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Buying uncut shafts vs. pre-built

Nippon Shafts
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joebute

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I was finally able to demo some shafts in my M2 driver, and found one I liked - the Matrix 60Q4 red tie. This was a standard shaft from the TM demo cart. I asked the salesman how I could buy one, and he said that ebay was the best bet.

Appreciated his honesty, but I can't believe how confusing it is buying golf shafts on ebay - especially with regard to shafts that are prebuilt with an adapter. I'm seeing lots of listings claiming to be standard playing length (but all different lengths, 44, 44.25, 44.5 uninstalled). How could you know whether a shaft was tipped or not?

Am I better off just buying a new uncut shaft, and asking the shop to build it to the same specs as the demo? Would a new red tie shaft even be the same as the TM demo (or are the TM red ties "made for")?
 
Buying uncut shafts vs. pre-built

Many of the shafts these days are no longer 'made for' so you're usually getting the real deal. Now as far as uncut or untipped, your best best is to buy a brand new shaft or buy one from a vendor that you can trust. It's kind of a gamble on eBay, but there are a couple that sell quality shafts that you can guarantee will be the length you want.
 
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if youre concerned about any aspect of buying preowned such tipping, playing length, extension, etc. then your only option to be 100% sure is to buy online or in store brand new, uncut. From there you can dial in to what specs you want or need. There are plenty of options online or if you like the TM version, call their CS number or preowned number. they may have some options for sale.
 
those Matrix red ties are dirt cheap these days on component sites
 
mr.hicksta said:
Many of the shafts these days are no longer 'made for' so you're usually getting the real deal. No as far as uncut or untipped, yes, your best best is to buy a brand new shaft or buy one from a vendor that you can trust. It's kind of a gamble on eBay, but there are a couple that sell quality shafts that you can guarantee will be the length you want.
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This. Just stick with the guys that have boat loads of feedback. I also prefer not to buy pre-assembled shafts anymore because when I bought my Vista Pro brand new I had an adapter installed by the eBay seller/company and ended up having to pull and reinstall a new OEM adapter on my own which cost another $35 or so (new tip plus having the old one pulled because I don't have a puller).

I play my driver shaft at a raw length of 43.75" so a shaft being precut doesn't really bother me; as long as it's more than 43.5" I can comfortably game it. I also like to hunt down shafts on eBay that have already had an adapter pulled (can be kind of risky) because you can get great deals this way and don't have to worry about having adapters pulled or whether the shaft comes with the proper adapter to begin with.
 
Alez367 said:
if youre concerned about any aspect of buying preowned such tipping, playing length, extension, etc. then your only option to be 100% sure is to buy online or in store brand new, uncut. From there you can dial in to what specs you want or need. There are plenty of options online or if you like the TM version, call their CS number or preowned number. they may have some options for sale.
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Yeah I think this is my plan. Luckily these aren't too expensive even brand new, so it's probably better to go that route and make sure I get exactly what I want.
 
There are a few fitters on the other site that sell used stuff that was demo. They are good at telling you if it was tipped and the adapter on it along with the playing length it will be when installed in a certain head. Most of them are normally X or TX tipped with a few random S. Not great options for slower swing speed players.
 
TaylorMade usually tips their shafts around an inch. The only way to match it to the demo would be line it up and check the logos. You could always leave it a bit long and tip it based on performance, but that would cost you pulling the adapter once and probably a grip or two. Stock TM is usually a playing length of 45.5 so you need to figure out what how tall the head sits and how deep the shaft goes into the adapter and how deep the adapter goes into the head.

If you're really trying to duplicate TaylorMade stock performance then I would tip it 3/4 of an inch and cut it to play at 45.5. BTW, it's super easy to do yourself.
 
Buying a new shaft and starting from scratch is the really the only way to know if something is really being built to your liking and specs.
 
I bought 2 matrix 70Q5 red tie shafts for my fairway woods off ebay. I think I paid like 75 each for them new uncut. I'd go that route.
 
q3 red ties are under $30 from diamond tour golf, a little stiffer midsection than the q4
 
Matt J said:
TaylorMade usually tips their shafts around an inch. The only way to match it to the demo would be line it up and check the logos. You could always leave it a bit long and tip it based on performance, but that would cost you pulling the adapter once and probably a grip or two. Stock TM is usually a playing length of 45.5 so you need to figure out what how tall the head sits and how deep the shaft goes into the adapter and how deep the adapter goes into the head.

If you're really trying to duplicate TaylorMade stock performance then I would tip it 3/4 of an inch and cut it to play at 45.5. BTW, it's super easy to do yourself.
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Thanks for the info. - I'll probably take it to the shop this time, and can ask them to replicate the demo. I did find some of this out when I was looking for a prebuilt shaft, but I found so much conflicting information (i.e. "TM tips 1", "No, TM told me they no longer tip", "You can specify untipped on custom, so they must tip standard"). Also a lot of conflicting info. about what 'standard' is uninstalled for a certain model. Why aren't OEMs transparent about this stuff? This is even before you get into the real/made for debate.

I just don't get how it serves anyone. Especially because they're not trying to sell shafts - I asked TM customer service and they said "We won't sell shafts, only warranty replacement through an authorized retailer".
 
TaylorMade preowned sells used shafts with the tip on. I don't think the will swap tips or tell you if they have been tipped. The selection is garbage as they don't really care much about selling them
 
I don't think it's as big as a conspiracy as some would like to think. There are a few pretty obvious reasons, but when they're all put together it's a bit of a detour. They have "made for" shafts to save money. Those were originally copycats made by the same company with the same graphics. That was seen as too deceiving and had too much backlash so they started making them similar but distinguishable to the trained eye. As you "cheapen" those shafts they typically aren't as stiff, so they started tipping them into the parallel section to make them perform better in their product.

When you order a custom shaft you can order it from +1 inch to -2 inches or something like that. So, consumers realized they aren't adding an inch to the tip section, so they must be cutting an inch as "standard" so it is generally recommended that you order it +1 if you want it completely un-tipped.

I think it simply varies a little depending on how soft the batch of shafts, how stiff the tip section, and and how strict the quality control is when they're tipped. It's easy enough to line up the silk screened graphics on the shaft to see how much it has been tipped. I find it's generally about 3/4 of an inch.

They don't answer because they can't and people get awfully specific about it, down to the quarter inch. Let's remember these demo shafts are going out to thousands of shops and tens of thousands of consumers who all may tinker with them too. I bought a used M1 from TaylorMade and I'm sure it was tipped more than from the factory. Ended up in my 3 wood.
 
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