Aerotech SteelFiber Iron Shafts – constant weight taper tips

By Russ Ryden, Fit2Score, A Dallas Fort Worth Club Fitter & Club Maker
The Golf Center at the Highlands, Carrollton Texas

I have known Chris Hilleary, owner of AeroTech almost from the day I started club building. He has always been an active supporter of the club building & fitting organizations. When Matt Kuchar started playing and winning with Aerotech Steel Fiber iron shafts, the brand became better known.

The SteelFiber constant weight taper tip model is the most popular of the Aerotech iron shafts. It comes in five weights, 70, 80, 95, 110 and 125 grams.  The profiles change slightly with each weight.  The torque is slightly higher than steel, but certainly in range for tour grade iron shafts.

Aerotech SteelFibre shafts have a stainless wire wrapped over a filament wound graphite core, combining the properties of steel and graphite into the shaft.  The construction of the ‘wire’, 1/10 the diameter of a human hair is illustrated here.

Having heard Chris say that the design of the Aerotech SteelFiber shaft eliminates ovaling in the shaft, I tested the claim. In golf shafts, the wall thickness near the butt end of the shaft is thin. In light weight shafts this creates ovaling. The shaft flattens, becoming elliptical when it is loaded. I clamped an 85 gram steel shaft and deflected it 5 inches. I could measure 0.005″ of ovaling. The 80 gram Aerotech SteelFiber shaft ovaled .001″. The combination of carbon fiber and a stainless steel wire wrap does virtually eliminates ovaling in the Aerotech SteelFiber iron shafts, even in the 80 gram version.

Perhaps more significant, Aerotech is one of the few, if not the only company, filament winding carbon fiber shafts.  The material is wound around the mandrel much like thread is wound on a spool. Other carbon fiber shafts are made of sheet of material wrapped around the mandrel. That can create seams, which can create radial stiffness differences around the shaft. The radial consistency of the filament wound Aerotech Steelfiber review samples measured averaged 

Overall this is a great iron shaft.  If your looking to shed some weight from your irons, the 80 and 95 gram versions will do that without giving up dispersion control. With the success AeroTech is having on the professional tours, availability is now longer limited to custom fitters. AeroTech iron shafts are now available as upgrades from Bridgestone, Cleveland/Srixon, Nike, Ping, TaylorMade, Titleist and Wilson.