Patent Publication Number: US-2009239678-A1

Title: Press fit hozel receiver

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims the benefit of Provisional Application 61/038,772. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates to golf club shaft design and construction, specifically to means of attaching a golf club head to the hozel. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     There are many techniques for assembling golf clubs. They include metal to metal welding, soldering, brazing, gluing, and mechanical connections, such as crews and rivets. The techniques have various advantages and disadvantages when compared to each other, and cost is an important criterion. 
     Low-cost assembly techniques often result in clubs that come apart under mechanical stress, such as a strong golf swing, or inadvertent contact with the ground or another immovable object. Such clubs will also torque and bend at the connection points, deforming the shaft to head angle and other club parameters. 
     More expensively produced clubs can hold up under such stresses better and maintain the correct shaft angles and head orientations even after extensive use. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention is a technique for assembling the shaft to the head of a golf club, using a pressure fitting as the primary means of attaching the shaft to the head. 
     The technique involves preparing the head such that the hole where the shaft is to be inserted is drilled to a precise size, a press fitting constructed of a rigid material is placed in the receiving hole such that it rests on the bottom of the hole, and inserting a hozel with a characteristically shaped end into the hole such that it encounters the characteristically shaped press fitting. 
     The shape of the end of the hozel and the press fitting are matched such that physically pressing the hozel into the hole and forcing the hozel end into firm contact with the press fitting will create a physical gripping of the hozel by a combination of the hole shaft walls and the press fitting. 
     A supplementary attachment means can be used to add additional strength to the bond holding the press fitting and hozel in the shaft hole in the golf club head. A variety of glues and brazing means can be applied to set the parts of the system together more firmly. 
    
    
     
       DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
         FIG. 1 . Exploded view of the press fit system 
         FIG. 2 . Application of a wrench to insert the hozel in the shaft receiver hole 
         FIG. 3 . Cutaway view of the hozel, press fitting, and golf club head assembled 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESIGN 
     The mechanical components of the invention are shown in  FIG. 1 through 3 . The disassembled parts of a golf club hozel assembly are the club head  101 , the hozel placement hole  102 , the hozel locater  103 , the hozel base  105 , the hozel  104 , and the golf club shaft  106 . A wrench  107  is also shown. A golf putter is shown in the figures as the preferred embodiment, but the method is applicable to any golf club assembly. 
     The preferred method is comprised of the steps of preparing the club head  101  such that the hozel placement hole  102  where the hozel  104  is to be inserted is drilled to a precise size, press fitting a hozel locater  103  constructed of a rigid material in the hozel placement hole  102  such that it rests on the bottom of the hole  102  as in  FIG. 2 , and inserting a hozel  104  with a characteristically shaped hozel base  105  into the hole such that it encounters the characteristically shaped hozel locater  103  as in  FIG. 3 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2 , the shape of the hozel base  105  and the hozel locater  103  are matched such that physically pressing the hozel  104  into the hole and forcing the hozel base  105  into firm contact with the hozel locater  103  will create a physical gripping of the hozel by a combination of the hozel placement hole  102  walls and the hozel base  105 . 
     A supplementary attachment means can be used to add additional strength to the bond holding the hozel locater  103  and hozel  104  in the hozel placement hole  102  hole in the golf club head  101 . A variety of glues and brazing means can be applied to set the parts of the system together more firmly. 
     Although the invention has been described and a preferred embodiment has been provided, equivalent features may be employed and substitutions made within this specification without departing from the scope of the invention as recited in the claims.