Shafts for Ping Eye2's?

Hi. Newbie here. Looks like a great forum, and I'm happy to have a chance to become part of the community.

Now, to the important stuff! I have an old set of Eye2's that have been my main clubs since '83 or so. Unbelievable as it may sound, I've never had them reshafted. The time has come (probably a long time ago actually), so I'm investigating shafts now that I'm getting back into the game in earnest. I love the clubs, and the only gripe I've ever had about them is the weight. They're a little light, especially in the long irons. It looks like the Dynamic Gold S300's might offer a similar set of playing characteristics to the ZZ Lites, but with some additional heft. I know a lot of guys like the Rifle shafts too though. I have no experience with any of these shafts, so I'm at a bit of a loss.

What shafts would you guys recommend I try out in the Eye2's? S300's, Sensicore S300's, TT Lites, Rifles of some sort, etc.? For reference, I probably play to a 4-8 handicap right now, and I hit my old Eye2 5-iron in the 185 yd. range. I'm not much of a digger, but rather sweep the ball and take shallow divots. I like to work the ball a lot and prefer a low to medium ball flight for this reason.

Any help is much appreciated!

It sounds like you are right on the border of being regular flex and stiff flex. Unless you are having accuracy issues, stay with regular flex - Dynamic Gold R300 or something similar. As for the current shafts, the ZZ Lites are a good shaft. If I were you, I'd just leave them unless there is something wrong with them. Reshafting isn't necessary unless they are bent, broken or cracked.

Thanks, Gord. I've always played stiff shafts and haven't had any issues relating to the flex, so I'll probably stick with them. I actually snapped my 7 iron shaft recently, and that's the main motivation behind my inquiries. The ZZ Lites aren't available through stores that I've seen, and I'm not sure if Ping even stocks them anymore.

Welcome Hipfan! It's good to have you as a member.

Remember that shafts are made of metal and in the mid80's the metal was pretty good but ****py compared to today's metal composition. The shafts will weaken with metal fatigue so over time they will weaken to about 80% of their original strength and peformance. The more the shaft flexes, the more prone it is to fatigue.

Also, if you play in wet or damp conditions, the shafts get pitted and start to rust. They create weak points, which is obviously not good for golf.

Considering your 7-iron shaft will have to be replaced anyway, you need to replace it with something similar so you don't end up with a problem. If you want to replace the whole set, to keep consistency with the previous shafts.

They way we do that is by looking in a table issued by each manufacturer and their OEM shafts. According the latest table from Ping, your ZZ Lites should be replaced with:

DYNAMIC GOLD S300
126g shaft weight in 5 iron
38" 5-iron length
Frequecy match for 5-iron 299
5-iron swingweight D0

If you take these specs to a qualified clubfitter, he'll know what to do (or should do!).

Let me know if I can be of anymore help.

Chances are Ping WRX in Phoenix may have some shafts, but they'd probably be the only people who would still have shafts.

__________________
Golf is easy ... once you know how.
Graham Arnott, teaching professional
Kelrosa Golf Studios
www.kelrosagolf.com
Class 'A' PGA Member
Full Member: World Golf Teachers Federation (GB&I)

If you have a broken shaft and can find an exact replacement, replace all your shafts as Graham said. My personal preference is the Dynamic Gold. If you are used to stiff shafts, then try the S300s. If you are trying to get a bit more distance and height, then switch your stiff shafts out for regular flex shafts.

Graham - Thanks for the info and the welcome. Much appreciated. I'm glad that the recommended shaft is the S300, because I just specified that shaft for the club tech to use when he reshafts the 7 iron. Nice coincidence! Actually, I specified the SensiCore version of the S300. We'll see how it works out. If I like the extra few grams, I'll get the whole set done with that shaft. You are spot on about the damp conditions too, BTW. These clubs spent their first 11 years of life in Georgia, and the humidity down there is a killer. They've spent the last 10 in Chicago/Evanston, where the climate is no walk in the park either.

FYI, I spoke with Ping after taking the club to the tech, and they do indeed still have the ZZ Lites, as well as the newer Z-Z65, which they say is an updated version of the ZZ Lite. If the S300 Sensicore does not work out, perhaps I'll send the whole set to Ping for ZZ's of some sort.

Gord - Thanks for the help. I'll try the S300 to start in the 7 iron, as I'm not really looking for any more distance. Control and consistency are my keys. I think the S300 should be a little softer than the ZZ Lites (right?), so I should be OK - for what I'm used to at least.

Geez, I wouldn't have thought Ping had ZZ shafts! Shows you: quality clubs and quality company.