Bridgestone J40 Driver Review Thread

It is not just one round. It has been a few rounds. I have hit some great drives with the j40. But also a lot of not so good ones. Right now mentally I am more comfortable with the J40 not in my bag. Maybe that will change down the road.

Only 1 round with the new shaft though.
 
It is not just one round. It has been a few rounds. I have hit some great drives with the j40. But also a lot of not so good ones. Right now mentally I am more comfortable with the J40 not in my bag. Maybe that will change down the road.

At what length are you playing the J40? I've skimmed the past few pages and I'm not sure if your miss was the push right or not. IMO, this type of miss most likely means the club is too long. I think drivers these days are too long (45.5in) to be consistent. If you are ready to give up on the new shaft, you may want to try making it shorter by .5 or 1 inch to see if that helps. I know it kills the resale value of the shaft, but worth a try. I'm thinking of cutting my .75in since I'm finding myself choke down anyways.

Sent from my HTC Vision using Tapatalk 2
 
With tonight's announcement I wanted to bump some of the J40 threads. What a terrific line-up they put out this year.
 
I had the classic in the bag for my last 2 range sessions. I'm not sold on it over the J40 at this point. Still too early to tell but I'm leaning J40.
 
I am going to hit a few different drivers this weekend. Will be fun to see how the J40 stacks up.
 
Since receiving my skycaddie I'm more able to track my fwys. I put in all my scores. Whether I hit fwy or right or left. I use the miss option for hitting fwy bunkers or water hazards. This driver has helped me tremendously. It's easier to get close to the green or on from the fwy. After putting in this weekends scores. My fwy % is up to 72%! That is just awesome. I know that its because of the J40 and its low spin. I've actually pulled this driver left where I hadn't done anything but slice with other drivers. I know that a pull left isn't good but when your so use to going right, then left is a change of scenery. Lol. I hit this bad boy pretty straight. Plus, I've gained distance. My average yardage is a good 20 yds further. Great stick!

Fear the Sober Frog!! Amphibians can Tapatalk
 
Nice job Bullfrog! 72% is a ton for fairways.

After hitting many current and future driver models this weekend the J40 is safe for a while. I know I can count on this thing when I need it and also know my misses will still leave me in a playable position for my next shot.
 
So I like this driver a lot. I hit this with the PX 6.0 on Saturday and was just killing it.
 
So I like this driver a lot. I hit this with the PX 6.0 on Saturday and was just killing it.

You were really hitting the ball well this weekend. What a sandbagger this guy is. Anything in particular that makes the J40 stand out for you?
 
You were really hitting the ball well this weekend. What a sandbagger this guy is. Anything in particular that makes the J40 stand out for you?

I think JRod is a big fan of low spin combined with a low-mid launch shaft like the PX 6.0. We chatted and seemed to like similar setups except his requires a bit more flex stiffness than I do obviously.
 
I took 3 divers out on the course Saturday for a little head to head experiment. The drivers were my old Razr Hawk, Cleveland Classic 290, and Bridgestone J40.

Razr Hawk: The time has come to say goodbye. Ever since I've had to reshaft it it just hasn't been the same. I still like the look at setup. I like that I can tee the ball low and just flail at it. Of the 3 drivers, I think it offers the best forgiveness out near the toe, which is usually my miss.

Cleveland Classic: I hit my longest drive of the day with it, although not by much. The tall face is nice, I'm not worried about going under the ball. No PUP needed on this thing. My problem with it was when I missed, I missed fairly bad with it. I still just can't seem to find middle ground with it. Not ready to give up on it yet though. I do hit this higher than my J40, at least it appears that way to my naked eye.

Bridgestone J40: Hello friend! Something about this driver just feels right to me. Perhaps its the familiarity with it as I've had it in the bag for pretty much all year. I seem to have an easier time turning this club over more through impact, which could be the shorter shaft. The drives I hit really well with it I teed the ball up to an uncomfortable level for me. But the performance is certainly there. I still prefer the sound of this one over the Classic.

So of the the 3, the RH is out. It's a good battle between the Classic and J40.
 
Good stuff Dean. Do you have the stock shaft in the Classic?

I have really found a groove this week where I was hitting the ball nice a straight with a nice mid/high ball flight that was still getting through some high winds. I don't think I have ever felt this comfortable with a driver before.
 
Good stuff Dean. Do you have the stock shaft in the Classic?

I have really found a groove this week where I was hitting the ball nice a straight with a nice mid/high ball flight that was still getting through some high winds. I don't think I have ever felt this comfortable with a driver before.

Yes stock C Kua in the classic. I think the little extra length of it hurts me a bit and makes me a little inconsistent. Though when I catch it right, the club is awesome. To me the J40 is just a great setup as is for my game. I struggled with it early on but things have progressively gotten better with it. Like you, I have just found the comfort level with it.
 
I just find it very predictable right now which is a great thing. It never gets me into trouble and I am rewarded when I put a good swing on the ball.
 
I just find it very predictable right now which is a great thing. It never gets me into trouble and I am rewarded when I put a good swing on the ball.

that Attas T2 shaft fits you well too. At least it did when I saw you hit it down in MB
 
that Attas T2 shaft fits you well too. At least it did when I saw you hit it down in MB

I agree. The B-fit team did a great job getting me into a shaft that fits my swing. The profile is very similar to the C.Kua which is one of the reasons I am always interested in the comparision between the two drivers.
 
I agree. The B-fit team did a great job getting me into a shaft that fits my swing. The profile is very similar to the C.Kua which is one of the reasons I am always interested in the comparision between the two drivers.

I like what the people before B-Fit recommended for my driver. Couldn't be happier with that
 
Good stuff Deano. I've been staging my own 3 way battle as of late. I'm using the J40 445, the Ping Anser and the Cleveland Classic. All 3 drivers have stock stiff shafts in them (Px 6.0, TFC 800D, Miyazaki C Kua 43). I'm not ready to declare a winner yet but I'll tell you the one club that has been put back in the bag after head to head testing each time was the J40. The other 2 have gone back in the Yukon for further testing but come game time I just trust the J40 much more.

Of the 3 the longest single drive I've hit lately has come from the Classic, however it doesn't seem to deliver each and every time like the J40 does. Consistency probably goes to the Anser, but not by a big enough margin to get me to swap it out permanently yet. Plus I am getting more distance out of the J40 than I do the Anser, not always a ton, but on average as a whole I seem to be getting more with the J40.

I have a lot more testing before I'm able to really say 1 driver deserves to be in the bag more than the others, but the fact that each time I have to just take 1 for a round that I'm keeping score and I continually reach for the J40 tells me a lot.
 
Jake it sounds like you are seeing some similar results to me.
 
Looks like an amazing driver. I don't know why I never think of Bridgestone when I shop for clubs. Maybe it's because they don't bombard me commercially other than the Fred Couples ad where he's driving and gets a ball to roll into the drink holder. I'll definitely be checking out this driver in the Spring because I love low spin.
 
Looks like an amazing driver. I don't know why I never think of Bridgestone when I shop for clubs. Maybe it's because they don't bombard me commercially other than the Fred Couples ad where he's driving and gets a ball to roll into the drink holder. I'll definitely be checking out this driver in the Spring because I love low spin.

If you love low spin, I think you'll like this commercial. Bridgestone is moving in the right direction with their equipment. They are gaining traction with each release, heck they had their wedges backordered this year. I think the more they become available for people to try, the more you will see them in peoples bag.
 
On a whim, I decided to put this back into play for yesterday's round. I had been playing the Classic with Kusala Black and found my trajectory getting a bit lower than I wanted so wanted to see what the 9.5* J40 w/PX 6.0 shaft would do for me.

I have played about 3-4 times over the last 2 months so to say that I am a bit rusty is a very accurate statement. I did immediately notice a higher trajectory, probably classify it as mid with the J40 as opposed to low with the Classic.

The biggest difference I noticed between the 2 was that my misses were much less penal. I had 4 or 5 drives where I had a pull left coming off of the toe I think it was but all were still in play off the left side of the fairway except for two that were just bullets pulled up the left side and found the hazards.

My FW numbers were not impressive on the day (5/13) but I would say that 4 of those misses were within 10 feet of the FW and sitting pretty for my second shots. All drives were lasered in the ranges of 230 for the shortest and 3 were in the 270-275 range. Everything is pretty dry here in TX so those longer ones were mid line drives that hit and just ran out forever it seemed.

Overall, I felt the J40 kept me in play better overall as compared to the Classic, especially when I am playing so sporadically and game is not in great form. Needless to say, the J40 is back in the bag - I have tried 3 other drivers for the heck of it since the Morgan Cup and keep coming back to this one. It is not flashy, but man it sure is a solid workhorse off of the tee.
 
good writeup Cookie. Looks like some solid distances for you and 5/13 isnt bad with 4 close misses of the fairway.

was just talking to someone yesterday about needing to try this driver out. I hit it in May in FL and we didnt get along very well, but the success with other THPERS is hard to ignore.
 
I found the J40 such a low launcher for me, I'm sured paired with a different shaft than the PX I could get that up a bit. I like the no frills look of the driver jut have to find a good engine
 
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