Your Putter Modifications

[vecomat]

What have you done?!?!

Alright, so I finally joined this board after reading on it for years simply to ask this question:

WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO YOUR PUTTER TO MAKE IT YOURS?


Let's face it, most of us don't belong to the ASME, didn't used to work for NASA during the moon race, and don't own a calculator with more than 24 keys which means that any serious modification to clubs that travel at more than 25 mph of headspeed is out (that tape on the back of your MP14s doesn't count as a serious modification). But... half of our strokes are made by a club that is 30% science and machining and 70% "I like that"... so I repeat my question- what did you do to make your putter yours?

I'll start, and I'm sure someone can Trump me but just to get the juices flowing:

I'm a lefty- which means that 90% of putters I like just aren't available to me, and if they are they are special order only as most every pro shop in the nation for some reason believes all left handers need a 35" putter shaft, and want 4' of loft on their flat sticks... I got tired of looking at all the cool new Scotty Cameron designs (been a Club Cameron member for years) only to see LH:N/A on pretty much everything. Of course I could buy one of the brands that make sticks out of lower grade pot-metal and then use urethane inserts to compensate for feel, but that's just not how I roll... literally. I'm also a tinkerer which means that I'm always wanting to try this or that to my clubs. My CC has green speeds that range from 12 (leading up to, during, and immediately post the PGA event we host) to 8-9 in the winter so I like to play with weight as the season changes, particularly in the winter when it's 45 degrees out.

My tinkering began about 8 months ago when I decided that a 330g Newport2.5 SD which had been playing second fiddle to a Mil-Spec 350g Newport due to weight deserved a second chance. I had, several years before sent it back for a Cameron Style makeover and had at that point had my initials carved into the toe of the face- basically meaning I could never sell it for anything so I figured I'd give it a go. I really wanted it 350g I thought so I did a little thinking and bought a set of weights for a newer Cameron on the inter-web-machine for like $50 with a wrench. My Pro shop let me take a current model Cameron home for a few days to take some measurement (California- Hollywood) so I was off to the races. This was when I hit my first major disappointment. I should have thought about it beforehand but the weights that Cameron uses, and the reproductions of which I had, use a b@stard thread pattern. I should have known it wouldn't be so easy to do. It looked to me like what Cameron does is cast the new clubs with the "plugs" in the sole and with a single thread into a raised sleeve at the bottom of the plug. In other words- replicating this myself wasn't going to be as easy as I thought. $50 wasted.

But I wasn't done yet, as I was determined to find a way to get the weight I wanted. So I did some looking into the specific gravity of the GSS metal that Scotty has patented, and compared it against a list of other metals that were readily available and decent to work with. I found that Lead had roughly a 1.5:1 weight ratio to the GSS, so that mean't that if I wanted to add 30 grams of weight, I need to remove ~ 60 grams of GSS from the bottom of the club and replace with lead. So I fired up some equipment as machined two cylinders into the bottom of the club. It didn't take very much to be removed and I had my own plugs. Heated some lead to a molten state, poured it into the GSS plugs, machined the surface perfectly flat and Voila- a head that came out to 352 grams exactly... not bad for a simple solution.

Now- how about you? I know we have some tinkerer's out there- what have you done?

[Mich Nick]

Lefty here as well. Like a lot of us, finding clubs is always hard. I have about 12 putters collecting dust, hopefully for good. For years I was searching for a heavy 8802 style putter. I gave up and switch to Anser style heads for years. Then I found it.

I game a Yes! Nicky with a ust shaft and a Machine grip. The feel, weight and feedback are perfect for myself. It is a frankenstien of different technologies, but in my bag for good. The grip was the real experiment. I always felt I got the best feel when putting with no grip on the putter at all. With a metal grip, I get the same result. I got the thinest they had, but dream of one even thinner.

[vecomat]

[quote name='Mich Nick' timestamp='1302809869' post='3153600']
Lefty here as well. Like a lot of us, finding clubs is always hard. I have about 12 putters collecting dust, hopefully for good. For years I was searching for a heavy 8802 style putter. I gave up and switch to Anser style heads for years. Then I found it.

I game a Yes! Nicky with a ust shaft and a Machine grip. The feel, weight and feedback are perfect for myself. It is a frankenstien of different technologies, but in my bag for good. The grip was the real experiment. I always felt I got the best feel when putting with no grip on the putter at all. With a metal grip, I get the same result. I got the thinest they had, but dream of one even thinner.
[/quote]

Interesting. So you changed the shaft to a UST (what weight?) and then the grip or did you just order a grip/shaft combo and go from there? I am really curious how that feel with the Yes' milling design, their alloy and the vibrations coming through the aluminum grip. Can you describe the change in feel vs. say a thin pistol grip?

[vecomat]

[quote name='vecomat' timestamp='1302810642' post='3153629']
[quote name='Mich Nick' timestamp='1302809869' post='3153600']
Lefty here as well. Like a lot of us, finding clubs is always hard. I have about 12 putters collecting dust, hopefully for good. For years I was searching for a heavy 8802 style putter. I gave up and switch to Anser style heads for years. Then I found it.

I game a Yes! Nicky with a ust shaft and a Machine grip. The feel, weight and feedback are perfect for myself. It is a frankenstien of different technologies, but in my bag for good. The grip was the real experiment. I always felt I got the best feel when putting with no grip on the putter at all. With a metal grip, I get the same result. I got the thinest they had, but dream of one even thinner.
[/quote]

Interesting. So you changed the shaft to a UST (what weight?) and then the grip or did you just order a grip/shaft combo and go from there? I am really curious how that feel with the Yes' milling design, their alloy and the vibrations coming through the aluminum grip. Can you describe the change in feel vs. say a thin pistol grip?
[/quote]

btw... i have an 8802 that I am thinking about weighting down. Now that I've gotten my hand a little dirty I think I can design a system to make this work. I'm trying to decide if I want to machine out a plug then thread it and make threaded weights at say a max of 40 grams each that I can machine hollow down to a very light weight or if I want to machine an FE plug and then used magnetized weight inserts to make changing easy and quick.. I just can't dig the look of the modern putters with the flat metal finishes and the colorful inserts and alignment aids- maybe it means I'm getting old but I just can't. If it get something done I'll put some pics up for you to look at.

[Mich Nick]

[quote name='vecomat' timestamp='1302810642' post='3153629']
[quote name='Mich Nick' timestamp='1302809869' post='3153600']
Lefty here as well. Like a lot of us, finding clubs is always hard. I have about 12 putters collecting dust, hopefully for good. For years I was searching for a heavy 8802 style putter. I gave up and switch to Anser style heads for years. Then I found it.

I game a Yes! Nicky with a ust shaft and a Machine grip. The feel, weight and feedback are perfect for myself. It is a frankenstien of different technologies, but in my bag for good. The grip was the real experiment. I always felt I got the best feel when putting with no grip on the putter at all. With a metal grip, I get the same result. I got the thinest they had, but dream of one even thinner.
[/quote]

Interesting. So you changed the shaft to a UST (what weight?) and then the grip or did you just order a grip/shaft combo and go from there? I am really curious how that feel with the Yes' milling design, their alloy and the vibrations coming through the aluminum grip. Can you describe the change in feel vs. say a thin pistol grip?
[/quote]

I have the UST Frequency Filter shaft 106g. It is the only shaft that will fit the Machine Grip. I ordered the shaft from Golfsmith, and grip from Machine. They were super awesome to deal with. The feel and feedback are outstanding. I can't speak for the shaft with a rubber grip, but this combo has greatly improved my mis-hits. Like anything rubber coated, a lot of vibration is dampened. I do not know if it is for everyone, but the feel and feedback for me are outstanding. I am not a fan of face inserts for the same reason, but some love them. The easiest test you can do is if you re-grip a putter, try putting with just the steel shaft. If you like it, this may work for you.

total weight is:
Shaft 106g
Head 350g
Grip 125g

[truehack]

Tungsten has a 2.45:1 ratio w/carbon steel, much easier to add weight. Tungsten is not readily available in bar form but I found some alternatives. Hobbyists that race toy cars in the Cub scout Pinewood Derby use tungsten weights to redistribute weight in the little cars. They sell in 1/2oz little plugs that are 3/8" round. I just drilled two small holes, two in each toe, and glued in the weights. Added 32 grams and improved the resistance to twisting. Previously I've used tungsten fishing drop weights but not as easy to use.


[url="http://www.maximum-velocity.com/tungstencylinders.htm"]http://www.maximum-velocity.com/tungstencylinders.htm[/url]

[truehack]

I used the UST shaft as a way to counterweight a few putters as well. The butt of the shaft is quite large, its easy to install steel rod. I cut the steel different lengths to get to the 100grams I was after. I covered the rod with doublesided tape and stuck it in the end, regrip and presto your own HeavyPutter.

[stage1350]

My love for 8802 putters has forced me to modify every single one I have owned in one way or another.

My current project is a 1962 Wilson Arnold Palmer. It was already a rechrome, so I don't feel bad about modifying it. Because the prior owner put a polished chrome finish on it, I wanted to fix the glare issue, but I have yet to find anyone that does a good job reproducing the "fog chrome" finish, so I went a little nuts. The head is currently being finished in a black rainbow PVD finish. Original weight was 316g, but I'll be adding tip weights to get it closer to 340g.

The original shaft was worn down to bare metal in spots, so I will replace it with a YHSF. I was able to carefully lift a correct red/green "Head Speed" shaft band from a vintage club and have already applied and sealed it to the shaft.

The factory fat paddle grip is now non-conforming and I didn't want to pull it from the original shaft anyway. I found a Lamkin stitch back underlisting, which is the profile of the modern 8802 fat leather grips. I have a period correct patterned black leather wrap with the silver piping in perfect condition, ready for installation. The same putter that donated the shaft band also gave me an excellent condition Wilson "flags" endcap.

Loft has been set to my personal 3.5° and lie to my preferred 75°. Length will be 34.5" At the end, I'll have a conforming, but vintage-correct Wilson Arnold Palmer with a really sweet finish. It'll be going into my backup bag for occasional use when I pull out the persimmons and blades.

[RRFireblade]

Haven't done too many but was my gamer for a while and a mod I've done for others.

It was an original Odyssey 2 ball , bought new. I re-milled the body and 'wings' to remove as much weight as possible and bored a cavity in the rear,under the logo,and added lead to bring the weight up to 355g and to add as much MOI as I could.

All the plastic inserts were removed (both top and face)and replaced with actual (legal) Ivory inserts and the face precision milled. Added a ton of feel and feedback plus it looks cool IMO.

Black Ox finish rounded it out.

I like it and it works well.

[puttapotomus]

When TaylorMade came out with the "Ghost" I painted mine and call it the "Spook".[attachment=765593:phone 068.jpg][attachment=765595:phone 069.jpg]

[stage1350]

Very interesting. How does the ivory work as a striking surface compared to the original insert? I assume crisper feel?

[RRFireblade]

[quote name='stage1350' timestamp='1302830167' post='3154472']
Very interesting. How does the ivory work as a striking surface compared to the original insert? I assume crisper feel?
[/quote]


Very much so but with some 'warmth' if that makes any sence.

Its something I use in part of my business (Billiards) where it's feel and feedback is pretty much legendary still to this day,so I thought it might translate well here. It's seems as tho it does so very well.

[TKing]

I wanted an Anser head, but with a shaft that lined up with the back center of the ball-SBST-face balanced. I use two index fingers down the shaft, eyes exactly over the ball, and a 76 degree lie angle-index fingers down don't work with standard lie angles. Also on the list was a smooth bottom. 350 grams. I bought a long hosel MidSur 375 gram head on the BST. Ground the sole smooth not only for the smooth sole, but also to lower the weight. Bent the hosel to make it face balanced with the shaft placement I wanted. Did a bit more grinding here and there to get the weight down to where I wanted it while keeping it face balanced. Taped the face and sole and sprayed it matt Forest Green Duracoat everywhere but on the face and sole. Paint fill in the sightline-I like to zone out on the sight line and don't want to see the rest of the putter- the camo paint works pretty good. 6.5 satin PX wedge shaft tipped as much as possible to still have enough .370 to go in the hosel. Pingman black-right index finger goes to a spot right at the bottom that has a little flat spot on that side perpendicular to the face to place the pad of the right index finger.

I'll post pictures as soon as I finish the new computer. This hard drive is full and backed up, but too old to put another bigger one in this one, and too much to do to figure out what to delete to make more room.

[vecomat]

[quote name='truehack' timestamp='1302814721' post='3153858']
Tungsten has a 2.45:1 ratio w/carbon steel, much easier to add weight. Tungsten is not readily available in bar form but I found some alternatives. Hobbyists that race toy cars in the Cub scout Pinewood Derby use tungsten weights to redistribute weight in the little cars. They sell in 1/2oz little plugs that are 3/8" round. I just drilled two small holes, two in each toe, and glued in the weights. Added 32 grams and improved the resistance to twisting. Previously I've used tungsten fishing drop weights but not as easy to use.

[url="http://www.maximum-velocity.com/tungstencylinders.htm"]http://www.maximum-v...encylinders.htm[/url]
[/quote]

Yeah, If I were to machine something it'd be out of tungsten most likely. But I was looking for cheap and easy which is why I went with simple poured lead. It's pretty likely I'll at some point heat the head, extract the lead plugs (easy to do thanks to the very low melt point of lead), tap the holes and machine tungsten plugs to an exact weight and insert... I don't need to by any means, as what I have now works great but when was the last time we didn't do anything around here just because we didn't NEED to... lol

[he15man]

i have a wilson 8802 that refinished. i stayed with the original finish except i changed the fill on wilson from white to red. didnt mess with any of the dynamics of the club such as weight cuase you dont mess with perfection. it is subtle but it stands out compared to other 8802s.

[rthrbgolfing]

refurbished TPA XVIII. Don't like the white grip, changing to black Iomic mid size. Feels awesome and love the ff shaft.

[cardia10]

This redwood got a little bead blast and paintfill love. May have a buyer for it, so it may not be mine for long!

[attachment=766849:DSCN0557.JPG]

[attachment=766850:DSCN0558.JPG]

[attachment=766851:DSCN0559.JPG]

[vecomat]

[quote name='rthrbgolfing' timestamp='1302882672' post='3155912']
refurbished TPA XVIII. Don't like the white grip, changing to black Iomic mid size. Feels awesome and love the ff shaft.
[/quote]

Yea dude... I love my iOmic mid sizes myself.

[MattMo]

After a few beers I got a wild hair that I could adjust the lie of my putter. I proceeded to wedge the head 2 pieces of wood in my shop vise, wrapped the plumbers neck in masking tape and used a large channel locks to try and bend the lie. Well, it didn't bend and now I have some nice claw marks up and down my putter hosel. Probably one of the stupidest things I've ever done

[Buzzkill]

I know this is an old topic but it applies for me. I just counterweighted the hell out of my putter this evening. Took a 31" KM-350 which had a total weight of 520gm and put a hundred grams of weight at the top of the shaft plus added a jumbo grip bringing the total to 700 grams. Needless to say, I raised the balance point about 6" (almost to the middle of the shaft) and it feels pretty good - we'll see tomorrow how my mad science project works out.

[Thrillhouse]

I chucked mine at a grove of trees after a three putt to give it some character. Thats how it knows its mine.

[502 to Right]

I pounded my initials on the face as I do with all putters I plan to sell at a significant loss.

[attachment=1038495:Picture 017.jpg]

[Buzzkill]

[quote name='Buzzkill' timestamp='1329973425' post='4356201']
I know this is an old topic but it applies for me. I just counterweighted the hell out of my putter this evening. Took a 31" KM-350 which had a total weight of 520gm and put a hundred grams of weight at the top of the shaft plus added a jumbo grip bringing the total to 700 grams. Needless to say, I raised the balance point about 6" (almost to the middle of the shaft) and it feels pretty good - we'll see tomorrow how my mad science project works out.
[/quote]

Putter worked like a charm today. Didn't make any birdies because of ball striking but made a lot of 5 footers for par and had several inside the leather from 30+ feet. Of course, this is the honeymoon period so I'll report back in a month about my feelings with counterweighting - feels good at the moment though.

[mattl2787]

Longneck added by Tom Slighter...face-balanced, dass, and a keeper forever.

[CarlSpackler910D3]

The most i've done myself to a putter...namely my Odyssey is to change the putter grip and headcover to a matching pair. Tom Slighter currently has a 1998 first run catalina 2 of mine that is getting moddified. I wanted a twisty neck that was polished, face remilled and the head to have a hot gun blue sort of finish. I only have a picture of the prep work before the head was to be recoated. So this is my start to customizing my putters.