Hi Ted/Dave, I have been trying short drivers lately with much success. I've found that I can put quite a bit of weight into most driver hosels, by using the round tungsten hosel port weights and sort of fashioning my own hosel weight port. Many driver heads have hosel depths much deeper than the minimum 1-1/4" needed to secure the shaft with epoxy. I often take a 6g (about 3/8" long) or a 9g (about 1/2" long) tungsten hosel port weight and add some lead tape wrapped around it to bring it up to a diameter to snugly fit the hosel. The 1/2" lead tape fits exactly the width of the 9g weight, but you have to trim the width of the lead tape to fit the 6g weight. You can usually add a couple grams more into the hosel by adding the lead tape and it serves to enlarge the diameter of the tungsten weight, allowing it to fit snugly in the hosel without rattle, etc. As long as the hosel is 1-5/8" to 1-3/4" deep, then doing this still allows proper epoxy bonding between the shaft and the head, by leaving the minimum 1-1/4". I just epoxy the combined weight into the hosel when I install the shaft.
On some occasions I have done this and then also added either pliable lead tip weights (can usually fit about 3-4 grams additional), or tungsten powder (about double the weight of the lead, as I recall) down the shaft, with a cork to add even more weight to the head. Of course, I make sure that I don't add weight down the shaft the rises above the top of the hosel. This is one way of avoiding the lead tape on the outside of the head, yet still allowing shorter lengths with today's lighter heads. So far is has worked very well and has also allowed me to use much lighter shafts at 44" and under lengths. I also prefer this over drilling into the sole of the head and adding weight in that fashion, which for me is the last resort. Dan Neubecker > -----Original Message----- > From: Childers, Tedd A [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] > Sent: Thursday, October 13, 2005 7:33 AM > To: ShopTalk@mail.msen.com > Subject: RE: ShopTalk: Wishon Short Driver Article > > > Dave, > > In my experience, I have found that I have to add > considerable weight to > most driver heads just to get a D3-D4 swingweight at 45". My > current driver > is an Infiniti Propulsion 460cc (also a carbon crown design > like the 5n2), > mated to an Aggressive Frenzy shaft at 45". I added 5 grams > of tip weight, > and an additional 5 grams of lead tape just to get to D4 at > 45" (with a 52 > gram grip). I have found that a lot of the newer heads are > coming in at > 195-196 grams instead of around 200 like most components used > to. If I > shortened to 44", I would have to add another 8-10 grams of > lead tape, and > at that point the head does start looking ugly, and you have > to be careful > where you are adding the weight. Ideally, one could buy a > head at around > 210 grams, toss in a 50-60 gram shaft and a 50 gram grip, and > you have a > nice 44" driver with a D4 swingweight and a total weight > around 310-320 > grams. Currently, you have to go with a ~100 gram shaft and > a ~200 gram > head to get anywhere close to D4 at 44", and with a 50 gram > grip you are at > 350+ grams total weight. The other trend I have found is > that some of the > heavier weight graphite shafts are balanced sort of butt > heavy, so even > though you expect a higher swingweight at shorter length, you > don't actually > get it. In my opinion, that's te worst of both worlds. > > Tedd > > -----Original Message----- > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf Of Dave Tutelman > Sent: Wednesday, October 12, 2005 6:02 PM > To: ShopTalk@mail.msen.com > Subject: RE: ShopTalk: Wishon Short Driver Article > > > At 04:08 PM 10/12/2005, Childers, Tedd A wrote: > >Personally, I would > >love to build a shorter driver, but ideally I could get a reasonable > >swingweight (D2-D4) at 43.5-44" and with a very light shaft > (60 grams). > >This would require a heavier than normal driver head (210+ > grams), and that > >is what I have a problem finding, at least in a model that > has the specs I > >want (450+ cc, ~12* loft). > > Tedd, > This year I started playing with a driver with a 12* > Tourswing head. (See > http://www.tourswinggolf.com/carboncrown.htm) I put it on a > Mercury Savage > shaft. I went with the Savage for its very stiff tip (to stabilize it > coming into impact), and made up for that in feel with a > softer shaft than > usual by about 10cpm. It was 45-3/4" long at a swingweight of > D4, using the > components with no special weighting. In general, it has > worked well for > me. Not more distance than my old 10* driver, but I hit fewer > bad shots and > more fairways. > > Halfway through the year, I decided (for a variety of > apparently valid > reasons) that I should try to shorten it radically. I cut it > down to 44.5". > I preserved the swingweight by putting lead tape on the sole. > I used a > little over 10 grams, so your 210+ gram estimate is right on. > The results > have been great. I have further reduced my bad shots. But > surprisingly, > I've also hit drives on several holes that equal my best > drives ever on > that hole -- places this 64-year-old hasn't been off the tee > in over a > half-dozen years. > > That should say something about both the feasibility and > desirability (for > me, at least) of the shorter driver. If you think it might > help you, try > it! Lead tape isn't THAT ugly. (I'm reminded by that > statement of John > Karsten's somewhat defensive TV ads for the Ping Zing. "It's > amazing how > good it looks after you see the shots you make.") > > Cheers! > DaveT > > > -- > No virus found in this outgoing message. > Checked by AVG Anti-Virus. > Version: 7.0.344 / Virus Database: 267.11.14/130 - Release > Date: 10/12/2005 > > > >
