swisstrader Posted November 30, 2011 Report Share Posted November 30, 2011 (edited) Well, went to the range today with my new Ryoma/Crazy 7.2 setup and had mixed emotions about the session. This was truly not the best day to be hitting or testing in that it was 47-49*F and windy as all heck and range balls were typical end of season worn out range balls. I hit at the range's new Trakman bays which are very cool and you can play with all sorts of settings on data and also getting all the usual trakman data on ball speed, launch angle, distance, spin rate, etc. I hit my Nike Sasquatch with a Proforce shaft as my benchmark...incidentally bought the Nike on EBay for $139 a couple years ago! As it turns out, I did not love the sound of the ball on impact with the Ryoma (a bit muted and probably too used to the tin can sound of the Nike!), but did give me a few extra yards of distance. Not a ton more, just a tad more...maybe about 7-8 yards more. I will say I was hoping for MUCH more, but also blame the conditions of the day and I always take a few outings to get used to a new driver. Also had a few nasty duck hooks, which is not usual for me, but seemed to have worked those out of my swing and had a few that I left out to left right with a mini slice which of course robbed me of distance. The other negative was that the range only had giant tees or very stubby tees, so that also effected how I hit the ball. I'll go back again in a few days with hopefully warmer climes and wish I could play at my club where I know my distances well or get a chance to play in Florida in the next few weeks to prove out the Ryoma. A bit nervous about the decision but will hang in there until I see more definitive results. Edited November 30, 2011 by swisstrader Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FatMan Posted November 30, 2011 Report Share Posted November 30, 2011 I would give it some time. It takes awhile to dial in a new club especially, the driver. I would also try to replicate on course conditions as much as possible (get rid of the stubby tees) or better yet, take it out if the weather permits. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bogeydog Posted November 30, 2011 Report Share Posted November 30, 2011 8-10 yards is significant. 1 club less into the green. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
potuna Posted November 30, 2011 Report Share Posted November 30, 2011 New clubs take time to get dialed in and like you said it only matters what happens on the course. Good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eca Posted November 30, 2011 Report Share Posted November 30, 2011 Yea takes a bit of time definitely. I have the same set up and its quite easy to try quantify your spending by just smashing right away and messing up your tempo right at the word go. With range session, it can get quite hard to recover when you're hitting balls after balls with the thoughts 'omg i wasted my money' The sound is important to get used to. The face looks stronger lofted and the Crazy shaft will help square unlike your stock shafts (could be cause of early hooks). There's quite a few weird experiences with new toys even with the PRGR REP with members doing funny stuff to their swing at first use. it maybe only 8-10yards in the end but finding the fwy more often. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swisstrader Posted November 30, 2011 Author Report Share Posted November 30, 2011 All good input and driver more so than any other club for me takes some getting used to. I'm also an immediate gratification guy so I want everything NOW! Just kidding...sorta. My only frustration is that basically the season is over in NY. Guess I will be forced to take a few Florida and DR trips;) or spend more time at the range getting used to the Ryoma. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
potuna Posted November 30, 2011 Report Share Posted November 30, 2011 For me a new set of irons takes more time to dial in so I always give them time and keep a set I'm comfortable with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swisstrader Posted November 30, 2011 Author Report Share Posted November 30, 2011 For me a new set of irons takes more time to dial in so I always give them time and keep a set I'm comfortable with. I hear that Pete...I've been keeping my AP1's around for about 3 weeks now...time to sell em! The first day with my new Epons I hit everything dead left...not a pull, just dead left. Was getting very frustrated, then went to go see my fitter. Fitter looked at my swing, made a few tweaks in my swing, not the clubs and I started puring just about every shot. Defective swing, not clubs!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevopagolf Posted November 30, 2011 Report Share Posted November 30, 2011 8-10 yards is very good for first time. I am not sure I am that good yet with my combo. Going to guess just as long but I am in the fairway much more. I don't think I have found the right shaft yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robb40 Posted November 30, 2011 Report Share Posted November 30, 2011 Hey paul I hope it works out. I guess I am weird but every club that I have held on to was solid from the start. Now like all things the love affair can grow cold over time (only the driver this year) but for me I know when I am on to something. I still have my cheapo set of Adams A4 forged irons and I have no reason to give them up. They feel great and have good forgiveness and they are stupid long for me. I knew after 5 minutes on the simulator that these were right for me. Same experience with my plain jane R11 3 wood. It just felt right for me and the distance was very good for me, a shortish hitter. I am still not sure that the CB46 7.2 was too stiff for me. I do not like the feeling that the club is fighting me through impact and that was what I got with this combo. I still believe in the Ryoma and I may take another chance if the Crazy 460 does not work. Oh the head came today and like all JDM products it looks great. I like the face and top line better than the Ryoma for me. We will see what happens. We have 61 degrees here Saturday so hopefully I will find out. If you are willing a shaft change may be in order before you give up on the Ryoma. I guess I just chickened out on going further. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gocchin Posted December 1, 2011 Report Share Posted December 1, 2011 Definitely give it time like everyone says. Sound is very subjective and obviously different for every driver and every player. Don't let that affect your judgement of the drivers performance which should be very consistent and straight. It is always possible when buying a second hand driver that the shaft does not match you. All Ryoma and Crazy shaft builds are fitted to their original owners (whether they work or not they are supposed to be). Then its possible as well the shaft will work for you and you just need to understand the way it performs. Also when judging the driver don't look at distance alone (though yes 8-10 yards is a great start). Keep in mind how it performs for you on off center hits and how much you get in the fairway once you get on the course. For many this is Ryoma's strongest points. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swisstrader Posted December 1, 2011 Author Report Share Posted December 1, 2011 Definitely give it time like everyone says. Sound is very subjective and obviously different for every driver and every player. Don't let that affect your judgement of the drivers performance which should be very consistent and straight. It is always possible when buying a second hand driver that the shaft does not match you. All Ryoma and Crazy shaft builds are fitted to their original owners (whether they work or not they are supposed to be). Then its possible as well the shaft will work for you and you just need to understand the way it performs. Also when judging the driver don't look at distance alone (though yes 8-10 yards is a great start). Keep in mind how it performs for you on off center hits and how much you get in the fairway once you get on the course. For many this is Ryoma's strongest points. Gocchin: the shaft I have is a Crazy CB46 7.2 and with a D1 Vspec head. My swing speed is about 95-100 on average and aggressive through ball. I obviously took a bit of a guess just based on what Crazy suggests for my speed. Would you have suggested something different? I'm actually a very straight driver of the ball, so I'm mainly concerned about getting more distance. Also not a short hitter by any means but would still like to see more yardage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swisstrader Posted December 1, 2011 Author Report Share Posted December 1, 2011 (edited) p.s. launch angle was between 10-12 today with Ryoma using trakman...too low?? And spin rate around 2700-2800 with a couple around 1800. Ball speed of 140. Edited December 1, 2011 by swisstrader Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbie Posted December 1, 2011 Report Share Posted December 1, 2011 If i knew there was a club that would get me 8-10 yards while being as accurate as my gamer, I would pick it up in a heartbeat, My previous gamer was a ft9-TA and it flat out hit some bombs for me. Then i got the yonex 380cc and that has increased my drives on avg of about 10-15 yards. However it is a distance gain which has its price ! The mis**ts are much shorter and the long shots are due to the increased roll out from the yonex. I was debating over the Ryoma but the Crazy 435II seems to be calling me ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eca Posted December 1, 2011 Report Share Posted December 1, 2011 If i knew there was a club that would get me 8-10 yards while being as accurate as my gamer, I would pick it up in a heartbeat, My previous gamer was a ft9-TA and it flat out hit some bombs for me. Then i got the yonex 380cc and that has increased my drives on avg of about 10-15 yards. However it is a distance gain which has its price ! The mis**ts are much shorter and the long shots are due to the increased roll out from the yonex. I was debating over the Ryoma but the Crazy 435II seems to be calling me ! the king of mis**ts will be the ryoma especially off the toe and from what i'm hearing lately, the crz460 is the competition. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eca Posted December 1, 2011 Report Share Posted December 1, 2011 p.s. launch angle was between 10-12 today with Ryoma using trakman...too low?? And spin rate around 2700-2800 with a couple around 1800. Ball speed of 140. with all due respect to the trackman, i treat them as indicative if i have multiple clubs to compare. On course testing where you see ball flight and roll, accuracy and distance on home course vs your previous driver as you know your normal distances etc. Performance against wind, able to shape on that slight dogleg blah blah.. all important stuff. I've heard of people getting the ideal numbers on trackman only to get out in the real world and see their drives just drop from the air and hardly going nowhere. Unfortunately for you its off season and you must be just edging to get out there :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swisstrader Posted December 1, 2011 Author Report Share Posted December 1, 2011 with all due respect to the trackman, i treat them as indicative if i have multiple clubs to compare. On course testing where you see ball flight and roll, accuracy and distance on home course vs your previous driver as you know your normal distances etc. Performance against wind, able to shape on that slight dogleg blah blah.. all important stuff. I've heard of people getting the ideal numbers on trackman only to get out in the real world and see their drives just drop from the air and hardly going nowhere. Unfortunately for you its off season and you must be just edging to get out there :( In my case worked the opposite way...got on the launch monitor and my numbers were waaay low. I normally hit the ball between 260-280, but trakman was telling me much less. Granted, the wind was probably doing 20 mph and cold and w range balls, but had me a bit depressed. Was hoping to light up the boards today! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eca Posted December 1, 2011 Report Share Posted December 1, 2011 Just wondering, is your ball teed up as per your normal height? Are you hitting it flush or hitting towards the bottom of the club? I was the latter initially and a few have mentioned here to tee higher than your usual and catch it on the upswing favouring the toe on set up. This will increase your launch and still optimising your spin rates and being tee' up higher, you just freely swing. I don't know but give it a try? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swisstrader Posted December 1, 2011 Author Report Share Posted December 1, 2011 (edited) The tees they had at the range were very tall tees, in fact taller than I would ever tee the ball. Only other option was a tee of about 1/8". Still looking for input on my trakman stats from above and whether or not I have the right shaft. Edited December 1, 2011 by swisstrader Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
potuna Posted December 1, 2011 Report Share Posted December 1, 2011 Paul, You need to give it more time to get comfortable and get the correct tee height. Realize these aren't optimal conditions, relax, take your time. Don't try to get your conclusion now. Zen, be the ball, let the game come to you and all the other sport analogies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sundowner Posted December 1, 2011 Report Share Posted December 1, 2011 (edited) The tees they had at the range were very tall tees, in fact taller than I would ever tee the ball. Only other option was a tee of about 1/8". Still looking for input on my trakman stats from above and whether or not I have the right shaft. As I found out Crazy shafts are very sensitive for spine alignement. So, before changing the shaft I would go to a clubfitter and let him check the spine orientation. I tried different spine positions (3,6,9,12 o´clock) with Crazy LY01, CB46, FW80 and got very very surprisingly results. ..with Crazy LY01: Spine at 12 o´clock - perfect impact pattern (smashfactor up to 1.5), very straight but my launch was to high, not much roll out, "perfect carry driver", Spine at 6 o´clock - more piercing trajectory, much more roll out - gained up to 15 yards (measured with LRF), swingspeed (measured with REP) was about the same (maybe +1 mph) Spine at 3.. - inconsistent ball flight, unstable feel Feel at "6": very easy to load the shaft vs. spine at "12" mybe better for hitter. T. told me for Crazy shafts the spine is always at Logo up or Logo down. Hope it helps! Edited December 1, 2011 by sundowner Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eca Posted December 1, 2011 Report Share Posted December 1, 2011 As I found out Crazy shafts are very sensitive for spine alignement. So, before changing the shaft I would go to a clubfitter and let him check the spine orientation. I tried different spine positions (3,6,9,12 o´clock) with Crazy LY01, CB46, FW80 and got very very surprisingly results. ..with Crazy LY01: Spine at 12 o´clock - perfect impact pattern (smashfactor up to 1.5), very straight but my launch was to high, not much roll out, "perfect carry driver", Spine at 6 o´clock - more piercing trajectory, much more roll out - gained up to 15 yards (measured with LRF), swingspeed (measured with REP) was about the same (maybe +1 mph) Spine at 3.. - inconsistent ball flight, unstable feel Feel at "6": very easy to load the shaft vs. spine at "12" mybe better for hitter. T. told me for Crazy shafts the spine is always at Logo up or Logo down. Hope it helps! So u installed spine at 6 & it came out logo down? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sundowner Posted December 1, 2011 Report Share Posted December 1, 2011 So u installed spine at 6 & it came out logo down? Right Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eca Posted December 1, 2011 Report Share Posted December 1, 2011 Oh cool, that's how mine is installed :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swisstrader Posted December 2, 2011 Author Report Share Posted December 2, 2011 (edited) Went to my club today...in fact, I was the only fool out there with it being in the high 40's and windy, but when I'm on a mission, what can I say? I really wanted a live test on a course that's well know to me with a driver I know like the back of my hand (my Nike) against the Ryoma, albeit in rather harsh and windy conditions. I drove out to our number 11 hole...longish par 5 and marked 5 balls w a black sharpie, 5 unmarked. Starting hitting first with the Nike, then the Ryoma. After duck hooking my first few drives, I settled down a bit and started grooving my swing a bit. I repeated this seQuence of hitting 5 Nike balls, 5 Ryoma balls about 3 times. Soooo, you might ask, whats the conclusion?? Still a bit inconclusive, but I believe the results proved out what the trakman showed me the other day, which is that I was a few yards longer and maybe a little tighter dispersion with the Ryoma. I know I need to spend more time and get to know the driver a bit more, but still looking for what I would consider a few long bombs as advertised. Also as I indicated previously, the sound at impact is much more muted when I go after it vs the Nike...in fact, a few times felt like I missed the ball the sound was so muted! My new thought process, besides relaxing a bit and getting to know my new driver a bit more, is to have my fitter take a look at my swing on the trakman and compare to a few Epons he has and my Nike driver. Just hate the idea of spending money on a fitting just as winter settles in! Edited December 2, 2011 by swisstrader Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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