Fujikura Golf Shafts
When it comes to golf technology, shaft tech is as cool as it gets. The ability that manufactures have to put a layer here, stiffen up there, and tweak every little detail of a shaft is amazing. It has come a long ways since the ol' hickory shafted clubs of yesteryears. Over the past couple years I have become a big fan of Fujikura because of the performance benefits I have found with their shafts.
My visit to the Fujikura booth just outside of the main convention floor allowed me to see some of this technology, get fitted for a shaft and talk with Alex Dee (VP). He was able to walk me through all the cool tools they brought along for display at the show. The first tool (the horizontal one in the pictures) that caught my eyes is the one they use for all measurements of how the sections of a shaft perform under pressure. It locks in the shaft at both ends, then has a hook that pulls the shaft down near the middle and scans the entire length of the shaft to measure the deformation and bend properties. Another new tool (the "J" shaped machine)that might be my favorite of all since it is useful for regular shop owners (hopefully I might be able to get one of these some day) is one that measures: swingweight, overall weight and the balance point of a club. It looked so easy to use; since you could get all these measurement with one tool. Another cool machine called the "Rack" (the vertical one in the pictures) is basically a shaft torture device. It cycles a shaft under pressure to see how long it would last before failure. It allows Fujikura to tell manufactures their return rate on broken shafts.
No visit would be complete without meeting the ladies of Fujikura who would be hitting the show floor with QR code handouts so that show participants could enter into the contest and learn about the new fitting app. While the app might seem simple, it was spot on for my favorite and best performing shaft.
I was impressed again by Fujikura, not just their products, but the tools and research that goes into each shaft.
My visit to the Fujikura booth just outside of the main convention floor allowed me to see some of this technology, get fitted for a shaft and talk with Alex Dee (VP). He was able to walk me through all the cool tools they brought along for display at the show. The first tool (the horizontal one in the pictures) that caught my eyes is the one they use for all measurements of how the sections of a shaft perform under pressure. It locks in the shaft at both ends, then has a hook that pulls the shaft down near the middle and scans the entire length of the shaft to measure the deformation and bend properties. Another new tool (the "J" shaped machine)that might be my favorite of all since it is useful for regular shop owners (hopefully I might be able to get one of these some day) is one that measures: swingweight, overall weight and the balance point of a club. It looked so easy to use; since you could get all these measurement with one tool. Another cool machine called the "Rack" (the vertical one in the pictures) is basically a shaft torture device. It cycles a shaft under pressure to see how long it would last before failure. It allows Fujikura to tell manufactures their return rate on broken shafts.
No visit would be complete without meeting the ladies of Fujikura who would be hitting the show floor with QR code handouts so that show participants could enter into the contest and learn about the new fitting app. While the app might seem simple, it was spot on for my favorite and best performing shaft.
I was impressed again by Fujikura, not just their products, but the tools and research that goes into each shaft.