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Tom
Wishon
Last
week we were looking at the parts of a golf club, and the
fact that when you buy a club, based on brand name; maybe
Tiger, or whoever uses them, influenced your decision; only
the head is designed by the company, everything else is bulk
purchased from shaft or grip manufactures.
It does not matter if a band near the top of the shaft has
the same name as the head, it’s only a sticker.
Look near the bottom, and you will see who made it, on steel
shafts, in about 90 percent of the cases, you will see the
name True Temper.
I said that several ex designers, for the well known brands,
had gone out on there own, as an example let’s take Tom
Wishon.
Each year the respected Golf Digest magazine prints an issue,
whose main focus is rating of new equipment. They look at
the new offerings from the major companies, these are the
people who advertise in there publication. You really have
to come good, to make what they call their “hot list”
as one of the fifteen best clubs in a given category, especially
if you don’t advertise, and don’t pay professionals
to use your brand.
This year, Tom Wishons 515 GRT fairway wood, carries the following
judges verdict :- “This is the best fairway club you’ve
never heard of. Mr. Wishon doesn’t have a tour presence,
but he’s got the know-how to get’er done”.
His irons made last year’s list as well.
At any rate, in purchasing clubs most people look at the head
first. Fair enough, but know what you are looking for, and
that is a design that is forgiving on off center hits.
On irons there will be a deep cavity in the back, to allow
most of the weight to be in the sole, lowering the center
of gravity. Weight will also be distributed around the sides,
known as perimeter weighting, this reduces the amount the
head will turn, on off center hits.
The wider the sole, (i.e. distance from front to back), particularly
for beginners, will add to the forgiveness.
Let’s do a chart of metal properties for the most common
materials used in golf heads. The hardness is expressed on
the Rockwell scale, the higher the third letter, and numbers,
the harder the material.
Well,
if you look at the hardness of titanium, and compare it to
the commonly used 17-4 and 15-5 stainless steel, you might
be surprised.
Most people think of titanium, as some mystical super hard
material. Where it holds a great advantage, is that it is
considerably lighter than steel, with good tensile strength,
and therefore used in the modern large drivers.
In fairness, many drivers have a face of heat treated titanium,
known as beta titanium, properly done, this treatment produces
a harder material than the steels shown.
Now, you will find large drivers, at what seems bargain prices,
with the words, Titanium Matrix printed on the bottom. To
me Matrix is the name of a movie, this stuff is aluminum,
with a pinch of titanium added. It is junk, and will break
if a strong person hits it, bottom line – titanium is
expensive.
I have included Nickel Alloy for one reason, it is another
rip off. When buying irons, or fairway woods, which are supposed
to be made from stainless steel, walk with a magnet from your
fridge.
In many large stores, both in the U.S. and right here, you
will find good looking and cheap priced clubs. The magnet
will hold on the stainless, but not on the very soft alloy.
Take a peak at the shaft one time, bet it shows no manufacturers
marking, commercial grade steel shaft, about U.S. $1 each.
Don’t walk out of the store - RUN.
It certainly is not my intention, to put anyone off this great
game, if you own clubs I describe as junk, and don’t
swing very hard, they will work, (after a fashion).
Next week, we will look at heads for drivers, and fairway
woods.
Material
Tensile strength Hardness
431 Stainless 115 HRC20
17-4 Stainless 135 HRC36
15-5 Stainless 175 HRC40
Titanium 140 HRC34
Nickel Alloy 66 HRB95
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