The Application of Structurally Unsymmetric Laminated Construction for CFRP Golf Club Shaft

Abstract

Composite pipes with structurally unsymmetric laminated construction show coupled deformations of bending and torsion. That is, those pipes are bended as well as twisted when a bending moment applied. The golf club shaft is subjected to the moment caused by the centrifugal force acting on the club head during golf swing because the center of gravity of a club head doesn't be located on the axis of a shaft. In this study, the possibility to adjust the face angle just before the impact utilizing the structurally unsymmetric laminated golf club shaft, is investigated. By using the designed laminating method called 1.5 turn lapping, a shaft having practical stiffness and strength as a normal golf club shaft, and also having coupled deformations, is manufactured. Through robot and human tests with a golf club assembled with the designed shaft, it is confirmed that the face angle can be changed comparing with the normal shaft and the slice or the hook also can be rectified pertinently.