Our Best Performing Iron Shafts - 2018-19

Our Best Performing Iron Shafts - 2018-19

By DanSueltz December 17th, 2018

Our Best Performing Iron Shafts.  Updated for 2018-19.

How We Determine Best Performing Shafts

We fit a LOT of different golfers every year and the shafts we put into their irons (and wedges) is determined by our BGF Fitting System, TrueFitClubs Fitting Wizard and player testing during the fitting.  Our fitting recommendations include length of iron, shaft weight, shaft trajectory and spin profile, shaft flex, and swing weight.  Loft and lie are determined by launch monitor testing.  The recommendations are determined by a golfers physical characteristics (height, weight, wrist crease-to-floor), strength (distance), launch characteristics (actual and desired trajectory, spin, dispersion), and swing dynamics (tempo, transition and release point).

Get a free online fitting now to see which  shaft best fits your swing.

Use our Iron Customizer to select the right shaft to either re-shaft your existing irons or choose a new set!

When we test in our dynamic fitting sessions, we choose 4-5 shafts that match the BGF Fitting System recommendations, and then test on TrackMan for performance with a head chosen by our fitters and the golfer.  Once we determine the best performing shaft, we try different heads to narrow down the selection.  When using our TrueFitClubs Fitting Wizard, we rely on our golfers description of their shot shape and desired results.

Bottom line is that these shafts have done the best job of increasing our golfers distance, accuracy and consistency.  They are also the best in terms of consistency for our club building team.  

Because each golfer has a unique set of performance criteria, lets categorize the best performing shafts by strength of player and show different weight, launch and spin characteristics for each:

The Newest Additions for 2018-19 are in RED

Shaft                                 Weight            Trajectory      Spin

Strongest Players (6 iron over 200 yards)

True Temper X7             132gr                    Low             Low

Project X LZ Steel 6.5   125gr                   Low-Mid      Low-Mid

Rifle 6.0 and 7.0          125-130gr               Mid              Mid

OBAN CT 115                  115gr                      Mid              Mid

KBS C-Taper X             120gr                     Low-Mid       Low-Mid

KBS $ Taper X               130gr                      Mid               Mid

Nippon Modus 125       125gr                     Low-Mid       Low-Mid

KBS TGI 100, 110          100-110             Low-Mid       Low-Mid

Stronger Players (6 iron 175-200 yards)

True Temper TI X100   128gr                   Low-Mid        Low-Mid

True Temper DG 120  120gr                    Low-Mid         Low-Mid

True Temper AMT White  102-130      Low-Mid          Low-Mid

OBAN CT 115                  115gr                     Mid                  Mid

Project X LZ Steel 6.0    120gr                   Mid                  Mid

Rifle 5.0 and 6.0           115-125gr               Mid                  Mid

KBS $ Taper S                 115gr                  Low-Mid        Low-Mid

Nippon Modus 120         120gr                   Mid                  Mid

KBS TGI 90, 95               90-95                Mid                    Mid

Average Player (6 iron 150-175 yards)

True Temper S300       128 gr                 Low-Mid           Low-Mid

True Temper XP100     105-107gr        High                  High

True Temper Elevate Tour  112-122gr  Mid-High       Mid-High

OBAN CT 115                   115                      Mid                     Mid

OBAN CT 100                  100                   Mid-High           Mid-High

Project X LZ Steel 5.5    115gr              Mid                  Mid

KBS C-Taper Lite S           110                     Mid-High          Mid-High

Nippon Modus 105         105                     Mid                      Mid

Project X Catalyst 80   85                      Low-Mid          Low-Mid

Aerotech SteeFiber i90 FC    90gr         Variable         Variable

OBAN i83 and i93          83-93gr             Mid-High          Mid-High

KBS TGI 80, 90                80-90                  Mid                      Mid

ACCRA i80 and i90      85-95gr              Mid                      Mid

Nova Tech i800             80-90                 Mid                      Mid

UST Recoil 780 ES        80-85gr             Mid-High          Mid-High

Slower Swing Speeds (6 iron 110-150 yards)

Fujikura Pro                   70-80gr              Mid-High          Mid-High

UST Recoil 760 ES    60-75gr              Mid-High          Mid-High

Aerotech SteelFiber i70  70-75gr             Mid-High          Mid-High

KBS TGI 50, 60. 70        50-70gr              Mid-High         Mid-High

Project X Catalyst           57-68gr             Mid-High          Mid-High

True Temper Elevate 95  96-98gr         Mid-High          Mid-High

Nova Tech  i700              70-75gr              Mid-High          Mid-High

Veylix 473, 673                50-65gr             Mid-High           Mid-High

Shafts That Made the Cut In 2018

We profile over 2,500 unique shafts each year for our shaft profiling system.   The hot new shafts we saw coming on the scene in 2018 include the lightweight steel options from True Temper:  Dynamic Gold 105, Dynamic Gold 120 and XP 100, The True Temper AMT White, AMT Red and AMT Black Series, Elevate  and the OBAN CT 100.    What is unique here is that we have seen the ultralite steel shafts (under 100 grams) almost disappear from the OEM and aftermarket categories as the performance has not been that great.   That is, IMO, because the shafts play so weak to their designated flex that the golfers playing them get poor consistency and distance control.  

What we have seen, however, is a trend to heavier graphite shafts (95 to 115 grams) to compete with steel shafts.  KBS TGI, UST Mamiya Recoil, ACCRA , Mitsubishi Chemical Golf, and Fujikura are hot after this market.  Learn More Here...

Get a free online fitting now to see which  shaft best fits your swing.

Use our Iron Customizer to select the right shaft to either re-shaft your existing irons or choose a new set!

There will be a number of new shafts coming  in 2019 from Fujikura, Mitsubishi Chemical, UST Mamiya, KBS Shafts and others.  As always, we test and categorize these shafts in our shaft profiling system so we can literally choose multiple shaft options in various price categories for our customers.  To see what shafts may work for you, go to our TrueFitClubs site and go through our Fitting Wizard!

Shafts We May Have Missed

We have been in the business for 22 years and have seen a lot of shaft companies come and go.  We may be missing some very good companies but be assured they are on our radar for testing!  Notably missing this year are Paderson, VA Shafts and LA Golf Partners.  Watch for our reviews in coming months.

Dan Sueltz

 

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