***** MY new driver builds THREAD ******

[chiromikey]

I’d agree with that selection so far...but no Egg7 in your hof?

[supo]

I like all the eggs but the  egg 7 is my fave.,

the one i use back home is faultlesss. So that gets the top gong, diamana aliislei 80s @ 44. smalls inchs.

  its my pick even tho the others are longer i dont really miss with that, its purpose built  so if its a HOF not everyone gets in.

 

 

pete rose????

[supo]

THE latest  of Thors hammers. 

 ****ASTRO TOUR  vIII  10* head/quadra fire express  65x prototype (2016)  cadero grip  45 inch 323g sp700 face****

I thought , ok it  looks pretty  hot , the graphics on the  shaft are great, and the astro tour  head I know  goes monster long as the v2 is prob my longest single shot driver  and the new shape head is more my  style,  its a  compact full body  with a hint of a an elongated rounded oval face (square face angle ) . A VERY  good head shape for  ME to look at to draw the ball  which Isnt my natural swing so that helps me .

yea,ok......., ill give  it a whirl

Hmmmmmmmmmmmm , first game up  I wasn't that taken by it at all , I  missed a few right! 

contrary to what I thought this wud do and that is a catastrophic  miss for me..... and ............it felt a bit ,well , not loose, a but flippy.... its not as tight as im used to  or prefer.. but it was, I was confused ! 

The ball seems to sit on the face longer than Im used to , it  feels like a trampoline  driver,  so I benched ot for a cpl of weeks abut took it back out  yesterday with the big dogs  (In all honesty ithought id move it along bec I didn't thinik it wud cust the mustard vs the JBEAMS.) 

Well Yesterday it did , and its a keeper!

6/7 fairways, mid high flight that  seems very tough to hook or draw more than a cpl of yards  ( this has always been the case for me  with quadra shafts) , but the best thing was  the straight to slight fade shot, , its a bazooka, I leant into a cpl on open fairways and launched some  all effort shots that I middled  and it was huge. proper  huge.. I have  been driving the ball superbly last few weeks with all different driver combos , ryoma stinger70s, jbeam 435 diamana X, roddio s tuning diamana X   and this vs these  didn't miss a beat it handles  all power with aplomb and really thumps the ball.

At address is hides it 460cc size nicely and you can see just enough of the face to make it look like the shot uwant to hit, unlike say the v2 which is just point shoot.

iprefer this  to the v2 bec the shape is sounder, fuller like the jbeam.

its a head that guys that like a fuller shape shud really gravitate to.

THE SHAFT  ,well its good, is it as good as my diamanas ??????

prob not. but tis not far behind nad theres a heck of a differnce in price  for those.

im actually really thinking of putting a stinger In  an 11* version   head  bec I think that might take the mantle of all carry driver.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[nobmontana]

Nice review!!   Astro Tour VIII has been on my list to try.... just have not gotten to finding a used head with the right specs. 

I believe they have a 8 deg head .... might be a good head to play around with a Long Drive spec build  at 48 or something : )  

BTW,  the ball sticking on the face a tad longer is likely due to the SP700 face.  

 

[supo]

cheers nobs.thats  not my prefered feel. i like instant gratifcation, the best example being the freheit  G. driver.  not sure what they use on that but with the diamana x in it the ball feels like its an oppsoite magnet. hardly touches the face and its gone. extremely rigid feel that  gives a false impression of  not being long.  but straight and direct.  this one feels like its gone miles bec u feel the shaft bend and flick.. it takes some getting used to.

maybe itll grow.on me.

illplay both the G amd this one day soon and see whats best suited. 

[bngolfer]

Great review! Can you share some pics on the Astro Stu?

[supo]

took both the astro tours out on the weekend.

the version 2 is an absiolute beast. Tbh  a  harder  or rather faster swinger than I  shud have this set up, I can activate it but JUST,  theres so much more in the tank that my methodical swing doesn't utilize to the full  , its a howler of a club , truly.

by comapirson the verion 3 is a like a placement  driver, I can  shape that nicely  . not a lot  but  more tan th V2.

im really really liking playing this  last cpl of weeks. last wekeeend  I was on song with it big time. so much confidence with it now.

 

head shape suits a  course with twists and trnrs from the tee box. I wudnt take it out on a 7300 yard behemouth , bec theres better suited to that.

but for a week I n out driver I like this as much as the ryoma d1 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited June 8, 2020 by supo

[bngolfer]

Pretty! Is one of them a little shorted face-to-back? It looks like it and it looks good! That is how I like my drivers. Conventional shape - deep face - easily manoeuvrable.  

[supo]

give it a whirl  fella  I really doubt ul be disappointed.

Edited May 24, 2021 by supo

[supo]

2021 got under way with a cpl of new builds  i thought up and Mr wizard  did his thing with  and made sing like a soprano.

2009 ONOFF type  D 10 */  diamana X 70s @ 45inch for workability and an easy relaxed winter build

2013 ONOFF MP-513D /graphite design p9003x  @ 43.5inch  for control and placement

 Ive had both these heads sitting around for ages and cudnt think what to do with them, the 2009 is THE ........ THE   best beginners driver head ive ever hit and was thinking to keep for my son  and is the head  ive reccommended  to so many guys here , most  of which are still playing   bec it cant be bettered  so i figuered ,why not try  this with  my best shaft as an ok, im playing for sheep stations , i need to hit all 14 today.,  It didnt dissapoint   !

 My driving as a rule is the strong point of my game so  i dont really need more length, i  cud  always play around with a bit more versatility. I dont miss  fairways s  much  any more and  yesterday i hit  13  of them with   the one i missed   in better shape  rough than the fairway was ! 

Decided to play  the new  drivers the whole round yesterday as  it was windy and   temps were around 20 *  so was a good test for them , i knew id got a good un immediatly , when on  hole 1,  i hit a baby fade 260yards  dead centre in a significant cross wind.

Straight from the restaurant to the tee and kabang! ..

Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooook.... i think this is going  to be a good  driver !

Wasnt  let down. i play multiple drivers when im practice rounds and  decided to just pay the 2 new boys   when on hole 2 i hit the other one (43.5inch)  and almost drove  the  damn green  on the short par4.  was like an exorcet missile, i was speechelss............................ THIS was supposed  to be a control driver  for awful  tricky Pete Dye monstrosities i " have " to play  from time to time and  i just hit it a country mile.

THATs staying in the bag!!!

 Mr wizards builds are good , i dont heave to tell him anything anymore as hes been building my club for on 20 yrs  but i have  NOT  been  more impressed and surprised by a driver as much as this, EVER.

I already  own a decent array of short ( sub 44.5 inch) drivers  but never one at  3w length and never one that hits the ball without lateral movement  like this........

 My   Taylor made tp09 with bimatrix  at44.125 inch has been my best build to date but i gotta say this might have taken its  spot.

 i wil say one thing , ill build another one of these and send it back home  to play on my links bec the accuracy of it is unmatchable..........

the  key i  believe  is its swing weighted    to B9   at 320g !

ill post photos when i get my bag back. these , epsecially the short one are quite inspiring.

 

once again, it doesnt  have  to be spakly new  with TM m1000000000 written on it to be  great.

 

Pls dont ask about my iron play.. sigh........................... LOTS of work to do!

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 22, 2021 by supo

[supo]

mini driver pics finally added .

for its size.. this things  a dead  set   proper hammer

[supo]

 FINALLY found a head to match the  7d  i have with, the jbeam 435 was great but i  felt i wasnt getting the most from it bec i was missing  out on quite a lot of carry , it was launching lower than i expected  so  i wasnt playing it as much as it shud have been  played, i bascially took it out in  s**tty conds when it was windy!, thats SUCH a waste of such high end components, i was tending to  favour the other  stinger   shafted 435 over it  day to day ,  again ( not a bad set up either )  so i  took it to mr wizard and we sat down and he suggested the kamui  pro  tp 09 ,  i have  a few tp07s  in play already with   diamana X 60x   and  stinger  so   i know  these  and have been  killing it with  them for the past 12-18 months , i  have 3 astro tours in play  as well and LOVE them all so  instead of getting another we settled on the kamui pro , this time the tp09d 10* at 196gram nad it was ........................

WINNER WINNER.............!

sometimes , u give ur self a pat on the back when things turn out well, this is one of those times, and no......... you will never, ever, ever  find one of these in a used bin for 100 bucks at golf-mongtard-usa ,    somertimes it pays to pay up.  this is also one of those times.   it  was in brutal conditions  where the ball  was  burying itself  in the fairway  there was so much standing water and  the carry was  SUPERB.  flight was so different to the jbeam and i  never one lost it  left.

feel was great, flight great. confidenceat address great.  it looks great. will play it  this weekend Vs the  other kamui prob diamana X  which is my   fave stick at present  to see if theres any varialbles , thats another  long carry driver .

all tests i do are  in real conditions on a course , not with some GPS thing.

i tend to find where the  ball ends up  on a golf course with trees , wind and water about from   a  tee box  and preping  the area  for ur second shot  means a whole lot more than some random  number generating machine........................   into a   net.

but then................ i tend to find im in the minority. 

 

 

 

 

 

  I added a new semi mini hammer   this weekend a  44.5  inch  /321 g  / wacccine  gtr88 with royal coll 11*  202g head and cadero grip.  NON cf model. 

where as the onoff is very electric feel  and super light swing weights  this is  the polar  opposite ,  feels heavy, play heavy thumps heavy with a very very  nice flat high  flight  that  is extremely workable.

one of the nicest fullest dense thumps ive EVER hit in a club nad for 11* this thing GOES LONG 

benched the  new 7d/kamui  10* set up to play it solely  over the last 6 holes its feel  , was so addictive .

conditions  were absolutely attrocious carr  was VERY  good.  very different style  to the super big head  onoff this is a mighty compact 390cc uber deep , uber  thuddy head. u  either like these or u dont.

i LOVE them. 

the feel they give is rediculous  makes u  think ur grabbing another 30 yards... which u are! 

the shaft  is absolutely lights out  as well.

forgot completely  how nice  this shaft   is,  its been sitting headless for an eon.

 

aamzing hititng this. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited March 17, 2023 by supo

[supo]

had t he new  RC out in plenty of  games now,

it cud be  the , THE best small compact driver.

 better than the kasco (never ever did i think i  wud  be saying that )  ? but  i think it is , its more workable ,  fuller  and better feeling/sounding.

i they are close, but id take the R/C now.

its so good . my fairway drivers are in dire straights for benching.,

its not a distance champ,  but it was never made to be one,  its an over the trees,, round the corner,  hit that short par 4. lay up with a huge arc driver thats get out there but wont win any LD comps.

those rotten  short tricked up pete dye  type   tracks just got a new 1w.

superb driver  ,so good in fact i got a 202g 9*  for low windy  lack of launch days.  to be shafted with im not  sure yet...............,

 

 

 

Edited September 21, 2021 by supo

[Elven]

On 7/12/2021 at 1:25 AM, supo said:

 

Are either of these drivers made in Japan?

[supo]

 Post  April its been a build-a-thon of titanic proportions,   especially fairway woods but thats another thread...,what am i up to  for drivers  this year  now ,   i think  this one  might be no 9 or 10 maybe ..........,

 2 or 3 astro tours, 2 kamuis, 2 royal colls, 2 onoffs, a  cpl of jbeams....  sounds about right. but it  all stops by November so make hay  i say  ! 

 

So, Mr  wizard   " accidentally "   made me a NEW  build a cpl of weeks back, initially i wanted a  retail  2010  diamana stinger  70s built  with the kamui tp07  10*   to test  vs the Diamana X   60s  and  the winner  or more preferd one wud stay and the other shaft was to get reassigned  but when i picked it up , i got  quite  the shock ,  HE   thought it might be  fun to so something a little  different  to usual   "just  for a change"  beceasuse the numbers  he  said, just looked right  so here it is.

kamui  pro tp-07  460 10* -diamana stinger (2004) 71x

331 gram     d3.5    45.6 inch

thats, out of the ordinary for me to say the  least !

 

All my drivers are between 43.5 and 45 inch -   315/325g   -  c9/d2.5 .

none are  so   closely related  thats theres replication,  on the outside theres a cpl that  may  look the same but the engines  in them tell a totally different story.   No better  example  than the  3 Astro tour  builds i play ,same head exactly. 10* 198g but with a Diamana X 60s... Quadra fire  tp-xv  65sx  and the Diamana  stinger 71x   , theres as much similarity for feel and flight as  sushi vs mcdonalds yea i get  the argument they are both food.............................well sushi  is............................, but in play theres NO similarity. id no more  likely  take out the quadra in a blustery pre  typhoon  as i wud the stinger  at  Nishi Nasuno,  both wud be  equally dumbass decisions.

As   opposed to    what i was expecting  , a 45inch  x  320g  x  d1  ish driver     THAT stinger shaft it appears  went to another  head,  My Jbeam black 10.5* that  is getting picked up  for   this weekends game , (soooooooooooooooooo excited!)  i got  the behemouth  and  it was freaking me out.,.............. its instantly noticeable  even in the shop how much longer it is at address. and its heavier and its swing weight is MUCH heavier. 

gulp.

onto its thing......

First  tee i automatically , instinctively  choked down quite a bit to make it feel  " normal" and   hit it dead straight  down the tubes to a normal distance with my lovely Bridgetone tour  B xs balls.

Whole   front  9 was the same ,  i was  choking down  an inch  and  leaving the butt exposed  results  were primo,  distance was spot on, dispersion was great  flight was mid/ midlow   all boxes ticekd but nothing out of the ordinary,  so on the back nine i let it loose ,  extended to the full range and  let it rip  a bit more  i definitely  sprayed a cpl  about , but none lost. hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm  ok  ill bag here agn next week 

Week2:  same course ,same conds  and   i  hit a TON of balls in a praccy  game,  i got a bit more used to the rebound flex  and held  it all the way  to extension. its  definitely a bit whippier, not as tight, but a HUGE flight difference  as well. instead of punchy  mid low holding it fully  out gives it some extra  height.

wow ,what a difference it made. flight was  HIGH. small bend both ways when i wanted it. not  too much  , just enough, nad everything seemed to  sail/soar/hold..... was awsome.

week 3.......   i played it both ways,  choked down on  short   par 4s and gave it  the long  handle on the long ones.

14/14 .. but  the wow thing was where they  ended up  , i got one as good as ive got these days  and it broke my distance record for this  course by   12-15  yards with no  wind assistance. 

566  yard par 5, dead flat ,  dead centre   then a   5 wood into  60 yards for chip /putt and bird dog!   THIS IS A KEEPER!

 

The 2 main attributes ive  discovered are  by choking down on it i can hit low stinger drives that go no more than 10-15 feet off ground , hit release and secure  fairway with consistency.

If the fairway opens, take full  extension  and wail  for high  HIGH soaring bombs.

Im in love............ 

it leaves me with a  giagantic quandry bec. im addicted  to  it, its not my A-Grade driver and wont be   most prob  bec its JUST  that bit whippier than  i prefer  but for non comp days on open  wide plained fairway tracks  its  got the spot.......... by a ways

 It looks awsome as well. full stealth black,  "murdered  out"  ( never liked that term )  paint  fill , black head, diamana  pertol hued shaft with the flower logo and bee  and black  cadero grip.

3 weeks driving a TON of  bridgetone  B xs  balls  on course   has made me stand up and take note,  i wont make this long  build  a thing, it still feels a bit wrong in hand bec its so long.  i MUCH prefer the safety the  shorter stouter driver builds give me  for a money/comp outing.

 

 

  But id  take this out for any day not counting sheep, 
10/10  for what it is!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[supo]

 I added  the   most eagerly  awaited 

 jbeam 10.5* black 435 / diamana stinger (09) 70s,45 x d1x 318g 

   to the fray on the weekend, 2 days with it and not surprisingly  im quite  impressed.

VERY differnt  feel look to the kamui  from last weekend , (as pics below show ) and a very differnt  feel.

FIRST  thing ill say is  1* loft increase and 1 flex softer  makes a HECK of a difference to a club  in the same head,  the carry  increase was  NOTICEABLE,  and   the shaft  bend JUST that tad  more manageable / enjoyable . Ive still got the 435/ 9.5* stinger x in build  and i use that when its windy bec it launches low,  but the 10.5*  /70s     is a 100% every day gamer .

 The  jbeam/.boron  build  mix feel/sound  wise has   never been a big thing ,  but the results have always  been  excellent ,   essentially  one needs to be a bit more  robust at impact  than i,  to get the most of what the X build  has to offer , it also  favors the right side so loosing a ball left  from a  hook has NEVER been a thing. the 9.5*  i like to play on flat courses  where i can grab some run, the 10.5* i can  play  in the wet no probs.

The new  10.5*   has it covered for my swing speed, and still appreciates the best i can give more so than the least  but an average swing is not  punished like  it is with the X , the difference from X flex to S flex is not lost at impact its simply a sweeter feel.

sigh..... , its time i bit the bullet and realised   that although age  does not weary  one   it does make  one  conscious of ones previous state !

 I played the same course i have for 6 weeks on the spin  so i know this course precisely and where the ball ends up. I got a cpl  of 100% ers out of the dead set screws and   sent it, right up there with the kamui from last weekend but straighter the maxed out shot  belongs  to the kamui tho  as does the average  of  max distance shots  BUT the jbeam had its measure (then some )  for consistent  straight-arrowness.

  if it were one over the other ( thankfully its not )  it wud be a hard pill to swallow giving the other one up.........so i wont say which one it wud be ........till  i need to !

the thing is.........................

the jbeam is tighter than the kamui EVEN WITH  the kamuis X flex  but  that prob has as much to do with the  build being 1/2 inch longer as it does with the  torque differnces S @ 278 cpm  and X @ 288 . the old model X is an easier to hit  club and its longer.

so  i thought  on it  last night ,  BOTH of these cud and  shud be gamed every match , theres no reason not to play either  as a one off driver, they are both  easily as good as anything ive got .

i cud (but wont) oust all others and play both ,irrelevant of conditions wind. rain, typhoon, desert.  u name it both these have all conds covered.

the jbeam is tighter. 

the kaumi is softer and longer  but moves more.

BASICALLYwhen i want to hit str8 as possible ill take the jbeam, when i want to nail some high draw bombs its the kamui as much as  there is  a length differntial and its not in significant there  is  a tightness  dispersion differential equal to it.

horses for  course.

both are a joy.to play for different reasons

 

 

Edited October 18, 2021 by supo

[supo]

With the insane  distance   of the  non conf.  Rcoll11* and waccine gr88 mini driver  i felt  another 

Royal collection   super cv 9* head  built to 45 x D2 x 323g     hi cor   as in order 

i had a diamana X 70siting idle (which is akin to  golf build blasphamy) and thought why not, finaly nailed down Mr wizard to get this out ASAP and  i picked it  up friday night for play yesterday in rainy drizzly s**tty conds, took the 11* one as insurance in case it was  too bad but to my surprise i played the 9* one the whole round.

There was no run out , it was an all carry day and well  for 9* i gota say this shone very very brightly as expected .

was not expecting to play it much just hit a buch of drives on a few altitude change holes but actually by adjusting the tee heigh i had no issues al day, realy surprised me for a 9* head

The fact the head  in olny 390cc and incredibly round full means i can change the flight shape at will by adjusting the tee height, this hits everything with absolute simplicity,high cuts,low raking cuts,few yard draws orwhen i got a few , some super high straights, its not as versatile as the11* but its longer and ican guarantee i will get cheat miles out of it when its dry.

 

non  conforming,  US model  IS,  and  yep it shows for sure.
really good distance and workability for those daysw hen ur NOT  playing for sheep sations.... or ur mates $20bux

 

 

 

For people that dont prefer ,common or garden ...

 

 

 

 

 

Edited March 17, 2023 by supo

[supo]

Gamed both R/C  drivers on sat, hit a lot of balls..........................

not an overly long course but lots of uphill/down hill  and pretty straight so  from t he tee length was pretty important, and gave me a pretty spot on evidence of distance with both these ,  both are  good ,they are not behind  my others   really  but the difference  in flight and  attraction to swing is VERY marked.

i know the 11* pretty well as ive  played this  a LOT OVER SUMMER  ,  this thing i can do any and everything i want to it  , its really  quite special but the 9*  is new and it  need some  breaking in, think thats done now and  im happy with what i know about it., its A LOT  different to the 11* build.

basically,   the 11* waccine  is  ultra   versatile, the 9*  diamana ,not so.

The 11*  i can  tee it higher or lower  for what ever   high bomb /stinger  shot i  like to see  and can move it  either way  with ease  ,  a LOT  ,  for  some  thats not a good thing,  for me its everything.

 The 11* prefers to be  hit with with a cut as draws CAN and do get over excited and tend to go quite a way left.........  i really need  to  aim right to get the draw  going with it  The 9* with the diamana  X 70s  is a point shoot driver, it REALLY , really .................doesnt like to  ambi-turn .  its  a small draw, at  best ,   no more than a  cpl of yards, or a batted fade more oft than not,  good shots are rewarded with a feeling and sound of unmistakeable, hard to  replicate  purity, this shaft WORKS in this head, better than any other head ive got it in ,  the feeling is , well, the  impact is................ ( ahhhhhhhhhhhhh not like ive done  this ) ...  BUT  but mental picy of  holding onto  a   10000   hoard of  yellow jacket wasps and being  stung simultanesouly   but instead of pain, u get massive  a release  of dopamine in the hands ! 

 Its totally addicitive , WAY WAY WAY more so than the waccine. way more so than almost everying i can think of actually! 

 In a shell:
the 9* is longer and straighter, the 11*   is  the  versatile one.

the 11* is   useable  in ALL conds,  the 9* id not take out in rain, or in mid summer humidity  as  flight isnt that high  at times  and  one of its main attractors is it gets cheat miles on the ground the 11* doesnt.

the 9* is ultra tight , stable and electric the 11* is rubbery high and looser.

of these 2............ i can usrvie without the 9* but the 11*  is special.

 

begs the question of course................

 

what will the 10* do  and with  what    shaft   ? 

 

2022 will answer that im sure........................................,

 

 

 

 

Edited November 1, 2021 by supo

[supo]

 addeds a cpl of new/old builds  to the bags recently, none of which will be of any interest to pretty much eveyone  bec they dont say TM on them but for  those that like spice................

i have had 2 heads that ive been  pondering what to do with for a  cpl of seasons, the original shaft pairing didnt work out as well as id thought , but i KNOW the heads are super so ive switched the shafts about in them for much   better results.

first:
the  astro tour v2, this had a diamana stinger 71x  in  it  but  it was simply toolow to play most  course and esp in summer when its moist , there was zero movement laterally so it had some use on super fast dry grass but it was a bridge too far most games , its a  LONG driver head that is playable by us minions so i took that shaft and re deployed it  to kamui pro 10*  at 45.5 inch and that has been a reveleation!  good lord that thing goes and  goes and goes...... its a bomber  but at 45.5 inch it can get a tad whippy  if my timing is out  and can move laterally a ways, on a good still day i take this out and give it some welly on the long par 5s andi  odnthink ive got a longer combo, and boy does it feel GOOD!  its not my dailly driver nor was it built  to be, its Mjollnir. esp for htting big massive draws. SO much fun. but i digress...........back to the said new guys. the astro tour has now a fubuki   alpha 70s in  it and  it trasformed this head into one of my better drivers. its not an iron rod , its got sole life and can be moved ever so slightly it jsut works , i was pretty shocked by how much  difference there was  but now its one of my go tos if i need reliability and a mid flight with bite and run. when they cut the fairways short   and its a long course  then this gets the bag spot. seriously  chuffed by how good a aset up this is and how " nice" the shaft is. specs are 45.125 x 321 x d1 headshapse is  deep but with an   elongated oval  face that looks like  it wants to be hit over  left  field alllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll day but is in fact a pretty straight shooter, or rather a head that can be hit whwere uwant it, its more of a point shoot  driver and i dont try and get  fancy with it its best served hitting straight,  and  for the most  part  ive not missed  a fairway with it yet .  give this  ALL thumbs up   for  longer straighter , thinner tracks. not what id take out when theres a ton of dog legs bec the next one is  for that!

11.5*  callaway erc 3 / graphite design pt6x.  323 x 45 x d3

 right  this is quite different, the head is 203g its 11* but laucnhes like  9.5 its got a HUGE face the frames a ball quite unlike mnost,  and the feel is insane,,,, equal of the epon 101 , in fact  u wudnt know which one was whcih in a blind test.  endo japan forged  head form  2006.  450cc ALL face.

the extra loft of   it makes this a very differnt kettle of fish from the 9.5*  head which is a pretty straight shooter. the 11* makes tree tops..................... almost dissappear...it makes open fields  over  jungle seem  probalbe  and new areas of fariwats to explore, in fact the hardest thing i  find with this, is  htting it straighter.  when u look down at the  face and its pointed skywards all sorts on manufactured shots  spring to mind. its  for the  explorer.................. Long been afanof the  GD pt  model as well, love the looks  of the blue on black hoops and the tighness of the impact , mid launching shaft that just does as it shud with no real  bias, ND best thingit does NOT ballon. the  extra weght  keeps the ball to a high but straigh arc. its not a mega distance head ive found it to be a brilliant  driver  for hitting  all carry manufactred   drives on  bendy tracks. i have the  RC  cv pro
 which does similar job, both are excellent, not sure which is better ttoally differnt head shape tho.

very differnt drivers for very differnt roles on very different tracks.  this one is for short , all carry is at a  premium  courses that  have lots of bends.

the feel of it  is quite something to boot!

just bec its older , dant mean is dead! 

 

 

Edited June 6, 2022 by supo

[supo]

Syard T388 10.5*/ diamana x 70s 45inch

built this as a links buster (again) had it witha stinger  but such low launch in the wet i wasnt getting the most out ofit, in normal dry conds  its as good a build as there is  but with the  X shaft i have created a one stop shop.

my links drivers are the

 taylor made tp09/bimatrix100x 44inch.

prgr egg 7  9* / diamana aliislei 83s  44 inch

jbeam 435 9.5*/ diamana stnger 71x

roycoll 10.5* / waccine 83s

 

each of these are great....., so long as its hard fast as it usually is and  i grab a bunch of cheat miles on the roll out. But nit now, there aint none its wetter than an otters pocket so i need  some arc.

Hence this older  esque classic, well broke that out today for the first time in yonks and absolutley kiled it with it.. not quite as high as  iwas looking for   Truth be told but the balance  of carry , STRAIGHTand abilty to hit the ball 3  feet off the ground And high massive cuts is outstanding.

the confidence with this  is superb, the overall playabilty is extreme. I have no issues with gulp cut rightinto the creeks anymore. Iloved it.

itslike using a rescue wood!

feel is perfect ,nice crisp  thwackand geat feel in the fingers.nothing at all not to like.

Best aspect  is unlike  ur normal  driver whre  its  bomb/ gouge this is a placement tool,  swingaway full throttle and  u get what u put in, take abit off and hit low bullet stingers, ,te it high and go ful aerial attack.

similar outcome to the roycol but insteadof being short fat this is long elongated.

absolulty not  coming out  of the  links bag anytime soon!

 

 

Edited July 29, 2022 by supo

[bngolfer]

I really love those RC drivers above. Have had the h2 but can’t find it now. Might have forgotten it at a builder who has moved.. 

[supo]

right.. this thing above ,the syard  was unbeatable.

it beat out the prgr egg, i  think  bec the shaft at 83g  is prob a tougher ask for me now, i cant get it ignite anymore  so im changing that over to a 65x. get some weight off it  but keep the taughtness,  the shape of the egg is absolutely custom built for confidence in the puff which there was insane amounts, the slope rating skyrocekted most  games, but the distance loss/ flight height  was a bit too much to justify when the syard was  spot on  prety much every drive.

As much as the heads are important,  obv they are , the shafts  maketh the club i firmly beleive  and  the  diamana X shaftis  perfect for waht i want.

 i played the qudra  tp-x  bimatrix  ,  diamana  aliislei   and  the tour ad pt 6x  but none of them were a lick on the X, the tp-x is by far te best feeling, its got just a hint of kick whihc means it goes longer, that i have no doubt about  and on a  perfect  day with no wind id take this one  (astro  tour10.5*) ,  u  can feel the difference in kick, my mate used it on sat , used to be aq college golfer  way back when  and he jsut went wahts this  ?    love it .  he plays the mizuno.diamanablack 60x and thought the astro tour was longer , no doubt.  nice to hear....  

 the alislei  has the smoothest  silky tink  feel   it resonates in the fingers  long after impact,  i shafted a ton of clubs with this   a while back, a few fariway woods,  cpl of drivers  beci  just loved its feel, most of them stayed on the links at home  but the X shaft has taken that role now and i  jsut cant see me changing  .  The pt -x was prob the nect tightest but it just lacks feel, this is all about peformance,  im going to re shaft this in a jbeam 435 and leave it back  at home. that , works.

the s-yard  tho , i just cant forget how good this is a a build,  its not heavy its not light,   it looks like u can hit it anywhere but trying to hook it takes intestinal fortitude,  the best shots i put on it  consistatnly were a small cut fade/ its jsut does it with aplomb, teed it low  to hit bullet like  stingers from the top of te course , teed it high with the wind over the right shoulder  and  drew it ,   it really is  PROB. my most versatile driver. ,  its a  one stop  shop head ,  IF u like, like i do, to  try different things,  its not the best autonmotron head  one swing one thought,  but it is a head for  thinking.

if ur not a pro.

 

 

 

 

[supo]

Winter cometh  early it seems, snow already on the big bump by GOTEMBA    and brilliant colour change of leaves usher in  difffernt thoughts on the  links , time  for  lighter , airier, easier   drivers  now  required.

enter the  new build , the ROYAL COLLECTION  104t 10.5* / diamana stinger 71s   45inch 

Simply ........... if u ever  wanted   a head that says relax,  just by looking at it, this is one of those.

460cc,  195g   BIG, full  bodied, slightly oval   face , for me its a stand out from the crowd  head , comapred  to the other RCs above for  eg,  it cudnt   be more  opposite.

Took it out with the jbeam 435 ,same shaft and the only similarity they share .........is the shaft.

talk about chalk cheese for a same shafted head!

The R/C at address jsut says  swing  me, u dont need to hit hard  , just swing,  ill do the rest,  it has a very thin tinky  feel at impact thanks to the  face  being made from   lighter weight  lower density VL  titanium  and the ball repels   from the face  fast, theres no stickyface syndrome  to  this, it  makes u take notice. reminds me of the  frehiet the G head but   higher, thinner... lighter.  its a very easy to  like head if  like big heads.

The dialogue on it says its a head for heel toe misses  over  around centre vertical and i agree,     i was driving badly this day so i got to see its character in FULL regalia and yes  its good for  misses left right!

  u loose distance for sure , but i was never  dead......so ill take that.. ( frustrating day!!!  )  but  good to see  the comaprison, as an aside vs the 435  when i  missed it, the result was  definitley less  catastrophic. distance  noticeably less but  dispersion tighter... somwtimes u take that  and   this was one of those  days.

when i did get a cpl of solid shots out of the centre it wasntwow that was  'awsome'  it was huh.. ok.... thats it yea...it doesnt have  that  oh baby baby, baby baby  response   like the jbeam does.  but then agian tis not the same head, it takes a while  to get used to saying , ok,  this is what it is   but then agian its no slouch either  , the 435   is 100% definitley longer ,feeling stronger, the RC is  chilled,  im sure its bec of the face ,  they are opposite  thought  driver heads and why id never thake the  435 out in winter.  or why id never take the RC in summer.

im not goign to break my long distance  record with this set up but i can take this out when its shilly and know tht i dont have to swing fore the fences overl eft field to get a more than decent result form it.  ths flight is on the higher side which is wht i wanted it does get a bit of roll but its basically  for carry   ease and disperion control, for that prupose it ticks all boxes.,  My thoughts are this head is a good head for slower ,or less powerfull  swingers not hitters.  

i like it...it does a job , the shaft match suits it  well, yea its a quiver  driver , not a one  and done,. it also wud double  as a super wet day driver esp as it has a gripmater leather on it. not sure it take it to  the links when tis windy............... no............. def wont be doing that................

 

welcomed  to the quiver . 

 

Edited October 31, 2022 by supo

[supo]

Weathers been great,  backs feeling good  last few months and my  swing speed   is back to a respectfull  no.    so its been a  new build winter/spring, took delivery of 4 more  rejigged drivers last week, so far   testing on range only for   most   but  a  gamer  for the   GDpt6x  , bit surprising  , but  yea  im onto something differernt here

astro tour 11*  - graph design pt6x  45 inch 315g, original idea was  to get this  very high  with  a  bell arc but that didnt happen.... that  combo  is like an  anti  high  launcher.   it likes to just flies flat  45*   kind oif thing  to  its  zenith up  then  out with run...  its a doozie!

had to rethink  what  to use  it for and its  now a day in out  ni wind  daily  , in  bag all rounds , tures out this is ,so far 2 rounds,  as consistant as anything else i have,  plus its much lighter so i grab a cpl  of cheat MPH with it. already gamed it with my kamui/7d  in unison   and it certianly didnt loose  that   much to it , feel was differnt ,  it  noticelaby  hollower but yea id take that without feeling i loose much.  mabe into the wind it  felt a bit hollowish   but down wind it was aces high.  great build!

kamui pro tp07   11*- roddio labo  tataki   70s   45inch 318g for links  with  stronger  wind ,  this sets up toe  high for a draw swing but the takaki  killls  that  bias  and flattens  out  the flight  for  some run. LOVE how this sets up  as a slicer  , my other  kamui 10* with the diamana X  60s is prob my my used driver woth i kind of new waht ot expect with this  but its even more sexier in hand. loosing the drive on the 15/16/17/18  left at longy is  HOPEFULLY now a hing of the past, well, thats the idea.

jbeam 435  9.5* - diamana original BLUE board   73s  45 inch  320g for   links  in  winter when run is  all important and wind is awful. this is an arrow..... it  DOES NOT ,WIlIL NOT  be moved laterally  by    a man! launch is LOW, like lowlow , low  but terrible swings arnt punishedas badly . its like my driver to  play at  NSW links when u get quite afew more  yards on the deck that  at  my home  course, not for use in  hot moist , long grass conds,  hawaii  wud be  awsome.
its an .............. insurace driver, i so used to that head  its going to live in oz.

 astro tour vIII  11* - diamana   ilima red 60s  45inch d0  315g.

Had this at range yesteday and it  was  GREAT  this  seems to be a great anwser my higher carry  higher spin  faster swing  driver ive been missing ,esp in the wet  of in asia when carry is required over  run. put a gripmaster leather on it  to make sure its  100%  ready. by what i got out of it yesterday  id say . im onto a good thing here.    the  ilima feels much different to other  diamana shafts  esp the kaili which has been my all time DIA fave and my test shaft vs all others,  its flightier, tingier and thinner  at impact, it makes me think im REALLY  hititng something hard, took a while to get its character but  , yea i dont mind it. will ahve to see how it goes with real balls on course.... this sat.... but from what i got eysterday, it as what i wanted it for.

will take it with the 11*   GDpt6x and see how they go VS each other  ofr that higher   launch  preference,  diff flight  path .. have a feeling the red might be the specialist of the bag, the  GD the all rounder, botht have the same grip same lenght  and pretty close  weight.

no pics yet...

 

its good to tinker................,


 
 

Edited April 10, 2023 by supo

[supo]

  ASTRO TOUR  V3  11*  - diamana ilima  65s.  

 this thing has defied   its image   and cud be my surprise packet build of the last cpl o years.  Ive had a few games with this now,higher launch NO BALLONING at all,  good spin rate,  excellent carry, and most of all VERY , surprisingly   not  a whippet  over  left and right field  which i thought it was going  to be .
For the most  its very  very straight and high . 
 My swing speed  is back up to  +/- 106mph now  so  255-270yards  with a   max @ 280 im getting  most drives,  the  average on the   lower  260s , gone are my bombing days    but with this shaft  i was looking to  get a bit more  theatrical  but that didnt happen!   

 oh no ,NOT SO said the head.

yesterdays round with 2 other newbies ,the  ASTRO TOUR V2  -GDpt6x  and the   JBEAM 435 -  diamana 65x  for a multiple  ball slogathon was pretty  eye opening.
all 3 come in @ 45inch  , 316-320g  means not a ton of  difference  in swing weight   with  the 435  as the lowest and heaviest ,  that was purpose built and BOY does that thing earn its  turns!
 it was windy  yesterday so these got a PROPER  work out and by far  the one i was most surprised and happy with  bec of the reason it wasnt sposed to perform like it did was the  Ilima!  The extra spin and lower  mid point  in it gets it airborn quicker for sure  but it doenst get knocked about , its the lightest and feels like it is  but i was really happy with it  into  some decent  sideways wind,  it became  a 2 horse  game back   9 , the v2 and v3   for favourite   but the v2   had the   Gd pt6x  in it  and it  just the better suited  bec theres more oomph  in  it, distance wise i cud not  really fault any of them , i hit my buds   SIM2-ventus 6x as well, that goes well  but  for me  its a  very differnt set up  and look / feel  and  it went   the same  distance as   mine  do   for a FRACTION of the build cost and  several years  and billions of  $ rand d      difference , ............... longer or so they  say,  i didnt see it , what i hit were dead even with the   435  but i tended to str8 pull the  TM,  and fade the 435 , thats the 3rd time ive hit   the SIM  , makes it an easy pass over now, there AINT  no   discernable  or i nfact any diference  i can see .

strengths -

435  w diamana  blue  65x:   low  fast bullets  , best feel  at highest swing speed, LOTS of ground run, super  stable reliable.
v2  w GD pt6x: best looking at address , SOLID reliable  in All conds, mid high lanch with ability to hit any shot in mind . most workable  but smalls workable not goign to  hook the ears of it. excelllent  consistant distance .
v3 w  diamana ilima 65s:  flightiest, easiest to swing at  Not max speeds , best on an off day, best  carry, flight height,  easy day driver. rain driver   100%, wont bother takign another driver out in the rain  surprisingly good in wind.

Not so strengths-
435>   very low al the time,  need to be ON all the time, willl not be shaped  left. limited carry 
v2>      cant think of any, nope this  thing is a daily driver ++++
v3>    flighty, light, thinner feel,  can be lost   both ways  ( more than the  others ) doenst feel as productive  at impact    but it is!  so   if thats a negative, il ltake  it.

the last  for the season  coming this week ,  egg7 with diamana   ilima 70x  9*  and  v2 with diamana x  70s  11*