New Shaft Announcement!!!!

[indacup]

Finally! New Shaft Information!!!!

I apologize for the long delay in getting info out to you all…but we wanted to make sure everything was in place before we release any info.

At this point in time, the characteristics, performance, name and cosmetics of the shaft have been decided…..the last piece to complete is final price point, which we are 99.9% certain on.

So here is the scoop on the new TourSwing shaft…

NAME
This caused surprisingly too much concern….we asked for input from a few golf forums and players locally and we got names like Hurricane and Tornado to a wide range of Japanese names.

Our thought process was names like Hurricane seemed cheap and without imagination……and after 18 months of work on this shaft, the last thing needed was to toss an unimaginative name on a carefully created product.

The Japanese theme was a nice idea…but we perceived doing that would be jumping on the “bandwagon” like so many others….besides, this shaft was designed in the heartland of the USA for real players we’ve seen and listened to from high handicap beginners to LDA and PGA professionals... not slapped together by a couple guys in some Pagoda who figure cute names, colors and high prices will sell product.

So we took a step back and figured this was the creation of guys in the Midwest…which was originally inhabited by native Indians…primarily, the Sioux Nation….so we got a hold of a Sioux Indian dictionary and searched for the “perfect word”…one that sounded powerful, and also had relevant meaning and we found it.

The name of the shaft is “OKATO” which means “Nail It” in Sioux.

COSMETICS
As I warned you all, the colors, like the shaft, will not be traditional… As a matter of fact, we are relatively certain some will not buy it BECAUSE of the color scheme alone.

That is fine.

This shaft is not made for the “fashion obsessed”, but instead for the serious players who are serious about their game.

While at this moment we do not have the final images to share, I can tell you that the shaft is Purple…..with Neon Green and Neon Orange artwork (I TOLD ya it wasn’t traditional!).

PRESS RELEASE

“Each time we develop a new shaft, it is our goal to take previous shaft characteristics and improve upon them. Our latest/newest model, the "Okato" is now in production, with the first run due here near the end of April.

The prototypes of this shaft have been tested for months by Long Drive professionals, current PGA Tour Professional and Senior tour players. We have also had numerous average players test the shaft recently at golf shows and demos nationwide. The feedback has been extremely exciting and positive.

We took our most recent, successful shaft, the Avenger, and made it even better. We utilized precise manufacturing tolerances and proprietary technology that allows for variable stiffness at critical points in the shaft and created a design that offers tip stability, fast recovery rate and a "lively" kick section, while enhancing the load/unload of the shaft for maximum performance and feedback for players of all skill levels”.

PRICING/PRE-BOOK INFO
This is another area we are “dialing in” right now…the manufacturing cost would justify (based on industry standards) a retail price around $200-$250….but it appears we will be able to establish a MSRP of $149.00. (dealer pricing will also be available)

We will be offering a one-time only pre-book special, on a very limited run, at a very special price which will include an “Okato” golf cap and authentic Indian head nickel/ball markers.

The Indian head ball markers we thought would be a nice touch…since most likely you’ll be the first person to the green, might as well use a unique marker to let others know which one is you!

We will announce pre-book pricing along with the images of the OKATO within the next day or so.

Stay tuned!

[eclark53520]

Solid name. I like it.

[BigJim13]

Solid name. I like it.

Agreed!

[LeftyHoges]

Sounds awesome Rory. I'm in.

[nututhugame]

I'm sorry Rory, but I must've missed it when you gave the specs and such. Could you give a break down of specs, feel, and the like. Possibly a comparison or two to a shaft or two that most everyone has hit at one point or another. Or if you've already done that could you link me to it please.

[indacup]

nut-

Sorry, I missed this request from you!

This shaft has gone thru 14 months of design, testing "bending and tweeking".....a lot has been discussed here...but the "readers digest version is this:

The Okato has a relatively mid bend point with a gradually increase density to the relatively stiff tip.... what we set out to do was create a shaft that feels ultra smooth, controllable......with a huge load factor...but maintain a relatively mid-to low torque characteristics for stability on off center hits..

We played around with specific areas (beam locations) to increase and decrease density of the graphite wind in a manner to achieve a flight path and feel we feel that is conducive to most players.

I just now got back from Minnesota from what appears to be final field testings of the shaft....in simulated paint material....because layers of paint CAN effect shaft performance. The performance, with the paint was as extraordinary as the last shaft we approved for production.
As far as posting a shaft profile comparison between it and some other similar shafts...I can do...but I am not sure if I should do it based on this pre-production paint job or use an actual production one....I assume they will be the same...but I won't know till next week when the first production shaft arrives...


Thoughts?

[xamilo]

Okato? There is a place in New Zealand I once went for Rock Climbing which was named the same way hehehehe. I like the name, its fun...

I didn't know the paint job could affect a shaft's performance!!!!!

You should wait for the pre-release to post anything. It would be annoying, as you mentioned before, to have anything copied from it before releasing it...

[N.V.M.]

Okato sounds Japanese to me.

[indacup]

".....I didn't know the paint job could affect a shaft's performance!!!!!...."

Yup.

Remeber the original Accuflex Evolution shafts???

They had an amazing paint job and were extremely stout....that shaft had 6 coats of paint on it....later on, in an effort to economize (I speculate) they went to a two coat paint job and the shaft performance was affected.

THe original Okato shafts were tested with one thick coat of black paint.....the production will be two coats. Should not be a najor issue...but we needs the specs to be exact.

[indacup]

Okato sounds Japanese to me.

That was another benefit of the name...we did not want to use a Japanese name...even though many asked us too...but this Sioux Nation word, had a cool translation and the fact that it "sounds" Japanese doesn't hurt.

[SilverUberXeno]

I just bought a head especially for this shaft, Rory. Wishon 919THI 8*. I'm ready to let my game out

[indacup]

I just bought a head especially for this shaft, Rory. Wishon 919THI 8*. I'm ready to let my game out

Well, the manufacturer told me our first run is on the way...I was very fortunate that they were able to slip our first small run before their larger run for a major brand.....the company that is making these shafts to our specs have their own lines of upper end shafts that are very popular....so we are in "good company".

[SilverUberXeno]

And those lines are....

[xamilo]

And those lines are....

I'm just as curious. I'll say UST or Matrix hehehehe

[mddubya]

Hmmmm, I've got a J33p in dire need of a new shaft.