With the ability to play any JDM driver and shaft Its not an easy task deciding on just one gamer, too much switching has hurt my score in the past but on the flip side having access to a ton of different drivers over the last 13 years has helped me understand what I want and need to play my best golf.
In 2013/2014/2015 one brand has captured the big dog’s spot more than any and that’s Jbeam. Not from bias but for the simple reason that they are Loooong and reduce spin significantly, It started with the original 435, then the Blackout 435 and for most of 2015 the ZY-11. I currently own 2 Jbeam Blackout 435’s and 2 Jbeam ZY-11’s all four with Seven Dreamers Shafts installed, before that the Basileus AAA in 50 & 60 Stiff & Regular tipped along with many other shafts from some of our top shaft companies and It’s not just me who owns multiple JBeams many of TSG’s members have more than a few and for some strange reason just can’t let them go.
So what’s new about my latest gamer? Well for one the white finish yet the biggest difference to note is the Limited Seven Dreamers L01 Nishijin-ori Shaft, This means all 4 of my Jbeam drivers sport seven dreamers shafts and thankfully my driving game and confidence has never been better. Follow the Jump to see more photos and check out the specs on this shaft/head combo…
If you are not up to speed about seven dreamers I’m going to provide 2 links that will help, read them in order:
#1 Explains the Brand and Concept: http://blog.tourspecgolf.com/seven-dreamers-golf-shafts/
#2 Explains the New Limited Seven Dreamers L01 Nishijin-ori Shaft: http://blog.tourspecgolf.com/seven-dreamers-l01-limited-edition-shafts-only-300-made/
Not convinced? Head over to the TSG Forums and checkout the insane feedback from real world clients these are getting.
For what you get these are NOT expensive! The Seven Dreamers Matrix Shaft costs over 1k, the Haute that includes a custom fitting in person in Japan Only runs over 1500 and this Limited L01 is almost 3 grand! They do come with goodies that no other brand can match but what makes them special is they are custom made for you, your information, your driver head, your grip, your final specs it’s basically a one off and the brand’s database of what works and what doesn’t is expanding at a rapid pace. I’ve known guys to buy shafts that cost over 1k that are off the rack, nothing special, not nearly the best materials so by this standard this far exceeds anyone’s expectations.
Above is my shaft design, I was fit in Japan 1 year ago and have undergone some swing changes where I simply updated them during the purchase of my next shaft and they revised the next shaft for me to reflect those adjustments. The result has always been mind blowing, Spin was my problem and it’s now in check, too high a trajectory was an issue not any more and this L01 version is ELECTRIC! Seven Dreamers is a very analytical and straight up company I asked them what’s so special about the new L01 they said Chris, Honestly performance is same as your current shafts but the feel has been improved. OK improved I will try it… How to put this into words, a normal shaft is like an F16 taking off a standard runway, this is an F35 being catapulted off the deck of an aircraft carrier, electric powerful kick that still feels like that smooth seven dreamers characteristic but now an increase in kick feel. It’s not really any different than my other 7D shafts besides that and the ancient Japanese Nishijin-ori weave pattern on it.
I’m not going to get too deep into it as you can always read the two links I posted above, but 7D needs to know your final playing specs, it’s a huge deal the shaft design can’t be complete imo until they take all details into consideration, that said I’m a big fan of the Elite Y360 with a wrap or two of tape under it coming off the Tour G J-Spec Grips which I still like in my irons.
The ZY-11 is low spin/medium launch I’ve gone from 9* to 9.5* to 10* to 10.5* and am now using an 11* with a 0.50* closed face angle all this tweaking of specs has lead me to be able to swing softer and smoother for more distance than trying to crush the ball this has helped me maintain a good score later in the round after about hole #11 where I begin to swing sloppy if I have to really go after it but best of all no matter what I do the ZY + 7D Combo is laser straight, no energy loss in the arc of trajectory, perfect height and roll out for me.
Straight speaking the ZY-11 for me is not as long as the Jbeam 435 but it’s still the better of the two for my game. Crushing both with a hard swing when I catch the Blackout 435 on the screws it goes a good 5-10 yards further but the ZY-11 combo has the perfect amount of facial real estate for my miss hits which are high and low on the face.
Want more info on this club, it’s an older review but I still stand by it: http://blog.tourspecgolf.com/j-beam-zy-11-review/
I really love the 7D shafts. And I love those grips. But the head I tried and it didn’t work well for me with the face just too deep. I found the Romaro Gold as a better and longer option for me. But just need to save up to keep buying the shafts because they are really good.
Yes we hear that from 7D customers all the time. They say the shaft actually SAVES them money because they stopped buying any other shaft.