Interchangeable component technology – changing the way we play

Just a little more than a year ago on January 1, 2008 USGA changed the way we play golf dramatically. Their change of rules on equipment allowed adjustable clubs to be used in tournament play. This represented one of the most dramatic changes in equipment since steel shafts were allowed in the 1930’s. Has the future of golf clubs been altered forever?

The best players in the world have always been able to change their equipment to match their game and course conditions by going into a Tour van and getting their clubs altered before a tournament. Now, with Interchangeable shaft and head Technology, everyone has that option. It could quite possibly be the wave of the future and a very simple way of custom fitting your equipment to suit your changing swing.

There are currently many club manufacturers offering their version of interchangeable head and shaft combinations with a range of customizability. One such company – Nakashima Golf – The originator and leader in interchangeable hosel technology – have developed possibly the most revolutionary driver of all time. Every aspect of the Nakashima Htec 460 driver can be customized: loft, lie, face angle, internal head weighting, shaft, shaft flex, club length, swing weight, gross weight and even impact sound. This allows complete optimization of your personal launch conditions.

In designing the HTEC, we felt that it was very important to take into account the needs of the master club builders that we work so closely with. A common belief that finding the spine of the shaft and placing that spine in its proper position when building the club is an essential element of making a higher performing driver. The HTEC body and the aluminum hosel each have twelve splines which help create a secure fit between the HTEC head and the hosel. These splines also enable club builders to place the shaft in one of twelve positions which will give them the ability to place the spine in its optimal position should they so desire. (John Nakashima)

The offset 12 spline hosel allows adjustment of face angle and lie angle (2 degrees in either direction)

The Nakashima Htec Driver head has been designed with a completely removable hosel made from CNC milled 7075 Aircraft-Grade Aluminum. This feature allows the Htec head to be quickly and easily assembled with any shaft for play and of course the all important fitting process.

All Nakashima drivers are constructed with a state-of-the-art 2-piece pull-face design. The body is vacuum cast from high-grade titanium and then the forged face is plasma welded in place. This design avoids any energy loss at impact, creating maximum power transfer.

The Nakashima forged face is produced with a proprietary process with super-micro forging. This forged face gives Nakashima drivers unmatched distance with a sound and feel unlike any other in the industry.

The Nakashima Htec Driver is the maximum USGA legal size which provides an unbelievably high moment of inertia (MOI) that creates a huge sweet spot for maximum forgiveness and distance on off-center hits. Its slightly shallower face with a slightly lower center of gravity produces more dynamic loft for a higher initial launch angle with optimal spin for unbelievably long tee shots with unmatched carry and roll distance.

Although these claims are from the company itself I can assure you that until now I haven’t found a driver yet that out performs Nakashima Golf’s 460cc and 440cc on the launch monitor and in play. This comes down to two main reasons. Firstly Nakashima Golf offers a vast range of shafts in their fitting system that caters for every golfer regardless of swing speed, swing type or stature. Secondly the scope of loft options (6 different lofts) in two different head designs allows the fitter to tune the launch angle and ball spin rates to optimize carry distance. Add to this the ability to adjust lie angle, face angle, internal head weight and even the sound – it just doesn’t get any better.

Specifications
HTEC 460cc
Lofts: 8.5, 9.5, 10.5 ,11.5, 13 and 15 degrees
Lie Angle: 57.0 degrees
Construction: Multi-material design featuring separate face, body and hosel
construction
Body: Titanium
Face: Proprietary Super Micro Grain Forged Titanium
Hosel: CNC Milled 7075 Aircraft-Grade Aluminum
Connecting screw: Stainless Steel
Weight screws: aluminum, stainless steel, tungsten
C.O.R.: .830 (Maximum Allowable)