We've launched the new forums! Read more here

Driver shaft shortened for 5 wood?

Nippon Shafts
Wasabi

Wasabi

Well-known member
Albatross 2024 Club
Joined
Feb 5, 2022
Messages
469
Reaction score
314
Location
Lutz, FL
Handicap
🍺
Can I shorten a driver shaft on the butt end for use in a 5 wood? Won't shortening on the butt end soften the shaft as well? I have a Ping Tour 65 stiff driver shaft I'd like to shorten to a 3 wood length to use in my 16.5* 5 wood. I'd actually like it having less flex after.

Thanks for any input.
 
Should work as you’d like. The added weight of the 5w and the length of a 3w will soften the shaft as you want.
 
Thanks for the input,

From Ping's site it looks like I'll have to take 2.75" off of a driver shaft to get to 3 wood length. That's a lot more than from a 3 wood shaft to 5 wood. Will I be OK?
 
Wasabi said:
Thanks for the input,

From Ping's site it looks like I'll have to take 2.75" off of a driver shaft to get to 3 wood length. That's a lot more than from a 3 wood shaft to 5 wood. Will I be OK?
Click to expand...
Yes, wood shafts are the same shafts either cut from the tip or butt. You’ll have enough material to work with.
 
Most shafts need to be tipped for fairway woods.
Just a heads up.
 
It will soften the flex.
 
Should work fine for what you want. I did that for my son as he was growing to find his sweet spot. I left the 5W a little long in case I needed to tip trim it and basically guessed how much to tip trim based on his feedback. It’s an art more than a science once you start with custom tip trims.
 
My understanding was that anytime you shortened a shaft you stiffened it, unless you counterbalanced it with a heavier clubhead weight! I don't know how good your engineering skills are, but good luck!
 
Thanks for the input. I thought shortening it from the grip/butt end would soften the shaft and if shortened from the tip side, it would make the shaft play stiffer? I'd actually like to soften the shaft up as it's a stiff shaft and I need more of a regular. Just trying to work with something I already have in my stash rather then getting a new shaft. I actually already have a Ping Tour 65 regular in my driver.
 
If you want to soften it you can just trim it from the butt end. I think generally you tip a 3w 1/2” or an 1” I forget exactly which.
 
All traditional wood shafts start as a 46” blank and are either butt cut or tip trimmed & butt cut for their desired use. In most cases driver shafts are untipped and butt cut to desired length while most fairway wood shafts being tip trimmed per the shaft manufacturer’s recommended cutting instructions. The most common 3wood tip trim is .5” but it’s not universal across all brands. Fujikura shafts are not tipped for Drivers or 3-woods and their tipping will start at the 5-wood. In your case depending on the model shaft if you take all the length from the butt end, the shaft will play slightly softer than it would if you followed the manufacturer’s recommended tipping. This is not a problem to do, if you’re new to this type of work I’d recommend putting the tip you want on the shaft installing it in the head and then marking your desired playing length. Drivers and fairway wood shafts have different bore depths in their respective heads, even on adjustable clubs, so it’s easy to mess up the numbers if you’re basing your numbers off the playing lengths of clubs on a OEM website. Cutting a shaft from the butt end does very little to stiffen the shaft even if you take off a few inches. Tip trimming WILL make a shaft feel and play stiffer while also reducing the torque slightly.
 
Thanks again for the input,

The shaft already has a G400 adapter on it. Are they universal to the drivers and FWs?
 
A1GolfPro said:
All traditional wood shafts start as a 46” blank and are either butt cut or tip trimmed & butt cut for their desired use. In most cases driver shafts are untipped and butt cut to desired length while most fairway wood shafts being tip trimmed per the shaft manufacturer’s recommended cutting instructions. The most common 3wood tip trim is .5” but it’s not universal across all brands. Fujikura shafts are not tipped for Drivers or 3-woods and their tipping will start at the 5-wood. In your case depending on the model shaft if you take all the length from the butt end, the shaft will play slightly softer than it would if you followed the manufacturer’s recommended tipping. This is not a problem to do, if you’re new to this type of work I’d recommend putting the tip you want on the shaft installing it in the head and then marking your desired playing length. Drivers and fairway wood shafts have different bore depths in their respective heads, even on adjustable clubs, so it’s easy to mess up the numbers if you’re basing your numbers off the playing lengths of clubs on a OEM website. Cutting a shaft from the butt end does very little to stiffen the shaft even if you take off a few inches. Tip trimming WILL make a shaft feel and play stiffer while also reducing the torque slightly.
Click to expand...
I bolded the most important part. Most shaft companies will recommend on how to tip the shaft for each wood. The overall length is then your choice, but I usually go with the standard length for how the head would usually come in the setup.
 
Wasabi said:
Thanks again for the input,

The shaft already has a G400 adapter on it. Are they universal to the drivers and FWs?
Click to expand...
it’s a good idea to check with the manufacturer to be sure. The inside diameter of the adapter will be the same but some may be different sizes and need different screw lengths in the head. I’m not familiar with PING but the answer might be on their FAQs or a quick call to their customer service team will get you the answer you need.
 
@Wasabi the Ping adapters are the same through Driver to Woods. Your 400’s will interchange without issue, the tips didn’t change till the 410’s. Good advice through here but some didn’t read what your hoping to accomplish so hope it’s not confusing to why so many answers. Butt trimming only will get you your desired effect of softening the shaft and it’ll install directly to your 5w without having to mess with adapters in the process.
 
Golfers Anonymous said:
@Wasabi the Ping adapters are the same through Driver to Woods. Your 400’s will interchange without issue, the tips didn’t change till the 410’s. Good advice through here but some didn’t read what your hoping to accomplish so hope it’s not confusing to why so many answers. Butt trimming only will get you your desired effect of softening the shaft and it’ll install directly to your 5w without having to mess with adapters in the process.
Click to expand...

Thanks Golfers Anonymous!

Yes, that's the bottom line of what I want. I understand there are a lot of variables here. I'll have my shop do the cutting and make sure everything is good for my swing.
 
If you do not tip the shaft and shorten from the butt end, and with the heavy weight of 5 wood, you may get a lot of spin along with that added flex of the shaft.

Look at the shaft manufacturer's recommendations for tipping. I'd probably tip for a 3 wd if I were to do what you are contemplating.

If you do as planned, I would leave more length at the butt end just in the event you don't like the results and can tip slightly and then adjust the final length of the butt end.
 
Desmond said:
If you do not tip the shaft and shorten from the butt end, and with the heavy weight of 5 wood, you may get a lot of spin along with that added flex of the shaft.

Look at the shaft manufacturer's recommendations for tipping. I'd probably tip for a 3 wd if I were to do what you are contemplating.

If you do as planned, I would leave more length at the butt end just in the event you don't like the results and can tip slightly and then adjust the final length of the butt end.
Click to expand...

That's what worries me is making it too soft and adding too much spin. From Ping's site I'm going to have to take about 2.75" off of the butt end to get to a 3 wood length. Is that too much to take off?
 
Wasabi said:
That's what worries me is making it too soft and adding too much spin. From Ping's site I'm going to have to take about 2.75" off of the butt end to get to a 3 wood length. Is that too much to take off?
Click to expand...


This is the thing - That is a Ping Made For Shaft and I know little about it other than when you go to ping.com and fairways and shafts, it is a low-mid launcher. So I assume Ping is also using the same driver shaft as a fairway shaft

If you are using the club at 16.5 and 43 inches, it's like a 3HL, which if you want something off the deck that is long, that may do it for you.

I can see using it at 43 inches and not tipping. I might leave a half inch on and make it 43.5 inches, grip down to 43 and see what it does. If you like it, take off .5 inches at the butt and re-grip. If it's too high in terms of spin, tip the shaft a quarter inch-half inch depending on what you see with a real golf ball (not a range ball), then butt cut to length.

See if anyone disagrees.
 
Thanks. Yes, I'm trying to play my 5 wood as a more versatile 4 wood as I don't carry a 3 wood. I have the 21* UW in my bag as well.
 
Wasabi said:
Thanks. Yes, I'm trying to play my 5 wood as a more versatile 4 wood as I don't carry a 3 wood. I have the 21* UW in my bag as well.
Click to expand...

I think my suggestions give you more flexibility depending on what you see with a real golf ball.

You will find the swingweight heavier at 43 inches but you may like it - a heavier swingweight will soften the shaft up slightly, which is what you want at the bottom of the shaft to get more launch. It also puts more mass in the clubhead - a little more pop.

Depending on how you react to the club, it may benefit you or maybe not - just need to hit it with real golf balls.
 
Wasabi said:
Can I shorten a driver shaft on the butt end for use in a 5 wood? Won't shortening on the butt end soften the shaft as well? I have a Ping Tour 65 stiff driver shaft I'd like to shorten to a 3 wood length to use in my 16.5* 5 wood. I'd actually like it having less flex after.

Thanks for any input.
Click to expand...
Sorry for the message way after you made this thread but I'm curious, I've been contemplating doing the same thing into the exact same club, have a callaway tour ub driver shaft I want to switch adapter to Taylormade and cut it down to a 5 wood length. How did this process work for you?
 
colindk said:
Sorry for the message way after you made this thread but I'm curious, I've been contemplating doing the same thing into the exact same club, have a callaway tour ub driver shaft I want to switch adapter to Taylormade and cut it down to a 5 wood length. How did this process work for you?
Click to expand...

Generally to do this you would tip the shaft after removing the adapter. Generally a 3w is tipped 1/2” and 5w an 1”. 5w shafts are generally heavier than a driver and 3w that is why you tip the shaft to get it to play the flex you want.

I would tip the shaft an inch then butt trim it to length. I have done that with some other shafts and had it work.
 
any time i've tried this i have not liked the results. ymmv
 
I removed a Nickent driver shaft 5ish years ago when I started my club customisation adjusting journey, it was the first graphite shaft I'd removed and I over heated the tip removing the adapter 😭
That tip was cut 1.5inches and I fitted it to a TM M6 3wood head that never really suited me but for the occasional perfect shot which means it's not been hit this year, I think the shaft needs some more muscle to get the best out of it as it's too stiff now and I don't want to shorten the butt and then it's total rubbish. Maybe, I wish you luck with your quest ...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top