Hireko Forum

frank_1980@gmx.de · Joined: Jul 25, 2009 Messages: 6 Offline

Hi Jeff,

I intend to buy my first set of golf clubs a would need a little help to put it together.
Recently I had the opportunity to try out clubs at the demo day at my golf club. I'm aware that Hireko's clubs are not a clone of name brands, but you might be able to help me with my selection of clubs/components to build clubs that have a comparable feel and properties to the clubs I have tried and liked, in terms e.g. of swingweight, flex and so on. I'm not able to do that myself yet since I'm a beginner and only played with a mixed set of clubs that I got from friends or auctions to get a start with golf.

I have looked into the different series you offer and I think the Acer XK might be the right one for me.

I had the opportunity to try the Cobra S9-1, Taylormade Burner Plus, Callaway X22 and Ping Raptures. I have to say, the driver and Hybrids from Cobra did feel best. They came with R-flex M-Speed shafts.

The Irons from Taylormade and Cobra were really good too, both with steel shafts (Cobra with Nippon 900XH R-Flex that felt very leightweight and a the balance seemed to be more in direction of the clubhead which I liked very much).

The Rapture Irons didn't feel that good (probably because they had a heavier S-Flex shaft). The Callayway Driver felt ok, but the sound it made was quite annoying (likely because I hit the ball off-center mostly).

The Drivers/Woods with offset or a closed face were of course easier to hit for me because they work against my slice.

So what I figured out so far for my new set would be:
Driver: Acer XK Draw Driver
Woods: Acer XK Draw Fairway Wood #3
Hybrid: Acer XK Hybrids #3 #4 #5
Irons: Acer XK High Trajectory #6-PW + SW

Now a big question are the shafts. Since the clubs that felt best to me had pretty light shafts I guess I should go into that direction.
My swing tempo is a bit too fast and the clubhead speed moderate to slow.
For the Irons I would like to stick with steel shafts. So the ones I looked at were the TT GS75 and the Apollo Spectre Lite (The Apollo Acculite 85 might be in danger to bend because of my hasty swing and the fact that the divots I kick out are still pretty deep...).
The Graphite shafts for the rest of the clubs I narrowed to the Aldila Gamer, Aldila NVS Orange and True Ace Cadence Orange lines.

So does that make any sense, or am I in the completely wrong direction? Should I go with a different series of clubs (e.g. Caiman), and of course which shafts?

Sorry for that lengthy text, any help would be really appreciated.
I hope my questions are not stupid.
Thank you very much for your help in advance!

Jeff Summitt · Joined: Jan 13, 2006 Messages: 2541 Offline

It is good that you went out and hit several clubs and took notes on your likes and dislikes.But be careful about the difference between feel and performance. Using very lightweight shafts sometimes that can be a recipe for disaster with a fast tempo, especially in the irons and wedges which are designed for accuracy.

The shaft closest to the Nippon will be the Apollo Acculite 85. The Cobra shafts are very light and flexible. Aldila doesn't offer the same shaft in the aftermarket, but the Fujikura Fit-On E150 for the woods and the E160 for the hybrids would come closer to approaching the weights. If you were looking for something not quite as expensive, yet still light, you can look at the Apollo Shadow UL graphite.

Jeff Summitt

frank_1980@gmx.de · Joined: Jul 25, 2009 Messages: 6 Offline

Hi Jeff, thank you for your quick response (don't you sleep ever... 4:41 AM

)

Sounds reasonable. So what would be a good compromise concerning lightweight with a fast swing tempo for the irons?
Are the Apollo Spectre Lite still too "dangerous"? The next heavier ones I think are the TT Dynalite or TT Dynamic Gold HL (I think I should not get any low trajectory shafts, therefore Mid Launch or High Launch...)

For the woods I guess I should then also look for a lower torque (maybe even lower than 4.5° or 4°?) The Fujikura Fit-On E150 as you said would have 4.5°. Or should I go even lower? The True Ace Cadence Orange series would be even a little bit lower. Also the Aldila NVS Orange. Both would be a little bit heavier, but I guess that would be a better choice according to your last post if I understood right...

Since I don't know what is a reasonable combination with the Acer XK clubheads I do not want to customize them "unplayable"...

Thank you again for your help!

Jeff Summitt · Joined: Jan 13, 2006 Messages: 2541 Offline

In general lighter and/or more flexible shafts are not suggested for golfers with a faster tempo. But that does not necessarily mean that in your case it would not work. Before I can answer your question, how was the ball flight and the direction of the demo clubs at the range? Could you see if a difference in the direction at all with the various clubs or were they all going in the same general direction, but some just felt better than others?

Jeff

frank_1980@gmx.de · Joined: Jul 25, 2009 Messages: 6 Offline

With my regular club I had usually a fade.
With the very light and flexible shafts from Cobra I got roughly 15 yards more distance but had a little stronger fade or to say a slice (but still more distance compared to my regular iron).
But I changed my grip-style after the demo day (from interlocked to overlapped) and the slight fade vanished from my regular iron completely. So I do not know how that would affect those lightweight shafts. But the tendency to slice was definitely there with my old grip style. That effect was hardly observable on the slightly heavier shafted irons from Taylormade.
The trajectory with the light shafts was also higher compared to my own club. But since the grip change I get significantly higher launch angles with my own club, too. With that different grip I have in general now a better timing of the whole swing for whatever reason...(sometimes small differences have a big effect).

Best regards,
Frank

Jeff Summitt · Joined: Jan 13, 2006 Messages: 2541 Offline

Frank:

Fitting for things like shafts has a lot to do with tendencies. We all tend to be result orientated so we make adjustments to make the ball go were we want. With you being a beginner it is more difficult to fit you in the present because your swing has not been developed in a way that is semi-repeatable.

But there are trade offs as you have found. If you make the club lighter and more flexible you got more distance, but the drawback is losing accuracy. Yes, the feel of the lighter and more flexible shaft may be better, but at what expense? Somewhere you have to strike a balance. I don't have enough information provided to really make a good recommendation. If you want, you can call me on the tech line at 800-942-5872 between 8AM and 5PM, Monday - Friday EST.

Jeff Summitt

frank_1980@gmx.de · Joined: Jul 25, 2009 Messages: 6 Offline

Hi Jeff,

that's right, I do not have the consistency yet. The thing is I just want clubs that give me the confidence to have the "right tool", and I can concentrate to improve myself and not think about to improve the equipment.
I have already found a different solution. I get an XK iron #6 from somebody else in a couple of weeks with standard apollo shaft and I'll see how I can play with it and based on that I will make a decision how to configure the clubs, eg. if I will go a tad lighter or leave it that way.

Thanks for your help and patience though.

Jeff Summitt · Joined: Jan 13, 2006 Messages: 2541 Offline

Be sure to hit as many different clubs as possible and keep notes note only on what feels the best, but provides you with consistency. The more different clubs (components) you hit will add to your library of knowledge in turn allowing you to make more informed buying decisions.

Jeff Summitt

frank_1980@gmx.de · Joined: Jul 25, 2009 Messages: 6 Offline

Hi Jeff,

I'm gonna revive this thred since I have played now for a while with the demo XK iron with the apollo std stepped steel R flex shaft and I get along pretty well with it. From the specs in the shaft addendum I have seen that I could safely order the irons with the Apollo spectre lite steel R flex because I would like them just a tad lighter. Did I interpret that right? The other alternative would be TT Dynalites.

Thank you for your help,
Frank

Jeff Summitt · Joined: Jan 13, 2006 Messages: 2541 Offline

Frank:

The Spectre Lite would be lighter, but also slightly stiffer. However, it wouldn't be that much stiffer that it would have a negative impact.

Jeff Summitt

frank_1980@gmx.de · Joined: Jul 25, 2009 Messages: 6 Offline

Sounds good to me. I guess I should combine then them with the Karakal X Tack grips, so that the swing weight doesn't get reduced. I guess I would end up then somewhere in the D2 area with those 42 gram grips, which suits me well from other clubs I have tested.

Additionally,
I have played now a month with wedges from Titleist (Vokey spin milled) with GP new Decate multi compound grips that match closely the lofts and bounces of the Dynacraft DMC wedges you offer. I really like them but unfortunately they are just borrowed from a friend who is currently on holiday and I have to give them back soon.
What setup in shaft and grips would I need to match the Titleists?

Jeff Summitt · Joined: Jan 13, 2006 Messages: 2541 Offline

Frank:

The Titleist wedges feature a True Temper Dynamic Gold (S-flex) and the stock grip is the Golf Pride Tour Velvet. However, if you are happy with the Apollo Standard (same weight as Dynamic Gold), I don't know if I would switch from R-flex to S-flex. Wedges are the shortest length full swing club in the bag and you could probably get by using a stiffer shaft than what you need and not see a negative consequence like a mid or long iron.

Jeff Summitt