Axis1 counterbalance build

[jomatty]

Rickie and Wyndham piqued my curiosity into counterbalanced putters.  I know I’m not alone in that!   I also am fairly committed to no torque style putters.  I have been gaming a Link.1 from LAB and have been very happy with it.  I love that putter.  That said, I’m a WRX’er and can’t leave well enough alone.  I spoke with the people at LAB and they said that their voodoo did not jive with counterbalancing, so that was not a possibility.  Axis1 seemed the other true no torque option and talks with them confirmed that the tech works just fine after CB’ing.  I’m cheap though, and didn’t want to pay extra for them to build, especially after I saw that Golf Galaxy had them on sale for $260.  I decided to build one similar to The one Rai used in the BMW, the HM Tour, rather than the Rose.  I usually like putters shaped like the Rose and like the top line alignment better, but decided to go with the recommendation from Axis1 and go with the HM Tour.

So far I have extended it to 37.75” and added 25grams of lead tape.  This is easy to do as the back section is removable.  Right now it has a Winn CB grip on it but a 17” Superstroke is ordered.  I’m also considering adding some heat shrink tubing to the shaft to add a little weight, but that’s about it. 
I’m taking it out for 9 holes before work today and will report back.  I played 2 rounds with it in stock configuration and it performed really well.  It was actually hard to go through with the mods, it rolled it so well, and there is a very good chance it will end up back how it came.  The neck looks very funky at first but I got used to it fairly quickly.  It seems exceptionally easy to start the ball online, so hopefully that trend will continue in the counterbalance form.

Any tips on Counterbalance builds are appreciated.

[jomatty]

I was able to take it out for 9 holes yesterday and so far things are looking very promising.  The putter feels so stable and stays square so easily.  While I don’t mind the look of lead tape, it is a bonus to be able to hide it all within the head.  I’m looking forward to trying the Superstroke 17” grip, but it feels good with the Winn grip.  I had a touch more trouble controlling speed compared to the round I played with the same putter in its stock configuration. The putter felt really good both before and after I turned it into a counterbalance putter though, so too early to really say if it is going to help my game or not.

Anyone else thought about using a no torque putter for a counterbalance configuration?

[dmecca2]

Nice idea piggybacking the no torque with the CB. Would love to see some pictures. Think this would work on Edel putters?

[JDTex]

I had wondered about the idea of a CB Axis 1 build as well. Will be looking forward to your reviews on this @jomatty

[jomatty]

4 hours ago, dmecca2 said:

Nice idea piggybacking the no torque with the CB. Would love to see some pictures. Think this would work on Edel putters?

I’ll put some pics up once the superstroke gets here.  No idea about Edel.  I would guess so, but don’t really know enough about the tech to know why LAB doesn’t work and Axis1 does, so while I feel like Edel would work that is just a guess.

[MattM97]

8 hours ago, dmecca2 said:

Nice idea piggybacking the no torque with the CB. Would love to see some pictures. Think this would work on Edel putters?

 

Probably not, I'm not 100% sure on the recent Edel putters but their way to reduce torque is removing weight in the head from the toe so you'd need to add a substantial amount of weight into the heel. 

 

I mean it could just wouldn't feel good.  

[jblough99]

@jomatty

If you’re adding weight to the head, especially in the rear plastic removable piece, then you no longer have a “no torque” putter.  The “no torque” is created by weight being removed from parts of the head and relocated to balance the head around the CG, thus the odd head shape and hosel design.  Adding weight anywhere to the head is cancelling this out.  

[jomatty]

18 minutes ago, jblough99 said:

@jomatty

If you’re adding weight to the head, especially in the rear plastic removable piece, then you no longer have a “no torque” putter.  The “no torque” is created by weight being removed from parts of the head and relocated to balance the head around the CG, thus the odd head shape and hosel design.  Adding weight anywhere to the head is cancelling this out.  

I’m not a scientist but that is not the impression that people at Axis1 gave me.  

[jomatty]

19 minutes ago, jblough99 said:

@jomatty

If you’re adding weight to the head, especially in the rear plastic removable piece, then you no longer have a “no torque” putter.  The “no torque” is created by weight being removed from parts of the head and relocated to balance the head around the CG, thus the odd head shape and hosel design.  Adding weight anywhere to the head is cancelling this out.  

Also I’m not adding weight in the plastic part. I’m removing it and adding it to the head near the face and then adding it back.  

[jblough99]

 

Edited November 8, 2023 by jblough99

[jomatty]

9 hours ago, jblough99 said:

@jomatty
I have 2 Axis putters, a Tour-B which I’ve played all year and I just picked up a Tour-Laser which is the same as your Tour-HM but the rear plastic part is shaped like a Taylormade spider.  I removed the rear plastic part to add some alignment lines and noticed even with that small amount of weight removed from the putter that the face wanted to sit closed instead of toe up when balanced on my finger.  Adding weight via lead tape anywhere on the head would have the same effect.  Pics below show what I’m talking about.

 

Regardless, if it’s working for you then great, whatever gets the ball in the whole is all that matters.

 

I appreciate the feedback.  I spoke with Axis1 about this and they confirmed that what I am doing should not effect the no torque aspects of the putter.  Interesting that you are seeing different results.  
so far so good in my build, but time will tell.

[jomatty]

14 hours ago, MattM97 said:

 

Probably not, I'm not 100% sure on the recent Edel putters but their way to reduce torque is removing weight in the head from the toe so you'd need to add a substantial amount of weight into the heel. 

 

I mean it could just wouldn't feel good.  

You think that if you just added the lead tape evenly over the bottom of the head it would throw off the balance?  I’m sure your right but in my head it seems like if you increased weight evenly it could work.  I’m admittedly dumb when it comes to fully understanding the tech though.

[PLongGolf]

@jblough99 hard to tell from a picture but it looks like the shaftbend in your putter is moved back and is not inline. Did you reshaft or try to bend your putter? 

[jblough99]

14 minutes ago, PLongGolf said:

@jblough99 hard to tell from a picture but it looks like the shaftbend in your putter is moved back and is not inline. Did you reshaft or try to bend your putter? 

I purchased from another member who purchased from another member so no idea who did the original work.

 

Might just be the angle of the picture?  I’ve compared it to my Tour-B and it looks the same.

[MattM97]

1 hour ago, jomatty said:

You think that if you just added the lead tape evenly over the bottom of the head it would throw off the balance?  I’m sure your right but in my head it seems like if you increased weight evenly it could work.  I’m admittedly dumb when it comes to fully understanding the tech though.

 

More the feel, the Edel putters are not the best feeling putters, the new ones are a bit better I heard.

 

But people also don't realize they are big on counter balancing their putters, not like 400g heads and 17" grips but they'll put in 150-200g into the handle of a 35" putter if that what works for them.

[Spinozist]

I added a bit of weight (rubber tungsten stickers from golfworks) on the back of my TM-Elite and it only very slightly affected the toe point (much less than the example pictured). It's 6g right behind the center of the face, and 2g on the tip of each fang. 

Edited October 8, 2023 by Spinozist
small fix

[jomatty]

On 10/6/2023 at 8:12 AM, dmecca2 said:

Nice idea piggybacking the no torque with the CB. Would love to see some pictures. Think this would work on Edel putters?

A few pictures. Not the best pictures and if the putter stays in this configuration I’ll probably take some time to clean things up a little bit and redo the wrap/Do a better job removing the site line and adding topline alignment.. Then again I’m not that particular so I may not do you anything before then do a better job getting rid of the flange line .  I haven’t had a chance to use it with the super stroke yet. It felt fantastic with the Winn counterbalance grip, and also in the stock configuration. Looking forward to chatting it with the super stroke this morning.

[jomatty]

This putter really rolls it nice.  It is not as intuitive for me to aim as my LAB link.1, but that’s because I’ve always aimed blades better.  
This morning was the second nine using it though, and I made everything I looked at.  Shot -2 in large part due to the putter.  Time will tell if it beats out the link.1 but it is definitely going to give it a run for it’s money

Edited October 13, 2023 by jomatty

[dmeeksDC]

On 10/12/2023 at 1:03 PM, jomatty said:

This putter really rolls it nice.  It is not as intuitive for me to aim as my LAB link.1, but that’s because I’ve always aimed blades better.  
This morning was the second nine using it though, and I made everything I looked at.  Shot -2 in large part due to the putter.  Time will tell if it beats out the link.1 but it is definitely going to give it a run for it’s money

What you keep pointing out is also what I love about the Axis1 putters: They are so easy to use and put a great roll on the ball. I found LAB putters require a precise setup to the point I felt mechanical and I was no longer a feel putter. The Axis1 brought that back. It is like the ball is rolling on rails. I am a solid green reader and usually good on speed too, it was stroke smoothness and starting the putt on my line that was giving me trouble. Not a problem with the Axis1. 
 

It was watching Justin Rose drain so many 10 footers that got me interested. And I think these putters take some time to get used to because they are not like other putters. It does at first seem like the ball comes off a little faster but I think what is actually happening is I am not mishitting putts so it only seems that way. It took some time. I’m settled in now. These Axis1 putters are deadly on short putts. Best of all you can set the lie angle however you want, put on whatever grip you want (did not mesh with the stock grip), you don’t have to send it back for rebalancing —  the putter works the same regardless. I feel like if golfers did not fixate on the unique hosel design and gave these a good long test, they are hard to beat. 

[jomatty]

1 hour ago, dmeeksDC said:

What you keep pointing out is also what I love about the Axis1 putters: They are so easy to use and put a great roll on the ball. I found LAB putters require a precise setup to the point I felt mechanical and I was no longer a feel putter. The Axis1 brought that back. It is like the ball is rolling on rails. I am a solid green reader and usually good on speed too, it was stroke smoothness and starting the putt on my line that was giving me trouble. Not a problem with the Axis1. 
 

It was watching Justin Rose drain so many 10 footers that got me interested. And I think these putters take some time to get used to because they are not like other putters. It does at first seem like the ball comes off a little faster but I think what is actually happening is I am not mishitting putts so it only seems that way. It took some time. I’m settled in now. These Axis1 putters are deadly on short putts. Best of all you can set the lie angle however you want, put on whatever grip you want (did not mesh with the stock grip), you don’t have to send it back for rebalancing —  the putter works the same regardless. I feel like if golfers did not fixate on the unique hosel design and gave these a good long test, they are hard to beat. 

This has definitely been my experience so far.  I’ve continued to start the ball on line much better than I was before.  That’s impressive, as I was putting well with my link.1.  I really like the hm tour but am interested to try the rose as well.  I may need one counterbalanced (hm tour) and one traditional (rose) so I can make one stand in the corner if it misbehaves…

im excited to see how this putter performs long term.  It is off to a great start.

[PingPoncho]

What shaft do you install and what length?

if you do not add any lead tape to putter head, will it feel too light?

[jomatty]

On 10/16/2023 at 9:16 PM, PingPoncho said:

What shaft do you install and what length?

if you do not add any lead tape to putter head, will it feel too light?

I extended the shaft to 38” but then ended up shortening it to 37.25ish for the same reasons Rickie shortened his (catching jacket on backswing).  
You can’t simply swap out the shaft on an Axis one putter.  I believe the only aftermarket options would be to use a stability shaft so that the bend in the shaft is not effected.  I did add some black shrink wrap tubing to the shaft to add a little extra weight (I think around 12 grams) to try to duplicate the heavier shafts that Callaway uses for the counterbalance build.

i can only guess if the head would feel too light for you or not.  For me it would definitely feel very light at the stock 350g.  Also, for me, the extra head weight without feeling excessively heavy, is a big appeal of the counterbalance build.  I don’t like a head that feels excessively heavy but was looking for more stability and smoothness on the putts under 12 feet or so.  Personally I would not want to do a build like this without adding weight to the head but ymmv.

[jomatty]

Well boys, things are getting wacky with this putter.  Today I installed a 15” Garsen Max, which is a weird grip.  Ever since I started this build I have had that grip in the back of my mind as something that seemed like it may work.  A couple years ago I tried the edge, and while I liked the feel it didn’t last long as it just felt too weird.  Rolling the max on the carpet it feels really good though, so I am looking forward to this mornings round.  
This putter has gone through more experimentation than any putter I’ve ever owned.  It was performing well in its initial counterbalance configuration but I moved it back to basically stock set up using first a Lamkin deep etch cord and then a quad tour, before trying a Superstroke pistol 1.0 and finally 2.0.  I’ve bought the 50 and 25 gram weights for the superstroke and tried different variations.  I’ve pulled the head apart and added or subtracted lead tape probably a dozen times.  I have clearly lost my mind (as shown by how much I like the putter exactly as it came).
What have I learned through all of this experimentation?  I’ve learned that this Axis1 putter really rolls the rock!  The stock configuration performs great and is tough to beat, although I like it a little better with a little extra headweight and a little heavier grip if played as a standard length putter.  I have however decided that it will be a counterbalance putter.  I’m enjoying the feel and flow of it in that form and also like that it will be very different than my LAB Link.1 which will be good when I want to see something different.  The link is still close to a perfect putter for me…

Todays version has the Garsen 15” max with an extra 20g of weight on the butt end and 30g added to the head.  This will be the approximate weighting I will use in the final product.  Depending on how the testing goes the final version will have either the Max, the 17” superstroke z energy, or possibly the Garsen 17” quad tour.  I haven’t gotten the 17” quad tour yet but probably will, although I may wait awhile on that test.  I’ve enjoyed the testing, but am over it now, and looking forward to being done, finishing the putter up and just using it in one configuration.  Anyways, we will see how it goes with the weird Max today and I will report back.

Edited October 31, 2023 by jomatty

[jomatty]

The putter felt great today.  No surprise, as it has been good in all of its iterations.  The Max grip is weird but really does leave your hands/palms in a good feeling position.  It may be difficult for me to commit to actually changing the way I grip the putter but I am going to give it a solid try Before I decide what grip will go on the putter long-term.

[NickJ]

Thank you for sharing. I also picked up an HM Tour recently but have struggled with speed control. I typically play a much heavier putter so I will likely try some of these same things to get the weight up. 
 

What size shrink wrap did you use? 

[jomatty]

On 12/17/2023 at 12:30 PM, NickJ said:

Thank you for sharing. I also picked up an HM Tour recently but have struggled with speed control. I typically play a much heavier putter so I will likely try some of these same things to get the weight up. 
 

What size shrink wrap did you use? 

Sorry, just saw this.  I can’t remember the shrink tubing was.  If you search for putter mods you should be able to find it.  It is really easy to add weight to the head with lead tape as well.  Use a driver wrench to take the back off and add it behind the face.  

[gullwing81]

Any more updates on the CB Axis? I rolled the Axis TM Elite most of last year but moved on to try the LAB Link and DF2. They were good but my speed was bad with the Link and I had problems aligning with the press grip on the DF2. I've been rolling an old SC Golo 7 CB and enjoying the stability with the extra weight on short putts - but I do struggle some with the toe hang and push or pull some putts. So I found a deal on another Axis TM Elite to try again. I've also thought about the CB DF3 or Mezz Max because I do like the extra weight - but a CB Axis may be more what I'm looking for.  What set up did you wind up with?