Why not just get it right first time?

[jaskanski]

...or just keep pulling shafts?

Generally perusing the forum topics, it never ceases to amaze me how many people are looking to change the shaft on their driver. What is it with constantly trying a different shaft because they've bought a club with a shaft that is completely unsuited to them? Why not just get fit properly and save yourself a bundle? It's not uncommon to find some poor soul who has changed shafts at least 3 times on the same club on some posts. It seems borderline addiction to me. There is literally loads of " I got the new BB with X shaft but it does not suit my swing". HELLO - why part with the cash then? The majority of manufacturers offer a fitting service - but how many people just buy the stock club, then try to alter it later?

[maynard24]

I concur 100%.

[*sigh*]

The problem is even with those fittings you might not find exactly what you are looking for.

 

You may have good launch monitor numbers, but the ball flight may not be right for you out on the course.

[freelanceterry]

ummm.....that wouldn't be very ho-ish.

[Grum]

Wheres the fun in that? There is also the option that you get Head X with shaft Y for a steal, Shaft Y may be a festering pile of crap for you, but a good deal on a head is a good deal worth going for if you already have a stock pile of shafts you know are a good fit or would like to try(like many of us do :)).

[freelanceterry]

Wheres the fun in that? There is also the option that you get Head X with shaft Y for a steal, Shaft Y may be a festering pile of crap for you, but a good deal on a head is a good deal worth going for if you already have a stock pile of shafts you know are a good fit or would like to try(like many of us do :)).

 

Just reshafted a couple drivers last night for this very same reason. Buddy got a deal on a club that had the shaft he wanted.

[*sigh*]

^ That too.

 

I've thought about trying a new shaft in my driver, since its a component its a lot harder to try the various shafts in the heads. I just went on a whim with that shaft, and its working fine, but there is always the thought that something out there may hit it a little straighter, a little longer with a little more roll.

[DemolitionMan]

While the OEMs have more choices than ever before and some kind of fitting system, it leaves a lot to be desired. What if I don't like Aldila shafts? There goes have the offering? Add Grafalloy to that, there goes another third...OEM stock shafts...no thanks.

 

For drivers, it's not easy to properly fit golfers, that hasn't changed. It's getting better though, the future looks bright.

[raidernut1234]

Shaft fitting is not an exact science. One mans heaven is another mans crapshaft and so on.

One shaft you love on one head, then it doesn't work in the next head due to different launch angles, spin, etc.

plus, once a ho, always a ho' LOL

[Huntingchris0000]

I wish it was that easy. I have yet to find a store in my area where I can just go in and buy a head or a shaft other than Aldilla or Grafalloy. Almost all the heads you can just buy the head are componets not OEM stuff. Other than the new Imix stuff and I am not going to spend that much money most of the time.

[shallowdivots]

Wheres the fun in that? There is also the option that you get Head X with shaft Y for a steal, Shaft Y may be a festering pile of crap for you, but a good deal on a head is a good deal worth going for if you already have a stock pile of shafts you know are a good fit or would like to try(like many of us do :)).

 

That is exactly why I am looking for a driver shaft now.

[TM golf guy]

Wheres the fun in that? There is also the option that you get Head X with shaft Y for a steal, Shaft Y may be a festering pile of crap for you, but a good deal on a head is a good deal worth going for if you already have a stock pile of shafts you know are a good fit or would like to try(like many of us do :)).

 

Spoken like a true HO! I know if I can buy a driver cheap enough, and it doesn't work I will always have a spare shaft that will work. It is fun to try new shafts out though. If I am going to invest some money in a driver, then I will make sure I get it right the first time.

[cbrian]

I got fitted into my V2, but just because that was the best shaft available for me at that fitting doesn't mean that it is the right shaft for me... which showed when I switched to a rombax Z and started hitting fairways again.

[brooksmax]

I work in a shop as a clubfitter, club repairman; hell, I do the works..... But speaking from experience, and shaft manufacturers will vouch for this, the shafts that are made in mass production for OEM's are not the same quality of the retail version that come straight from the manufacturer. The tolerances for the OEM shafts are lax compared to that of the shaft manufacturer. So that Aldila NVS shaft in your Callaway FT-5 that says it is a 65 gram stiff flex with 3.5 degrees of torque might actually be 60 grams, closer to a regular flex with 4 degrees of torque. But that same shaft coming direct from the manufacturer in a retail version will be exactly what it is supposed to be. So you can't always trust the shafts from the OEM's. The only exception is Mizuno; they actually use the retail version of shafts direct from the manufacturer, not a mass produced shaft specifically made for them.

[harold baines]

some may not have access to good clubfitting facilities, or like me are lefties and finding clubs at all can be tough much less finding a full demo/fitting service. You don't know how much money being a lefty has saved me, since you can't really impulse buy clubs.

 

 

I would also wager that a poor/inexperienced clubfitter may actually be worse than just buying off the rack

 

 

and most of all, time is a factor for some, moreso than money is

[enduro]

The reason I try out shafts is because I'm not totally sure what type of shaft i prefer or works best. I swing different when hitting into a screen and dont put much stock in using monitors.

 

Next, there is no consistency among fitters. Some are good , some are useless, all have their biases. You could go to 6 different fitters and get 6 different recommendations. Its still just a crapshoot and a far more expensive one at that . Where I live its $70 min just to hit on a monitor, the fitter will charge another $30 to glue the combo up and charge me double the cost of the shaft.

 

Its far cheaper to just buy shafts for cheap and experiment. I've bought a Creation, JLG Ultraboom, YS6+, and a Limey 440 all for less total than a single fitting session and low end shaft would cost from a fitter. Which makes more sense?

[hos]

Wheres the fun in that? There is also the option that you get Head X with shaft Y for a steal, Shaft Y may be a festering pile of crap for you, but a good deal on a head is a good deal worth going for if you already have a stock pile of shafts you know are a good fit or would like to try(like many of us do :)).

 

Spoken like a true HO! I know if I can buy a driver cheap enough, and it doesn't work I will always have a spare shaft that will work. It is fun to try new shafts out though. If I am going to invest some money in a driver, then I will make sure I get it right the first time.

 

I'm with these guys! - I'll admit it, I'm a ho.

I like to think of it as a hobby - my wife likes to think of it as a sickness. I'm not sure which of us is right.

[weissmanjeff]

^ You're both right!

 

To the OP:

 

Do you have access to every clubhead / premium shaft combination? This is just plain silly. If that were the way everybody did things, there would be no "stock" shafts. Trying it out in the real world is different than hitting in a simulator with a "comparable" head or shaft, or even than hitting balls using a Vector.

 

Clubfitting is a lot of art (it would seem). If you feel you found the "ultimate" combination for you, good work. The rest of us will continue to search for those 5 extra yards, and spend our hard-earned money to do so.

 

Don't hurt yourself stepping off of your soapbox.

[d0n]

It makes me giddy to get a new shaft. For me, experimenting with equipment is almost as fun as playing.

 

As for getting fit, paying $150 for an hour on the Trackman doesn't appeal to me. Besides, once you find a nice combo with the interchangeable shafts/heads how do you know it's going to play the same in your driver? Besides that, I don't swing natural when theres measuring devices and someone watching. For me the trackman session may give me some good feedback but I already have a good idea of what shafts fit my swing. Also, those indoor launch monitors are WAY inaccurate - I need to see what the ball is doing.

 

While it a little expensive, it's just fun to research and tinker... I just wish I had to the tools and knowledge to actually reshaft the equipment on my own...

[dayll]

I spend most of my money on golf clubs (esp. various shafts), green fees, and beer - the rest I just waste. -dayll