Mitsubishi Chemical Tensei AV Blue Driver Shaft Review

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Mitsubishi Chemical Tensei AV Blue Driver 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 Tensei AV is the successor to the Tensei CK. There were two versions of the Mitsubishi Tensei golf shaft, now there are three. My understanding is that the AV series will replace the CK series. The Tensei CK, like the Tensei Pro CK has a Carbon Fiber/DuPont™ Kevlar® (CK) weave just below the grip. This material dramatically reduces hoop deformation in the critical section of the what were wall thickness is thin. The Pro CK version has three times the length of this woven material as the OEM, CK version. Measurements and hitting experience shot a dramatic shot dispersion from stabilizing this section of the shaft with the long woven section of the Pro version. The shot dispersion effect from the 4″ section in the OEM version is not as dramatic.

The Tensei AV changes this. The woven section is the same length as we see in the Tensei Pro. The woven material is different. This video was cut out of a longer interview. The second camera was out of focus, but the explanation of the AV technology was to good to ignore.

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Russ

Mitsubishi Fubuki Ax Iron Shaft Review

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MITSUBISHI FUBUKI IRON SHAFTS

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

Fubuki i Image
Introduced in 2011, the Fubuki iron shaft is a member of a family of shafts from Mitsubishi Rayon that include driver, fairway, hybrid and iron. The EI curves, by design, are quite similar. With the current buzz created by top PGA tour players using graphite iron shafts, it is easy to forget that premium graphite has been around for quite some time.  The Fubuki AX irons shafts are designated 375, a 75 gram shaft and 425, a 85 gram shaft.  With an installed price of around $120 each it was never that popular. Distribution is through Mitsubishi authorized club building distributors. In its limited weight range, it is one of the smoothest shafts available. The quality is outstanding, shaft to shaft profiles are consistent in the sets and the profiles are consistent among the three models.
Fubuki i Table
Fubuki i EiGjThe stiffness change from butt to tip is uniform, firming up mid shaft into a 12 inch long stiff tip. I see the Diamana Blue Board profile when I look at this.  The firm bend profile in the tip is complimented by low torque. This creates good dispersion control in a light weight carbon fiber golf shaft. Radial consistency is outstanding, meaning no benefit to alignment. If your looking for a soft flex, light weight iron golf shaft with a stable tip, it does not get any better than this.

Mitsubishi KuroKage Driver Golf Shaft Review

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Mitsubishi KuroKage Driver Golf Shafts

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

The Mitsubishi Kuro Kage (Black Shadow) shipped to dealers in Mid March, 2012. The pregreg has less resin and more fiber, making a design that was not possible in the past.  This was the first of the Mitsubishi shafts to use high density prepreg. High density prepreg was later used in the third generation Diamana B.

The Kuro Kage TiNi is a tour quality shaft Mitsubishi. It exhibits the extremely smooth profile and low torque one would expect in a $400 product.  The KuroKage Black and Silver are budget priced $175 shafts from Mitsubishi. Like the second brand of a vineyard, a great shaft, but not quite the tight torque typical on the premium models.

All of the KuroKage’s measured had excellent radial consistency.

MRC__KuroKage_EiGj

 KuroKage Proto TiNi

MRC_KuroKage_Tour

The KuroKage Proto TiNi is available only through selected Mitsubishi dealers. The profile is very similiar the the ilima, launching just a little lower and spinning a little less. A special stiffer version of this shaft is now in the bag of the #1 player on the PGA tour. His shaft is panted to look like a KuroKage Silver. A full review of the KuroKage TourEdition aka Proto is now available.

KuroKage Black

MRC_KuroKage_Black_Driver

The KuroKage Black has the same profile as the KuroKage TiNi, until it gets to the tip. There is where we can see the difference. The stiffness humps slightly at 12 inches, then turns softer.  Tip torque ranges from 5.0 in the 50A to 2.2 in the 70X.  Butt torque ranges from 5.2 in the 50A to 2.9 in the 70X.  The 70 gram shaft is the stock shaft in the Adams Golf 2013 Super S fairway.  The low tip torque numbers of the 70 gram versions indicate a low dispersion shaft in a fairway head I regard as one of the best in the business.

KuroKage Silver

MRC_KuroKage_White_Driver

The KuroKage Silver release a few months after the KuroKage Black.  Its profile is a close match to the original Diamana White Board. It is a low launch design, differing from the Diamana White board in torque.  The KuroKage 60S tip torque is 3.1 compared to the original White Board at 2.0. In late 2013 TiNi wire was added to the tip. A full review of the upgraded KuroKage Silver TiNi is now available.

Mitsubishi KuroKage Hybrid Golf Shaft Review

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Mitsubishi KuroKage Hybrid Golf Shafts

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

Hybrid MRC KuroKage image

The Mitsubishi KuroKage is a 2012 mid season design targeted at a mid price range. The specs on the shaft are in keeping with Mitsubishi Rayon’s tradition of maintaining high quality on any shaft that bears their name. The torque ranges from 3.2 on the 80R to 2.3 on the Proto 100 X. Radial quality is excellent.

The long stiff tip with torques ranging from 2.3 to 1.9 indicate a shaft capable of delivering tight dispersion and distance control. The KuroKage family of Mitsubishi Rayon Golf Shafts is available to club builders. The street price of the Hybrids is $80. The KuroKage Black profile, shown below, resembles the Diamana Blue design.  

Hybrid MRCKuroKage EiGj

Mitsubishi Fubuki Ax Hybrid Golf Shaft Review

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Mitsubishi Fubuki Ax Hybrid Golf Shafts

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

Hybrid FubukiAX imageThe Fubuki Hybrid Ax was redesigned in 2011 to be slightly softer than the previous model. It fits in to the stiffness and weight gap between the Bassara UltraLight and the Diamana Thump. The stiffness of the shaft is a perfect match to the other Fubuki Alpha driver and the Fubuki AX fairway shafts. Weights range from 70 to 80 grams, putting it in a unique range for a low torque hybrid. The tip torque is 2.1 and the butt torque, 2.9. Radial consistency is excellent, with several of the shafts measuring at 100%.

Hybrid FubukiAX EiGjAround 13″ from the tip, the stiffness of this shaft turns up. This has become a popular design, it adds a degree or two of launch without sacrificing dispersion control. This shaft was stock in the Adams Golf Super XTD Hybrid in 2012. That club gives the golfer the experience of a truly great aftermarket shaft in a hybrid golf club costing not much more than the shaft itself.

Mitsubishi Diamana D+ & S+ Hybrid Golf Shaft Review

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Mitsubishi Diamana D+ & S+ Hybrid Golf Shafts

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

Hybrid DiamanaPlus image

The Mitsubishi Diamana plus series introduced in late 2012. We will no longer be seeing the designation ‘made for …’ on stock golf shafts. The + series is the new ‘made for’ design. The profiles shown are bumpy because a single shaft of each model was measured. In the S+ blue shaft we are seeing a higher launch than the D+ gray shaft.

The familiar Diamana logo is there, but we are looking at they typical high torque, lower quality shaft we have seen in the ‘made for… ‘ shafts in the past. That said, the torque of these hybrids was respectable, tips at 2.4 and 1.9, butts at 3.2 and 2.6 on the blue and white respectively.

Hybrid DiamanaPlus EiGj