From: kim@guppy.uucp (Isaac Kim)
Newsgroups: rec.sport.golf
Subject: Re: changing the lie of clubs
Date: 25 Dec 1992 08:28:44 GMT
Organization: UC San Diego
NNTP-Posting-Host: guppy.ucsd.edu

In article <Bzpzuv.4AD@news.cso.uiuc.edu> chapman@uiatma.atmos.uiuc.edu () writes:
>I am concerned that at my address and impact positions my club head
>has the toe slightly higher than the sole of the club.  That is,
>the back end of the club head will hit turf before the rest of the sole
>of the club.  Ideally, I would like the sole to lay flat against the 
>ground surface at my current address and impact positions.

The sole position at address and impact are very different due to
the bowing out of the shaft at impact.  Ideally, if you want the
sole to lie flat at impact, you need the toe slightly raised at
address.  I forget which book I read this in, but they said a good
check of this is that you should be able to slip a piece of paper
underneath the toe and it should touch the sole of the club half
way to the hosel if the address lie is correct.

I will now try to demostrate how a shaft and club differs at address 
and impact in ascii (with significant exaggeration) (view from behind):
           
  At address:                      At impact:

   \                              --..
    \                                 \
     \                                 \
      \                                 . 
       \                                 |
        \  /                             |
         \/                              |____

I hope you get the idea.  Again, since the angle between the sole of
the club and the shaft at the hosel is constant and shaft does bow 
outwards at impact, raising the toe slightly at address will give you
a flat sole at impact.

>I have standard length shafts and am 5' 9".  There are two ways to 
>achieve the results I am after: (1) shorten the shafts and (2) change
>the lie of my clubs.  Does anyone know if it is possible to change the
>lie of ones clubs?  I have forged irons; can I just put them in a vice and
>put a blow torch to them?

Along with your height you need to know the length of your arms to 
determine if your standard lies need adjustments.  The nice thing about 
forged irons are that the steel is soft enough that they can be bent
with a little force.  There are bending vices which lock in your iron
head and have another attachment which clamps to the hosel.  With the
aid of some measurement rulers, you simply yank on the bar attached to
the hosel until the desired lie and loft are achieved.  Most repair
shops have such a device.  I was surprised how many adjustments my 
new Hogan irons needed just to be set to standard loft and lie specs.

Cast clubs like Pings and Tommy Armour 845's are a different story.
Since the cast steel is a lot harder, you actually need a machine to
be able to bend them.  The amount you can adjust a cast club is also
very limited because cast steel is very brittle under bending 
stress. (as opposed to forged which you can bend quite a bit).
I have seen a cast club shatter in one of those bending machines.
This lack of adjustability is is why Pings are available in so many 
different lies (indicated by the color codes).  Since forged clubs 
can be bent alot more, you just buy the standard lie and adjust as 
necessary.

>
>Thanks,
>Bill

Isaac (kim@bull.ucsd.edu)
Newsgroups: rec.sport.golf