Shaft Sorting

Parallel Iron, Hybrid and Wood Shafts:

Prior to carrying out this part of the procedure each shaft will have undergone my Shaft Certification process which identifies the FLO planes of the shaft.

Shaft sorting is carried out with the highest frequency FLO plane in the 12-6 orientation as this is also how I align shafts that require it.

Every shaft being compared is labelled A, B, C,… etc.

When sorting for flex, iron and hybrid shaft sorting is carried out with a beam length on the NF4 of 32”. As wood shafts have a longer uncut length they are sorted at 38”.

This measures the load of the shaft in the section of the shaft that will be in the hands, under the grip, when cut to the correct playing length and not the butt frequency. (See Frequency Matching).

Each shaft's load measurement is carried out to a repeatable precision of 0.01kg and is recorded against its corresponding letter on the shaft.

In addition, I also record the gram weight to 0.1g of the shaft, taken during the Shaft Certification process.

When sorting and assigning shafts, I use the weight as a secondary sort. That is if any shafts have the same stiffness, they are ordered in ascending weight.

Taper Tip Iron Shafts:

Much of the procedure for matching taper tip iron shafts will have occurred during my Shaft Certification process as taper tip iron shafts are not ordered by sorting but selected by the specific club designation from the manufacturer.