[Unofficial Review: L.A.B. Golf Directed Force 2.1 Putter]

We're still at least eight weeks away from playing golf again here in the frozen tundra, but I've been diligently practicing with my L.A.B. and the EXPUTT. I went through a few weeks of having a lot of start line issues, but determined I was playing the ball too far forward in my stance. Keeping the white line that runs down the middle of the Press II grip pointed at my belly button seems to have straightened that out. I had a really good session last night from 0-30 feet:

I was looking back through my Arccos data from last season and you can see a pretty strong dip in my putting handicap after I acquired the DF 2.1:

[What/How Did You Practice Today?]

Still doing lots of chipping practice off the basement carpet, working on low point control and rhythm. I've found feeling like my head is on a swivel really helps me rotate and not just use the arms.

Also been battling the cold temps and snow to get out on the patio with the Planemate for a few minutes. With that, I've been working on better rotation through the ball. Hopefully the roads clear up, and I'll be able to get to the range this weekend. Winter storm closed the range this last Saturday...

[GolfSpy AFG’s Speed & Swing Odyssey]

5 hours ago, Getoffmylawn said:

Frustrating and discouraging morning that I'm trying not to overreact to, yet.  I broke out the PRGR for the first time and did my first combined Level 4 and C Club protocol.  Turns out I'm ...slow.  Embarrassingly slow, especially among this group and when I've gone to the lengths I have over the past several months.

I tracked all my speeds and will post a spreadsheet come Friday after I've got a week of speeds charted, and I do have to keep in mind that it was 4 in the morning, -2 out, garage floor, etc.  I'm also keenly aware that my speed challenges are likely rooted in technique.  When I swing poorly I tend to throw the clubhead at the ball instead of swinging the handle, and from the ground-up.  Nevertheless, I was supremely disappointed this morning and hope to improve the next time out.  Again, I'll post results from the first week of tracking Friday...frankly I'm going to be embarassed to but it's not right to post "look how strong I am" posts and then censor out the less flattering stuff.  Sigh.

After the SuperSpeed, did my B2 workout:

Med Ball Wall Slams - 10, 3 x 5

Preacher Curl - 135, reps at 6, 2

Reverse Grip EZ Curl - 125, reps at 4, 2

Box Jumps w/Turn - 3 x 4

Standing Cable Anti-Rotations - 50, 3 x 12

Seated Calf Raise - 120, 10

Lying Leg Curl - 150, 8, 4 - Time to go to 160

Squats - 315, 2 x 9 - Really I should go to 365 here but I shoveled the driveway a LOT over the weekend and I didn't want to push the lowerback too much.

On another note, I'm considering renaming this thread since I'm not apparently on track for the massive speed gains I'd hoped for, and the overall goal is to improve my score more than anything else.  And, I'm keenly aware that my content is getting rather repetitive.  Not sure what to call it though...

 

 

One thing to keep in mind is that a lot of people's posted numbers with the SS sticks are from the Sports Sensors radar and not the PRGR. My general impression is that the PRGR reads lower than the Sports Sensors one.

I would guess that after a few weeks of work with the radar offering feedback you will see a jump in your speeds. Having that feedback will help immensely to determine the difference between what feels fast and what is actually fast.

[Evenflow anyone?]

12 minutes ago, StrokerAce said:

I have the Tensei Orange in the Super Hybrid. A great shaft! Smooth, easy to load, and provides a nice piercing flight. 

 

I will second this - the Tensei PO in the Super Hybrid is really, really smooth. I seem to get along with most of MRC's profiles, though.

[What Have You Bought Lately? (CHA - Club Ho's Anonymous)]

1 hour ago, B.Boston said:

I have to go pickup my wedge (waiting on the last Modus 125 Wedge shaft to arrive) at some point so I’m going to Bring my speedzone and try to get some comparisons between the Ventus and Motore X in X flex.  This year was the first year I went to X in the irons, but still have S in my hybrid and 5-wood too.  

Prior shafts that worked well for me are like the Tensei Pro White.  More “active” feel in the handle and stiff in the tip section.

I’ve read your review of the Motore X 3 or 4 times already! Hahahaha 

You and I have the same feel for shafts. From what I remember from my fitting last year, I really liked the Motore X F3.

I've been tempted to pickup a Tensei Pro White hybrid shaft for the Epic Flash.

If you ever get a chance to hit a Rogue White, I'd be curious to hear your thoughts.

[What Have You Bought Lately? (CHA - Club Ho's Anonymous)]

I didn't post about it when I pulled the trigger, but a Tour Striker Smart Ball arrived at the house last night.

Not sure how I feel about it so far. I think the Planemate is nicer for a full swing training aid. This might get some use for chipping and putting, though. I don't care for the idea of pushing the elbows together to hold the ball, it creates tension that I'm otherwise always trying to get rid of in my upper body.

Oh well. It wasn't overly expensive and I'm sure I'll find some use for it somewhere, sometime.

[Building My 2021 Sticks - Sub70 699/699 Pro Combo Set]

35 minutes ago, SlowNLow said:

 

Once I was re-shafting a set of irons and I used my dad's small belt sander with a linen belt from Golfworks and yes the I carved up a few ferrules, quickly.  (Had no idea how to use it and still don't. ) 

And then I had to pull shaft, clean up the head and the shaft tip again, re-glue, etc. felt very small and ashamed.

There are some videos on Youtube, turning ferrules with a belt sander and a linen belt.  Those guys are good.   Not me.

Now I use a linen belt but I do it by hand,   it takes longer but I can control it much better.   Tape the iron hosel, and use the hosel as a stop.   Move the belt over one side of the ferrule using a stroke like a how shoe shine guy buffs the top of a shoe.  Then rotate the club and "buff" some more.    Then acetone it, polish with a cotton ball.  Works ok. 

BTW the club design looks great, nice job.  

 

Thanks! I didn't really think about doing it by hand with the belt. In the past I've used a small file and various grits of sand paper.

Key for me this time around with the acetone was to buy the "Kimwipes" Golfworks sells. They are thin like tissue paper, but they don't let off any lint and leave a nice shine.

[The Still Aceless Thread]

1 hour ago, ncwoz said:

Me too haha. I'm honestly not sure how many times (or if at all?) I've ever been within 5 feet of the ole hole in one

Dude, I played 27 straight holes on par 3 course for #CobraConnect last year. Longest hole was 125 yards. Closest I got was like seven feet. 

[Building My 2021 Sticks - Sub70 699/699 Pro Combo Set]

@sirchunksalot - Appreciate the kind words the other night after my belt sander screw up. I couldn't let myself leave such an awkward ferrule in the bag so I pulled it apart yesterday and tried again. Much better results this time.

(Since the Scotchbrite belts don't harm the club, I found that using the top of the hosel as a guide and pressing that into the belt worked really well. I was able to shave off the ferrule the perfect amount and not go past.)

First club done. With the larger ferrule it's closer to D5 than D4. I'll have to give them all a swing, but I may be looking at shaving an 1/8" or so from the length depending on my results just to keep the swingweight a little lower.

I received shipping notifications for my remaining orders and should have all of the remaining shafts I need to complete the set by the end of next week.

[Building My 2021 Sticks - Sub70 699/699 Pro Combo Set]

13 hours ago, GolfSpy MPR said:

Might be useful to you, might not: when I have a ferrule that I try on and find it snug, I'll ream it out a bit inside with a round file to open it up some.

I have a .370 reamer that I ran up about halfway through the ferrule, but the top of the ferrule was pretty thin already and didn't dare take much more out. Had it in hot water before, too, and used some epoxy as lubricant. Just was a tough bugger. Now that I know, I'll have the heat gun at the ready .

I'd much prefer it too tight, I suppose. Less likely to creep up when combined with the little bit of epoxy underneath.

1 hour ago, fixyurdivot said:

Not in the same swing weight as you, but I really liked the MMT 80R shafts and they are my #1 pick at this point in the new irons project.  They performed really close to the Accra - which by many accounts are the gold standard for composite shafts. MMT's tapered versions are the odd number series and have a gloss black finish.  I also found the OTi shafts pretty competitive as well.

I hit the MMT 95 Taper in the Apex Forged heads. When I first got back into golf seriously a few years back I started with KBS Tour 90s, so I'm no stranger to lightweight shafts. But I really loved the MMT 105s and am so happy I tried them. They feel really nice, no hint of wobbliness or anything like that.

1 hour ago, rbsiedsc said:

You really have me considering graphite in my irons now. beautiful work so far!! Have you thought about going MMT in woods and hybrids now too keep the same feel? I presume that is one benefit to going graphite in irons. The MMTs look total badass. 

Thanks. These are going to look really sharp when they're all together, my crap ferrule work on the 4 iron not withstanding...

Logically, I think the MMT will get a go in my 4 hybrid once they are readily available for purchase. I can't find them anywhere online at the moment. I could see myself picking up a 19 degree utility just to have and would stick an MMT in that, too. 

I don't think I'll change from the Pro Orange in the Super Hybrid (great feeling shaft), and the Rogue White in the Mavrik feels fantastic, too.

I really do intend to keep this current bag setup, minus maybe a new shaft in the 4 hybrid or another hybrid there and new wedges, for a while. It's fun tinkering but I really want to see if I can get my handicap lower and shoot in the 70s consistently. I also really want a Skytrak so I need to save at least a bit of money before I can convince the wife that we should pony up the cash for one.

[What Have You Bought Lately? (CHA - Club Ho's Anonymous)]

On 2/2/2021 at 7:05 PM, B.Boston said:

My wallet thanks you in advance for your cooperation.

I mean, at $279 shipped or whatever it is, it's basically a bargain. Probably worth it just to avoid FOMO. 

[Building My 2021 Sticks - Sub70 699/699 Pro Combo Set]

24 minutes ago, sirchunksalot said:

It's a learning moment, plus you were tired. The ferrules look fantastic with the head and the shaft, you definitely made the right choice sticking with this color combination. Love it!

Yup. Just one of those days. I am thrilled with the color combo, and now I know what not to do on the rest of them.

Thanks for the comments!

[Building My 2021 Sticks - Sub70 699/699 Pro Combo Set]

Have to share the major fails that come along with DIY. Frustrated right now, but oh well. (Lesson learned, been kind of a rough day anyway, should not have done club work while not having my heart in it 100 percent.)

I'm still waiting on the rest of the shafts to arrive, but on Monday I pulled the 4 iron head from the MMT and yesterday I re-installed with one of the new BB&F Co. ferrules. First problem, I had a very, very hard time setting the ferrule to the correct depth. In the past I've just used the club head once everything was coated with epoxy and pushed it on. The ferrule was so tight I couldn't get the head on fully and I ended up making a huge mess of epoxy and ruining a shim before I got smart and used a heat gun to coax the ferrule down more. I let the epoxy cure for 24 hours and was really happy with how everything was looking.

I mentioned I purchased a Harbor Freight 1"x30" sander to help finish the ferrules. I picked up the Scotchbrite type of belt from Golfworks for the tool, and practiced yesterday on a few test clubs. I only had to trim a tiny bit of ferrule for this build, so I made a quick pass on the 4 iron and was pretty happy with myself. Should have gone to the acetone and called it good.

But, no. Wasn't happy with a tiny section. Went back to the sander to even it out and apparently put way too much pressure on the ferrule. Took way too much off and came out looking like sh--. I'm not going to pull the shaft again. Maybe next winter. It's fine for now. But frustrating. Just had to vent a bit. 

[MPR: The Single Digit Project]

12 minutes ago, GolfSpy MPR said:

Just put this together:

 

I love before and afters. Nice work!

Shows that if you put in the work, you can make changes. Some people are just too stubborn to believe that. While I'd have loved to have proper mechanics from a young age, it is possible to teach an old dog new tricks, as they say...

[What equipment are you thinking about?]

14 hours ago, rbsiedsc said:

no second super hybrid?

Probably not. I think the 20 degree would be too much club for the gap I'm wanting it to fill. 23 might work, but I don't know if it would be an improvement.

I really like the Epic Flash (at least off mats), so I don't think a change will happen, but I could see getting the MMT hybrid shaft when they are finally readily available.

[What equipment are you thinking about?]

Autoflex? 

Wouldn't be until end of season. Writing it here now, no purchasing of anymore new equipment this season, no new irons until end of 2022 at earliest. Other things I'm beginning to scout out:

• Wedges for 2022, as mine will have quite a few rounds and practice on them by that point. Probably look at end of line/season sales for MIMs again, ZipCores or TM MG2s.
• I'll want to try whatever the latest and greatest hybrid options in the 19-21 degree range are this fall. Or look at trying the MMT hybrid shaft as an upgrade in the Epic Flash.

[2020 Forum Member Review - SuperSpeed Training System]

35 minutes ago, rbsiedsc said:

So i havent gone back in this mega thread, but are concerns of wearing your body down with too many swings? There is another overspeed system i was going to try but then balked at it in fear i was going to hurt myself adding more swings in.

Certainly something that you'd have to listen to your body to truly find out. It is a lot of swings once you get to the advanced levels. There are several advocates for downsizing the program, but it's also dependent on what other work you are doing.

If you are just starting out, however, I do think it'd be best to follow the protocols at least through the second level. I saw tremendous gains in the first few weeks and think most others would, too.

In three years of doing the program I have not injured myself with the sticks. N=1 results, your mileage may vary, of course.

[My DIY SuperSpeed project]

8 hours ago, Tom the Golf Nut said:

If you haven't figured it out by now, I just like making things. It becomes an obsession at times. I made the first speed stick already but then got side tracked by building my golf practice room. Here are images of the heavy one completed. Solid stainless steel weight, drilled out to the shaft diameter and epoxied.  Painted Black to go with the Snake eyes ferrule. 

It helps that I work for a company that has a 120,000 sq/ft manufacturing shop. One of our machinist whipped this out for me in less than 10 minutes. Had the shaft, grip, and ferrule laying around. Cost $0. 

My wife wants me to make her a noodle board. I had to look that up. I'll get that knocked out, then we will see what comes up next. 

Looking great! I'm still jealous of everyone who had access to a machine shop. Would have made the process so much simpler and quicker.

[What/How Did You Practice Today?]

A lot of work recently has been to keep my hands quiet and relaxed all across the board - full swing, chipping and putting. 

If I get too active in my hands during a full swing, I have a tendency to either pull the clubhead inside or, more likely as is my overcorrection, to push my hands outside on the takeaway. With chipping, too active of hands prevents me from using my rotation to hit the ball and I struggle with sticking the club into the ground behind the ball or hitting it really thin. And with putting, my hands being active leads to poor face control.

Additionally, still working on getting better rotation into my rear hip. If I do it right, my path is nicely zeroed out or a bit to the right. Poor rotation leads to a more left path and with my longer clubs leads to lots of pulls and pull hooks.

I sent this screen cap to my coach on Saturday and he really liked the progress with the rotation:

[Building My 2021 Sticks - Sub70 699/699 Pro Combo Set]

(TL;DR at the bottom.)

I mentioned in the first post of this thread I didn't expect to save a ton of money over going new OEM. I can compare the available options now that I've ordered everything necessary to complete the build. I compared my costs to both the Callaway mixed set I liked, and what I would have likely ordered directly from Sub70.

The Callaway mixed set would have consisted of Apex DCBs in the 4-5 irons, Apex 6-7 irons and Apex Forged 8-GW. Callaway offers the MMT 105 TXs as a $15 upcharge, and the Lamkin Sonar Tours as a $10 upcharge. Total estimated cost: $1,680.

I probably could have called up Discount Dan's and gotten a slightly better price, free delivery and no sales tax. However, before going down this road of buying/building new irons, I knew if I ordered the Callaway set I wanted to support my local shop because they have been great to me. Tack on six percent Michigan sales tax and my total would have been closer to $1,780.

From Sub70 directly, I would have likely ordered SteelFiber i110s with Lamkin Crossline 360s. Total cost for the same combo set of 4-AW 699/699 Pros with that shaft/grip combination: $985.

My build, when looking at the price of components only, was not as expensive as I initially expected. Even with the premium priced MMT shafts, the final cost was competitive with Sub70 and way less than Callaway. Total estimated cost: $1,115.

I sold the shafts to Swing 'em Again Golf, and the grips will be going on my brother-in-law's set of irons. I also got lucky because the set was essentially brand new with very little visible use.

Obviously, there are always incidental material and supply costs (epoxy, sandpaper, etc.) I'm not including here. I already had the majority of the needed supplies, but because I wanted this build to be a little more "professional" than my last, I sprung for a new Harbor Freight belt sander and some more stuff from Golfworks to make everything very simple to assemble and finish. I also bought extra ferrules (just in case) and extra grips for spares and to redo the rest of my bag.

I enjoy building and tweaking clubs, and tools like the belt sander will inevitably be used for other project around the house, yard and garden eventually. I don't consider these as costs in my build, although some may.

Time is obviously another input. I don't keep specific track of time, but I had at least two hours into dissembling the original clubs, cleaning/brushing the heads and painting the alignment lines. Each shaft takes several minutes to prep and cut (carefully!) and then assembly is a slow process making sure all of the graphics are perfectly aligned, the heads are on fully and the ferrules are tight. There will be time required to size down and polish the ferrules. I've gotten better at gripping, but even using air and painter's tape takes some time to get everything aligned and right.

At the end of the day, there's something to be said about building your own clubs and the enjoyment it brings to the game. I enjoy the process.

And, as for the money I "saved," it's already been spent on matching wedge shafts for my Cobra MIM Black wedges and a new-to-me Callaway Mavrik driver from Callaway Pre-Owned.

TL;DR:

Total estimated costs for similar builds:

Callaway Mixed Combo Set - $1,780
Sub70 SteelFiber Combo Set - $985
"Custom Built" Sub70 MMT Combo Set - $1,115

Saved money and spent it on more clubs. Degenerate club ho status confirmed.

[Building My 2021 Sticks - Sub70 699/699 Pro Combo Set]

These showed up a day earlier than expected.

These are "Mr. Peacock." I was trying to match the blue of the Sonar Tour cap, but these are a little more "rich" in hue than the blue on the grips. Kudos to Patrick from BB&F Co. who offered to exchange them for another blue ringed set, but after looking at the color against the black MMT shaft I decided to keep them.

Everything has now been ordered to complete the set, with orders from Golfworks, grips4less, BB&F Co. and Billy Bob's all placed. I'm hoping everything arrives by next weekend. It will probably take me a few days to put everything together once everything does show up.

[What/How Did You Practice Today?]

1 hour ago, sirchunksalot said:

I never, ever thought a shaft could make the Epic Flash Sub Zero sound worse, but it did. I can only describe it as adding a loud ting. 

Thankfully, Callaway drastically improved the sound in the Mavrik line. Really pleasant sound.

The Black sounds like an intriguing shaft!

[What/How Did You Practice Today?]

12 minutes ago, sirchunksalot said:

I had to work today, but came home and grabbed the clubs to head out to the range. I bought a HZRDUS Smoke Black shaft I was chomping at the bit to try out and my first impressions are good. While still not having the most consistent pattern, I saw a tightening of my strike pattern along the face. 

Ignore the little guy at the bottom of the first photo, I was using 3 1/4 inch tees and thought I had another in my jacket pocket. Nope...It was a 2 3/4 I had left in after my last round. 

I hit a couple of duck hooks, but other than that I saw some good results and didn't lose a single shot out to the right. 

Wedges and irons are coming along nicely after all the practice with the Spornia net. I stl need to work on alignment. Cough...left miss...Cough. I did shank a couple, I got sloppy and let my left arm become disconnected, something else the net has helped me work on. 

Great day at the range, even with cooler temps and being up since 3:30. 

That strike pattern has tightened up nicely!

[edingc's Work In Progress]

On 1/19/2021 at 6:45 AM, edingc said:

I've promised myself no more club purchases this offseason. I'm trying to save up for a net, mat and Skytrak for the garage because driving to the range in the winter in the getting tiresome.

This promise lasted all of a few days. 

I went with the "tour length" SpeedZone Xtreme last year, but snagged a nice deal on a basically brand new Mavrik from Callaway Pre-Owned this week. It arrived yesterday. The shaft length of the Mavrik is 1.25" longer than the SpeedZone.

Very interesting to see what the additional shaft length did to my ball speed and swing speed numbers at the range this morning:

• Over 33 drivers, I recorded club head speeds of 112+ MPH 28 times. All 33 drives were 110 MPH or faster on my Mevo.
• 11 drives were 115+ MPH club head speed.
• I set a new personal best with 117.4 MPH club head speed, and also recorded one swing at 117 MPH.
• 13 drives over 160 MPH ball speed.
• Recorded my first ever 270+ yard carry on the Mevo (twice), topping out at 272.7 yards.

Interestingly enough, my contact and dispersion were no worse with the longer shaft.

 

[What/How Did You Practice Today?]

Had probably my best range session of the winter today. Feels good to see progress from all of the practice, especially with the longer clubs.

The purpose of going today was to test my new Sub70/MMT combo, but I also got to swing my new-to-me Callaway Mavrik since it showed up yesterday afternoon. I figured I'd have a shootout with the SpeedZone Xtreme, but one or two more range sessions like today and the Mavrik might just blow the SZX out of the water. Below is 33 shots worth of data, second row are maximum numbers for that stat:

Ball Speed (mph)	Club Speed (mph)	Smash	Carry Distance (yds)	Launch Angle V	Spin (rpm)	Height (ft)	Time (s)
158	112	1.41	260.8	12.6	2639	105	6.9
164.3	117.4	1.45	272.7

In all fairness to the SZX, the Mavrik is 1.25" longer. But I saw no decrease in accuracy and over 33 shots my impact pattern was pretty solid (certainly just as solid as the shorter driver):

A few not great ones, but overall very consistent.

With the longer driver I saw new personal bests on the Mevo in ball speed (average and max), club head speed (average and max - 117.4!) and carry (272.7).

The Aldila Rogue White 130 MSI is a fantastic shaft. Much better feeling than the 110 Silver in the SZX, and it launched higher and with less spin. I thought it felt more stable through the swing and much smoother through impact, even though I went up to x-stiff. I also found the Mavrik/Rogue White combination to favor a slight draw, and I never hit draws with my driver.

I wish I could get somewhere to hit real balls at normal temperatures with a quality launch monitor, but I'm going to be waiting for spring at this point!