The driver shaft plays a significant role in your ability to get the maximum speed, distance, and accuracy off the tee. What is the cost to reshaft a driver when it’s broken or does not suit your swing?
You may want to reshaft your driver if it’s broken, you experience a notable change in swing speed, or you find that the ball is ballooning into the air rather than following a penetrating trajectory.
Can Golf Drivers Be Reshafted?
Golf drivers can be reshafted, however, the adjustable shafts are significantly more difficult to replace than non-adjustable shafts.
Playing few rounds with the proposed replacement shaft before committing to the change is highly recommended.
How Much Does It Cost To Reshaft A Driver?
Driver shaft replacement cost varies depending on the outcomes you expect from your shaft replacement, the type of shaft, and grip selection.
Should I Reshaft My Driver Or Buy A New Driver?
The cost of replacing the shaft, excluding the shaft, is in the range between $25 and $45. This includes the cost of the grip and approximately $20 in labor cost.
Adjustable shafts may require a sleeve adaptor that can set you back in the region of $14.
Shaft prices vary depending on the materials used and graphite shafts tend to be quite a bit higher priced than steel shafts.
Most drivers tend to have lightweight graphite shafts that increase the cost of replacing the shaft.
Other areas to consider in your shaft selection are weight, flex, and kick point.
Lightweight graphite shafts enable you to maximize your swing speed for optimal ball flight, distance, and control.
Top-rated shafts are not cheap, and Seven Dreamers produce the world’s most expensive shaft that can lighten your wallet up to the tune of $1200.
Premium branded shafts are available for between $200 and $500 while less expensive shafts can cost between $50 and $100.
There are non-premium golf shafts available as low as $50 and more recognizable brands such as a Project X New HZRDUS Yellow Driver/Fairway Shaft at around $100.
📋 Keep in mind: Steel shafts can reduce the cost of shaft replacement by between 10 percent and 20 percent.
Ways To Save Money Reshafting Your Driver
The first option in your quest for saving money when your shaft is broken is to follow the warranty process and determine whether the manufacture will replace it under its warranty.
If this option does not pan out, you can save costs by reshafting your driver yourself. This is not a straightforward process, but fortunately, there is loads of help and information available on the internet.
💡 Golfible Tip: YouTube has many videos that provide you with step-by-step processes to successfully complete reshafting. We share a few of those later on.
Additional Costs Of Reshafting Driver
Reshafting your driver carries additional costs not included in the price of the shaft.
There is no way to remove the grip from a shaft for reuse. During the grip removal process, it has to be cut to enable you to remove it successfully. This will enable you to add a grip that suits your requirements to the tee.
A quality new grip will set you back between $10 and $15.
📋 Keep in mind: Unless you are a DIY enthusiast that has experience tinkering with your golf clubs, it would be recommended that you enlist the help of a specialist to reshaft your driver. The cost associated with the labor is approximately $20.
Benefits Of Reshafting
- Increase in your performance – A shaft that suits your swing speed and style, is the right length and weight with a suitable flex and kick point will enhance your driver performance significantly.
- Cost-saving – Replacing a shaft on a relatively new driver, less than 5 years old, could increase performance while saving money. Driver prices have increased significantly due to the labor costs in China rising as well as the materials used in the latest technologies.
Is It Easy To Reshaft A Driver?
Reshafting a golf driver is not a straightforward process, and it is worthwhile to spend some time to understand the process before venturing into the unknown.
This begs the question should I reshaft my driver or get professional assistance to get it done?
DIY Driver Reshaft
Before starting the fitting process ensure that the tip section of your new driver will fit into the tip section that the head is designed for and that you have the correct tools for the job.
Nearly all metal wood heads have a .335″ or .350″ tip size. This can be measured using a Shaft Identification Gauge before purchasing your new shaft.
The process for replacing a standard shaft and an adjustable shaft varies and adjustable shafts require a sleeve adaptor.
Although the physical work can be quite quick to complete the process takes approximately 24 hours to complete.
The type of epoxy used in the process and its drying time to ensure good bonding between the shaft and the driver head are factors to consider. Drying time can be reduced by curing the epoxy at a high temperature.
An excellent example of how to replace a broken graphite shaft can be found in this video below.
The process for pulling the existing shaft and replace is available in this interesting video.
Removal Of The Old Shaft
The first step in the process would be to remove the existing shaft. The process may vary between a broken shaft and removing an existing shaft as set out in the links above. The replacement process remains the same though.
- Remove the ferrule from the hosel with a utility knife.
- Place the club into a shaft clamp with protection to avoid damage to the shaft.
- Heat the hosel area with a heat gun to soften the epoxy glue that keeps the driver head and shaft connected.
- Remove the driver head from the old shaft and take care not to damage or drop the head. Allow the clubhead to cool off before installing the new shaft.
Replacement Process
The steps below can serve as a guideline to replace a driver shaft. The actual process may vary between drivers that require specific components.
- Remove all polyurethane and paint at the tip of the new driver shaft by using a sharp knife while ensuring that you don’t produce a flat spot or cut too much into the shaft. sandpaper can be used to ensure that all the epoxy is removed smoothly.
- Excess epoxy can be removed from the inside of the hosel using a wire brush. The removal of epoxy can be simplified by doing it while the hosel is still warm after removing the old shaft.
💡 Golfible Tip: Be careful not to penetrate too deep in the hosel, as this may damage the bore plug or push it into the head. Clean out the inside of the hosel with a rag to remove the old epoxy.
- Mix the shaft epoxy on the cardboard with the help of the craft stick. It is crucial that you follow the manufacturer’s instructions when mixing the epoxy for the best results.
- Apply some of the epoxy glue inside the ferrule and slide it onto the driver shaft by starting with the narrow end.
- Add more epoxy glue to the shaft’s tip and push it into the hole at the base of the hosel.
💡 Golfible Tip: For an even spread of the epoxy glue around the hosel and shaft you can rotate the shaft left and right a few times.
- Remove the club from the shaft clamp, rest the grip end on the floor and tap the butt end of the grip to push the shaft all the way into the head and ensure that the ferrule is secured at the right depth on the hosel of the driver.
- Remove redundant epoxy glue by wiping the shaft with a soft cloth.
- Let the epoxy dry for up to 24 hours before using the golf club.
Can You Reshaft An Adult Driver For A Child?
Driver heads on shafts designed for children can leave much to be desired especially as the child grows and their golf swing improves.
According to discussions on many forums such as Golf Monthly parents have experienced a significant increase in the driving distance that their children experience when fitting an adult driver head to a child’s shaft.
When cutting down an adult shaft to suit your child you need to keep in mind that it changes the dynamics of the shaft and significantly lowers the swing weight. To overcome this, you could add some lead tape on the bottom of his driver.
Is It Worth It To Reshaft A Driver?
The decision to reshaft your driver should not be taken too lightly. Although the prices of the latest drivers have skyrocketed over the last couple of years, it may still be an effective alternative to replacing your driver shaft.
A new shaft on an old driver may not provide you with the innovative technology available on the latest drivers for extra distance and forgiveness. However much you like your old driver, changing the shaft may not provide you with the ultimate benefit.
A broken shaft on a relatively new driver head makes financial sense to replace provided you cannot make a deal with a reseller to trade in the head on a new driver.
Any change in swing speed, be it as a result of a fitness improvement or an injury, may necessitate the reshafting of your driver.
Ballooning refers to when the golf ball launches exceptionally low and rises significantly followed by a steep decline and lack of rollout.
When your golf ball balloons into the air it may be as a result of the shaft not being stiff enough for your swing. This causes the shaft to add some whip thus increasing the spin rate and balloon effect and affects your distance.
📋 Keep in mind: Your swing speed dictates the flex and other components of your ideal shaft.
Final Thoughts
Driver shaft replacement cost can escalate rather quickly if you select an expensive shaft to suit your needs. Some of the costs can be offset if you can do the work yourself.
This is a complicated process that can easily take a wrong turn.
The labor and material costs to reshaft are rather inexpensive and it is advisable to leave it to an experienced fitter.
Any feedback and your experience with driver shaft refitting will be appreciated in the comments section below.
FAQ
How long should you wait after Reshafting a club?
You have to wait for 30 minutes to use the club again until it is properly dried. In most of the cases, it is suggested to wait for 12 to 24 hours, after giving the club a long-lasting reshaft.
