ZackS

Its sound advice. Unfortunately,  I have not found a gamer that excites me yet for this year.
The most consistent has been the previous chrome soft TT though.  I have no brand loyalty so to speak, and that leaves me in a Flux at this time.

Been a long day but did get some time on the range today and took some pictures. I still need to get the pictures edited and can get up my initial impressions. 

@RoverRick Beat me to an explanation and did a great job so not much else to add. As he said TPT's claims are all around their manufacturing processes that produces a consistency others cannot. Both consistency in the the bending of the shaft with no off-axing. But the consistency in making the shaft exactly the same so the shaft you get will feel and perform exactly the as the one you were fit with. Or if you order another one years later for some reason will feel and perform the same as well. I know we have all heard the stories of someone saying the shaft they got was just not the same as the one they hit in their fitting. 

Looks like I will be playing these since I stumbled on them with a 2 for $70 deal at an expo today. Pretty sure they got put out with the 21 models for that deal on accident as they were kind of off to the side behind the others on the table. 

@RoverRick Beat me to an explanation and did a great job so not much else to add. As he said TPT's claims are all around their manufacturing processes that produces a consistency others cannot. Both consistency in the the bending of the shaft with no off-axing. But the consistency in making the shaft exactly the same so the shaft you get will feel and perform exactly the as the one you were fit with. Or if you order another one years later for some reason will feel and perform the same as well. I know we have all heard the stories of someone saying the shaft they got was just not the same as the one they hit in their fitting. 

Due to unforeseen circumstances, I was unable to get an initial range session in today and tomorrow is out of the question if I wish to continue among the living...
To add to @RoverRick's comments above, the "one start-one stop" method of winding the shaft producing no spine eliminates inconsistencies in how the shaft loads and torques. So theoretically, in the case of adjustable clubs, any adjustments to open, close or otherwise move the head position will not be affected by variance in the shaft spine which is inherent in the conventional system of hand lay up of shafts. This consistency should also provide for improved face contact and shot dispersion. While this remains to be seen during the testing, I believe we all experienced tighter dispersion during the fitting process.
This eliminates the need, for those who prefer, to have their shafts Pured to help overcome spine variation.  Shaft Puring is usually done for the head to be configured in a specific way and loses its claim of stability with head adjustments when the shaft adapters are not removed and reinstalled to accommodate the new head configuration.
I did get out back today for a few minutes and the shafts do appear visibly more flexible when waggling the club but not to the point of excess that I could see. 
I intend to get to the range on Monday morning before the rain makes it way in and hope to have a better idea of how they are going to perform.

@RoverRick Beat me to an explanation and did a great job so not much else to add. As he said TPT's claims are all around their manufacturing processes that produces a consistency others cannot. Both consistency in the the bending of the shaft with no off-axing. But the consistency in making the shaft exactly the same so the shaft you get will feel and perform exactly the as the one you were fit with. Or if you order another one years later for some reason will feel and perform the same as well. I know we have all heard the stories of someone saying the shaft they got was just not the same as the one they hit in their fitting. 

Been a long day but did get some time on the range today and took some pictures. I still need to get the pictures edited and can get up my initial impressions. 

This week I will be playing these little devils...
Who knows next week...😆 

What are the biggest differences with these shafts?

These versus other shafts I presume? 

 Construction. They are made out of a continuous fiber. Most shafts are fibers and epoxy formed around a mandrel. 


There are starts and stops in the fiber as represented here. This leads to inconsistencies, spines, etc. Not to mention they are “Handmade”, at least in part. Plus they are painted. The paint itself weighs 20% of the shafts total weight. 
TPT Shafts are continuously wound on a machine with no paint. Thus 20% more fiber. There is no spine. And the shafts are formed and then profile is machined (sanded or ground) into the shafts itself. So every 18 HI or 24 LO or whatever profile will be virtually identical to any other TPT Shaft with that profile. Not only will the walls be thicker, but there are no gaps like represented in the previous picture. 

Part of this test is to show that there is an improvement when the driver, fairway, and hybrid all feel the same. I’m not there yet because I am awaiting head weights to arrive so they all feel the same. I think there is some merit in this, but I have very limited experience with these. 

Another thing about these are the way they are wound. They have 0° offset while other shafts have 3° or 6° offset. This means that they twist during the swing and the TPT does not. This is a close up of the shaft I just too to show you the finish on it  
Also there is the nomenclature itself. Jon Sinclair said that most everyone plays a shift too stiff for them. He has proven that a shaft can perform better, but a male absolutely will not buy a “L Flex” shaft even if it lowers his handicap 20 strokes. 
At this point, all I can really reference is the feel. During the very scientific “waggle test” this shaft felt wimpy and all over the map. I can tell you that if you swing wimpy with them, they do go all over the place.  Or did. However, I don’t know if you have ever swung the AutoFlex shaft, but it is the same way. When you swing it aggressively, it does not fell wimpy at all. 
 
I hope this answers your question for now. May 5th is the target date for completing the reviews. Anything we say now is subject to change as we become more accustomed to these. At least for me, it is different than I have ever experienced. The true test will be the hybrid. I hated this club, but hit some great shots today with it. 

I forgot to include a pic of how they look. 
Ping G430 LST Driver
Ping G430 Max 3w
Ping G425 3 Hybrid. 
Grips are best GripsMicro Perforated Leather Grips Navy Blue with red thread, although they look black and you can’t see the thread. 
 
 

I learned today that the G425 and G430 weights are slightly different. Enough that my plan on using the hybrid weight in the fairway metal will not work. It would if they were both 425’s or 430’s. They are both the same General shape but the screws are offset.
Overall, I would say that shots with all 3 shafts are better than before, but still a work in progress. 

With a notification that the replacement head will be delivered today and temps reaching the upper 60’s, I will be heading to the range. Also of note, this arrived earlier in the week:

I went with same grip setup as the stock shaft. A golf pride z grip standard with three wraps under the left hand, one wrap under the right

It is my earnest hope, that the replacement head and this shaft will help me fall in love with this driver. Because it has been a bumpy road, to this point. Stay tuned…

Switched from the Rogue to the AI Smoke and I love it!

Here are some photos of the irons behind the ball. I included my current TS4s as well as a CB 7 iron.







I know that MyGolfSpy doesn't prefer "living room" photos, but today an indoor photo shoot was the best way I could contol the setup and lighting.
I have already noticed a few things just by handling and "waggling" with them, but I'm going to save those statements for my full first impressions post.

Sweet!! Nice clean lines and beautiful satin finish! Looking forward to how they perform.

Thanks for looking into this and letting us know! Still seems a bit pricey compared to the GP MCC +4 midsize grips. Good to know that contacting CS might softened the blow financially a little bit. 
I did read on another thread that the screw part of the sensors can be clipped and then it will fit, but I wasn’t able to find the post on a quick search.

100% agree on the feel. Still get the feedback but overall vibration is less. On the air install other than the tour that has rubber inside, the foam doesn’t have enough friction on masking tape. I will keep you updated on my current method with the layer of athletic tape. I know it will have more friction, but if it’s enough for the long term is yet to be seen. 

As a a former club repairman and player . The thoughts of an air installation sounds like a good idea but I’m not too keen on the process of it , particularly in people with powerful swings and lots of speed in a golf swing . In all honesty , the big box club makers skimp on installing their grips in my personal opinion by just wrapping the shaft going up to the butt end of the shaft very loosely with little tape actually. In fact when I get new clubs the first thing that I do is blow the grip off if possible and remove all of the tape ( which is very little) and re tape  it with a whole wrap from 1/4” of the bottom of the grip to the butt end with double sided grip tape . I have personally had factory installed  grips that twist around the shaft , work their way off the shaft or come completely off .

Well definitely not the news I was hoping for but c'est la vie. Playing a round at the beach next week. Might be a 3 wood kind of day.

Thanks for the insight guys.

B

I’m like most people in ‘Murica: I rather be angry then know stuff…

They have to prep the shaft, install the adapter, put a grip on it, build the club. They don’t really have shafts just laying around with tips on them.
I know because I have talked to guys who work there and they have to rotate throughout the different parts of the business, they spend time in repair, assembly, fitting, customer service 

That looks more than cosmetic to me. Carbon if it is cracked should be pretty easy to tell if pressing on it. 

Just saying from experience and it is not just PING, but others when you have something that is a "custom order" ie not the stock option in shop it takes some time.
While most have recovered from supply chain issues, 3-4 weeks is still considered the standard. 
You're not the only person making an order and they file into the que along with all the others and being a global company yeah it can take a few weeks.
To me this is not a PING issue or reason to sound an alarm. It would more be the person you were dealing with not providing you the appropriate information and properly informing you to make sure you had the proper expectations.