JOHN: Regular flour will leave more of a mark on the gauge than the cornstarch, but I get what you are saying in your "wish I woulda thought of that" comment. It was so simple in principle it made us feel utterly stupid when the light bulb went off in the brain. What complements it for doing what you want to do in terms of determination of what launch parameters for the golfer is the Trajectory and Ball Flight software. And really, the main function of having anything that reads real launch angle is mostly in the determination of the golfer's angle of attack into the ball, which is a CRITICAL factor for coming up with knowing what loft angle will result in what launch angle. Angle of attack we are talking about whether the head comes to impact on a downward, level or upswing direction of travel. Downward angle of attack always generates a launch angle much lower than the loft, level angle generates a launch angle slightly lower than the loft and upswing causes the launch angle to be higher than the real loft of the head. To know what loft to get to what launch angle in the end, you have to know this about the golfer.
And one of the easiest ways to get this is to have a golfer hit balls with a club of known loft and record the launch angle. That way if you had him hit an 11 deg driver and the launch angle average was 9.5, you could pretty well assume that the angle of attack was 0 or level. Launch angle with that 11 head being less than 9.5, you would be seeing a negative angle of attack by the approximate amount that the LA is under the 9.5. And launch angle with that 11 deg driver being higher than 9.5, you are looking at a positive angle of attack in the amount greater than the 9.5. Not perfect perfect, but close enough so you can allow for the angle of attack. Anyway, so what you are looking for in the recommendation of what launch parameters for optimizing the golfer is in the software. You go to the Manual Mode where you can input the COR, headweight, loft of the head with the swing speed of the golfer, and if you want, the ball type. Then the software calculates what the launch angle, spin, ball speed, carry, speed of ball at impact with the ground, and roll. You then go into the Studies menu and one at a time toggle back and forth between the Launch Angle and Spin Rate commands. This allows the software to run studies of what happens to this golfer swing speed, head loft, weight, COR, ball type at every possible combination of LA and Spin, and comes up with a single list of what would be the optimal launch parameters. In short, it's going to tell you with very good accuracy what to expect from a change in the launch parameters if you changed many combinations of things you can do as a clubmaker for the player without having to have an arsenal of test clubs to use. Of course the next ultimate for the clubmaker would be to build this club and then put it in the hands of the golfer on a real launch monitor so you can verify what you did. And then be sure to learn as much as you can about what launch parameters to worry about and what ones not to - like don't worry about spin because you are not going to be able to change it enough for the golfer to make any real difference - and realize that you are not going to change ball velocity that much either for the golfer because that is so tied to swing speed. Anyway, I have reached my yammering on stage so time to stop. Lots to talk about on this matter of what launch parameters to worry about and what not to, so that would be a good thread to pursue as well. TOM W -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Thursday, February 27, 2003 10:49 AM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: ShopTalk: Tom Wishon/Launch Angle Tom: I saw your Launch Angle Gauge at your web site at http://www.wishongolf.com/products/tools/2.html (wish I woulda thought of that nifty tool). Looks like you hit the ball coated in cornstarch into the mat/gauge to get the launch angle the golfer is getting with various shaft/clubhead combinations. Do you have some sort of a chart that converts the various launch angle numbers to distance to help choose the perfect combo for the customer? Do you also need something to determine their swingspeed so you can plug in the two numbers (launch angle+swingspeed=distance)? I've been kicking around investing in a launch monitor, I like the idea of saving several thousand dollars using your innovative new tool. John Muir shoptalk/clubmaker online >>and now the huge one, optimizing launch conditions for these guys >>with launch monitors. -- Thanks! John Muir http://clubmaker-online.com http://gripscience.com http://tourpure.com 810.220.4918
