Saga Shines Again at the Robot Shootout
By Michael Cheng
Many of our clients were overwhelmingly intrigued by the results of the 2008 Robot Shafts Shootout. Quite a few of them have been urging us to commission a new round of robot testing against the best shafts of 2009. For this round of robot tests, we decided to test the Saga against the Fujikura Motore, Mitsubishi Fubuki, and Aldila Voodoo. You would likely agree that these are the crËme of the crop of golf shafts for 2009.
Just like last test, we prepared a simple comparison of their specifications below for your reference. Naturally, these specifications were measured by us. To be fair, we stated the testing methods below so that you can verify the results yourselves. In addition, we asked Golf Lab in San Diego to conduct an independent robot test with these four shafts so we could see how they perform. As a standard protocol, the tests were conducted solely by the Golf Lab, and Harrison personnel were not present during the test.
I think we all would agree that the three shafts from our competition are quality products. These shafts have already been proven to be good sellers in the market place. However, it is fair to assume that for each consumer asking for a $ 300 shaft, there will likely be ten asking for something that costs less but performs comparably. For this reason, the next time a value-conscious golfer comes into your store, we ask that you keep the Harrison Saga in mind.
Before the test, we measured the shaft specifications of all four shafts. They are listed below:
Shaft Specification Summary
Maker |
Model |
Flex |
Length |
Weight |
Torque |
CPM |
Tip Flex |
Harrison |
Saga 60 |
S |
46" |
66g |
4 |
274-278 |
8.5 |
Fujikura |
Motore F1 65 |
S |
46" |
67.9g |
4 |
279-283 |
7.0 |
Mitsubishi |
Fubuki 63 |
S |
46" |
65.8g |
3.5 |
274-275 |
8.0 |
Aldila |
Voodoo SVS6 |
S |
46" |
66.3g |
3.7 |
271-273 |
6.5 |
Note:
Flex - It was the designated flex by the maker.
Torque - It was measured at 1/2" from tip with butt clamped at 39 ½" from tip, measured at 1 ft/lb.
CPM - It was measured at 39 ½" from tip with a 200g chuck.
Tip Flex - It was measured 8 ½" from tip with a 10 lb weight.
We tested the shafts at a 100 mph swing speed, a standard testing protocol for testing a stiff flex shaft by Golf Lab. A third-party, 9.5 degree Alpha interchangeable driver head was used. The four shafts were butt cut to 45 ‡î long as measured by the Golfsmith method and a Golf Pride Tour Velvet was installed on each. Under standard Golf Lab procedure, eight center hits were tested for each club. The results are as follows:
Robot Test Summary
Maker |
Model |
Flex |
HEAD
SPEED |
BALL
SPEED |
LAUNCH
ANGLE |
SPIN
RATE |
MAX SHOT
HEIGHT |
CARRY
DIST |
TOTAL
DISP |
TOTAL
DIST |
ROLL |
Harrison |
Saga 60 |
S |
99.43 |
146.85 |
9.50 |
2849 |
21.95 |
242.50 |
9.46 |
269.83 |
27.33 |
Fujikura |
Motore F1 |
S |
100.29 |
146.75 |
9.69 |
3065 |
24.16 |
240.33 |
8.63 |
258.17 |
17.83 |
Mitsubishi |
Fubuki 63 |
S |
100.31 |
147.91 |
8.63 |
2825 |
20.95 |
241.67 |
7.63 |
266.50 |
24.83 |
Aldila |
Voodoo VS6 |
S |
100.11 |
147.13 |
9.00 |
2937 |
22.17 |
240.67 |
12.08 |
260.17 |
19.50 |
| Note: |
|
|
| Head Speed - MPH |
Spin Rate - RPM |
Total Dispersion – Feet |
| Ball Speed - MPH |
Max Shot Height - Yards |
Total Distance – Yards |
| Launch Angle - Degree |
Carry Distance - Yards |
Roll - Yards |
If you like to review the official test reports, feel free to give us a call and we will be more than happy to provide them to you. After careful review of the test results, I am sure that you will reach the conclusion that once again the Harrison Saga more than holds its own against the top shafts in golf.
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