What Is Spining (EXPLAINED)

[GolfSpy_X]

by: Tom Wishon

 

Question: What Is "Spining"?

 

Answer: It is almost impossible to manufacture shafts that have precisely the same stiffness in all possible directions of bending. To do so would require so many time-consuming manufacturing procedures that the price of shafts would well more than double.

 

While the top-quality shaft makers do manufacture shafts with very high accuracy and consistency, there are shafts in the golf industry that possess a variation in the consistency of the stiffness about their circumference. If severe enough, these inconsistencies can cause mis-direction problems when the shaft is installed in such a way that those inconsistencies get in the way of the required bending of the shaft. When shafts are identified to be inconsistent in their stiffness, they are said to have a "spine."

 

Therefore, the practice of "spining" is offered by some custom clubmakers. Spining involves, first, locating the most consistent bending position of the shaft; and second, installing (or re-installing in already finished clubs) the shaft so that its most consistent bending position is pointing directly toward or directly away from the target line.

 

Today, many shaft makers pre-test their shafts to locate a consistent plane of bending in the shaft, and only then paint and apply the name/logo to the shafts. Thus, with the vast majority of quality shafts made today, there is little need to have the shafts checked for spine location and re-installed in the clubheads.

[SPY ZINGER]

Is PUREing any different?

[jamo]

Thanks for the article, good to know!

[Addicted2Golf]

Is PUREing any different?

 

I had the exactly same question. Just a marketing name for the same process?

[Addicted2Golf]

by: Tom Wishon

 

Question: What Is "Spining"?

 

Answer: It is almost impossible to manufacture shafts that have precisely the same stiffness in all possible directions of bending. To do so would require so many time-consuming manufacturing procedures that the price of shafts would well more than double.

 

While the top-quality shaft makers do manufacture shafts with very high accuracy and consistency, there are shafts in the golf industry that possess a variation in the consistency of the stiffness about their circumference. If severe enough, these inconsistencies can cause mis-direction problems when the shaft is installed in such a way that those inconsistencies get in the way of the required bending of the shaft. When shafts are identified to be inconsistent in their stiffness, they are said to have a "spine."

 

Therefore, the practice of "spining" is offered by some custom clubmakers. Spining involves, first, locating the most consistent bending position of the shaft; and second, installing (or re-installing in already finished clubs) the shaft so that its most consistent bending position is pointing directly toward or directly away from the target line.

 

Today, many shaft makers pre-test their shafts to locate a consistent plane of bending in the shaft, and only then paint and apply the name/logo to the shafts. Thus, with the vast majority of quality shafts made today, there is little need to have the shafts checked for spine location and re-installed in the clubheads.

 

Would less skilled players benefit from this or is something you would recommend only a highly skilled golfer?

[Addicted2Golf]

by: Tom Wishon

 

Today, many shaft makers pre-test their shafts to locate a consistent plane of bending in the shaft, and only then paint and apply the name/logo to the shafts. Thus, with the vast majority of quality shafts made today, there is little need to have the shafts checked for spine location and re-installed in the clubheads.

 

Sorry, last question for now. Based on your last comment, how do you know if a shaft should be spined? It sounds like it would be a waste in the vast majority of cases and I'm sure it isn't cheap. Are shaft manufacturers that are worse than others where this might be recommended?

[Shambles]

Spining used to be a survival technique used by knowledgeable clubmakers and pros but these days shafts are so well made that the need is no longer worth all that attention.

 

If you want to test your shafts, just clamp the grip end on a bench vise and give the head end a gentle start horizontally. You'll see the head moving back and forth in a regular manner, something like a pendulum. It should die down after a bit and here you give extra attention as in that same motion but very rarely you will see one go into a round about circular motion towards the end. That one is a bit of a problem and you have to figure out whether the club works well enough to keep as is or if you should replace the shaft. Spining the shaft just isn't worth the time and trouble of saving you the shaft cost most times so I go with replacement or live with it.

 

You'll find that most clubs will die down in the same motion you started and it really isn't any fun to spend that day watching your club oscillate so start the motion gently. The tell point is towards the end and finding a bad one is so rare that you might treat the finding as a reason to celebrate.

 

 

Shambles

[caddyjoe77]

i spine all my irons with a spine finder. Basically a piece of PVC with ball bearings, The shafts will have a disctinctive spine which i orient towards the target. I have had KBS do this and PX as well as DG. Heck even most graphite i have tried have a spine too. In that area, i must say though that i have not screwed around much with matrix, but of the fuji ones i have tried, they have a spine.

 

There is another method called FLO'ing(FLO=Flat Line Oscillation). Basically, get a drill chuck at home depot/lowes...should weigh about 200 grams for a driver and also pickup a laser pointer that fits in the middle of the chuck so that you have a distinctive center point. Then, just twang the shaft. With most shafts, you will see an oval type pattern on the wall then turn the shaft in the vice/butt clamp until you get a straight line.

 

I cant answer for exactly what PURE'ng is, but i would imagine its close to the same idea.

[Shambles]

i spine all my irons with a spine finder. Basically a piece of PVC with ball bearings, The shafts will have a disctinctive spine which i orient towards the target. I have had KBS do this and PX as well as DG. Heck even most graphite i have tried have a spine too. In that area, i must say though that i have not screwed around much with matrix, but of the fuji ones i have tried, they have a spine.

 

There is another method called FLO'ing(FLO=Flat Line Oscillation). Basically, get a drill chuck at home depot/lowes...should weigh about 200 grams for a driver and also pickup a laser pointer that fits in the middle of the chuck so that you have a distinctive center point. Then, just twang the shaft. With most shafts, you will see an oval type pattern on the wall then turn the shaft in the vice/butt clamp until you get a straight line.

 

I cant answer for exactly what PURE'ng is, but i would imagine its close to the same idea.

 

 

 

I need to thank you for naming your second method which is the method I described in the post preceding yours. I never knew it's name. I just used it until I became frustrated at hardly ever finding any reason to question my shafts, and have only done so with fully assembled clubs. I shall try again as your post implies more frequent success at finding fault than was my experience albeit, I must admit I only do this to my clubs which are not so many.

 

Actually I'm interested because of the laser pointer, which I never tried. I just look at the motion of the club head.

 

 

Shambles

[caddyjoe77]

I need to thank you for naming your second method which is the method I described in the post preceding yours. I never knew it's name. I just used it until I became frustrated at hardly ever finding any reason to question my shafts, and have only done so with fully assembled clubs. I shall try again as your post implies more frequent success at finding fault than was my experience albeit, I must admit I only do this to my clubs which are not so many.

 

Actually I'm interested because of the laser pointer, which I never tried. I just look at the motion of the club head.

 

 

Shambles

 

you are welcome, i only use that method on graphite driver/3 wood/hybrid type shafts. most drill chucks weigh about 200 grams, so its a pretty good reference. the laser works great, and you dont have to put a crink in your neck watching the shaft wobble.

[pureperformance]

Is PUREing any different?

 

 

Pureing actaully takes measurements with The golf shaft in a loaded position and then finds the hard spot on the shaft. From there it will find flat line oscillation but maintaining the hard side forward which will lower spin and flight. You can do the same process but make it soft side forward for the senior player or someone who needs a more active tip. The machine will test the club at logo up position and then compare it to the pure spot with a colored graph and tell you by how many degrees the shaft was turned and by how much the shaft was stabilized.

 

Spining- there are muiltple spines in a shaft not just one so how do you know which one to use. I have the tp7hd shaft which cost$1000 and uses very high end material and making process. We found muliple spines because of how many layers of graphite are in it and at different angles the graphite is laid. On the pure machine it found this shaft at logo up or down was the worst the golf shaft would perform and rotated to its best playing position and stablized the shaft by 72%. So regardless of how much money a shaft cost spining is not going to do the trick and every shaft will oscillate in a circular motion when stuck into a club so finding the falt line oscillation is important for accuracy and then knowing which is the best spot of the shaft to use which is where the SST machine comes in Also the new machine shows you how out of round golf shafts are and torque at playing length which is another net thing to see what safts are after they cut to playing position.

 

SST PURE is the only company on the PGE TOUR that is not a head or shaft company with a tour van and with 97% of the tour using it including the the top 3 greates players of all time if spining did the same then the companies would just a spine finder and not use SST.

[Andrew Bush]

good to know but how much would a pureing job cost joe schmo off the street /

[Maverickping]

Here is a good place to read up on puring.http://www.sstpure.com/ I've had all of my irons pured and I would do it again. There is a list of dealers that have the machine, Golfsmith did mine for $15.00 per.

 

 

good to know but how much would a pureing job cost joe schmo off the street /

[SPY ZINGER]

Here is a good place to read up on puring.http://www.sstpure.com/ I've had all of my irons pured and I would do it again. There is a list of dealers that have the machine, Golfsmith did mine for $15.00 per.

My clubmaker charges an extra $20 for the service. Not too steep.

[RookieBlue7]

Sorry, last question for now. Based on your last comment, how do you know if a shaft should be spined? It sounds like it would be a waste in the vast majority of cases and I'm sure it isn't cheap. Are shaft manufacturers that are worse than others where this might be recommended?

 

 

All shafts have a spine, some are more pronounced than others.

 

To answer the other 2 questions you had:

 

Will other golfers or only skilled golfers benefit from spining? Everyone benefits from spining, as it makes the clubs play more consistent through the set.

 

 

Is puring different? Yes, they have a fancy machine and they do the testing with the shaft loaded.

 

Can you accomplish the same thing without the fancy machine? Yes, Spining combined with FLOing is essentially the same thing. The only difference being you're going it under static conditions instead of loaded conditions. You're still accomplishing the same basic thing, and that's orienting the shaft in the manner in which it will perform the most consistent.

 

As for the other guy that commented that 97% of PGA Tour golfers have their clubs SST Pured, where did you pull that data from?

 

At $15-$25 a pop, it's not worth it, as you can accomplish the same thing on your own by spending $75 and you can do other people's clubs as well and pay for the equipment quickly.

 

I have the No B.S II spinefinder, and of all the ones I've tried, it works the best. It's also the only one I know of that you can find the spine with the head on. It also works on fishing rod blanks, or pretty much any type of rod, to find the spine. I also use the chuck method of FLOing. I've had a club SST Pured, several actually, and being a 3, I still have not found one thing that's advantageous of SST Puring versus spine and FLO.

[chappy]

I've been attempting find an answer as to where the SPINE, NBP, etc is aligned with the club face once it has been identified. Pureperformance in post 11# went the closest to explaining where the alignment point should sit in relation to the club face.

 

I have seen numerous Spining tutorials that suggest the SPINE should be at 12 o'clock in relation to the club face.

 

I recently installed some PUre'd UST shafts in some heads for a friend and the alignment mark from SST noted that it had to be at 12 o'clock.

 

I'll continue my search but pureperformance has helped.

[RookieBlue7]

No, the spine should be at 9 o'clock when 12 o'clock is the top of the shaft. You want the spine located on the side that's closest to the target. That's for spining.

 

SSTPure does it based on what part of the shaft should be at 12 o'clock. SSTPure isn't based on where the spine or NBP should be located.

 

You always want the spine, or hard side, either facing or directly opposite the target. For more consistent performance, and for accuracy purposes, put the spine facing the target, or at 9 o'clock for right handed clubs. For distance, you want the spine at 3 o'clock, or directly opposite the target.

[Manavs]

i will never forget asking my professors in college (1995) why was it when you plucked a shaft on the frequency machine that the shaft would start up and down then make figure 8's and weird shapes. my questions were, as usual, dismissed. but that was the spine, or spines of the shaft popping up and showing their dominance.

 

every tubular object has a path of least resistance - golf shafts are no different. you have 1 in 360 degrees (0.27%) times fourteen clubs (0.000019%) to have the shaft aligned properly without spining/puring or some other form of alignment.

 

so with that said, i find that for golfers of all calibers benefit from shaft alignment. the consistency from shaft to shaft is fantastic because all of the energy you are exerting on the shaft is going in one direction - into the ball.

 

the way i look at it, is that its one BIG variable of the golfing equation removed

Michael

[chappy]

Thanks RookieBlue, that has cleared things up.

 

I have recently acquired a freq machine and a Spining tool is on its way.

 

Back to my MAN shed for some golf science

[TWShoot67]

I use to spine all my shafts , but like others have said the shafts are so much better made now that it's almost well useless. I mean if it was so important then what are we do using all these adjustable heads? If you use any of those heads your changing the spine as soon as you adjust the head? NO?

[JBones]

The Nike driver I won through LeaderBoardgolf.com will be "pured". I have never had a driver that was "pured" before, so I'm excited to see if I can notice a difference.

[cheymike]

Must not be a Str8-fit version huh?

[JBones]

Must not be a Str8-fit version huh?

Nope, just a standard VR.

[cheymike]

I'll trade ya a dymo str8-fit for that plain ol' standard yucky VR....

[JBones]

I'll trade ya a dymo str8-fit for that plain ol' standard yucky VR....

I think I'll stick with the VR, thanks.

[RookieBlue7]

I use to spine all my shafts , but like others have said the shafts are so much better made now that it's almost well useless. I mean if it was so important then what are we do using all these adjustable heads? If you use any of those heads your changing the spine as soon as you adjust the head? NO?

All shafts have a spine and spining is useful, as is Puring and FLO'ing. I prefer spine and FLO over Pure. Why? It accomplishes the same thing and I have the materials to do both at my house. It's also cheaper for the average Joe Schom. Shafts are more well made now, still doesn't mean they don't have a spine. Steel will always have a spine, as there is a weld line under the chrome/plating material. You'll never have the perfect steel shaft that has no spine. Graphite always has a spine too. Why not put the club into position to perform as consistently as possible. As far as adjustable clubs go, I don't build 4 or 5 swings so I don't need that many variations. Once I find the position that works for me, I spine the club in the neutral position. Why? Because the shaft will stay in the same position regardless of where the head is. See, the head rotates around the shaft's axis, not the other way around, so regardless of what position you select, the shaft will still be in the same position during the swing, the head's position in relation to the shaft is what will change, as far as being open or closed. It doesn't roll the shaft's position.

[chappy]

Well said (er ...written) RB7, I agree entirely.

 

I also have the required tools to SPINE and FLO shafts and don't see why a little extra effort to remove some the variables isn't worth it.