Today I received another box of parts from Yururi to complete my Seida Rupas and Yururi Tour wedges as I noted in Part 1 a few posts down. What’s interesting is I have 2 sets of shafts here that are very very different from one another and really target different audiences. I received a pair Yururi’s new graphite Wedge shafts specially designed and produced for Yururi by Fujikura shaft. Also in the box were all new DG Spinner shafts which Yururi received from True Temper tour support (players on the Japan tour who use Yururi all play True Temper shafts) and a handful of Iomic grips which Yururi pros also use.

Different heads, different shafts…

So I couldn’t possibly have two more different shafts, each from opposite spectrums of golfer target audiences. The Yururi graphite are regular flex 75g 2.9* torque shafts designed specifically for wedges.  The DG Spinner while marked W for wedge on the shaft label are X Flex from the tour as noted on the butt end of the shafts.  At first I thought, how am I going to make these work as the shafts are so different? Then I realized that this was a good opportunity to build the wedges as they should be because the Seida Rupas and Yururi Tour are also very different.

The first thing I did was weigh each head before the build so I could figure out approximate lengths and swing weights. By the weight alone you can tell that the Seida Rupas and Yururi Tour are meant to be built differently. The Tour’s have heavy heads, made for heavy shafts and high swing weights which appeal to stronger players and faster swingers. On the other hand the Seida Rupas have more average head weights meaning more average swing weights at probably slightly longer lengths with the lighter graphite.

Graphite in wedges? Sure why not!

Over the years with advancement in carbon shaft technology and design, graphite shafts for wedges and irons are more popular than ever. Graphite in irons and wedges aren’t for everyone but for the average golfer or slower swinger they have many merits such as increased ease of use and forgiveness, increased swing speed, vibration absorption and what I believe is more feel. The higher torque in the graphite shafts allow players to feel the shaft more and have the head square to the ball more easily than very low torque steel.  The use of carbon weaves and multi axis carbon have increased stability making many graphite shafts as accurate as their steel counterparts (this yururi shaft is rated at 420+ cpm). With this in mind, the Yururi/Fujikura shaft and its nondescript gray finish will be going in the Seida Rupas creating hopefully a great combination of feel, forgivness and spin. With the lighter Rupas heads I’m guessing around 35.5″ for the approach wedge and 35.25″ for the sand wedge in order to achieve around a D1-D2 swing weight. This is inline with most JDM  graphite iron sets which are typically C9-D1 balance and a 35.5″ PW.

New True Temper DG Spinner shafts…

With the Yururi Tour heads being handily over 300g and the DG spinners over 120g, we’re looking at a heavy wedge here made for the stronger faster swinging player.  The new DG Spinner has gained a lot of recognition since being released on the US Tour and with several big wins as of late.  True Temper designed the DG Spinner to be a low launching shaft which creates stability and control and increases spin for that extra stopping power when approaching the green with full or partial shots.  As you can see from the picture I took on the right, the part under the shaft label which is just below the grip is tapered which according to True Temper decreases launch by 3* and increases spin by 700+ rpm. The Yururi Tour Wedges I’m installing actually have the non-conforming grooves (I also have the conforming head here for comparison) so we should be talking about some major spin here. With the weights and specs of all the parts, these Tour’s look to be in the D4-D6 range (or more depending on how long I go) which is probably very appealing for the strong player.

So I have the compact, thin soled, straight neck Yururi Tour’s going with a tour level shaft in the DG Spinner.  And the lightweight Yururi graphite wedge shafts going in the more forgiving and user friendly Seida Rupas. This should be a fun test but I may need to call on some friends and neighbors with faster swing speeds than mine to properly test the Tour and Spinner combo. Any volunteers? (^_^)