,  but the tini silver is one of my top 5 favorite shafts. 

I have a 70tx xt and a 50tx xt,  it's a very stout feeling beast. Extremely stable you can give it everything you have. Pretty sure Fleetwood and Jason day still play them. 

[rbpwrx]

3 hours ago, Booker said:

I have a 70tx xt and a 50tx xt,  it's a very stout feeling beast. Extremely stable you can give it everything you have. Pretty sure Fleetwood and Jason day still play them. 

XT = lo/lo?