We all know Crazy makes some of the best performing shafts thanks to awesome high grade carbon materials and profiles made for big distance performance without sacrificing control.  Along with Quadra, Crazy has been one of our best selling shaft brands.  They’ve always had many models based on different materials, different swing types and weights and trajectory. Well things have gotten crazy at Crazy as they have revamped their entire woods shaft lineup for 2011. More selection is great for the consumer but it makes choosing the right shaft even harder!

I’m going to take a stab at explaining briefly the new lines  today before they get listed up in the pro shop and available to the masses. I won’t go into to much detail on each specific as I still have to translate the product descriptions for the product listings.

Basically Crazy has decided to break their wood shaft offerings up into 3 major lines. In the past there were many models non really falling under a certain grouping of characteristics. These 3 new lines feature several models that all target the similar style player swing. Three lines also allow Crazy to create more high grade carbon shafts for different swing profiles. Previously for example, there really was only one main 80t shaft the Crazy Black 80 and one main 50t shaft the Crazy Black 50. Now there are 3 of each suiting 3 different style players.

BLACK NERO NOIR Lines…

The three new Series offered by Crazy are the “BLACK”, “NERO” and “NOIR”. Crazy has always been focused on premium distance performance and the new lineups are no different, there just happens to be more shafts to choose from (or get confused over!!).

Top Grade Carbon…

For those of you not familiar with Crazy Shaft, they are a brand that believes in creating the best performing shafts only from the best carbon available in Japan. Crazy uses 46t to 80t  full sheets of hand rolled carbon in all their shafts. So how does carbon grading work? Shafts are created with carbon fibers weaved together, and these fibers are measured by their modulus of elasticity in tension. Typical golf shafts are around 24t or 30t, the measurement of tensile strength. These lower grade shafts are more flexible and because of this the shaft is slow to regain its original shape on the downswing creating inconsistent impact where a player must rely heavily on timing due to the flexibility of the shaft.

As the tensile strength increases, the carbon weaves are more dense, more rigid and return more quickly to their original shape. The flex and rebound of the shaft becomes more predictable equaling more consistent shots and much tighter dispersion. The higher tensile ratings ratings in golf shafts are also related to the higher grades containing more glass and metal particles which are more rigid and lower grades containing more flexible rubber particles. Part of the reason why Crazy shafts are so explosive are that, even though they use those tightly weaved, denser carbon weaves, they create shafts with very active and thinner sections which lead to very high action (but controlled) in the shaft.

Two for the Hitter, One for the Swinger…

As you can see from the table above showing the 3 Series, you can pretty much tell the carbon grade of each shaft by the model name, except for the Longest yard models which use 46t.  Crazy originally began as a company making shafts for long drive competitors which included the fastest swingers and hardest hitters in Japan. Because of this the bulk of their product is still aimed at more aggressive hitters and made for crazy distance performance. The “BLACK” and “NERO” both target hitters with slight differences in their designs. The “BLACK” is for the fastest and most aggressive swinger who does not want to worry about timing. Just swing away and the head will meet the ball with the same release every time giving max distance and control. The “NERO” is more for the hitter who doesn’t swing quite as fast as the “BLACK” series player but still aggressive and  wants to feel the shaft more. Both the “BLACK” and ‘NERO” line are great at eliminating the left side.

The “NOIR” line is made for the fast but smooth swinger looking for max distance and feel. The “NOIR” series plays the softest of the three lines and will be a good option for those looking for a straight or soft draw ball. All Crazy shafts have always been known to spin very low and the new models are no exception.  It all comes down to finding the right model which matches your swing style and speed and give you the performance you want. Typically Crazy plays up to a flex stiffer than most other aftermarket shafts so it’s good to to step down a flex or half if you are not overly aggressive or powerful. As always I’m here to help you find the right shaft as well so feel free to contact me with your swing specs (spec list on the golftoimpress.com contact page).