Hickory Shaft Length

[SandtrapEnthusiast13]

I recently bought some brand new hickory shafts to put in some old heads I bought off of eBay. They were advertised as iron length. When they arrived, they were longer than any of my more modern irons. Is that normal? Also, were all irons in a set of hickories the same length or would the shorter irons be shorter in length like a modern set? Basically, what I need to know is, do I need to shorten these shafts at all? If so, how much and how do I go about it? Thanks 

[The Aspidistra in the Hall]

I don't know where to start, have you done any of this before?

Edited September 18, 2023 by The Aspidistra in the Hall

[Wham49]

On 9/17/2023 at 1:02 PM, SandtrapEnthusiast13 said:

I recently bought some brand new hickory shafts to put in some old heads I bought off of eBay. They were advertised as iron length. When they arrived, they were longer than any of my more modern irons. Is that normal? Also, were all irons in a set of hickories the same length or would the shorter irons be shorter in length like a modern set? Basically, what I need to know is, do I need to shorten these shafts at all? If so, how much and how do I go about it? Thanks 

yes it seems to be normal, all of my irons are longer than their modern equivs, some as much as 2 inches. I cut some down, but I just make a longer grip and go up and down the length of the grip for different shots, I guess it comes fron the days of only 7 clubs in a bag, need to use them for many different things

 

and yes even modern shafts need to be cut down when new

Edited September 18, 2023 by Wham49

[ASak10]

Yes, it's normal that they are longer, they come in one length and can be left as is or shortened to your preferences.  A few years back I had to replace a few broken hickory shafts and also decided to refinish those that weren't broken.  In the process I made the shafts progressively shorter to match the clubs.  To shorten them you just cut them down to the length you desire but that's the easy part.  Like @The Aspidistra in the Hall said, shafting hickory clubs is a whole level of knowledge and trial and error to figure out how to do it.  YouTube has some great videos and I'd start by watching all the videos posted on The Hickory Golf Workshop website.  He explains things really well.  He also does excellent work if you decide to outsource it instead of trying yourself.  

 

To really answer the length question though will just take knowing your hickory clubs.  Once you start playing with them, you'll realize that you may like certain clubs shorter or longer.  The beauty of hickory clubs (in my opinion) is that they are all s unique - no two mashie niblicks are the same!  I have friends with sets that have the "same" club (at least by name) but with two different shaft lengths in them and have very different uses.  Shoot, sometimes there's two of the same club with a similar length shaft and yet they both play very differently.  

 

So bottom line I guess is you'll just have to experiment, have some fun, and get to know your clubs.  You may change your mind on what length you like to play them after you get used to them.  Here's a picture of how my set progressed after I refinished them all. You can kinda see that it's not a perfect progression like you would have with modern irons...but it's what works for me and what I enjoy.  Just took a few years of playing with them to figure out what I wanted. 

 

Have fun!  

[The Aspidistra in the Hall]

On 9/17/2023 at 7:02 PM, SandtrapEnthusiast13 said:

I recently bought some brand new hickory shafts to put in some old heads I bought off of eBay. They were advertised as iron length. When they arrived, they were longer than any of my more modern irons. Is that normal? Also, were all irons in a set of hickories the same length or would the shorter irons be shorter in length like a modern set? Basically, what I need to know is, do I need to shorten these shafts at all? If so, how much and how do I go about it? Thanks 

How about showing us a photo of the heads in question.

[SandtrapEnthusiast13]

2 hours ago, The Aspidistra in the Hall said:

How about showing us a photo of the heads in question.

Here are the seven I’m planning to start with. I have ten others that I’ll get to sooner or later

[SandtrapEnthusiast13]

Thanks for the advice. That helped a lot. To answer your question @The Aspidistra in the Hall, I’m just getting started with this. I have already been watching YouTube videos and reading articles about it, but I still have a lot to learn. 

[bcstones]

@SandtrapEnthusiast13 good pictures....tho, could you also show the faces of the club heads? It would be interesting, & perhaps instructive, to see the faces.

Thanks, there are some books out there on hickory shaft care & repair...the only one I have (so far) is "Antique Golf Clubs, their restoriation & preservation X Bob Kuntz.

I'm sure that the hickory experts have more info on books/manuals....

[SandtrapEnthusiast13]

On 9/18/2023 at 7:04 PM, bcstones said:

@SandtrapEnthusiast13 good pictures....tho, could you also show the faces of the club heads? It would be interesting, & perhaps instructive, to see the faces.

Thanks, there are some books out there on hickory shaft care & repair...the only one I have (so far) is "Antique Golf Clubs, their restoriation & preservation X Bob Kuntz.

I'm sure that the hickory experts have more info on books/manuals....

 

How’s this?

[bcstones]

4 hours ago, SandtrapEnthusiast13 said:

 

How’s this?

Great pictures, just what was needed - look at the punch dots, I'm pretty sure they were done by hand cuz the dots are not in perfect line. Anyway, a great set of clubs. Will you be getting new hickories? Since you're going to use new hickory shafts, why not use lengths like this advert by Spalding for the new Bobby Jones line of clubs - equal lengths for the long irons, mid irons & short irons (with the mid shorter than long, & short shorter than mid). After all, Jones played w/hickory shafts when he won the Grand Slam...
Good luck with whatever you decide...just have fun getting the ball in the cup 

 

 

[The Aspidistra in the Hall]

8 hours ago, SandtrapEnthusiast13 said:

 

How’s this?

Yup, there's a set to be made there.

Here's something for you that you won't find in a book.

Getting the stain right to pull out the grain is key to getting the vintage look of authenticity. I have an old coke bottle full of white wine vinegar with some old mild steel nail offcuts (remnants of cut off hosel pins) in it. This gives you your basic stain to brush on. When that has dried off and any excess removed I then apply wax black shoe polish, rub it in and then remove the excess. This picks out the grain and darkens the stain nicely. It's then ready for your clear varnish of choice, shellac or whatever. I've been doing this for 30 years now and my clubs look great.

[bcstones]

15 minutes ago, The Aspidistra in the Hall said:

Yup, there's a set to be made there.

Here's something for you that you won't find in a book.

Getting the stain right to pull out the grain is key to getting the vintage look of authenticity. I have an old coke bottle full of white wine vinegar with some old mild steel nail offcuts (remnants of cut off hosel pins) in it. This gives you your basic stain to brush on. When that has dried off and any excess removed I then apply wax black shoe polish, rub it in and then remove the excess. This picks out the grain and darkens the stain nicely. It's then ready for your clear varnish of choice, shellac or whatever. I've been doing this for 30 years now and my clubs look great.

Thanks....always learning...would any old rusty nail, screw or nut do as well?

[The Aspidistra in the Hall]

Just now, bcstones said:

Thanks....always learning...would any old rusty nail, screw or nut do as well?

Mild steel of any sort, lots of small stuff gives a better surface area for the acetic acid (vinegar) to work on. Iron filings is perfect, but unless you are filing down a lot of hosel pins (which I was) chopped up mild steel nails would be a good options.

This was the way the St Andrews clubmakers used to do it.

[bcstones]

10 minutes ago, The Aspidistra in the Hall said:

Mild steel of any sort, lots of small stuff gives a better surface area for the acetic acid (vinegar) to work on. Iron filings is perfect, but unless you are filing down a lot of hosel pins (which I was) chopped up mild steel nails would be a good options.

This was the way the St Andrews clubmakers used to do it.

I don't have any hosel pins to speak of...so perhaps a miriad of small tacks might do the same...it will be fun to figure out. Also, since no coke bottle, I'll use a clear single malt (😋) bottle...

[Bella Woods]

Mild steel, aluminum or brass welding rods can be bought relatively cheap to be used as hosel pins (1/8"),

steel blends in the best - especially over time.

 

The hickory shafts you bought need to be cut to (your preferred) length and fine tuned

(sanded) to the flex you want (and where you want the flex) in the shaft. That is assuming you didn't

supply the seller with your requirements and they custom fit the shafts for you prior to shipping.

 

It would help if you had a frequency analyzer, hickory shafts frequency differently than steel or graphite shafts.

I can give you some CPM numbers for specific shaft flexes when you get to that point.

 

You should clean (get the rust out) the inside of hosels on those heads while they are open and you have the chance.

Same for the heads in general on the outside. Heavy duty scotch brite pads with WD-40 oil works very well for removing

and leaves a nice patina (not shiny).

 

Many of the old heads with the mild English and/or U.S. steel are awesome examples of very high quality steel.

  

 

 

[The Aspidistra in the Hall]

8 hours ago, Bella Woods said:

Mild steel, aluminum or brass welding rods can be bought relatively cheap to be used as hosel pins (1/8"),

steel blends in the best - especially over time.

 

The hickory shafts you bought need to be cut to (your preferred) length and fine tuned

(sanded) to the flex you want (and where you want the flex) in the shaft. That is assuming you didn't

supply the seller with your requirements and they custom fit the shafts for you prior to shipping.

 

It would help if you had a frequency analyzer, hickory shafts frequency differently than steel or graphite shafts.

I can give you some CPM numbers for specific shaft flexes when you get to that point.

 

You should clean (get the rust out) the inside of hosels on those heads while they are open and you have the chance.

Same for the heads in general on the outside. Heavy duty scotch brite pads with WD-40 oil works very well for removing

and leaves a nice patina (not shiny).

 

Many of the old heads with the mild English and/or U.S. steel are awesome examples of very high quality steel.

  

 

 

Ralph Livingston told me he used mild steel welding rod for hosel pins.

[Bella Woods]

Yes he did, actually Ralph gave me a couple of boxes of the rods when I was in his workshop.

 

Hard to believe he has been gone more than 11 years now. Of course you and Ralph are forever

linked in hickory golf "lore" due to a certain golf match you had. I can't remember which course

that was at? And I wonder who got the Tom Morris putter...... 

[The Aspidistra in the Hall]

On 9/30/2023 at 12:55 PM, Bella Woods said:

Yes he did, actually Ralph gave me a couple of boxes of the rods when I was in his workshop.

 

Hard to believe he has been gone more than 11 years now. Of course you and Ralph are forever

linked in hickory golf "lore" due to a certain golf match you had. I can't remember which course

that was at? And I wonder who got the Tom Morris putter...... 

Yes, there was a great photo afterwards which epitomised the camarderie of the hickory golf brigade.

And it was Kilspindie.

I don't know who got Ralph's 'Tommy'.

[northplatteriver]

When I was in the process of setting up my first set, I referenced Louisville Golf, Tad Moore, Ralph Livingston and Randy Jensen's sites to see how long they had each of their clubs.  Then I went about mounting the heads to the shafts properly and then measured many many times before I cut anything.  Usually the longest irons (driving iron, mid-iron) are 39 inches and they progress down in 1/2 inch decrements to about 36 inches for your niblick.  If your very tall, this may vary by an inch, but that is the where I started.

Edited October 11, 2023 by northplatteriver

[Maine Golfer]

changing the topic a little, do these old clubs tolerate lie bending up? 

[northplatteriver]

Hickory irons are renowned for being "diggy" due to the sharp leading edge.  From my understanding you are in decent shape to go up in loft a few degrees, but it is usually not a great idea to go down in loft since this changes the bounce angle to make it even more diggy.   As for lie angles you should be fine with those adjustments.

[Bella Woods]

Maine Golfer

 

Yes, the old mild steel hickories bend very easily.... Loft and Lie