Graphite Design Tour AD XC Golf Shaft Review

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Graphite Design Tour AD XC Golf Shaft Review

By Russ Ryden, Fit2Score, A Dallas Fort Worth Club Fitter & Club Maker
The Highlands Performance Golf Center, Carrollton Texas 
Golf Digest Certified America’s 100 Best Club Fitter

The Graphite Design Tour AD XC is an update of the Tour AD BB design. The Tour AD BB design is still available while several other models have been discontinued. That speaks to the success of the design. One of the teaching pros I work closely with has the BB in his gamer driver. As materials evolve so must the shafts built with them. The Tour AD XC uses 50 ton ultra premium carbon fiber as was used in the BB. New is TORAYCA MX40 pre-preg and TORAYCA T1100G NANOALLOY pre-preg in the mid and tip regions for increased stability and feel.

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Russ

Project X PXi Golf Shaft Review

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Project X PXi Iron Shaft from True Temper

By Russ Ryden, A Golf Digest America’s 100 Best Clubfitter
Fit2Score, Dallas Fort Worth, Texas

ProjectX_PXi_imageTT_PXvsPXi_EiIron shafts are getting lighter. Lighter means faster, it means more maneuverable. Think of the difference between a Carbon Fiber Lamborghini and a Heavy Metal Chevy. The light weight Lamborghini accelerates quicker, there is less weight to get moving. It corners quicker because it has less centrifugal force acting on it. The Project X PXi is a lighter faster Project X. The 6.0 model lost 12 grams of weight and 2 pounds of butt stiffness. Does it work? Ask Jason Dufner and Ian Poulter, they are both using it. And we have Tiger and Rory using it in their utility/driving irons.

Loss of weight typically means loss of stiffness. As you can see, the average stiffness profile of the PXi is softer than the average stiffness of the Project X. Once again, we see stiffness numbers on a shaft that do not indicate an absolute reference. Do not take that comment as a criticism of True Temper. It is the same scheme used by every shaft company. That is one of the many reasons that club fitting is so critically important to game development.

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Russ

Project X Golf Shaft Review

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Project X Iron Shaft from True Temper

By Russ Ryden, A Golf Digest America’s 100 Best Clubfitter
Fit2Score, Dallas Fort Worth, Texas

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The Project X design is different from the stepped shafts designs made by True Temper. The EI profile is constant from flex to flex, The stiffness increases as the shaft weight increases. The numbers on the shaft, 5.0, 5.5, 6.0, 6.5 and 7.0 represent stiffness. They are a patented numbering system that dates back to FM Precision. Frequency of the shaft was translated via a linear formula into a stiffness numbering system. A 10 Cycle per Minute, CPM, difference equated to a stiffness number change. When you hear the term frequency matched shafts, it refers to a system, not necessarily the original Braly system, of matching iron set stiffness.

Here is a little history if you are interested, Union Hardware was the first manufacturer of steel golf shafts in the US in 1924. They were acquired in 1956 by Brunswick, which also owned MacGregor golf. Brunswick supplied blanks to FM Precision, a golf shaft company owned by Kim Braly and his dad, Dr. Joe Braly.  In 1986 Brunswick acquired FM Precision. At some point, the name was changed to Royal Precision. In the early 2000’s Kim Braly designed the Project X and it quickly gained wide acceptance on tour. In 2006 True Temper acquired Royal Precision and the Project X brand.

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Russ

The Project X is a classic, with too many tour wins count. Until competitive designs emerged, it was for many good players, the shaft of choice. Radial quality and shaft to shaft consistency in the shafts I have checked is excellent. The Project X can be installed in any orientation, being nearly perfectly round, orientation will have no affect on the play-ability of the Project X.

True Temper Project X PXV 39 Golf Shaft Review

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True Temper Project X PXV 39 Driver Shaft

By Russ Ryden, A Golf Digest America’s 100 Best Clubfitter
Fit2Score, Dallas Fort Worth, Texas

TTPX PXv39 ImageI have seen fair number of driver shafts with labels implying light weights, but I have only seen one shaft that was labeled with a number that actually was the weight of the raw 46″ shaft. The True Temper Project X PXv 39 is correctly labeled. The raw shaft is 39 grams. It is like holding a feather in your hands. When I start measuring a shaft I usually start with the EI profiles. With the Project X PXv 39 I started with radial quality. Surely a shaft this light was likely to have a low number. The number was shocking, the review samples were close to perfect. If you are going to make a shaft with walls as thin as they are on the PXv 39, they need to be perfect. This is a 39 gram shaft that can be oriented in any direction in a rotating hosel. It is the light weight version of the Project X PXv family of shafts.

While the torque numbers at first glance look high, they are as low as I see in shafts of this weight. I would not be putting this shaft in the hands of an aggressive high speed ball striker. However, at 6.4 to 7.0 pounds of butt stiffness, these are not wimpy shafts.

TTPX EIGjTb PXv39The bend profile is not uncommon for shafts in this weight range. I have had a lot of success fitting a similar profile in this weight range. The quick decline in stiffness in the high mid area, combined with a long stable tip section results in the launch needed in this weight range with good dispersion control. I am seeing this design in a number of high performance golf shafts.

TTPX PXv39 TipI have heard shaft designers discuss the weight of paint on ultralight driver shafts. There is no elegant glossy overcoat on the Project X PXv 39, every possible aspect of weight control went into this design. It is available only through True Temper Performance Fitting Centers. One look at the wall thickness of the tip and you will quickly realize this shaft should be installed by a competent club builder. High modulus carbon fiber are making designs possible that could not be considered a few years ago. The Project X PXv 39 is one such design.

True Temper XP Golf Shaft Review

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True Temper XP 95 Iron Shaft

By Russ Ryden, A Golf Digest America’s 100 Best Clubfitter
Fit2Score, Dallas Fort Worth, Texas

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The True Temper XP 95 is the first of a new family of iron shafts from True Temper. It is an evolution of the GS series which it will be replacing. Like the GS family, it uses a special steel alloy which has higher tensile strength allowing for lighter weight designs. That alloy has evolved from what True Temper designated as S3 in the GS75 to S5 in the XP models.

True Temper testing and player feedback is addressing the low spin balls designed to deliver driver distance. Those balls do not spin enough to get distance and drop and stop performance on longer irons. To address this, True Tempers current generation of iron shafts are aimed at increasing spin. This is also addressed in the design of the Dynamic Gold Pro progressive launch model also releasing in 2014.

The True Temper XP uses a dual step pattern. Longer steps near the butt of the shaft, shorter steps closer to the tip. The longer steps. smaller changes in diameter per step, are called speed steps by True Temper. The shorter steps create a quicker loss of stiffness in the shaft as it gets closer to the tip. It is this property of the shaft that increases launch. That progressive stiffness loss can be seen in the EI bend profile.

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Russ

I had a chance to talk to Bill Lange, the True Temper Director of Sales, at the 2014 PGA Merchandise show about the XP shafts.

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The XP 105, available exclusively from Mizuno in 2014 is the first expansion of the XP family of shafts. I am told we will see both 85 and 115 gram versions in the near future.

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Russ

Fujikura Fuel Golf Shaft Review

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FUJIKURA FUEL DRIVER SHAFT

By Kirk James & Mark Vallier, A Golf Digest America’s 100 Best Clubfitter
MK Golf Technologies,San Antonio, Texas

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The Fujikura Fuel shaft was introduced just prior to the 2013 PGA Merchandise Show and was named “the most talked about shaft at the Show”. The Fuel continues to create a lot of buzz in the print media and on the internet. Let’s take a closer look and see what all the buzz is about.

According to Fujikura, the Fuel is a low launch/low spin shaft designed for drivers, fairways and hybrids. The shafts are constructed with a series of high modulus carbon plies oriented at 45 and 90 degree angles in the butt and mid sections which their engineers claim reduce ovaling during the loading and unloading of the shaft. We have found through our testing and fitting process that the Fuel shafts are extremely stable with low launch and low spin characteristics as claimed by Fujikura.

Like many shafts, the Fujikura Fuel profiles vary with weight. As you will notice in the EI bend profiles below, the 50 gram shafts have a fairly soft overall profile with a relatively stiff tip. This stiff tip feature makes this shaft feel extremely tight and stable for a mid 50 gram shaft. We have found through our fittings that it will feel and play slightly stiffer than its flex rating. It is an excellent light weight option for a player that can load a shaft or that has a quicker tempo, or both.

The 60 gram, Tour Spec 60 gram and the 70 gram models have a slightly different bend profile than the 50 gram models. These heavier models are stiffer in the butt and mid sections, with a smoother profile in the tip section. The stiffer butt and mid sections make these models feel extremely stable (ie stiff) in the hands and give these shafts an overall stiff feel. The low torque of these shafts adds to their overall tight/stiff feel at impact. Our testing and fittings confirm that these are definitely low launch shafts.

The Tour Spec 70 gram S and X flex models have a very different profile than the other models. The bend profile shows a very stiff upper-mid section with a smooth but rapid decline in flex to the tip. These models are again extremely stable because of the stiff mid section, and are excellent choices for heavy hitters looking to lower ball flight in both drivers and fairways.

Fuel EiGjTb

 

Fujikura Fuel Tour Spec 70 gramFuel_TS_Image

 

Our testing and fittings confirm that the Fujikura Fuel shafts definitely provide the low launch characteristics claimed by Fujikura. The 50 gram models have slightly higher launch and spin than the other models, but are still low for a mid-50 gram shaft. The design, construction and bend profiles of these shafts contribute to the overall stiff/tight feel that the player will experience when playing these shafts. The Fuel shafts are a good option to consider for a player looking to lower his or her launch conditions.