When Xcaliber is brought up in conversation, the brand can elicit responses all over the map, some good, some not so good, but the constant is the man behind the brand knows his stuff. Robin Arthur has been in shaft design from the beginning and has his name on some of the most successful creations of all time. He founded Xcaliber around the basis of doing something different and outside the box, but still high performing and accessible. Have there been ups and downs? Sure. But it would appear that a solid direction is finally on the horizon, which is welcome news.
There is no better example of that than the company’s Rapid Taper iron shafts. We have reviewed the initial version, the 75, here on THP, and since that time the company has created 85g and 95g iterations as well. Constantly, the feedback has been nothing but impressive, so when Xcaliber announced they were releasing a 105g version of the Rapid Taper, we just had to get our hands on them.
Quick Take
This is the weight range which could open all the doors for Xcaliber if they can get the product into the hands of golfers. The Rapid Taper 105’s are everything their 75, 85, and 95 gram siblings are, and then some. Outright performance through efficient energy transfer which brings impressive potential of not just ball speed, but launch, playable spin, and accuracy.
The Rapid Taper Concept
While I have touched on the design principles behind Rapid Taper in past articles, this deserves going over once again for those new to the fray, and with a 105g option, I believe there will be a lot of new interests in Rapid Taper.
The premise behind the Xcaliber Rapid Taper is built around how a bullwhip works through the build-up, flow, and release of energy. Much of that is due to the shape and taper of the bullwhip, from being thicker at the handle and rapidly tapering to the end. More important to emphasize is the Rapid Taper is a design that Arthur and company worked on and tweaked for over 7 years. First culminating in a wedge design, the concept proved its worth in testing which led to the Rapid Taper implementation into 75, 85, and 95 gram iron offerings.
Most important? In all significant testing, including ours here at THP, the design has been validated time and again. So, do the new Rapid Taper 105 iron shafts perform like their counterparts? Read on to find out.
Xcaliber RTI105
As has been the case with all other Rapid Taper iron shafts from Xcaliber, their testing has shown ball speed gains from 2 to 5 MPH pretty much across the board. Previously, in the RTI75 and RTI95 that I worked with, I saw results within, and in some cases exceeding, that. One thing that always stuck on my mind with those previous tests was that they were much lighter than I played at the time, and while stability wasn’t an issue, lighter can mean faster.
So, enter the RTI105, and a weight I am much more familiar with. In fact, over the past year I have made it an effort to get into that 105-115g range as much as possible and away from the 120g+ designs I continually fit into. Add to that, the desire to be in graphite with as much golf as I play with my review and coaching jobs, and there was a lot to be curious about here.
While the 105g weight is well established via the name, these are .370 parallel tip graphite iron shafts with a 5.5” tip section and the set I have been working with are “stiff” flex, which according to Xcaliber covers the gamut of 100-125 MPH driver swing speeds. While that is an impressive range of speeds, testing has backed that up for the company, and it is also worth remembering as a parallel design which requires tipping through the set, you can alter that to dial that fitting range in even more.
For this review I installed the shafts into Titleist T100S irons in 5-GW, and yes, with them being .370 there was some additional prep done to make the install possible. Beyond that, they were tip trimmed to standard recommendations and butt cut to my fit playing length. As for testing, I put the RTI105’s through their paces both on the course as well as on a Foresight launch monitor for data collection that you will see through the rest of the article. Rather than focus on a single club, however, I thought the most thorough way to dive into performance would be to look at 5, 7, 9, and GW specifically.
Visually, the Rapid Taper design remains one of the most unique looks out there. While it isn’t anything new for graphite iron shafts to look a bit different, the taper here, and how quickly it takes place, is something new compared to any other option out there. But rest easy, at setup the look is not off putting where the shape goes, and thankfully there are new graphics coming (pictured earlier) which are considerably toned down from the previous version and on a matte black body it should be much more accepted.
To the meat and potatoes though, these are good, quite good. As you can see through the data, there was a lot to like for me. The T100S are very familiar irons and coming from slightly heavier steel in them, I anticipated a speed jump, but what I saw was right around 3 MPH of additional ball speed comparatively for each club I recorded data.
All in all, I saw better launch, more playable spin numbers, excellent peak height and decent angles as well. Mix all that up, and I saw a notable jump in carry numbers too. However, both on course and monitor it was the efficiency of the RTI105’s and how they achieved all these things that stood out to me. While both the 75 and 95 held up fine for me in the past, the 105g weight proved to be a better weight fit and/or comfort.
On course, I pressed hard to test the playability of the setup. Putting them in a more compact players cavity was done with a specific reasoning, the T100S profile is built to do it all, and the shaft must either compliment or accentuate that. I was able to flight the ball up and down along with carving out shapes that were necessary for the shot in front of me. That is the ultimate test I can throw at a setup, and more proof in my mind that Xcaliber truly does have something potentially special here with the Rapid Taper design.
Now, can they get out of their own way and get them into the hands of golfers to try? That might just be the real test for Xcaliber. What do you think of the Rapid Taper design? Are they something you would seek out to try? Let us know on the THP Community as well as the comments below!
For more information on this line or any of the Xcaliber products, check out their website here.
The Details
Availability: July 2022
Price: $44.99
Flex: R, S
Tip: .370 w/ 5.5” Parallel
Weight: 105g
980×425
