If there is one thing that Robin Arthur, founder of Xcaliber Shafts, has never been afraid of, it is being different. In fact, I’m not sure we have seen someone so willing to dare to be different in this segment, but that is just my take. One such example of this willingness is the impending release of a new iron shaft design which Xcaliber is calling the “Rapid Taper”.
To be frank, there is nothing like this out there, and I do mean nothing. Nor have we ever seen Robin this excited.
THP was able to get a pre-release sample in to do some work with and see just how the performance stacks up.
Quick Take
No hype, no hyperbole, no fluff…just performance. A 75g iron shaft designed to fit a breadth of swing speeds that held up and then some with a unique feel. The Rapid Taper offers shockingly consistent launch, playable spin, and a jump in ball speed that was eye opening.
The Rapid Taper Design
This one is out there.
Robin Arthur has been working on this one for several years now, a concept that he developed in his mind while thinking about the way a bull-whip works for the build up and release of energy, due in no small part to the shape of the whip and the size transition from handle to tip. The uniqueness of this design really cannot be questioned. While Xcaliber started first with their “RT Spin” release, the real work and focus has been on the iron shafts as well as a wood design. To give more credence to the unique factor at play here, Robin Arthur was just granted his patent for the design.
The Rapid Taper is a build that according to Xcaliber has 2.9° torque, a 75g weight, and is playable up to 125 MPH swing speeds. Also, within this is that they are marketing them to be an option for all different swing tempo styles and a mid-high launching design. Another point to mention, THP was able to get our hands on this one early, as such, the shaft I tested is absent the final graphics and ion finish which based on teasers we have seen, will be as unique as the shape itself.
Unique Package – Unique Performance
Speaking of that unique shape, this is absolutely wild in hand. Even though I had seen the RT Spin wedge shafts in the past, I was still surprised when looking down at this one since the longer length shows off the shape more, I can only imagine how wild the wood shafts will look. As for the testing, I chose to install this one in the new Cobra Forged Tec 4-Utility which plays at 22.5° loft. The reason for this was two-fold, seeing as I had only one shaft to work with for me it made the most sense to test the claims of launch and speed in a longer club that I typically find harder to elevate, it also allowed me to use an adapter for easy install.
Right into the meat and potatoes, I did my testing on the Foresight GC2 and that data will be included in this article. To understand what is going on there I want to first touch on the claims from Xcaliber. According to the company their internal testing of swing speeds ranging from 97 to 125 MPH yielded ball speed increases from 2.5 to 5 MPH, every single person tested saw an increase. Not to mention, increased launch with the mid-high profile while not sacrificing spin numbers.
Well, as it turns out, in my testing I fall in line with pretty much all of that. In order to try to ensure a fair comparison to the stock setup of the Forged Tec 4U, I recorded two sessions, one hitting the stock setup first, and the other flipping the order. The reason here was simple, I wanted it clear in my head that warm-up/fatigue was not a contributing factor. In the first go-round I saw a 5.5 MPH average ball speed increase, the second time was a 4.2 MPH increase. Add into these, that despite different days yielding different swings as is usually the case for us mere mortals, the speed, spin, launch, peak, and descent angles were all an improvement from the stock graphite offering.
Now, to address a couple of things, yes, there was a 10g difference in shaft weight from the stock graphite offering, and that can account for some speed differences, but in my opinion not as much of a jump as was seen. While I know most will look at the speed and be as blown away by that as I was, the fact that I saw extreme playability out of a low lofted iron consistently was what stood out most to me. Not only in terms of launch and peak, but the fact that the spin and descent angles afforded me the ability to hit it into greens during testing as opposed to keeping it a tee dominant option.
Here is the reality, there is a lot of performance intrigue here for me, and while I wish we had the opportunity to work with a full set of shafts as opposed to just one club, the return of information is pretty clear to me. Another thing I want to touch on is the feel and consistency. The bullwhip analogy has a lot of merit here because through the swing I could really feel a release through transition, but I want it clear that this did not, for me, sacrifice dispersion or accuracy. In fact, the repeatability I saw stood out more than maybe even the ball speed.
By now, if you have been around THP a while and kept up with Xcaliber, you know that they march to their own beat. Robin Arthur is downright giddy about this Rapid Taper design and rightfully so, but the issue now becomes balancing the desire to offer a higher tier product lineup while also balancing keeping it accessible to golfers. Price wise, these are an unknown as that will be dealer specific, and being entirely honest this is my biggest concern when it comes to the product. Performance is there, but now there has to be an emphasis on getting it into the hands of people without pricing themselves out before they even get started.
The Details
Availability: Summer/Fall 2020
Price: Dealer Set
Flex: L, A, R, S
Weight: 75g
That’s a good looking setup there
Almost got my hands on these, can’t wait to hear how they perform in your hands.
Sooooo much better with no graphics than what they had in the finished ones. Sometimes less is more, especially when it comes to graphite iron shafts.
Likely to put them into the T100S this week!
Finished style, it’s got a little texture but not grainy
Not the Adam’s CMB?
I jest.
Those have THP Recoil Proto’s in them.
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They play STOUT when you tip trim to S, fwiw.
Can’t deny that. Cut the the S it’s held up to virtually any swing.
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I was swinging HARD at the 7i last night, it just kept smiling.
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Very interested in this, especially if there’s any possibility of doing a side by side with the 95gm data.
I mean, you can look at the old data, but the 95’s are still in Hogans and are in a HS kids bag now haha
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What shaft was in that before and how do the results compare?
Somewhere in these threads I did an 85, 95 and 105g face off.. all with TS-1 7irons. All back to back and mixed in. You almost couldn’t tell by the data which was which.
The only way to tell was swing effort. Ofcourse the 85 was easiest to swing and the 105 felt like it took more effort. Yet club head speed and ball speed was always equalling out. I was fairly shocked when I went home and looked at the computer.
The 105 felt the most stable. But I could play any of the three. When I say the data was close. There may not have been any statistical differences between them other than a percentage point here or there. But swing effort perception was extremely evident.
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105’s in the top, 95’s in the second.
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Where are you on the swing weight?
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Both to my preferred D5
Tape or tip weights?
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I see you got a few hundred RPM lower with the 105 than 95, but that’s to be expected, right?
Tape on the 95’s (Hogan’s), nothing on the T100S, I used grip to hit my numbers.
Good contact is sublime with these.
I stopped the 105s at the 7 iron and go 95g the rest of the way.
I do have a 6 iron 105, and the battle is real on which one stays in the bag. View attachment 9077820
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The fix for the high price is near. The ion plating was very expensive and kept them from being priced well. Stand by.
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I wondered about this!
What’s been amazing is how well they stand up with standard trimming to Tour level swings. Yet still respond as they should for mear mortals.
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Yeah, I’ve got no desire or need to go past standard trim.
In the Sim the spin numbers have been fantastic without being overly spinny. Today in the wind the ball was hardly effected by the cross wind.
What really catches my eye is the height I get yet the ball just goes right through the wind. Kind of defies the norm.
Also today I put a 105g trimmed to an 8 iron in a brand new 52° wedge head. Solid and very repeatable. Great feel and responded to all sorts of knock downs and 1/2 shots. Should have brought my Mevo for the new wedge but I was pressed for time.
I was a huge fan of the 95g Rapid Tapers but the 105 shafts are just next level. View attachment 9078920
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One set were the Ping i210s. He is hitting his 7 iron just a hair over 200 yards. He is a big dude though.
The other set are Callaway Apex Pros. He is raving about the flight.
In other news….. The Naked Matte Black shaft in the future will be an option. Limited quantities of course but they will be out there. One of our big customers wants another 40 Rti 105s naked shafts asap. So the outcry for a naked shaft has FINALLY sunk in.
The Rapid Taper line including the Spin Wedges must first all get the new cosmetics. The naked shafts can follow after that.
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The short irons were throwing darts. 4 easy birdies and 2 bogeys because of bad drives. I’ve been hammering these indoors but playing in the turf is a whole new experience.
Control. Feel. A launch that gets up quick, with great height but cuts through the wind. And they stop within inches of the ball mark. I’m absolutely pumped for this golf season.
The 110 Spin Wedges are a perfect compliment to the 105 shafts.
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Is there a significant weight feel with the 105’s compared to the rest of the line? Noticeable?
They certainly do feel heavier than say a 95. It’s a noticeable difference as any shaft weight increase.
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I’ve made quite a few purchases from Golfworks and clubheads have always come in a box. This time around, the wedge heads came in a bubble envelope. I scratched my head and went about my business. Naturally, there were a couple very minor but noticeable nicks that didn’t matter because they were mine but had I bought them to assemble for someone, I’m not sure how I would have felt about it. Anyways, it doesn’t dampen my excitement to hit the heads, just something to be aware of and, hopefully it was just an anomaly.
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I’m not sure why but I finally went for Rapid Tapers from my 4 iron through the PW, with 100 Spin Wedge in my 50, 54 & 58.
Shot my best round ever first time out, the hype is real #steelnomore
You are gonna love those wedge heads. They just glide through the turf.
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Happy to report that the wedges performed as advertised. As @Popeye said, they really do glide through the turf. I was faced with a couple tight lies and the grind made the shot a breeze. I’m usually a terrible short game guy but I hit some pretty decent shots around the green….I even holed out for eagle from 10 yards off the green. I’ll put them through 18 holes this afternoon, but I’m confident that these are in the bag for a while.
I have a buddy who is a brand name guy, so naturally he didn’t even know Maltby existed. He took a few shots with the wedges and he got the look in his face that anyone who plays components has seen many times. I likely won’t convert him because –insert name brand– but maybe seeing how these play might make him reconsider.
It’s settled in that these 105g shafts are an S+.
With that said Meer mortals have been able to play them.. and play them well. The first few came back stating they were an solid S flex, but not quite an S+. Then the next batch came back as definitely S+ but not an X. Robin was already leaning to the S+…. So S+ it is.
If I had to label a lowest SS to play them, I would probably pin it at 105, without having to over swing. They also do very well with solid 3/4 swings. Yet they have responded to player Swing Speeds WAY over that.
What I’m continuing to hear repeatedly.. is the incredible control and accuracy players are achieving. Some see slight if any increases in distance, but it’s all about control. 2 have shot personal bests first time out. They are all very strong players.. single digit guys. One guy is referring to them as the ‘Auto Release’ shafts. No matter what he seems to do with them, they release at the bottom every time. I got a chuckle out of that. But it illustrates the amazing way they come through the ball. That load and release that makes you want to throw out a lingering pose! Add a club twirl as you wish.
An R + version is being drawn up now and overall the 105 shafts are going to be geared around better players. I have a lot of frequency testing on the new batch before the R+ CPM is set. Most people will do just fine with the 95g or lower versions. Or even split weighted sets.
I have another matte black batch inbound from overseas but again limited quantities. Over half have already been spoken for as these are catching [emoji91].
This may be a shaft we have trouble keeping in stock. I can certainly see trippling the next PO.
Early reports on the other weight families have always been positive. This is a whole new level of positive feedback.
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