daamartin Posted February 5, 2012 Report Share Posted February 5, 2012 (edited) I'm about to go on my annual pilgrimage with 7 other mates to Barnbougle Dunes in Tasmania. 36 holes of world class links golf (http://www.barnbougledunes.com.au/) - will play 4 days straight, sometimes 36 a day if weather is good. Apart from getting in a bit more practice than usual, I have been on a brutal culling exercise to only put best-performing JDM clubs in the bag. You can check out my sig to see what made it in (those irons and wedges, in particular, have been VERY loyal performers for me for a long time now). Getting the distance gaps in the 3w, 5w and 4 iron took a while - but now it seems I can put the same tempo swing on all and get good separation and a wide array of shot shapes and trajectories. I can generally putt with anything, but the Gauge just puts a nice smooth roll on and is good for fast greens. But finally we get to the driver - this has been my biggest struggle over the last few months, so I wanted to share some results with y'all. My heavy, tight and forgiving driver if the wind blows 50mph is a Titleist D2 9.5 with a heavy low torque Accra SE80* in x flex. This has become my "reference driver" because it is just so well-behaved. Doesn't go high or long, but I can hit almost any kind of tee ball with this thing and it responds really well. (This has a longer softer tip than the SE (non*) version - which makes it less of a barge pole - more on this later.....). OK, so what if the conditions are more benign? I need something with ideal launch and low spin so I can have a go on the open holes, cut corners, carry fairway traps etc. I picked up a J-Beam 425 tour 10.5 degree head a few months ago. Everyone on this site raves about the low spin and distances possible. It came with extra weights so I can dial in 199-206 headweight and also shift them around and have fun. Of any driver I have ever owned, this is my favourite shape at address - like a cube with rounded corners, which makes aiming and squaring up at setup, well, really nice and square! Feel is perfect for mine - slightly crackly, slightly smooshy - enough feedback, but often big surprises when you walk out to your ball and see where it has finished (Supo67 has mentioned this a few times). Sound is my least favourite aspect - tingy, but I'm getting used to that now. My driver swing speed is around 105mph average up to 110 max, but as Petethepilot said to me the other day - "you drive it better when you don't thrash" - he's right. Started out with a Quadra 65xs (tipped) - everything came out too low and drives were inconsistent. Have since learned that this head has a very deep bore, so any shaft will be firmed up. So unless you are a sasquatch, you need to go low-mid kicking, softer tip. ENTER the Roddio M7-x shaft bought from AussieFreddy here (thanks!). WOW! High straight balls and soft draws, and I can now relax in the tee box and get into a more effortless routine. At 41 y/o, I'm not getting any more flexible, and I think I have been guilty of-late to try and hang on to my driver specs of perhaps 5 years ago. My last 2 comp rounds with it have been really good, handicap is coming down again. Was even able to fine tune/reduce the draw bias by putting the heaviest wt out on the toe of the head - that was an added bit of fun for a scientist like me!! Have rambled on long enough. I highly recommend this combo - go for the S7 (x) Roddio instead of the M7 if you have a faster tempo. Perhaps I'll come back with a photo or two from Barnbougle. Happy JDM golfing! Edited February 5, 2012 by daamartin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
supo Posted February 6, 2012 Report Share Posted February 6, 2012 ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh..., FINALLY someone else has found roddio.!!! yes the m7 is a high launcher and the S7 is a low launcher. as i said a while back......., anyone that has been making fishing poles for the last 30000 yrs must probably know a thing or 2 about carbon flex technology . all the roddios ive used are good , + they tend NOT to make unhittable railway sleepers , thier shafts i find are pretty theatrical and u can easliy play the higher flex if ur on the cusp. i have a cpl of thier pro release fairway shafts and they are magic, high launch as well the sling you get with roddio is unmatchable form the other makers. my playing patners here use them exclusively and the mack daddy of them all the shingo spec he comess out with every cpl of yrs is 100% carry. my mate collects these like i do stingers.. he uses the onoff- roddio m6s or shingo combo and he s found 20 yards over the last cpl of yrs, his swing stayed the same but his clubs suit his style perfectly his SW is about 100 mph. he wont touch anythng else now. darren if u want or are looking for another head then i suggest the yonex nextage 9* form a cpl of yrs back especially for barnbugle. i made this for longy-NSW-the lakes this and it was perfect. i made this and the 435 crazy and i gamed the yonex more. so good was it down there ilet it in oz ( GD p9003x) perfect for links 100% perfect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daamartin Posted February 6, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 6, 2012 Thanks Supo, there's a lot of "sling" for far less effort and it's having a really nice effect on taking the "slappiness" out of my action.....not to mention taking the load off my lower back! "My name is Darren, and I'm a Roddio convert". Like your mate, I may just start collecting these things now......the I-10 iron shaft in the 2011 forged would be nice to try, and the Shingo spec versions too......oh dear Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+TourSpecGolfer Posted February 6, 2012 Report Share Posted February 6, 2012 "the sling you get with roddio is unmatchable form the other makers." Love it, I agree that it has that special "sling" to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
supo Posted February 6, 2012 Report Share Posted February 6, 2012 u know what i mean right.... it feels like the ball sticks to the clubface while the shaft dends like a bow. then "kapow" off she goes. and i find always with a draw. larrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrve roddio..., the s7x is a differnt puppy ,that low, heavy and mean. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EdGolf Posted February 6, 2012 Report Share Posted February 6, 2012 Hmmm have not tried this shaft but reading this post sure have my interest peak! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daamartin Posted February 6, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 6, 2012 "u know what i mean right.... it feels like the ball sticks to the clubface while the shaft dends like a bow. then "kapow" off she goes. and i find always with a draw. larrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrve roddio...," Yep sure do Stew, I can largely take the hands out of it and feel like a good smooth turn still gets me out there plenty far. With the JBeam 425 tour head it still plays very well into the wind.....will soon find out just how well at Barnbougle! Now I'm looking for a Shingo spec - I'm that impressed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shacco Posted February 6, 2012 Report Share Posted February 6, 2012 Ah, happy to hear a rare review on Roddios. I still have my old trusty Roddio 6W-BA (thanks to stew) and couldn't be happier. Well, I have never hit a crazy or quadra shaft, so I can't compare. But I'm very happy with the performance now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shankopotamus Posted February 6, 2012 Report Share Posted February 6, 2012 My interest has certainly peaked reading this thread. How does the m7 compare to the 6w-ba? I don't see the m7 on the proshop here. I'm guessing it's am older model? Would the slingy feel of the roddio + a soft epon head combo just feel like a marshmallow? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daamartin Posted February 6, 2012 Author Report Share Posted February 6, 2012 No it's the new one. It's important to note that if I stuck this in a short bore head I'd definitely hook the ears off it. I'd have to go with the S7(x) in my 909 D2, for example. The feel is the smoothest I have felt in a shaft. It's 3.6 torque - so the long bore in the JBeam is a great marriage - it gives me just the right amount of time to swing the club! Closest feel for me would be some of the mid kicking graphite design shafts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bogeydog Posted February 6, 2012 Report Share Posted February 6, 2012 The Roddio shafts were sensitive to installation. In the past, not sure if this stands true today, the Roddio shafts were required to be installed by an authorized entity. Gocchin could elaborate on this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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