Club Making

[Chris]

I am very interested in learning club repair, and assembly. Where would you suggest I begin to learn this trade. i.e. reading(including this forum), books, DVD's, schools, seminars...

Thanks to all who reply.

[dasnutz]

Golfworks offers a course, phone # is 727-1721

[Chris]

Thanks...I'll check it out

[Chieflongtee]

I am very interested in learning club repair, and assembly. Where would you suggest I begin to learn this trade. i.e. reading(including this forum), books, DVD's, schools, seminars...

Thanks to all who reply.

Take your pick.
http://ca.search.yahoo.com/search?vc...oks+and+videos

Dynacraft, Golfsmith, Golfworks, Wishon all have clubmaking books.

[Chieflongtee]

Chris. I posted this a while back. Don't know if it's still available but it's a good place to start.
http://forum.ottawagolf.com/showthread.php?t=6506

[Chris]

Thanks Andre..

I had remembered your thread and I did inquire. They replied promptly only to tell me that they are sold out. Looked like a good deal.

But certainly that is the type of thing I'm looking for.

I am serious about club assembly as a hobby and want learn as much as I can.

I have been reading the threads in this forum for club makers and find it very informative.

Do you subscribe to any other forums?

[GarthM]

Chris:

If you are just beginning it is not as daunting as it may appear. I started with a few miscellaneous clubs here and there -- wedges, putter, rescue club; without much in the way of tools/equipment and just expanded from there. I would not call myself a clubmaker yet but a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing!

I just finished my first set of irons last month (with some help from BC Mist) and actually got to hit them outside today for the first time. Wow what a pleasure!

My advice, keep reading and just dive in and play around and see what works.

Have fun!

GarthM

[byerxa]

Chris:

Be warned, club making is addictive. Being a mechanical engineer by schooling/nature now working in computers, and without cars or motorcycles to work on, club making has become my tinkering hobby. Like GarthM, I have gradually accumulated tools and experience and can now assemble some nice stuff, at least for myself personally. Its quite cool to try every OEM under the sun, then assemble your own to your specs and honestly like them better at a fraction of the cost.

The down side is I spend waaaayyy too much time pouring over the various articles, news groups, catalogs, etc., planning out my next club. If I did not know better I would think I actually had a problem...

[Chris]

Chris:

Be warned, club making is addictive.

It's too late. I'm already there. Club assembly/repair is to feed that addition! My first project is to find the right shaft for a 10.5 * KZG gemini 460. My swing speed is 95-100. Any suggestions where to start?? I'm thinking about the ACCRA or SK Fiber Lite Revolution, Grafalloy Blue.

[byerxa]

My main project this year will be a +400cc driver (currently using a TM R510). Swing speed also mid-90s (can see 100 on a good day), so I am on the same search. I have been researching shafts and have read nothing but good things about ACCRA and SK Fiber. The Blue seems to get quite a bit of discussion both ways. Problem with ACCRA is they will not sell you the shaft alone - only certified dealers will install (if someone knows otherwise please tell me!). SK Fiber seems very attractive - seemingly good shaft at a great price. Supposedly a very true shaft which also appeals to me. Even though I spine and FLO, my personal experience has been that I do prefer a shaft that is more true (subtle, but there).

Others to look at:
- Aldila NV/NVS
- Accuflex (various models, new Evolution getting lots of talk)
- MCC (Apache) seem to have a cult following (http://www.mccshafts.com/) and are also supposed to be a very true shaft
- Mercury is another with a strong following (http://www.mercurygolf.com)
- the usual suspects from Fujikura, Harrison, Penley, UST
plus many more that I am sure others will recommend.

I have no clue what is really the best, and I guess it differs from person to person. I hope I can get a bunch of these on a launch monitor and/or range this spring to figure out what I like.

Which leads me to another question for the experts out there: where is a good place to go for a launch monitor session in Ottawa?

[Big Johnny69]

Golfworks will sell you an Accra shaft by itself. You might have to wait on a back order though. I don't think they carry them in stock. Usually a special order.

[Chieflongtee]

Thanks Andre..

I had remembered your thread and I did inquire. They replied promptly only to tell me that they are sold out. Looked like a good deal.

But certainly that is the type of thing I'm looking for.

I am serious about club assembly as a hobby and want learn as much as I can.

I have been reading the threads in this forum for club makers and find it very informative.

Do you subscribe to any other forums?

Chris. Click on the following. You can download free clubmaking videos.
http://www.dynacraftgolf.com/free_videos.cfm

[Chieflongtee]

I am impressed by Dynacraft's new shaft data charts.

http://www.dynacraftgolf.com/techtip....cfm?tipid=223

They provide raw shaft data and cut shaft data. The cut shaft data gives you the butt cpm. the cut length ,the cut weight,
the butt and tip deflection(see their method by clicking on the link above) cut torque launch angle and the swing speed range.

http://stores.yahoo.com/dynacraftgolf/dynacraftls.html

You can compare different shafts more accurately than before. Pretty cool stuff.

[Chris]

I'm a sponge and I'm soaking all this stuff up. This is great reading.

What would you suggest (in terms of equipment) the minimum a hobbiest should invest in for club assembly and repair? i.e shat extractor, scales, grip station???

[BC MIST]

I'm a sponge and I'm soaking all this stuff up. This is great reading.

What would you suggest (in terms of equipment) the minimum a hobbiest should invest in for club assembly and repair? i.e shaft extractor, scales, grip station???

This depends on your budget and to what extent you want to get into the hobby.

If you just want to assemble a few clubs for yourself, very little is required.
vise
rubber grip pads
tube cutter, or
hack saw
hooked knife
emery paper
ruler or "exact measure tool"
swingweight scale(maybe)
shaft ID guage
grip size guage

From there if you are going to take clubs apart you can add:
shaft extractor
scale
cutoff saw
calipers
belt sander
hosel cleaner
drill bits

If you are going to make clubs for others, add
loft and lie machine
drill bits
frequency analyzer, or a better choice would be to make an NF4, the plans for which are to be released very soon. With the NF4 you will be able to spine and match shafts and do some zone profiling.

The skies the limit as long as your budget isn't.

[BC MIST]

Chris:
Its quite cool to try every OEM under the sun, then assemble your own to your specs and honestly like them better at a fraction of the cost.

I just finished my first set of irons last month.... and actually got to hit them outside today for the first time. Wow what a pleasure!

The above expresses some reasons why making your own clubs is the way to go.
They will play better.
You will save a pile of money.
Personal satisfaction.

While the OEM advocates will not like this, by making your own clubs you know that you are going to get what you pay for in terms of shaft assembly. I have regripped and reshafted many sets of OEM clubs and never, and I mean never, has the flex of the shafts in a set or irons been what the purchaser thought he was getting.
Case in point: Regripped a set of Ping __ __ blades, (forget the name) last week that were fitted by a pro using the Ping demo clubs. The recommendation was for "regular" graphite shafts. Here are some of the frequencies and in brackets what my FA suggested they should have been for regular flex.
5 iron 262 cpm (310)
9 iron 259 cpm (326)
SW 258 cpm (334)
They were all much softer than a ladies flex for a strong man.
While most of the OEM heads are great, there are many component heads that are just as good, in particular the Wishon and KZG line. There is also good stuff available for the major component companies so doing your own shaft assembly will net you a much better golf club overall.

[Chris]

Thanks.. This is great... I see where this can become addictive!

So when you do your own frequency analysis on your shafts at least you know what you're getting right?

Do you know of any shaft companies that post this information on their shafts?

What can you expect in ways of frequency variance when you buy 8 shafts say?

What do you do when there is a wide variance. Or does it matter?

[GarthM]

NF4[/B], the plans for which are to be released very soon. With the NF4 you will be able to spine and match shafts and do some zone profiling.

Would you recommend the NF4 over a FA? What advantages would you get?

Cheers.

Garth

[Chieflongtee]

1) shaft matching
2) shaft profiling
3) spine finding by differential deflection
4) spine finding via "feel finding"
5) can be built in a DIY form with complete parts and constructions (in
other words, it allows for a sweat equity investment)
6) The NF4 can profile a finished club with acceptable accuracy, IMO,
though formal tests have not been completed.