morningteesheet
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Posts posted by morningteesheet
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I played 18 yesterday and pulled driver on 10 holes, hit 2 fairways. A few pulls and a few big misses right. Only really put one good swing on the driver and sent it 290 down the middle. The moral of this story is that it has nothing to do with the shaft and everything to do with my mental block with a driver in my hand. The key thing is that this shaft feels amazing and matches up well with my Modus 125x iron shafts. Now I just need to learn how to take a driver swing onto the course.
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Alright I’m back to testing after a wedding hiatus and ready to get back out there with a test that no one asked for but we’re doing it! I’ve now shafted my Regio Formula MB+ 65X with a Wishon 919FD head which is mini driver head if you’re not familiar. The goal here is to see if I can combine the length gains from the shaft to a head shape I find more appealing and one that will hopefully find fairways consistently. I’m fine giving up a few yards to be in the short stuff. Here are some pics of what I’ll be working with. Data and results to come soon.
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Right handed, open to various options.
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On 5/11/2021 at 11:47 AM, morningteesheet said:
Trackman session for me and my Regio Formula MB+ coming today or tomorrow and 18 holes on Saturday. Weather should be reasonable and finally not winds 40mph+. I should be able to finally string together results worth sharing. The Trackman session will compare this Regio MB+ 65X/Mizuno ST200 combo to a trusty SrixonZ565/Aldila NV Green 65X.
Trackman session complete! Stopped into my local Five Iron Golf and got a quick session in. After warming up and getting a feel for everything, I logged 5 swings with my new setup (Mizuno ST200 and Nippon Regio Formula MB+ 65X) and then 5 swings with my old setup (Srixon Z565 and Aldila NV Green 65X). Here's the video and the Trackman results below that.
Mizuno Nippon combo:
Srixon Aldila combo:
The data says it all, the Mizuno and Nippon combo is staying in the bag. But I didn't even need the data, I knew it from the feel. The Nippon shaft felt so sturdy and solid through the swing and just felt balanced. I was originally fighting some left pulls but I've gotten more comfortable with the idea that I don't need to aim right and guide it. I can line it up and swing it comfortably. While distance is clearly the winner with the Mizuno/Nippon, I am a little concerned with the spin as it's still a bit high. I don't mind it a bit on the high side because I do want to find fairways, but this should come down a bit and it's possible that some setting tinkering could get it there. Also, I was a bit left and right with the Nippon but at least from the look of the flight on the screen, none of them were way offline or troublesome. A little more work with the driver and that should be fine.
Most importantly, this has done what I had hoped. I don't feel like I have the big right miss and I feel like I can really go after and release this driver with the Nippon shaft. It just feels reliable and I won't have to stand on the tee feeling like I need to guide it, I can swing more freely. I'm taking this out for 18 holes to validate it on Saturday morning so more to come.
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Trackman session for me and my Regio Formula MB+ coming today or tomorrow and 18 holes on Saturday. Weather should be reasonable and finally not winds 40mph+. I should be able to finally string together results worth sharing. The Trackman session will compare this Regio MB+ 65X/Mizuno ST200 combo to a trusty SrixonZ565/Aldila NV Green 65X.
- bens197, edingc, GolfSpy BOS and 2 others
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5
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Would you sell just the head?
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I highly suggest this model when they get it back in stock: https://www.golfworks.com/the-golfworks-economy-swingweight-scale/p/vswc/
I use it, it's cheap, easy to store, and seems to be plenty accurate. It's been fun messing with lead tape and this scale to dial in specs. Just call Golfworks and see when it will be back in stock, they should know.
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I built a set of irons and soft stepped them so the irons are playing around .75 inches too long. I’m 5’7” and fitting charts say I should be standard or even a quarter inch short on irons. The thing is, I seem to be hitting it really well with the longer length. I planned to just choke up and try these irons as is but I find myself not choking up. Now the swing weight for the irons is D6 because of their length and I thought choking up would have them play more like D2. Now I can’t decide if I like the longer length or maybe it’s the D6. Would it be crazy to play a longer iron at my height?
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2 minutes ago, THEZIPR23 said:
Not a whole lot to change. It is tough to see clubhead throughout the swing but overall it is a very solid move.
I tend to really lose it right or hit a weak cut and I think it's just when I get out of sequence and spin open too fast. Speed isn't my issue, it's keeping things in check and maintaining the right tempo.
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2 minutes ago, THEZIPR23 said:
What is your normal ball flight?
Medium to high and a fade
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I’ll take anyone’s feedback! I’m working on keeping things compact and simple. This is an 8 iron.
- MDGolfHacker, cksurfdude and Nolan220
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3
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14 minutes ago, 03trdblack said:
Had my first round out with the Nippon shaft this weekend. I tested it out with a Titleist TSI 3 8* head set to 8.75* of loft. Right out of the gate I noticed that the 8* Titleist head and the Nippon shaft had a lower launch angle so I bumped up the loft some in order to get some more carry.
Here is the rundown of each hole I used the driver and the distances tracked by my Shot Scope. For some reason I had a case of the pulls today with the driver but it wasn't severe enough to get into too much trouble. I just aimed a little down the right side after the first few holes. My tendency is to pull shots more with shafts with less counterbalance. This shaft seems to be just slightly counterbalanced but really more of a 50/50 balance to it. I didn't have to add any head weight to play at a 45.25" length with the TSI3 head.
1. 241 (pulled left, hit a tree)
2. 265 left rough
3. 280 left rough
4. 247 - uphill tee shot, left rough
5. 261 - left rough
6. 287 - left rough
7. 239 - uphill, left side fairway
8. 261 - left side fairway
9. 321 - BOMB (downhill tee shot, middle fairway)
10. 230 - uphill, hit a tree, left side fairway
11. 276 - middle fairway
12. 280 uphill fairway, BOMB, middle fairwayThe Nippon shaft feels really great and you can feel the quality in the shaft. It feels higher on the stiffness rating to me than perhaps other "stiff" shafts I've used, almost like a softer X flex. I didn't find I had trouble loading it however and it kept up with any swing I put on it all day. I could swing HARD and not worry about seeing a strange ball flight. The feeling reminds me of the way Graphite Design shafts feel if you're familiar with them.
The best way I can describe the feel (with the Titleist head) is that ball collision feels like a thick gut punch. It's syrupy feeling but a syrup that's been left in the refrigerator so it's nice and thick. I'm really looking forward to seeing how that feeling differs in other driver heads as well.
The last observation I'll make is the look of the black shaft with the black Titleist TSI 3 head looks incredible. It's a murdered out look with just a splash of color on the shaft label to break it up.
Interesting, I found I was pulling it quite a bit as well. I assumed it was swing related and I'm sure most of it is but I do find it interesting that you found the same thing. I was hitting a lot of tight fades but they started left with the pull. I had intended to list out my drives like you have from my round Saturday but I was playing during a wind advisory and it was averaging 40mph. I couldn't take much from that but I did find that I could reliably find a low flight when I needed to. Also, I completely agree that the feel is similar to Graphite Design.
- 03trdblack and MattF
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FIRST IMPRESSIONS!!!
I was able to sneak out to the driving range today to put this thing to the test. I am not exaggerating when I say this might be the best thing that’s ever been added to my bag. It’s a joke how good this shaft is. I should clarify that it also has a new Mizuno ST200 head that I hadn’t hit before and that definitely helps but I know what I was getting out of this shaft.
Feel: stable but smooth. I didn’t think you could have both but I was wrong. I knew exactly where the club was, it loaded beautifully, and felt perfect at impact.
Performance: point and shoot. Only issue was trying to tell myself not to aim left for my big fade. I couldn’t believe how straight the ball was going and my fades were tight and minimal. I thought I just had a terrible issue with a driver but this has me thinking otherwise. Flight is medium, just where I like it. I was facing a ridiculous 20-30mph wind right at me and 50 degree temps on the range and usually that means a ball that spins like crazy and goes an extra mile right. Not today. Yes, the wind was knocking it down but it stayed on line and that’s all I needed to see.
Formula MB+ feels compared to my irons with Modus 125X: This was spot on, the shaft profile and performance really seems to match. My iron game on the range came alive with the Modus 125X shafts and I'm so glad I built those to compare with the driver shaft. The transition is seamless and now that I have the Modus 125X iron shaft in my hybrid, I'm really wanting this Nippon Formula shaft in my fairway wood (not sure I can come up with the funds though ha).
I wish I had numbers to share but that will come next week when I get on a Trackman. Tomorrow I’m taking this out for 27 holes. The wind will be staying up at 20-30mph apparently but it’ll be 80’s temp wise. More to come but in the meantime, here’s a video from today:
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Just exchanged emails with Mark at Shaftology, he's a great guy! I had asked about the suggested trimming and he gave me a long reply which is all good information to keep in mind. I'm a reasonably experienced at-home club builder and my plan for the shaft matched his suggestion for maintaining the stated flex. I'm not going to tip it, I'm installing a Mizuno adaptor with the standard BBGM, standard grip, and butt cutting to length. I'm going to have it play 45" to keep some room in case I want to tip it later and it should measure around D3 or D4 but I can toss on some lead tape if it comes out light. Here's Mark's insightful email:
" Thanks for the note. I am going to give you a long reply.
Yes, we intended to send the raw shaft for optimal customization. I hope I didn’t confuse you with so many questions and details during our phone call.
I had a check list of things to discuss with you and I just went back over my record of your call. In our conversation we talked about quite a few things, with the most important factor being to make sure that this raw shaft will be installed in a proper manner for you. One of the difficult issues in our industry is the lack of uniform installation standards, and how these are communicated. This is why I verified with you in our phone call that you had a place to have this shaft installed into your club:
- with regards to your hosel or adaptor
- with regards to your desired length
- with regards to your preferred swing weight
- with regards to your desired grip and grip size
- and with regards to any other special install options that you desire
Any shaft model is only as good as its install, and all of these factors will impact your interaction of this shaft. Your swing is your own specific combination of your dimensions, angles, and motion. And after fitting many thousands of golfers, and installing many more thousands of shafts, I have learned that each of us can best reward our swings by having our shafts installed in a professional manner.
REGARDING your question of “tipping guidelines”-
-Most modern drivers have a BBGM (Bottom of the Bore to Ground Measurement) of 1 ½” to 1 ¾”. If your shaft is installed into a driver club with a similar BBGM, with no trim off the tip section, and trimmed from the butt section to your desired length, with a swing weight in the D3/D4 range, and a traditional weight grip, then the shaft will play to its stated flex.
If you driver is vastly different than a BBGM of 1 ½”, for example a bore-thru type hosel, then the shaft will play stiffer than its stated flex, and, for example, a long tall hosel club, with a BBGM or 2+”, then the shaft will play slightly more flexible than its stated flex.
If you desire for the shaft to play stiffer than its stated flex, it is OK to trim a portion of the tip section, and the remainder off the butt section. However, I would not recommend this unless you had previously tested this shaft and had some idea of a specific flex goal, and how much tip trimming was required to achieve that goal.
As I mentioned on the phone, if you need help finding a shop to install your shaft, please let me know.
If you want to visit our office and have your shaft installed, please call ahead to make an appointment, and bring your desired grip, and we will install your shaft at no charge while you wait."
My finished install:
I went 45” and have it weighted at D6 because I plan to only play it choked up an inch which should feel more like a D3. It looks unreal with the black Mizuno ST200 head!
- fixyurdivot, MrBandit, JohnSmalls and 5 others
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1 minute ago, MrBandit said:
@morningteesheetwhat is the brand of the adapter you are going to be using that is universal? I would like to get some for future shaft swaps.
I'm not using a universal adapter, I think that was @03trdblack. I'm putting a Mizuno ST200 adapter on it.
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8 minutes ago, jlukes said:
That being said, TXG tips all of their driver builds by .25" regardless of shaft/head
Thanks! And yes, which is why I want to ensure that there's no recommended tipping by Nippon. I'm about to post a video of the raw shaft and you'll see a small tip section that I think is .25". My feeling is that should remain but I want to be sure.
My Regio Formula MB+ 65X just arrived! I thought I’d get everyone some pics and a video:
- fixyurdivot, MrBandit, cnosil and 2 others
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5
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14 hours ago, 03trdblack said:
Hey everyone, Rob here. Let's get into my intro and some starter info on the Nippon MB+ shaft testing!
Introduction to my game:
First and foremost, I want to thank MGS again for the chance to review another product! I've been lucky enough to test some other items in the past and will link to them below:
I’ve been a mostly decent golfer since I started playing at age 14 (now 38) and currently carry a handicap of 1.7. I live in NC and do most of my playing in the Southeast region where it’s hot a humid. I’ve always been an equipment junkie which led me down the road to building golf clubs as soon as I started playing and I’ve been a clubmaker now for over 25 years. My favorite club has always been the driver and is one of the strengths of my game and I LOVE getting into in depth rabbit holes of shaft bend profiles and design.
My ball striking is very consistent and pitching and chipping are solid. Putting can be streaky and some days are better than others. My swing has a very smooth tempo and even when I feel like I’m swinging all out, it still looks very smooth and lazy like an Ernie Els or Fred Couples. I used to hover around 100 mph with a driver but now I’ve been recording 103+ mph and have even steadily hit 106-108 mph in my practice sessions. I attribute this to the SuperSpeed program as well as warmer weather.
The TLDR Personal Golf Stats:
- Current HCDP: 1.7
- Smooth swing tempo w/ driver swing speed currently between 103-106 mph.
- Driver ballflight is usually Mid/High with my miss being a pull (lately).
- My driver carry distance, on average, is NOW around 250-255 yards.
- I am usually very accurate with a driver and am not afraid to aim exactly where I want it to go.
Current Bag Setup:
My bag setup changes constantly (this being the club junkie effect) and my house tends to look more like a golf store than a human residence. What I'm using right now is as follows.
Driver: Cobra Radspeed Palm Tree Crew Edition w/ the test Nippon Regio MB+ 65 S
3 wood: Ping G425 Max w/ Tensei Raw Orange 75 S
Hybrid: Callaway Super Hybrid (20*) w/ Tensei Orange CK Pro S
Irons: Cobra Forged Tec 4-GW w/ Nippon Modus 130 S
Wedges: 56* Mizuno T20 & 60* Cleveland RTX4 Raw
Putter: Scotty Cameron Phantom X 11.5Testing Setup:
Being a clubmaker, I requested my shaft to be sent without an adapter. I use a universal adapter tip that I can insert into essentially any driver head on the market so my plans are to test this shaft with drivers from just about every manufacturer out there (did I mention my house looks like a golf store...).
A couple of things I noted during the build. There is a CPM sticker on the butt of the shaft that indicated 271 CPM which normally would be super stiff for a normal "stiff" range. For those of you that may or may not know, CPM just measures the butt frequency and doesn't give a good indication as to the overall bend profile of a shaft but I do like to use it as a reference point when I build just to get a sense of where things fall.
There can also be variances in the type of clamp people use, etc but when I put the shaft on my frequency machine, I got around 258 CPM at 45.25" which normally plays right around a standard "stiff" flex or around 6.0 flex. Definitely glad it wasn't closer to 271 on my machine as that would be more X flex territory.
Nippon says that the MB+ features full-length Torayca T1100G+ NANOALLOY pre-preg alongside 7-axis and 9-axis carbon fiber materials. The T1100G+ material is also used in the Fujikura Platinum Speeder and Graphite Design Tour AD series. When the light hits the graphite in the butt end of the shaft, you can see the multi-axis fibers which is pretty cool looking.
I'm definitely looking forward to getting out and trying the shaft in a few days. The bend profile looks like it will fit my game perfectly. Will continue to update along the way!
Do you know the tipping/prep guidelines for this shaft? I just received mine and Nippon didn't cut it to my requested length. I don't see anything online either. Thanks!
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Just now, Apolloshowl said:
Really cool, thanks for the info. My interest is getting every more intrigued by what you guys are saying.
Last question for now, but was which head you were planning on using a big factor as well? From TXG videos I have watched they talk a lot about head weight and droop and how that can have a impact on the shaft as well as impact location. Appreciate the answers and once again looking forward to the reviews.That wasn't a part of the discussion with the Nippon guy but I do think it's important to find the right swing weight during assembly when length, grip, and head are considered. I have my own scale and I'll be making sure things are balanced right when I install the Mizuno ST200 head on my MB+ 65x shaft.
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2 hours ago, Apolloshowl said:
Thanks... That's very interesting they are relying more on feel and such. May say more about how so many love Nippon shafts in their irons. Myself included.
Appreciate the answer and depth. I know I could look it up, but how wide is the range they have for their drivers? Did they say why one would benefit someone else over the other?
I'll back that up. The Nippon rep asked a lot about my use of Nippon shafts and what felt the best. I don't want to spark a heated debate on this thread but he said something that really stuck out to me, "the shaft model won't drastically alter spin and launch, the iron head does that. You want an iron shaft that feels good and loads correctly". He is much more of an expert than me but that surprised me. So the conversation did center around what shafts feel good with my swing. I'm pretty sure he mentioned that the Regio line of shafts has something like 60+ options which is why he was adamant about talking through my swing to try and find a match. He did ask about my driver carry, swing speed, and tempo to further nail down the right option.
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- Popular Post
I'll get this started with some background info on who I am and how I play!
Introduction to my game:
Let’s start with my game and who I am as a golfer, and let’s take it all the way back. I started really playing golf at the age of ten. I was a serious hockey player my entire life and golf was the getaway for me. I ended up playing for my prep school golf team after the hockey seasons were over and it really sparked my love for competitive golf. College ended up being a focus on hockey and school and golf fell off a bit, but my twenties and early thirties have been a golf obsession. I currently play to a 4.4 handicap under the CDGA as I live in downtown Chicago. A typical round for me is anywhere from 75 to 80 and I’m someone that makes a lot of pars with a couple bogeys mixed in. I’m the kind of guy that will play in any weather so at the moment I’m playing/practicing during temps in the 40’s. Distances are down during this time of the season but I tend to play pretty consistent golf.
My strengths are mid irons and putting and my weaknesses are the driver and long irons. I tend to let some hockey body movements into the swing and it can be an overly quick swing with my shoulders spinning open, which makes my big miss with the long clubs a spinny right ball that doesn’t stop going right. Here’s a link to where I am right now with my swing: First video is a driver length training aid, second is an iron swing. My big focus is keeping my back to the target and my left shoulder restrained from firing too quickly. I'll post some links to my driver swing once I get this shaft set up and ready to test.
Current Bag Setup:
My current driver setup is a Srixon Z565 head on an old school Aldila NV green 65X shaft and it all plays 44” (I was not fit). I never liked the full 460cc driver heads as a compact look is key for me but I get along decently well with this one. I like to see a deep driver head that doesn’t look huge back to front and I want it to sit neutral. I tend to prefer a shaft feel that I’m used to which is why I struggle to get away from the old school shafts. I’ve even tested steel driver and fairway shafts recently but they were slowing me down a bit too much. My driver swing speed is in the 110-113mph range with a fairly quick transition. After speaking with the Nippon rep, it made sense for me to test the Regio Formula MB+ in 65X. My goal with a driver isn’t necessarily massive distance, it’s more that I feel it’s stable, reliable, and something I can put on my intended line, which tend to be aggressive lines. My goal is always to have a shot at reaching a par 5 in two and I subscribe to the data that’s come out showing that being as close to the green as possible leads to lower scores. I’m not one to play the smart shot off the tee or to aim for the middle of greens even though both would probably help my handicap!
What I’m hoping to find from this Nippon driver shaft is a comfortable feel more in line with an iron shaft and something that feels stable and not loose. I want to see a tight fade ideally and not something spinny that I can’t control. I know a lot of that is putting a good swing on it, so I’ll be looking to see what happens when I do have my driver swing in check. In the past I’ve gamed Nippon NS Pro and Modus shafts and they are consistently the best feeling. I’m currently gaming irons with DGS300 shafts as those are just comfortable but I very much want to be back with Modus shafts and I'm building a set of Mizuno MP69 with Modus 125x right now (softstepped 1x). I hope to feel that same smooth but reliable kick in this driver shaft as I have with the Nippon iron shafts.
Testing Setup:
My setup for the test will be the Regio Formula MB+ 65X shaft with a standard Lamkin Crossline grip. I’ve chosen to pair this with a Mizuno ST200 driver head at 10.5*. The club will play 44” and at D4.
I'll also be testing the Mizuno MP69 with Modus 125x shafts alongside my Hogan Ft Worths with DG S300 to see what I like in the irons and how the transition feels from driver to the rest of the set.
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Nippon Regio Formula MB+ Driver Shaft – Official MGS Forum Review by Peter Seltenright
Let’s start with my game and who I am as a golfer, and let’s take it all the way back. I started really playing golf at the age of ten. I was a serious hockey player my entire life and golf was the getaway for me. I ended up playing for my prep school golf team after the hockey seasons were over and it really sparked my love for competitive golf. College ended up being a focus on hockey and school and golf fell off a bit, but my twenties and early thirties have been a golf obsession. I currently play to a 4.1 handicap under the CDGA as I live in downtown Chicago. A typical round for me is anywhere from 75 to 80 and I’m someone that makes a lot of pars with a couple bogeys mixed in. I’m the kind of guy that will play in any weather so at the moment I’m playing/practicing during temps in the 40’s.
My strengths are mid irons and putting and my weaknesses are the driver and long irons. I tend to let some hockey body movements into the swing and it can be an overly quick swing with my shoulders spinning open, which makes my big miss with the long clubs a spinny right ball that doesn’t stop going right.
My current driver setup is a Srixon Z565 head on an old school Aldila NV green 65X shaft and it all plays 44” (I was not fit). I never liked the full 460cc driver heads as a compact look is key for me but I get along decently well with this one. I like to see a deep driver head that doesn’t look huge back to front and I want it to sit neutral. I tend to prefer a shaft feel that I’m used to which is why I struggle to get away from the old school shafts. I’ve even tested steel driver and fairway shafts recently but they were slowing me down a bit too much. My driver swing speed is in the 110-113mph range with a fairly quick transition. After speaking with the Nippon rep, it made sense for me to test the Regio Formula MB+ in 65X. My goal with a driver isn’t necessarily massive distance, it’s more that I feel it’s stable, reliable, and something I can put on my intended line, which tend to be aggressive lines. My goal is always to have a shot at reaching a par 5 in two and I subscribe to the data that’s come out showing that being as close to the green as possible leads to lower scores even though it might seem like we’re not leaving a comfortable distance for the approach. I’m not one to play the smart shot off the tee or to aim for the middle of greens even though both would probably help my handicap!
What I’m hoping to find from this Nippon driver shaft is a comfortable feel more in line with an iron shaft and something that feels stable and not loose. I want to see a tight fade ideally and not something spinny that I can’t control. I know a lot of that is putting a good swing on it so I’ll be looking to see what happens when I do have my driver swing in check. In the past I’ve gamed Nippon NS Pro and Modus shafts and they are consistently the best feeling. I’m currently gaming irons with DGS300 shafts as those are just comfortable but I'll be back with Modus shafts very soon. I hope to feel that same smooth but reliable kick in this driver shaft as I have with the Nippon iron shafts.
My setup for the test will be the Regio Formula MB+ 65X shaft with a standard Lamkin Crossline grip. I’ve chosen to pair this with a Mizuno ST200 driver head at 10.5*. The club will play 44” and at D2. Additionally, I am building a set of Mizuno MP69 irons with Nippon Modus 125X shafts and my plan is to see how the feel transitions from driver to irons.
First Impressions
I was able to sneak out to the driving range today to put this thing to the test. I am not exaggerating when I say this might be the best thing that’s ever been added to my bag. It’s a joke how good this shaft is. I should clarify that it also has a new Mizuno ST200 head that I hadn’t hit before and that definitely helps but I know what I was getting out of this shaft.
Feel: stable but smooth. I didn’t think you could have both but I was wrong. I knew exactly where the club was, it loaded beautifully, and felt perfect at impact.
Performance: point and shoot. Only issue was trying to tell myself not to aim left for my big fade. I couldn’t believe how straight the ball was going and my fades were tight and minimal. I thought I just had a terrible issue with a driver but this has me thinking otherwise. Flight is medium, just where I like it. I was facing a ridiculous 20-30mph wind right at me and 50 degree temps on the range and usually that means a ball that spins like crazy and goes an extra mile right. Not today. Yes, the wind was knocking it down but it stayed on line and that’s all I needed to see.
Formula MB+ feels compared to my irons with Modus 125X: This was spot on, the shaft profile and performance really seems to match. My iron game on the range came alive with the Modus 125X shafts and I'm so glad I built those to compare with the driver shaft. The transition is seamless and now that I have the Modus 125X iron shaft in my hybrid, I'm really wanting this Nippon Formula shaft in my fairway wood (not sure I can come up with the funds though ha).
Video coverage of the first looks: https://www.instagram.com/stories/highlights/17904134011881579/
Grading
Let’s get into my grading for this shaft. From first impression to current status, things have changed but I still feel strongly about the quality of this shaft.
Looks (8 out of 10 points)
I would describe the looks as sleek. It’s overwhelmingly a shiny black shaft and not a whole lot more unless you look closely. But with my Mizuno driver head the whole setup looks sleek. I am a bit surprised that it doesn’t follow more of the Nippon Modus red color scheme.
Feel (9 out of 10 points)
I won’t say this is the most smooth shaft I’ve ever hit but it’s a reliable and sturdy feel. I also wouldn’t say it’s boardy either. Somewhere in the middle with a powerful tight kick at impact. I think this plays true to flex and it’s very stable. I know this is going to produce a tighter dispersion when I swing it and it does provide confidence (as much as I can possibly have with a driver). I don’t feel like I’m going to hit a big spinny right miss when I’m swinging this, which I really like. Weight feels right on par with something in the 60 gram range and it really felt balanced.
Basic Characteristics (18 out of 20 points)
To get some baseline numbers, I stopped into my local Five Iron Golf and got a quick session in. After warming up and getting a feel for everything, I logged 5 swings with my new setup (Mizuno ST200 and Nippon Regio Formula MB+ 65X) and then 5 swings with my old setup (Srixon Z565 and Aldila NV Green 65X). Here's the video and the Trackman results below that.
Mizuno Nippon combo:
Srixon Aldila combo:
Video of the test: Testing Mizuno ST200 and Nippon Regio Formula MB+ Vs old driver
The data says it all, the Mizuno and Nippon combo is staying in the bag. But I didn't even need the data, I knew it from the feel. The Nippon shaft felt so sturdy and solid through the swing and just felt balanced. I was originally fighting some left pulls but I've gotten more comfortable with the idea that I don't need to aim right and guide it. I can line it up and swing it comfortably. While distance is clearly the winner with the Mizuno/Nippon, I am a little concerned with the spin as it's still a bit high. I don't mind it a bit on the high side because I do want to find fairways, but this should come down a bit and it's possible that some setting tinkering could get it there. Also, I was a bit left and right with the Nippon but at least from the look of the flight on the screen, none of them were way offline or troublesome. A little more work with the driver and that should be fine.
Most importantly, this has done what I had hoped. I don't feel like I have the big right miss and I feel like I can really go after and release this driver with the Nippon shaft. It just feels reliable and I won't have to stand on the tee feeling like I need to guide it, I can swing more freely. I'm taking this out for 18 holes to validate it on Saturday morning so more to come.
On-Course / LM Performance (15 out of 30 points)
On-course performance is where things took a turn for the worse. In looking at my data, I’m hitting around 20% of fairways with this shaft and distance is average, nothing new. I cannot stress enough that this 100% all my driver swing. I have a complete mental block on the tee with driver right now and a lot has to do with being too quick and trying to do too much. I’m pulling it or hitting an occasional big right miss. When the swing falls in place, I am hitting some ideal drives with a slight fade around the 290 mark. I know the performance is there, I just need to figure out my swing. So it’s a bit unfair to show this losing points in the on-course performance but it is what it is I guess. What’s tough is that the driver is costing me good scores. I’m a great ball-striker and the only strokes I’m losing are off the missed drives, so I’m finding myself taking less than driver to hit fairways now.
Miscellaneous (10 out of 10 points)I’m dedicating this section to Nippon as a brand. I am a huge fan of their iron shafts and the Modus 125X shafts in my irons are incredible. To now know that Nippon can produce a top tier wood shaft really changes my perception of them as sort of a one-trick pony. I now know they can deliver a complete product line and it’s a matter of time before you see these on tour. I am also very impressed in the number of options they provide for wood shafts to match each and every golfer. Everyone should be able to find a Nippon wood shaft for their game.
Play it or Trade it? (17 out of 20 points)TRADE IT. I just don't have the confidence in a driver right now that I need and this isn't my answer. It wouldn't be right to just keep this and not use it like it should be over the next month or two. I'm open to finding the right person that wants to put this to the test (full club or shaft) so message me to see if we can make a trade. I'll also want to ensure you're the right fit for the shaft as well.
I do think that the price of this shaft is a bit steep but that’s also the case across the board with premium models in the graphite shaft world. You can tell when using this that it’s premium material and craftsmanship so it is worth a higher price point, but not sure about the $500 level it’s at.
Conclusion
The Nippon Regio Formula MB+ 65X shaft is a premium graphite shaft option for those that enjoy the Modus line of iron shafts, particularly the 105 or 125 models. I can personally attest to this wood shaft matching the feel of my Modus 125X shafts. The look is sleek with a mostly shiny black color that matches well with a black driver head. I’ve found increases in ball speed and distance in testing and found that the feel is very stable and sturdy. I don’t have a reliable driver swing right now but once I get that figured out I know this will be a winner for me.
Final Score: (77 out of 100 points)
This shaft honestly deserves a better score as it lost points in on-course performance which is all on me. It’s a tremendous shaft with great feel and my numbers look on point. I’d like to see a little better price point and maybe some red graphics to match the Modus iron shafts. Otherwise Nippon has a winner with these wood shafts. Thank you to MGS for the opportunity to test this premium product, this has been a blast. I’ll continue to add some thoughts as the summer goes on and I welcome any questions from the community on the product. Let’s go launch em!
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I just snagged one of these after liking the feel on the simulator. Seems like a quality wedge and the non-glossy finish is really nice. But I would love to hear some actual feedback from others on this wedge, not much info out there.
2021 Official Review: Nippon Regio Driver Shafts
in Forum Testing Reviews
Posted · Edited by morningteesheet
Moved my full review to the start of the thread!