Steelfiber vs. Recoil

[fixyurdivot]

It seems these are the two most dominant, best performing composite shafts on the market.  I've just started playing with Recoil 95 F4's, albeit as part of an exploratory test using P-CB irons which may or may not be ideal in assessing performance. For those of you who have spent time researching composite shafts and/or playing them, what are your opinions about these two mfg.'s and their portfolio of products?  

I'm going to let the fitting data drive my decision, but am leaning towards composite shafts if that is an option... for sure if there is "truth" to the happier joints claim. And, we all know where the "truth" can be found regarding all things golf .

[chisag]

... I don't think there is any doubt that graphite reducers vibration and that effects our joints. Elbow tendonitis was the cause of my switching to graphite* but performance and feel was the reason I never went back to steel. I hope I don't skew your poll as I am playing Steelfiber 95's in my T100-S at the moment. But I have a set of Recoil Prototype 95's on standby for my next set so I wish I could check both. 

... I originally tried to play Steelfiber 95's in s-flex which played like x-flex for me and I sold them after 2 rounds. After talking with the Engineers at Aerotech, I went to r-flex and the results were much better. I would compare the Steelfiber i95's in r-flex to Recoil 95 F4 (s-flex). That said, I find the feel quite different. The Recoils have an obvious dampened feel that is nothing like steel while the Steelfibers have a feel somewhere between steel and graphite but closer to steel imo. This is one of the reasons they are so successful on all the tours where they grew up playing steel and after hitting thousands/millions of shots they made the switch. Steelfibers are very popular on the LPGA Tour which more closely resembles most of our golf swings. Ymmv. I think they are the perfect shaft for someone that prefers steel (or thinks they prefer steel) but want the advantages of graphite. If you like the dampened feel of graphite the Recoils are hard to beat. Great performance and a soft feel that is very non steel. For me at least performance is virtually identical between Steelfiber and Recoil Prototypes with feel being the difference while regular Recoil 95s are a little easier to load and unload but still very accurate. 

... Fwiw, while I have played 110's in both, but I have no experience with lighter weight Recoil or Steelfiber shafts. 

* I tried several steel dampening inserts including Sensicore, Pro Soft and a few home made inserts but none of them had any effect on my tendonitis. 

[NRJyzr]

I'm in the "about to" camp, so posting instead of voting.  I have a set of Recoil Proto 125 F4 to be installed in my MP37s.  I also have a Steelfiber 125 in a 53* wedge, have played several rounds with it.  Aside from that, have tested Recoil 125 F5 (retail version) in a test iron.

If we're talking retail Recoil, I'd probably have to go with the Steelfiber, I found the Recoil to hit the ball a little higher than I'd cared for at the time; the SteelFiber seems very DG-like to me.  Since I like DG, it's a nice transition. 

The Protos, no experience yet.

Edited October 24, 2020 by NRJyzr

[Siamese Moose]

I have Steelfiber in wedges, and Recoil in hybrids. They feel very different, but I don't know if the Recoil hybrids are similar to the iron shafts. The steelfiber are very similar to steel, and as Chisag stated, are at least a full flex stiffer. The Recoils are probably a little softer than the stated flex, and much "smoother". If pain relief is your primary goal, the Recoil would be my recommendation. 

[DPattGolf]

This is definitely something I am going to be strongly looking into before I get my next set of irons. Obviously testing is paramount but it definitely sounds like the Steelfibers would fit what I'm looking for better

[NRJyzr]

For whatever it's worth....

Steelfiber 95 stiff profiles very close to DGS.  The 110 and 125 are similar, but with a slightly stiffer bottom section.  I'm guessing this is the origin of the comments of them playing stiffer than flex.

IMHO obviously 

I've felt the retail Recoil is closer to KBS Tour, but admit that's a vague feeling borne of too little experience.

 

[RI_Redneck]

I voted for Recoils just because I couldn't vote for both. Honestly, I have sets with Aldila RIP Tours, Recoil Protos, Steelfibers & Fujikura Tours. My favorite is the RIP Tour, but since it was discontinued, I guard them with intense care. The Recoil Protos are my second choice and I haven't gotten to use the Fujis yet. I use graphite in everything except my wedges and would never even consider going back to steel. The shafts I've listed have as tight or tighter specs than any steel shaft. BUT.... the FEEL is different. THAT is why you don't see widespread use on the Tour. When a golfer is faced with changing to graphite or not playing, that is when they decide they have to get used to the feel. It only took me a few months to get used to it and I never looked back.

BT

[fozcycle]

I have 3 sets of Recoils 660/460/460ES, all F3 Regular. I really don’t think I’ll be in anything other than a Recoil. They are in my Hogan Ptx Irons, Cobra F8’s and Wilson D-7’s.


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[Bosox04]

I have Mizuno 919 Hot Metals with Recoil 95 stiff shafts.These were a stock offering from Mizuno, so no upcharge. I have a bit of arthritis in my hands, and they have helped a lot.

[Hollis]

I’m a steelfiber guy in my current set of 0311 Gen 1. I have loved them.  They have really helped my tendinitis.  I just ordered some 921F with recoils.  They beat out my Steelfibers in the fitting.  Looking forward to them.  

[HardcoreLooper]

Steelfibers were not an option in the Wilson D7 Forged testing, so I didn't even consider them.  I wasn't set on graphite shafts; the Recoil 110 F4s were the best of the no-upcharge shafts that we had available to us.  I'm hitting them much higher than any of the other no-upcharge shafts.

They are much easier on the joints than my old NM 105s (which I liked very much).

[RoverRick]

My SteelFiber 95 S arrived tonight. I plan to install them in the morning in 919 Hot Metal Pros and make a few tentative swings on Wednesday during breaks in watching the Masters. I have knee surgery soon so I’m not getting to really swing them more than 75% and only on the range. I can’t walk on uneven ground but it’s minor (as minor as knee surgeries go) and should be back on the course in a few weeks. However, 72° in November and no golf has caused me to put the Suicide Prevention Hot Line on speed dial.

I tried some Recoils 460’s that I would be able to compare the ball flights had I ever hit a ball with them. All I really proved with those was that you really have to swing fast if you are taking 3-4” of turf first. Those were too light but we will see.


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[John W Sutch]

Comment from an old fart, age 75. Have recoil shafts in a couple woods but have upgraded to UST Helium in my current driver and 3 wood which perform even better. Playing Ping G700s in my irons with Ping Alta sr flex shafts. Still get good distance with all and easy on the joints. Avg 230 with the driver and 150 with 6 iron. Exercise program also helps.

[Rickp]

I have 3 sets of Recoils 660/460/460ES, all F3 Regular. I really don’t think I’ll be in anything other than a Recoil. They are in my Hogan Ptx Irons, Cobra F8’s and Wilson D-7’s.


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I’m definitely a recent convert to Recoils. Irons are 760ES F2 which is fine for my 74 year old swing. Last irons were 460ES F3 and still hit them fine just not as high.


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[chisag]

... I haver to admit I am surprised by the Steelfiber 95 r-flex shafts in my T100-S irons. I am a long time Recoil player and absolutely love the Recoil Prototype shafts. I am glad I am a Shaft Ho and didn't give up on Steelfibers after playing 95 s-flex shafts and finding them too stout and could not sell them fast enough. I think the stiffness masked the feel. The 95 r-flex feels much better because I can feel them load and unload, something I did not feel with the Steelfiber s-flex. For me at least, the Recoils have a very dampened feel and the Steelfiber 95's feel like nothing, similar to hitting the dead center of an iron. 

... To be fair, I could play Recoil Prototypes and have almost identical performance as my Steelfibers but the combination of T100-S/Steelfibers is just working really well. I am hoping to get my hands on some Cobra King Tour MIM irons and shaft them with my Recoil Prototypes which should be a really good applies to apples comparison. I do believe that if you get properly fit, because I think it is more difficult on your own with Steelfibers, both Recoil and Steelfibers are just awesome iron shafts and you can't go wrong with either shaft and in the end I think it usually comes down to a personal preference.  

[RoverRick]

I installed the SteelFiber I95 S in my JPX 919 Hot Metal Pros yesterday. Made a few swings with them today. I’m having knee surgery the first of next week so all I have done is some slow motion chips and pitches with no ball. Just to get a feel for the club. I love them, but no ball flight data yet.
So while this is supposed to be about Recoil vs SteelFiber, I have both, and I much prefer the SteelFiber BUT this could be that I much prefer 95g shafts over 120g of CTaper or 110g CTaperLite or the 70g Recoils.
I hope to make a few full swing on the range soon.

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[dlow206]

im interested in the Recoil 110 F4. little bit heavier than the 950 Neos im playing right now, little bit lighter than the C-Taper lite X i had in the past. 

[RickyBobby_PR]

54 minutes ago, dlow206 said:

im interested in the Recoil 110 F4. little bit heavier than the 950 Neos im playing right now, little bit lighter than the C-Taper lite X i had in the past. 

I know you mentioned in one of the threads about trying to save your joints so I get the ponder of graphite and especially the recoils. I’ve had them in the bag twice now including my current set of Miuras and am a fan and due to some personal bias I think they are the best graphite shafts out there.

Also I’m a pretty big club ho who has slowed down a bit in that area but stilll susceptible to bling buys and tinkering.

Out of curiosity wouldnt it be better to stay with what you have while working on your swing and once you’ve made some good progress and have a better swing and more consistent contact? Then once you are at that point do a fitting to find a head that works well with the recoils or another graphite shaft like fujikura, kbs or another brand?

[dlow206]

1 hour ago, RickyBobby_PR said:

I know you mentioned in one of the threads about trying to save your joints so I get the ponder of graphite and especially the recoils. I’ve had them in the bag twice now including my current set of Miuras and am a fan and due to some personal bias I think they are the best graphite shafts out there.

Also I’m a pretty big club ho who has slowed down a bit in that area but stilll susceptible to bling buys and tinkering.

Out of curiosity wouldnt it be better to stay with what you have while working on your swing and once you’ve made some good progress and have a better swing and more consistent contact? Then once you are at that point do a fitting to find a head that works well with the recoils or another graphite shaft like fujikura, kbs or another brand?

Yeah, planning to stay with what I have for now, i tend to like to think about things, even if it is out in the future. 

Though if i find a deal good enough, I am prone to do irrational things, i am only human . 

[Camille Bissarro]

I've never played the Steel Fiber, but I was fitted into a set of JPX 919 Forged w/ Recoil ESX 460 F3 a little more than a year ago. I'd previously switched to graphite iron shafts (Paderson Kinetixx TS-I R) because of some elbow and wrist issues. The ESX 460 are lighter, torque-ier (sp?) and therefore less stable than the TS-I I played previously. I'm currently switching out the ESX for another set of TS-I, also R flex. I don't like the feel of a board, and am on the R/S flex cusp, swing speed-wise, but Paderson shafts tend to play a little stiffer in terms of flex and torque.

I've recently put a Paderson Ballistic 80 in my Titleist U510 3 iron, replacing the stock Tensei AV 70HY, which I also found too unstable. When I put a good swing on that thing now, the ball launch and flight is something to behold.

I'm not trying to hijack the SF vs Recoil comparison, but I would suggest anyone who is interested in trying graphite iron shafts take a look at Paderson as well (good selection on Golf Works). Having previously worked for a graphite shaft manufacturer (crew oars, not golf clubs), I do think the filament winding/vacuum cure tech combo Paderson uses is superior to prepreg sheet layup/tape and bake, and is unique as far as I know for golf shaft manufacturers.