Light weight driver shaft options

[wam78]

If there is another thread on this, my apologies.  Please direct me to it, but I did not find anything with too much detail.

 

Last week I tested some drivers at 2nd swing and noticed one of the drivers I was hitting the best had a Diamana pd 50.  It felt amazing and I really loved the weight and feel.  Just felt effortless to get through the ball at impact.  This was the first time in a long time I hit balls, so it could be my swing is still really tight and not as fluid as usual.  But I just can’t get the feel out of my head.

 

Before I get too deep in this rabbit hole, which I do quite often, I would love to hear some direction on what to look into.  I love Diamana shafts as I’ve played them for a long time.  Typically like blueboard profiles with stability if that makes any sense.  I know the PD and GT are a good starting point, but curious about other options to check out.  

 

TIA!

[Louis_Posture]

50-weight driver shafts are great in a fitting bay or driving range but on the golf course shot dispersion suffers.

[st1800e]

7 minutes ago, Louis_Posture said:

50-weight driver shafts are great in a fitting bay or driving range but on the golf course shot dispersion suffers.

Yep, and testing shafts when “This was the first time in a long time I hit balls”,

is a mug’s game.  

[wam78]

This is testing season by all means.  How else would you know if you like something or not without putting it through its paces on the course.  

 

Once again, any thoughts on other shafts to look into would be much appreciated.

 

 

[Jtgavigan]

There was a recent Bryan Brothers (or Bryan Bothers TV) video where Wesley did a what's in the bag segment. He talked about dropping to a 50g shaft as almost a last resort and his driving, which he has really struggled with, got better. We are all different and respond to shafts differently. Worth a try.

[rgk5]

VA Composites Raijin, 44 grams and very stable.

[wam78]

35 minutes ago, rgk5 said:

VA Composites Raijin, 44 grams and very stable.

A little lighter than anticipated, but I’ll keep it in mind.  Thanks!

[Sparty4202]

9 hours ago, wam78 said:

If there is another thread on this, my apologies.  Please direct me to it, but I did not find anything with too much detail.

 

Last week I tested some drivers at 2nd swing and noticed one of the drivers I was hitting the best had a Diamana pd 50.  It felt amazing and I really loved the weight and feel.  Just felt effortless to get through the ball at impact.  This was the first time in a long time I hit balls, so it could be my swing is still really tight and not as fluid as usual.  But I just can’t get the feel out of my head.

 

Before I get too deep in this rabbit hole, which I do quite often, I would love to hear some direction on what to look into.  I love Diamana shafts as I’ve played them for a long time.  Typically like blueboard profiles with stability if that makes any sense.  I know the PD and GT are a good starting point, but curious about other options to check out.  

 

TIA!

You can sometimes pick up a Fijikura Air Speeder 45g on eBay for a pretty cheap price to test. I picked one up last winter to see if it would for me but it just didn’t work for me….ended up sticking with my GD VR. 

[gdb99]

Diamana TB 50

Tensei 1k Pro Blue 50

Vanquish 50

C6 Blue 50

Edited January 9 by gdb99

[jholz]

There isn't any reason to fear lightweight shafts. Like all shafts, they have improved greatly and continue to do so.

 

It's obviously impossible to know what might work best for you, but I've found good performance going light and stiff. 

 

I currently play an MCA Vanquish 5x and it hits the ball just fine. Just one more option in a virtual sea of them. 

[wam78]

15 minutes ago, gdb99 said:

Diamana TB 50

Tensei 1k Pro Blue 50

Vanquish 50

C6 Blue 50

Super helpful!  Thank you!

[MattM97]

Look at the Accra shafts, the new TZFive 50 is pretty low weight and flex options. The older TZ 6 has some lighter options and can be had cheaper. 

 

TPT shafts plenty of older lines look for an 18-21 

 

LA Golf A-Series High or Mid - These could possibly be grabbed really cheap. 

 

 

 

 

[angler99]

I got fit for a driver and shaft about 8 years ago when my driver swing speed was around 95 - 96mph.  Srixon Z565 with a Oban Devotion 5 03 Flex - 55 grams.  This year I got my SS up to about 105mph. I got a new driver head that I should have loved but couldn't make any shaft work. I had thought that through my swing changes and increased speed that maybe the old shaft would be too flimsy and light. I ended up buying the same shaft to put in my new (to me) Cobra LTDx and have been smashing the ball. I love that shaft a lot and it's light. I haven't been to a fitter to see if it's the shaft for me now, but it was before.

[wam78]

2 hours ago, MattM97 said:

Look at the Accra shafts, the new TZFive 50 is pretty low weight and flex options. The older TZ 6 has some lighter options and can be had cheaper. 

 

TPT shafts plenty of older lines look for an 18-21 

 

LA Golf A-Series High or Mid - These could possibly be grabbed really cheap. 

 

 

 

 

I’m always interested in Accra shafts as they always feel so damn good.  TPT is a good call as well.  Thanks!

[MattM97]

6 minutes ago, wam78 said:

I’m always interested in Accra shafts as they always feel so damn good.  TPT is a good call as well.  Thanks!

 

Same here I always seem to have an Accra shaft in the testing, I just ordered myself an older TZ5 cause it was dirt cheap for my driver until I test for a new one in the winter (don't like current shaft feels). 

 

The TPT stuff I've yet to try but definitely curious on them and how they go about "flex" and all that. Also the 21 which is like 40g is used by a lot of long driver. 

[enfuego]

Loved blueboards and recently have found a Diamana ZF 40x. Very stable, handles up to 110+ mph no problem. In 60g shafts I would cruise at 105 but dropped weight and picked up speed. It definitely takes the right combo to work as you go lighter and having adjustable head weights to play around with will help alot.

[WipeyFade]

5 hours ago, Jtgavigan said:

There was a recent Bryan Brothers (or Bryan Bothers TV) video where Wesley did a what's in the bag segment. He talked about dropping to a 50g shaft as almost a last resort and his driving, which he has really struggled with, got better. We are all different and respond to shafts differently. Worth a try.

I have always struggled with driving the ball, I was on the verge of abandoning my driver. I have a decently fast swing speed (110-115) and have always played stiff 60-70g shafts. The shaft I was playing was an Aldila 70g stiff and I would hit one good drive per round with it. The rest would be borderline unplayable. After seeing a video by Elite Fit Golf on Youtube, I put my 11 year old's 44g ladies flex in my driver to see what would happen. I was afraid it was going to break to begin with so I was swinging really slowly. Before long, very smooth swings were carrying further than my Aldila and then I was able to make full swings with great results.  Now, not only has my dispersion gotten better (most drives are at least playable with a few really good drives thrown in per round) my swing speed has went up and distance has improved dramatically. It doesn't make sense but it works for me. From all the information I have sifted through I've learned that a shaft is simply a timing device and if you find one that works for you it's because it matches up with you tempo and how you hit the ball.

[rgk5]

54 minutes ago, wam78 said:

I’m always interested in Accra shafts as they always feel so damn good.  TPT is a good call as well.  Thanks!

Check my signature.

[Streuner]

I general, a Swinger will profit from a lightweight shaft and thoses shafts have becoming very good over the last 5 years. Martin Borgmeier is using very light and flexible shafts in some of his drivers...

Edited January 10 by Streuner

[Drivingrangehero]

I have a UST Mamiya Helium Proto that is in X-Flex (f5) that is 59g in my driver now. 
 

I know they did make a newer version called the Helium Black that doesn’t have an X flex option, so I’m not sure if anything other than flex codes have changed, but the X flex I have, feels like a R+ or a Stiff compared to some other manufacturers which I like. 
 

I hover around the low 160’s for ball speed with my driver, so maybe 109-112 Swing speed 

 

I picked one up on eBay for under $100 ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

 

https://golfersauthority.com/ust-mamiya-helium-shaft-review/

 

 

[chewiemf]

Hey guys question- I have a blistering 87 mph swing speed and did a quick callaway smoke max D driver fitting and came away with a 45 gram shaft with 6.7 torque.   Ball speed and surprisingly low spin were excellent.   The problem is I did not get a chance to evaluate dispersion or forgot to ask.  Am I playing with fire ordering this shaft?  Is it too light?  Should I be in 50 gram range?  I don't think my tempo is fast, I mean how could it be?  Thx.

[Jeff58]

14 minutes ago, chewiemf said:

Should I be in 50 gram range?  I don't think my tempo is fast, I mean how could it be?  Thx.

What do you have in your irons?

[chewiemf]

23 minutes ago, Jeff58 said:

What do you have in your irons?

Aerotech steelfiber i95cw.   95 grams.  I want to go lighter in those.   Next year. 

[Jeff58]

3 minutes ago, chewiemf said:

Aerotech steelfiber i95cw.   95 grams.  I want to go lighter in those.   Next year.

 

A common problem with demoing a product in isolation is that the lightest and most active wins the distance contest, and when you try to integrate it with clubs of significant weight and flex, the ensuing chaos can put your entire game in jeopardy.

[chewiemf]

34 minutes ago, Jeff58 said:

 

A common problem with demoing a product in isolation is that the lightest and most active wins the distance contest, and when you try to integrate it with clubs of significant weight and flex, the ensuing chaos can put your entire game in jeopardy.

Working well for my new 3 wood.  Big Bertha with RCH 55 shaft.   Hit it 10 yards farther than Callaway premium clubs (AI Smoke).   But you raise a very interesting point.

[Jeff58]

52 minutes ago, chewiemf said:

Working well for my new 3 wood.  Big Bertha with RCH 55 shaft.   Hit it 10 yards farther than Callaway premium clubs (AI Smoke).   But you raise a very interesting point.

Sometimes mixing weights works very well, typically when the difference in overall weigh, swing weight, length, and balance point offset the needs of your swing mechanics.

 

The problem tends to be that the greater the change, the greater the chance for failure. It’s like going to Vegas and putting everything on 24…