Post by cloran on Aug 17, 2011 19:34:31 GMT -5
I wanted to beat Richie to the punch, lol. ;D No doubt his review will be MUCH better and in depth.
Phil Talamonti and I have been emailing back and forth for a few weeks now, and he has been great to work with.
Originally I had ordered the Verison1 PD-80 TourX driver shaft, but after talking with Phil I also ordered the Version 2 PD-70. The V1 arrived last night and the V2 should be coming soon.
My old driver specs:
Wishon 919thi, 9*, square face angle
True Temper Dynamic Gold X300 steel shaft
43" length
E0 swing weight
17+ gram gross weight
This is the setup I will be making my comparisons to. I have had my driver set to these specs for over a year now.
New driver specs with Talamonti shaft:
Same head
Talamonti TourX PD-80
tipped 1.75", butt trimmed to play at 43.5"
Swing weight E0
Gross Weight? Lighter for sure, not sure by how much just yet.
Results from today's range session:
I have grown accustomed to not only the higher than normal swing weight, but gross weight as well. Because of this, my sequencing was a bit off on the first swing and I hit a dead pull straight left.
HERE'S WHERE IT GOT INTERESTING!
I took a few waggles to try and get the feel for the lighter club (to me anyway, this shaft is anything BUT light compared to everything else on the market at 85g), and proceeded to hit the following 20 balls EXACTLY where I wanted them to go... and perhaps the best part, the ball flight went through the same window in the sky on every ball. There were no big pulls, pushes, fades, draws, hooks, slices, etc... The ball took off on a trajectory that I'm accustomed to seeing, medium-high; but then sailed on and on and on and on. Where I would expect to see the ball start its decent the ball would still be holding it's line. Quite an amazing thing to see.
There was a decent wind from about 4 o'clock to 10 o'clock. Not exactly down wind, but helping a bit. I used my range finder to get a distance to the net at the end of the range and from my stall to my target I was exactly 250 yards. On good swings I was hitting the net a little bit less than half way up. Given the lower angle of decent that I witnessed (no trackman to get data) I would have guessed the ball to carry 275-ish... and no doubt run like a beotch!
THEN THE (kinda) BAD!
Not the shaft's fault, but still worth reporting.
I didn't have any of my preferred grips available when I put the club together and I had to use a Premio. Great grip for a putter, but too soft/flexible for me with the driver. As my hands began to sweat a bit I was gripping the club firmer, and there was just to much torque. I started closing the face at impact too much. The shaft really hung in there though even on those poor swings. I was hitting straight pulls, but still within my "fairway," a 30 yard wide spot along the back of the range.
I stopped at the store on the way home and picked up my preferred grips. I'll swap out the premio tonight and see how that effects thing in the morning.
The other issue I had was with my swing. Phil was on the fence in regards to me playing the TourX. I told him my SS was under 105, but that I've been laying the X300 for a long time, and with the extra weight in the head I need something a bit stiffer. I sent him a few videos of my swing and he agreed to give the TourX a shot.
Well, tonight I started to get closer to where I want to be with the things Spencer and I are working on. These things lend themselves more towards a CP release and a smoother tempo. When I put a decent swing on it with my "old" style I was hitting the bombs, crazy bombs. When I swung with my "new" form I was hitting the ball dead straight, but too low. I'm anxious to see how the V2 shaft changes the ball flight for me with my new swing.
THE FEEL, THE FLIGHT:
Despite this model being "TourX" and cut to a shorter length, I had no problem feeling the shaft throughout the swing. It never "kicked" for me (the feeling I get from my hybrid shafts Aldila NVS 105g), but the ball still flew with a very tight dispersion and a flight that I've never witnessed. Great launch angle, but then the ball would just float forever... no steep angle of decent, etc. It didn't feel boardy at all. I was surprised with that. Much smoother than my X300, but honestly... ANYTHING feels smoother compared to that thing. This shaft is definitely low spin, but the ball doesn't just drop out of the sky after 200 yards, pretty neat stuff. Dispersion is tighter than any shaft I've every used, and with a little luck I'll have my swing grooved to a point where I can optimize the shaft's benefits.
$ VALUE:
You simply can NOT find a better shaft for these prices, maybe even a better shaft at ANY price. The V1 models are under $40 and the V2 under $100... seriously? I haven't hit every shaft out there, but I have no problem comparing this to the Whiteboard, Aldila RIP, etc... (I have hit those).
Phil Talamonti and I have been emailing back and forth for a few weeks now, and he has been great to work with.
Originally I had ordered the Verison1 PD-80 TourX driver shaft, but after talking with Phil I also ordered the Version 2 PD-70. The V1 arrived last night and the V2 should be coming soon.
My old driver specs:
Wishon 919thi, 9*, square face angle
True Temper Dynamic Gold X300 steel shaft
43" length
E0 swing weight
17+ gram gross weight
This is the setup I will be making my comparisons to. I have had my driver set to these specs for over a year now.
New driver specs with Talamonti shaft:
Same head
Talamonti TourX PD-80
tipped 1.75", butt trimmed to play at 43.5"
Swing weight E0
Gross Weight? Lighter for sure, not sure by how much just yet.
Results from today's range session:
I have grown accustomed to not only the higher than normal swing weight, but gross weight as well. Because of this, my sequencing was a bit off on the first swing and I hit a dead pull straight left.
HERE'S WHERE IT GOT INTERESTING!
I took a few waggles to try and get the feel for the lighter club (to me anyway, this shaft is anything BUT light compared to everything else on the market at 85g), and proceeded to hit the following 20 balls EXACTLY where I wanted them to go... and perhaps the best part, the ball flight went through the same window in the sky on every ball. There were no big pulls, pushes, fades, draws, hooks, slices, etc... The ball took off on a trajectory that I'm accustomed to seeing, medium-high; but then sailed on and on and on and on. Where I would expect to see the ball start its decent the ball would still be holding it's line. Quite an amazing thing to see.
There was a decent wind from about 4 o'clock to 10 o'clock. Not exactly down wind, but helping a bit. I used my range finder to get a distance to the net at the end of the range and from my stall to my target I was exactly 250 yards. On good swings I was hitting the net a little bit less than half way up. Given the lower angle of decent that I witnessed (no trackman to get data) I would have guessed the ball to carry 275-ish... and no doubt run like a beotch!
THEN THE (kinda) BAD!
Not the shaft's fault, but still worth reporting.
I didn't have any of my preferred grips available when I put the club together and I had to use a Premio. Great grip for a putter, but too soft/flexible for me with the driver. As my hands began to sweat a bit I was gripping the club firmer, and there was just to much torque. I started closing the face at impact too much. The shaft really hung in there though even on those poor swings. I was hitting straight pulls, but still within my "fairway," a 30 yard wide spot along the back of the range.
I stopped at the store on the way home and picked up my preferred grips. I'll swap out the premio tonight and see how that effects thing in the morning.
The other issue I had was with my swing. Phil was on the fence in regards to me playing the TourX. I told him my SS was under 105, but that I've been laying the X300 for a long time, and with the extra weight in the head I need something a bit stiffer. I sent him a few videos of my swing and he agreed to give the TourX a shot.
Well, tonight I started to get closer to where I want to be with the things Spencer and I are working on. These things lend themselves more towards a CP release and a smoother tempo. When I put a decent swing on it with my "old" style I was hitting the bombs, crazy bombs. When I swung with my "new" form I was hitting the ball dead straight, but too low. I'm anxious to see how the V2 shaft changes the ball flight for me with my new swing.
THE FEEL, THE FLIGHT:
Despite this model being "TourX" and cut to a shorter length, I had no problem feeling the shaft throughout the swing. It never "kicked" for me (the feeling I get from my hybrid shafts Aldila NVS 105g), but the ball still flew with a very tight dispersion and a flight that I've never witnessed. Great launch angle, but then the ball would just float forever... no steep angle of decent, etc. It didn't feel boardy at all. I was surprised with that. Much smoother than my X300, but honestly... ANYTHING feels smoother compared to that thing. This shaft is definitely low spin, but the ball doesn't just drop out of the sky after 200 yards, pretty neat stuff. Dispersion is tighter than any shaft I've every used, and with a little luck I'll have my swing grooved to a point where I can optimize the shaft's benefits.
$ VALUE:
You simply can NOT find a better shaft for these prices, maybe even a better shaft at ANY price. The V1 models are under $40 and the V2 under $100... seriously? I haven't hit every shaft out there, but I have no problem comparing this to the Whiteboard, Aldila RIP, etc... (I have hit those).
