A couple of years ago, John Kaufman asked on SpineTalk for an explanation of spine alignment. Not a recipe, an explanation. What is it about a spine that causes problems with a shot, and how does alignment solve those problems?

I don't remember anybody answering the question that was asked. I don't mean that their answers didn't satisfy John; the few attempted answers didn't address the question. They talked about HOW to align a spine, and the RESULTS you might expect from aligning the spine. But they never even tried to answer -- in physical terms -- what goes wrong and why if you DON'T align the spine.

I have finally posted a long-overdue article that addresses John's question. I don't know if he will like my answer either, but I took the opportunity to go on for pages about where I come out when I think about spines. I include:

*** The mechanics of shaft bending, as understood by engineers (but not by a lot of clubmakers).

*** Instruments for finding and measuring spine, together with a comparison of how each instrument fared over a variety of shafts.

*** MY SHOT AT JOHN'S QUESTION: I discuss six proposed theories of why spine alignment works -- six different tries at John's question -- evaluating each theory in light of what we know about spines. Two theories survive this examination, IMHO.

BTW, the article leans heavily on results in my recently posted articles on ShaftLab and FLO.

The article is at <http://www.tutelman.com/golf/shafts/allAboutSpines.php>

Feedback is always welcome.

Cheers!
DaveT


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