TaylorMade Qi10 Drivers - 2024 Forum Member Review

[sirchunksalot]

48 minutes ago, GolfSpy_BEN said:

Stopped in the golf shop this afternoon for  something unrelated, but while I was there I was chatting with my guy Todd about how things were progressing with the QI-10, which led to a discussion about the G430 10k max, which led to me hitting some balls on the trackman. I had initially tried it back in January and found it a bit spinny for my tastes, but I was curious if the spin was swing related or club related or both. 
 

With a better swing these days, I found the G430 10K max was a little slower club speed wise but the results were mostly straight or a slight draw with an average spin of 2900 rpm.

I should have stopped there.

But i decided to hit some balls with the QI-10 for comparison sake. It started off well, with ball speeds in the mid 150’s and the ball going where I wanted it to, I was becoming satisfied that, while the 10k max is nice, for me the QI-10 produces similar results. And then I heard an all too familiar sound on my last swing. I looked at the head and…

Yep. Another cracked head. In more or less the same spot as the LS that cracked on me. Fortunately, Todd arranged another replacement that is supposed to arrive at the shop no later than 5-24, so I should have it for the Kingsmill outing. The wild thing to me, is both swings are hat produced cracked heads were center strikes, so I am completely baffled as to why this keeps happening.

That's insane! What's crazy is you are swinging it what, 105-110 MPH based on ball speed? I don't see how they hold up to guys swinging it at tour speed and that we don't see them exploding on the course when they're using them. 

I'm wondering if you got ones from a bad batch since you and John got then at the same time. 

[GolfSpy_BEN]

1 minute ago, sirchunksalot said:

That's insane! What's crazy is you are swinging it what, 105-110 MPH based on ball speed? I don't see how they hold up to guys swinging it at tour speed and that we don't see them exploding on the course when they're using them. 

I'm wondering if you got ones from a bad batch since you and John got then at the same time. 

Certainly possible. We will see if the third head holds up better

I can’t reasonably figure out why it’s happened with not one, but two different models now. I just need to crack a max and I’ll have the trifecta

[KC Golf]

12 minutes ago, sirchunksalot said:

That's insane! What's crazy is you are swinging it what, 105-110 MPH based on ball speed? I don't see how they hold up to guys swinging it at tour speed and that we don't see them exploding on the course when they're using them. 

I'm wondering if you got ones from a bad batch since you and John got then at the same time. 

Wow. That’s a crazy spot to see a break on two different Qi driver models.

7 minutes ago, GolfSpy_BEN said:

Certainly possible. We will see if the third head holds up better

I can’t reasonably figure out why it’s happened with not one, but two different models now. I just need to crack a max and I’ll have the trifecta

Is that Bridgestone BX solid like a brick to do that kind of damage on a center strike?  Or Are you teeing it up with a metal tee?  

I think TM should send you the Max this time.  Just for all of our amusement….

I am surprised to say the least.  That’s some really bad luck.

[revkev]

Just catching up on my read through of this thread - you guys did us proud, thanks. 

I posted elsewhere with little up know reaction, that my Stealth 2 head developed a rattle. Tried tightening stuff with no luck so cheated with someone on the Taylor Made website. He had me send in a warranty request (head was a year old.) They replied in 48 hours that they were replacing the head with a new one. The one above arrived a week later. It was exactly a 2 week turn around from when I contacted them, very impressive and doubly so with the upgrade.

I was concerned though - we’ve probably all had that experience where we moved up an iteration or two in a driver head model  only to pop in that beloved shaft and experience an epic fail. I finally had some time to hit the range yesterday and it did take a half dozen shots or so - this head wants to fade for me and I generally hit draws. Once I stopped fighting that and went with a bit lower tee height I started stripping drive after drive with a little bitty fade. There was a flag at 230 with trees to the right that was an ideal simulated fairway - I just started alternating shots between driver and 7 iron to a flag at 150 (I was there to work on spotting with my irons as well.) It was down wind but nearly every drive I hit was bounding past that 230 flag and with straight or with a tad bit of draw. That’s very long for me. 
 

Playing this afternoon. I will report back on those results. The course at my new club is full of details legs right so this would be an incredibly timely development. I will add that I had been working on hitting fades with my irons so that might have been a factor. 

 

 

[fixyurdivot]

14 hours ago, GolfSpy_BEN said:

Stopped in the golf shop this afternoon for  something unrelated, but while I was there I was chatting with my guy Todd about how things were progressing with the QI-10, which led to a discussion about the G430 10k max, which led to me hitting some balls on the trackman. I had initially tried it back in January and found it a bit spinny for my tastes, but I was curious if the spin was swing related or club related or both. 
 

With a better swing these days, I found the G430 10K max was a little slower club speed wise but the results were mostly straight or a slight draw with an average spin of 2900 rpm.

I should have stopped there.

But i decided to hit some balls with the QI-10 for comparison sake. It started off well, with ball speeds in the mid 150’s and the ball going where I wanted it to, I was becoming satisfied that, while the 10k max is nice, for me the QI-10 produces similar results. And then I heard an all too familiar sound on my last swing. I looked at the head and…

Yep. Another cracked head. In more or less the same spot as the LS that cracked on me. Fortunately, Todd arranged another replacement that is supposed to arrive at the shop no later than 5-24, so I should have it for the Kingsmill outing. The wild thing to me, is both swings are hat produced cracked heads were center strikes, so I am completely baffled as to why this keeps happening.

Ben, you should be receiving a call from TM's Product Testing Group with a job offer any day now.  When you get there, just stay clear of the Design Engineering Group offices . That is absolutely crazy... snapped the needle off the probability meter.  

[Jean D]

Have been hitting the Qi10Max with the Autoflex Dream 7 SF 405x for my MGS testing and have been getting good results with it, but am curious to see how the Standard and LS heads would perform on this shaft… I am heading out to GolfTown (Canada’s version of PGASS…kinda) later this morning to hit some balls on their Foresight GC Hawk LM’s.  Results to follow.

[Rob Person]

Just caught up on this thread.  Wow!  Some impressive results, and definitely some "oh$hit, not again!" moments too...

Has anyone else had any type of issues with these? Unusual wearing,  deformities, shaft area issues, or other cracks?

[HikingMike]

17 hours ago, GolfSpy_BEN said:

Stopped in the golf shop this afternoon for  something unrelated, but while I was there I was chatting with my guy Todd about how things were progressing with the QI-10, which led to a discussion about the G430 10k max, which led to me hitting some balls on the trackman. I had initially tried it back in January and found it a bit spinny for my tastes, but I was curious if the spin was swing related or club related or both. 
 

With a better swing these days, I found the G430 10K max was a little slower club speed wise but the results were mostly straight or a slight draw with an average spin of 2900 rpm.

I should have stopped there.

But i decided to hit some balls with the QI-10 for comparison sake. It started off well, with ball speeds in the mid 150’s and the ball going where I wanted it to, I was becoming satisfied that, while the 10k max is nice, for me the QI-10 produces similar results. And then I heard an all too familiar sound on my last swing. I looked at the head and…

Yep. Another cracked head. In more or less the same spot as the LS that cracked on me. Fortunately, Todd arranged another replacement that is supposed to arrive at the shop no later than 5-24, so I should have it for the Kingsmill outing. The wild thing to me, is both swings are hat produced cracked heads were center strikes, so I am completely baffled as to why this keeps happening.

Holy $#*+%!!!

That was @IndyBonzo’s head originally right? Different models and they both cracked in the back. 
 

Time for a new forum name, GolfSpy_BEN_THE_DESTROYER

[Josh Parker]

19 hours ago, GolfSpy_BEN said:

Stopped in the golf shop this afternoon for  something unrelated, but while I was there I was chatting with my guy Todd about how things were progressing with the QI-10, which led to a discussion about the G430 10k max, which led to me hitting some balls on the trackman. I had initially tried it back in January and found it a bit spinny for my tastes, but I was curious if the spin was swing related or club related or both. 
 

With a better swing these days, I found the G430 10K max was a little slower club speed wise but the results were mostly straight or a slight draw with an average spin of 2900 rpm.

I should have stopped there.

But i decided to hit some balls with the QI-10 for comparison sake. It started off well, with ball speeds in the mid 150’s and the ball going where I wanted it to, I was becoming satisfied that, while the 10k max is nice, for me the QI-10 produces similar results. And then I heard an all too familiar sound on my last swing. I looked at the head and…

Yep. Another cracked head. In more or less the same spot as the LS that cracked on me. Fortunately, Todd arranged another replacement that is supposed to arrive at the shop no later than 5-24, so I should have it for the Kingsmill outing. The wild thing to me, is both swings are hat produced cracked heads were center strikes, so I am completely baffled as to why this keeps happening.

Wow!!  2 in the same location. 

[GolfSpy_BEN]

Just now, Josh Parker said:

Wow!!  2 in the same location. 

Those that scoffed when I said I was concerned about having to worry about the head cracking on every swing are curiously silent now.

[Josh Parker]

2 minutes ago, GolfSpy_BEN said:

Those that scoffed when I said I was concerned about having to worry about the head cracking on every swing are curiously silent now.

It's such an odd location for a break. They are known for the carbon face to crack on the stealth models but it's like the way it's connected is somehow sending the force to the back.  

[GolfSpy_BEN]

1 minute ago, Josh Parker said:

It's such an odd location for a break. They are known for the carbon face to crack on the stealth models but it's like the way it's connected is somehow sending the force to the back.  

The guys at the shop were puzzled by it as well. All Todd could say after it happened was, “that’s weird”

[Josh Parker]

4 minutes ago, GolfSpy_BEN said:

The guys at the shop were puzzled by it as well. All Todd could say after it happened was, “that’s weird”

Ha.  I think that was my initial response as well. Doesn't give much confidence for sure when it's happened twice now. 

[GolfSpy_BEN]

2 minutes ago, Josh Parker said:

Ha.  I think that was my initial response as well. Doesn't give much confidence for sure when it's happened twice now. 

Perhaps it’s an opportunity in disguise. I can start a side gig as a consultant to the OEMs for product durability testing

[Josh Parker]

3 minutes ago, GolfSpy_BEN said:

Perhaps it’s an opportunity in disguise. I can start a side gig as a consultant to the OEMs for product durability testing

Haha. Sign me up. 

[Jean D]

I am now at over 1000 drives with the Qi10Max (and there were some ugly ones ...) and not a hint of a crack. Bear in mind that I am a 98-102 mph club head speed golfer (pretty average). The only mark on the face is my own dang fault:  I had just marked a new ball before putting it on the tee... and wasn't paying attention to orientation.  The fresh Sharpie mark (my initials JD) can be clearly seen high-toe on the face .  Real face-palm moment for me...

And with pics this time... double face-palm moment...

Edited May 11 by Jean D
Added pics...oooops

[chisag]

1 hour ago, GolfSpy_BEN said:

Perhaps it’s an opportunity in disguise. I can start a side gig as a consultant to the OEMs for product durability testing

 

... I am assuming you were hitting range balls? Just such a real head scratcher. While some equipment always falls through the cracks and fail, OEMs just can't afford wide scale head replacements and go through very rigorous testing to make sure any piece of equipment can hold up to "normal" swings in the 80-115 range. I am sure I took well over 2k swings with my Stealth2 HD and not a mark on it other than sole wear. Same for my Qi10 but I probably only have around 500 drives with it.  

... Fwiw, I am not defending TM anymore than any OEM with a composite head. I have seen the kind of R&D these companies go through and just remember, these clubs are being riggerously tested years before they are released to the public. 

[GolfSpy_BEN]

10 minutes ago, chisag said:

 

... I am assuming you were hitting range balls? Just such a real head scratcher. While some equipment always falls through the cracks and fail, OEMs just can't afford wide scale head replacements and go through very rigorous testing to make sure any piece of equipment can hold up to "normal" swings in the 80-115 range. I am sure I took well over 2k swings with my Stealth2 HD and not a mark on it other than sole wear. Same for my Qi10 but I probably only have around 500 drives with it.  

... Fwiw, I am not defending TM anymore than any OEM with a composite head. I have seen the kind of R&D these companies go through and just remember, these clubs are being riggerously tested years before they are released to the public. 

The first one that cracked was on a range ball. The second one that cracked was a ProV1 RCT ball into a screen. 
 

To be clear, this isn’t a wide-spread issue, as it would be all over social media if it were, but that it cracked in the same location on two different heads implies that it is more than a freak occurrence, or maybe I need to play the power ball this evening.

[Jean D]

6 minutes ago, GolfSpy_BEN said:

The first one that cracked was on a range ball. The second one that cracked was a ProV1 RCT ball into a screen. 
 

To be clear, this isn’t a wide-spread issue, as it would be all over social media if it were, but that it cracked in the same location on two different heads implies that it is more than a freak occurrence, or maybe I need to play the power ball this evening.

I was talking to my fitter (Mother’s Day specials weekend, couldn’t get my fitting in today to try the Qi10 Standard and LS  with the Autoflex Dream 7 shaft   ) and asked if they’d had any breaks  or cracks on any Qi10 head.  Of the 1000’s of drives on them since they arrived in store with people abusing the crap out of them… he says they’ve never had a single issue throughout the chain.  How blooming hard are you hitting exactly,  @GolfSpy_BEN???  

[GolfSpy_BEN]

7 minutes ago, Jean D said:

I was talking to my fitter (Mother’s Day specials weekend, couldn’t get my fitting in today to try the Qi10 Standard and LS  with the Autoflex Dream 7 shaft   ) and asked if they’d had any breaks  or cracks on any Qi10 head.  Of the 1000’s of drives on them since they arrived in store with people abusing the crap out of them… he says they’ve never had a single issue throughout the chain.  How blooming hard are you hitting exactly,  @GolfSpy_BEN???  

I top out at or just under 110 mph, with my average club speed around 105-106 mph. So too much speed isn’t likely to be the culprit. The whole thing is just odd. I almost want to try a Max for a bit, just to see if it will crack as well

[Jean D]

16 minutes ago, GolfSpy_BEN said:

I top out at or just under 110 mph, with my average club speed around 105-106 mph. So too much speed isn’t likely to be the culprit. The whole thing is just odd. I almost want to try a Max for a bit, just to see if it will crack as well

As much as I want to lend a hand, no way am I loaning you my Qi10 Max head to test    I agree that it is very odd... and that you've had 2 of them in such a short period is baffling.  I'd reach out to TM customer support... I'm sure their engineers are interested in your data and experience...

[cnosil]

22 hours ago, GolfSpy_BEN said:

Fortunately, Todd arranged another replacement that is supposed to arrive at the shop no later than 5-24, so I should have it for the Kingsmill outing. 

How many drivers are you bringing to VA?

 

 

[GolfSpy_BEN]

16 minutes ago, cnosil said:

How many drivers are you bringing to VA?

 

 

A minimum of two 

[IndyBonzo]

Wow @GolfSpy_BEN!  I am sorry this happened.

But . . . wow.

[GolfSpy_BEN]

3 minutes ago, IndyBonzo said:

Wow @GolfSpy_BEN!  I am sorry this happened.

But . . . wow.

No worries

The replacement is coming, so only a minor inconvenience. However, if I crack a 3rd one, I’ll be moving on from Taylor Made drivers for the foreseeable future.

[russtopherb]

1 minute ago, GolfSpy_BEN said:

No worries

The replacement is coming, so only a minor inconvenience. However, if I crack a 3rd one, I’ll be moving on from Taylor Made drivers for the foreseeable future.

Like Sam noted above, every OEM subjects their releases to massive QA testing before launch so it's not like TM or anyone else is releasing faulty equipment (these aren't Ford Pintos or anything). However, of all the cracked faces on drivers I've seen online the past few years, it feels like it's almost always a TM head. Some of that may just be due to numbers - they're one of the better selling OEMs when it comes to drivers, so the % of cracked drivers could be exactly the same with Ping, Callaway, etc. But it's certainly odd that TM heads seem to have been cracking a lot ever since the Stealth release. 

[IndyBonzo]

FWIW, my old Callaway Epic Max driver head cracked a couple months ago when my 17 yo daughter was using it.  The crack was very similar. 

She swings nowhere near as hard as Ben.  It happens.

[GolfSpy_KFT]

45 minutes ago, IndyBonzo said:

FWIW, my old Callaway Epic Max driver head cracked a couple months ago when my 17 yo daughter was using it.  The crack was very similar. 

She swings nowhere near as hard as Ben.  It happens.

It definitely happens. You just don't expect it to happen with a brand new club not once, but twice, in a span of a few months. Like @russtopherb mentioned, it seems to be a lot of TM heads that you see cracking (I have seen some photos of heads cracked exactly like @GolfSpy_BEN's), face inserts separating from the head, etc. This certainly could be that they do sell a ton of drivers, so you're more likely to see faults, but it seems that once they moved to Stealth it became more frequent vs. before the move to carbonwood. 

It's not to say TM is making junk. They certainly make fantastic equipment. It's enough, however, to turn me off of the brand for drivers for an extended amount of time.

[tdroma98]

1 hour ago, IndyBonzo said:

FWIW, my old Callaway Epic Max driver head cracked a couple months ago when my 17 yo daughter was using it.  The crack was very similar. 

She swings nowhere near as hard as Ben.  It happens.

@IndyBonzo my Callaway Subzero driver head cracked a year ago after using for 8 yrs.  Perfect timing, I replaced with the Paradym X driver! 

However, 2 of my golf buddies had their Subzero heads crack within 1 yr back, in 2015.  They both got replacement heads from Callaway.  One of my buddies gets a Subzero replacement, cracks that head again, within a yr, then gets a Rogue driver replacement and that head cracks in less than 2 yrs.  He's not a big hitter, just he plays everyday and when he doesn't play, he's at the range.  If you would take a look at his driver, the ball marks are all dead center. 

The good news is, he's been playing the same driver for about 3 yrs now and no issues.  LOL.  

[chisag]

57 minutes ago, GolfSpy_KFT said:

It definitely happens. You just don't expect it to happen with a brand new club not once, but twice, in a span of a few months. Like @russtopherb mentioned, it seems to be a lot of TM heads that you see cracking (I have seen some photos of heads cracked exactly like @GolfSpy_BEN's), face inserts separating from the head, etc. This certainly could be that they do sell a ton of drivers, so you're more likely to see faults, but it seems that once they moved to Stealth it became more frequent vs. before the move to carbonwood. 

It's not to say TM is making junk. They certainly make fantastic equipment. It's enough, however, to turn me off of the brand for drivers for an extended amount of time.

 

... Talking to some club builders at retail stores as well, you are pretty much on point. They don't see failures with TM composite heads anymore than other OEM's. There are just more of them out there. Combined with a failure rate that is a little higher with uber swing speeds and some like to take shots at the graphite face and it produces a perfect social media storm. Granted I am only a 95ish swing speed but never had a problem with my Stealth2 or Qi10. Ben's issues are a real head scratcher and I have to assume there is a reason for two heads cracking in the same spot, I just don't know what it could be.   Such a bummer because as I have stated, the Qi10 is the best driver I have ever played. Ymmv of course.