Iron shaft weights - same throughout the bag or different weights?

[jonescm128]

I was fit for a set of irons last summer and he put me into the KBS $-taper 120 from my GW to my 4i. I was previously playing KBS MAX 85g and with the 120g shafts I was getting the same distance with my 7i (160 yd) with less dispersion and a higher angle of decent. While I hit my wedges through 7i pretty well, I start to struggle with the 6i, 5i, and 4i. I am wondering if it is because I am using the same 120g shaft in my longer irons - is it too heavy? 

 

My driver is a Ventus TR Blue 5S and my woods have the Ventus Blue 6S. Is the jump between my woods and my 4 iron way too big? Is this what may be causing my difficulty in hitting my longer irons?

 

I am curious, is it normal to have different shaft weights within your range of irons?

[SBH9458]

Some shaft sets are actually designed to give you more weight (AMT) as you progress into the shorter irons.  I play the same weight/profile throughout the set.   

[Streuner]

i know this phenomenom. I had nearly similar experience with KBS tour 120

felt superb in PW and 9i, felt good in 8i and 7i but no way to hit the 6i as good as the shorter sticks, 5i was completely never on course.

 

Next try was ATM Black in S300 and felt good in the shorter irons but my dispersion grew with the longer irons. But from feel perspective the AMT makes absolute sense for me and my swing.

right now I am playing Nippon Modus 120s (softer than KBS Tour 120 and also lighter) and on the short irons I have Golf Pride MMC +4 grips in midsize which are around 70g per grip. this alters the total weight. from the 8i down to UT4 and UT3 I am playing Lamkin Sonar+ that are full 10g lighter in midsize

also I am testing AXIOM shafts in 105 (again 5gr lighter in cut length from the Modus 120) for the 6i and 5i

[WristySwing]

1 hour ago, jonescm128 said:

I was fit for a set of irons last summer and he put me into the KBS $-taper 120 from my GW to my 4i. I was previously playing KBS MAX 85g and with the 120g shafts I was getting the same distance with my 7i (160 yd) with less dispersion and a higher angle of decent. While I hit my wedges through 7i pretty well, I start to struggle with the 6i, 5i, and 4i. I am wondering if it is because I am using the same 120g shaft in my longer irons - is it too heavy? 

 

My driver is a Ventus TR Blue 5S and my woods have the Ventus Blue 6S. Is the jump between my woods and my 4 iron way too big? Is this what may be causing my difficulty in hitting my longer irons?

 

I am curious, is it normal to have different shaft weights within your range of irons?

 

Unfortunately, this is a topic that comes up quite a bit but is almost impossible to answer without a fitting specific to 4, 5, 6 irons. This is doubly hard because almost no fitting studio in the world carries heads outside of a 6i/7i that they deem the acceptable place to fit off of. There's a whole host of reasons why you could be struggling, it could be shaft weight, it could be the lofts, it could be the lengths, it could be the lie angles, it could be the swing weights, it could be a lack of swing speed suitable to these types of clubs, it could be the club type, etc. 

 

If you can, I would go into a big box store that carries the same model irons you have but the stock shaft is different and lighter. Let's just say for argument's sake you were fit into P790s, the stock shaft in them off the rack is the KBS Tour Lite 105 this year and I think last year was the Dynamic Gold 105. You could try a few 4i shots in the sim comparing yours to the off the rack model and see if the dispersion, spin, and peak height improves. If it doesn't, then you can potentially narrow it down to that the lengths, lofts, and lies may be the culprit and you should call or email your fitter to schedule a follow-up to address this part of the bag specifically. This is the sole reason why hybrids and 7ws have become so popular as this part of the bag is traditionally difficult to hit for more people than not.

Edited May 14 by WristySwing

[Lefty Mondegreen]

Yes, fitting the 7 iron, sadly, may not transfer over to the long irons (or maybe short, as when you buy parallel/descending weight shafts where the 9i is lighter).  You can find multiple threads here on methods to addressing the issue, MOI match, shorter length progression (such as 3/8").  Or minding the weight in the long irons (hard stepping a flex down for weight ... these guys are master builders).  The sales pitch is to move to hybrids, but you sound young and hale ...  

 

I had good experience with the DIY driver fitting on this site.  Irons are discussed at p. 4 or 6 or so ... gripping down and adding a few grams to the head to balance out the set and take some length off the long irons.  Initially it put the 4 iron back in the bag.  Tried it again with another set (heavier shafts) and it didn't work, but I think I bought a failed 'flighted' experiment so the shafts refused to feel the same (that's another thread).  

[phizzy30]

I would buy 3 singles of lighter weight iron shafts just to mess around with and have them installed into your long irons and see if that helps any.  It's cheap enough and worth it, IMO.  If it works, great, you have a starting point to go off to proceed off of.  Just make sure to adjust for swing weight.  

[Streuner]

@Lefty Mondegreen is right. Fitting mostly comes with the 6i or 7i only. We do not know how the PW (soooo important) and the longest iron will feel. Perfect fitting would start with the 7i and go to PW and 3/4/5i Iron whatever the longest Iron will be. 

[Ty_Guy]

I'm all for changing shafts as lofts decrease. This has been my tinkering for the past year. I'm coming from single length. So a bit more extreme on the shaft specifics spectrum.

 

In single length, it's very easy to see your "loft wall." Which loft/iron do you no longer see the height and carry required to gap? Traditional length irons are a bit more vague,  but pose the same question of strike efficiency. If you're having difficulties around the high 20 degrees and lower, there are a some great options.

 

The obvious:

Driving iron, Hybrid, woods

 

Same shaft, lower flex:

Changes delivery. It will require testing, but you will likely see higher launch. Depending on your swing biases, you will also see different path and club face numbers and a different swing tempo (likely smoother). All depending on how the flex changes delivery. It's a mental change as much as physical. If you're a hitter and subconsciously swing harder as lofts go down, this helps to smooth you out.

 

The same applies for choosing lighter weight. It's just another change that helps you approach the shot more naturally. I'd stay in the same profile . This is very much a tweaking thing. You will not see drastic changes, but the subtleties may be just what you need.

 

I progress in varying flexes throughout my irons. Same profile and weight. CPMs are 10 lower in my long irons and 10 higher in my wedges. Essentially stiff 5i, x stiff 6-9i, x stiff wedge, pw-LW. I'm trying to compensate for single lengths shaft kick to length ratio. In traditional length sets, a 25 degree club will see more bend due to the length than a 50 deg club, so I want to see the same thing--more kick out of a 37" 5i and less kick out of a 37" PW.

Edited May 14 by Ty_Guy