JP2003062136A - Golf club - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To inexpensively provide a high-performance golf club strengthening the repulsion of a ball by reducing the thickness of a face part to extend a sweet area. SOLUTION: In the golf club obtained by connecting a shaft 2 to a head 1 provided with a face 3 on its front face and a shaft fitting part 8 on one side, at least the face 3 is formed of spring steel.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a golf club.

[0002]

Conventionally, low carbon steel such as S20C (carbon steel for machine structure), so-called soft iron, has been widely used as an iron-based material for golf club heads. When a golf club head is manufactured using this soft iron by a forging method, a golf club with a very good feel can be obtained.

On the other hand, the thickness of the face portion is reduced in order to widen the sweet area of the face surface, which is an area where the ball relatively well flies when hitting the golf ball, and to enhance the repulsive force of the ball. Is generally known to be effective. However, in the case of a golf club made of soft iron, if the thickness of the face portion is made thin, the resistance of the material itself against a ball hit is low, and the face surface is dented by repeated hits. Therefore, the thickness of the face portion is limited to about 3.0 mm.

As a technique for overcoming such drawbacks and reducing the thickness of the face portion, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-308410 discloses a technique in which maraging steel is used as a material forming the face portion. . Since this maraging steel has a very high strength, it is possible to make the face portion thinner than before by using the maraging steel. However, maraging steel contains 3 additional elements.
It is a very expensive material, as much as 0% or more, and when it is used, it has a drawback that the product price of the golf club becomes high.

Therefore, the present invention solves the above problems by
An object of the present invention is to provide a high-performance golf club which has a thin face portion to widen a sweet area and enhance the repulsive force of a ball at a low cost.

[0006]

According to the invention of claim 1, in a golf club in which a shaft is connected to a head having a face portion on the front surface and a shaft mounting portion on one side, at least the face portion is formed of spring steel. It is a golf club characterized in that.

According to the structure of claim 1, since the spring steel is excellent in fatigue strength, it is possible to reduce the thickness of the face portion. Furthermore, since the additive elements are few and the cost is low, the sweet area is widened. Thus, it is possible to provide a high-performance golf club with improved ball repulsion at low cost.

A second aspect of the present invention is the golf club according to the first aspect, wherein the face portion has a thickness of 2.5 mm or less.

According to the structure of claim 2, it is possible to provide a high-performance golf club in which the sweet area is widened and the repulsive force of the ball is enhanced.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, a recess is formed in the back surface of the head, and the head has a head main body formed on the front surface so as to communicate with the recess through a window hole corresponding to the face portion. 3. The golf club according to claim 1, further comprising a face member fixed to the window hole, wherein an undercut portion is formed on the face portion side of the lower inner surface of the recess.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the sweet area is widened and the metal portion close to the face portion is eliminated, so that the face portion is efficiently deflected and the repulsive force of the ball is enhanced. A golf club can be provided.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, a back shell is formed on the back surface of the head through a hollow portion, and the head has a front surface that communicates a window hole corresponding to the face portion with the hollow portion. The head body thus formed and a face member that is fixed to the window hole, and an undercut portion is formed on the face portion side of the lower inner surface of the hollow portion. Is a golf club.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the sweet area is widened and the metal portion near the face portion is eliminated to efficiently bend the face portion to enhance the repulsive force of the ball. A golf club can be provided.

[0014]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. 1 to 6 show an iron type golf club according to a first embodiment, which includes a head 1 and a shaft 2. The head 1 has a face 3 which is a face portion for hitting a golf ball (not shown) on the front surface, and the top 4 of the face 3 is a top 4, the sole 5 is a lower part, the toe 6 is one side, and the heel is the other side. 7 are formed. A shaft mounting portion 8 called a hosel or the like is provided on the upper portion of the heel 7 so as to project obliquely upward, and the lower end of the shaft 2 is connected to the shaft mounting portion 8.

Further, a concave portion 9 is formed to distribute the weight around the back surface of the head 1 to increase the moment of inertia. The concave portion 9 has a bottom surface 9A facing the face 3, an upper inner surface 9B at the upper portion, a lower inner surface 9C at the lower portion, one side inner surface 9D on one side, and another side inner surface 9E on the other side. Reference numeral 10 in the drawing denotes a lateral groove formed on the face 3, which is called a score line or the like.

The head 1 is provided with a shaft mounting portion 8 on the other side, and a head body 1A formed on the front surface so as to communicate the window hole 11 with the bottom surface 9A of the recess 9 corresponding to the face 3. A face plate 14 that is a face member fixed to the window hole 11. The peripheral portion 12 of the window hole 11 has a bottom surface 9A.
The upper inner surface 9B, the lower inner surface 9C, the one-side inner surface 9D, and the other-side inner surface 9E are arranged outside by a step 13 and are larger than the inner surface 9B. Then, in the window hole 11, the face plate 14 is provided with a stepped portion 13 on the back surface.
It abuts and is fitted and fixed to the bottom surface 15 of the. Further, an undercut sag portion 16 is formed on the face 3 side of the lower inner surface 9C of the concave portion 9 forming the cavity. This undercut 16 is recessed toward the sole 5,
It is formed from one inner surface 9D side to the other inner surface 9E side in the lower inner surface 9C, and the depth D thereof, that is, the distance D between the deepest part of the cutout portion 16 and the inner lower surface 9C is 7 mm or more, preferably 10 mm or more. Has been formed. The dug portion 16 deepens the depth of the center of gravity of the head 1, widens the sweet area, makes it easier for the golf ball to go up, and eliminates the metal portion near the face 3 to bend the face 3 efficiently. It is provided so that it can be done.

Here, the head body 1A is made of S20C which is a low carbon steel, and is formed by forging using a die. The face plate 14 has a thickness of 2.5 mm obtained by blanking (outer shape cutting) a rolled steel plate of SUP10 which is spring steel and having a thickness of 2.5 mm.
It was formed in. It is preferable that the thickness of the face plate 14 is as thin as possible because the sweet area can be expanded. However, as a result of experiments, it was found that the face plate 14 is recessed by a relatively small number of hits when the thickness is less than 1.5 mm. Further, it has been found that it is more preferable that the thickness of the face plate 14 is 2.0 mm or more in order to secure the strength against repeated hits. On the other hand, face plate
When the thickness of 14 exceeds 3.0 mm, there is almost no effect of expanding the sweet area, which is not preferable, but when it is 2.5 mm or less, a remarkable effect of expanding the sweet area was observed.
Therefore, the thickness of the face plate 14 is 3.0 mm or less, preferably 1.5 to 2.5 mm, more preferably 2.0.
~ 2.5 mm. The thickness of the face plate 14 is S
It can be changed according to the thickness of the rolled steel plate of UP10. In addition,
The face plate 14 may be formed by forging.

Further, spring steel is compliant with JIS standard.
It is written as, but is an abbreviation for Steel Use Spring. The types, chemical components, mechanical properties, etc. of spring steel are as shown in Tables 1 and 2. All types of spring steel contain less than 5% of additive elements and are inexpensive.

The SUP10 used in this embodiment is used for coil springs and the like, and has a proof stress of 1079 N / mm ² or more and a tensile strength of 1226 N according to the JIS standard.
/ Mm ² or more, and the hardness (HB) has a mechanical strength of 363 to 429. On the other hand, although not shown in the table, the JIS standard S20C yield point is 245 N / mm ² or more, tensile strength is 400 N / mm ² or more, and hardness (HB) is 116 to 174.
The mechanical strength is considerably lower than that of SUP10.

[0020]

[Table 1]

[0021]

[Table 2] Next, the manufacturing method will be described. First, low carbon steel S20C
From the metal raw material (not shown), a master (not shown) of the head body 1A is formed by forging using a die. After that, as shown in FIG. 5, the concave portion 9 is formed by a machining part 20 such as a cutting tool such as an end mill or a cutting tool or a polishing tool.
The window hole 11 and the cutout portion 16 are processed and formed. Egg section 16
Is formed by passing the processed portion 20 through the window hole 11 from the front side and cutting or polishing the front side of the inner lower surface 9C. Further, a small convex portion 18 is formed along the peripheral edge portion 12 on all or part of the peripheral edge portion 12 of the window hole 11, in the embodiment, on the top 4 and sole 5 sides. The protrusion 18 has a height X of 1 mm or less, preferably about 0.8 mm, and a width Y of 1 mm or less, preferably 0.5 mm.

On the other hand, the spring steel SUP10 has a thickness of 2.5 mm.
The rolled steel sheet is subjected to blank processing (outer shape processing) into the shape of the face plate 14 to form the face plate 14. Then, a chamfered portion 19, which is a concave portion of about 0.5 to 1.5 mm, is formed on the edge of the back surface of the face plate 14 at an elevation angle of, for example, a predetermined 45 degrees or more, for example, an elevation angle of 80 degrees.

Then, the head body 1A and the face plate 14 are fixed to each other by laser welding. After fitting the face plate 14 into the window hole 11 of the head body 1A, laser welding is performed with the head 21 of the laser welding machine directed toward the edge 12 of the window hole 11. At this time, the concave portion 18 is also melted and the welded central portion rises up, and heat sinks both sides of the concave portion to cause a depression, but the molten metal of the convex portion 18 flows into the depression and the occurrence of a depression is prevented. The convex portion 18 has a height X of 1 mm or less and a width Y.
Was set to 1 mm or less, but if it is larger than this, the laser cannot be focused, and as a result, the convex portion 18 may not be surely melted. Also, laser light is applied from the front side to perform welding, but a chamfered portion 19 formed on the back surface of the face plate 14 forms a gap 22 between the face plate 14 and the bottom surface 15, and the face plate is partially formed. Although the thickness of 14 is thin, the escaped part of the bubble generated at the time of laser welding is secured by making the thinned part through-welding. In this case, air bubbles are not trapped in the welded portion, and as a result, pinholes are not formed at the welded portion. The laser welding has an output of 450 W, a speed of 250 mm / min, a pulse number of 30 pps, and a penetration depth of about 1.5 to 1.6 mm. The chamfered portion 19 is only required to form the void 22, and the shape and angle of the surface can be modified.

Compared to TIG welding, the laser welding used here has less heat-affected zone and less distortion, and can be welded to dissimilar metals without the need for a melting rod and can be automated by automatic programming. In addition, the welded portion has a V-shape and has an advantage that good welding can be performed. In addition, since the laser light is an electromagnetic wave, there is no restriction on the working atmosphere, and the optical device (lens or mirror) can be used to condense or change the path, and it is not affected by the electromagnetic field, so there is no restriction on the processing jig, and metal and metal Both non-metals are to be processed, and X-rays are not emitted from the base material. In this respect, electron beam welding requires a vacuum environment in principle, and there is a problem in equipment and workability. TIG welding has the disadvantages that it is subject to a large amount of distortion due to the large heat effect, it takes time for manual work, and the bead line is also unstable.

After that, the head 1 is subjected to heat treatment such as quenching and tempering to adjust the strength and toughness of the head 1, and further polishing and plating are performed to finish the head 1.

It is known that spring steel is shot peened in order to further increase fatigue strength.
You may perform such a process suitably. However, in this embodiment, since the face plate 14 is thin, stress may warp during shot peening, so caution is required.

As described above, in the above embodiment, the golf club in which the shaft 2 is connected to the head 1 having the face 3 as the face portion and the shaft mounting portion 8 on one side according to claim 1, At least the face 3
Since the spring steel is formed of spring steel, the spring steel has excellent fatigue strength. Therefore, even if the thickness of the face 3 is thinned, the face 3 can be thinned without being repeatedly hit by a ball hitting. Therefore, it is possible to provide a high-performance golf club with a wide sweet area and a high ball repulsion force at a low cost.

According to claim 2, the face 3 has a thickness of 2.5 mm or less, so that a sweet area is widened and a high-performance golf club having a high ball repulsive force is provided. You can

Further, according to claim 3, a recess 9 is formed on the back surface of the head 1, and the head 1 communicates with the recess 9 on the front surface thereof corresponding to the face 3. Head body 1A formed in the above and the window hole 11
Consisting of a face plate 14 that is a face member that adheres to
Since the undercut sag portion 16 is formed on the face 3 side of the lower inner surface 9C of the concave portion 9, the sweet area is widened and the face 3 is efficiently bent by eliminating the metal portion near the face 3. Therefore, it is possible to provide a high-performance golf club with an improved ball repulsion.

Next, a second embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. The same parts as those in the first embodiment are designated by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted. FIG. 7 shows a hollow iron type or wood type golf club according to the second embodiment, in which a back shell is formed on the back surface of the head body 1A with a hollow portion 41 interposed therebetween.
42 is provided integrally. Other configurations are the same as the first
This is exactly the same as the embodiment.

As described above, in the above embodiment, the golf club in which the shaft 2 is connected to the head 1 having the face 3 as the face portion and the shaft mounting portion 8 on one side according to claim 1, At least the face 3
Since the spring steel is formed of spring steel, the spring steel has excellent fatigue strength. Therefore, even if the thickness of the face 3 is thinned, the face 3 can be thinned without being repeatedly hit by a ball hitting. Therefore, it is possible to provide a high-performance golf club with a wide sweet area and a high ball repulsion force at a low cost.

Further, according to claim 2, the face 3 has a thickness of 2.5 mm or less, so that a sweet area is widened and a high-performance golf club having a high ball repulsive force is provided. You can

Further, according to a fourth aspect, a back shell 42 is formed on the back surface of the head 1 through a hollow portion 41, and the head 1 has a window hole 11 on the front surface corresponding to the face 3. It is composed of a head body 1A formed so as to communicate with the hollow portion 41 and a face plate 14 which is a face member fixed to the window hole 11. An undercut portion is provided on the face 3 side of the lower inner surface 9C of the hollow portion 41. Since the flaring part 16 is formed, the sweet area is widened and the metal part near the face 3 is eliminated to efficiently bend the face 3 to provide a high-performance golf club with enhanced ball repulsion. can do.

Next, a third embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. The same parts as those in the first embodiment are designated by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted. FIG. 8 shows a wood-type golf club according to the third embodiment, in which the head 1 is a hollow metal so-called metal wood. Although the head 1 has a hollow portion 51 inside, the hollow portion 51 may be filled with a filler such as polyurethane. The head 1 is divided into, for example, three parts. That is, the outer shell of the head 1 is composed of the face plate 14, which is a plate-shaped face member, the body member 52, and the crown member 53. The face plate 14 forms the face 3, the crown member 53 forms the crown 4 and the body member 52 forms the sole 5 other than that.
Etc. are formed. And these face plates 1
4, the body member 52 and the crown member 53 are joined to each other by means such as welding.

Further, the face plate 14 and the body member 5
2. The crown member 53 is formed from a rolled steel plate of SUP10, which is spring steel, by forging or press forming. The face plate 14 is formed to have a thickness t1 of 2.5 mm, and the body member 52 and the crown member 53 are formed to be thinner than the face plate t1. Further, the preferable thickness of the face plate 14 is the same as that of the first embodiment, and the description thereof will be omitted. Note that only the face plate 14 may be formed of spring steel, and the other members may be formed of titanium alloy, low carbon steel, or the like.

As described above, according to the first embodiment, in the golf club in which the shaft 2 is connected to the head 1 having the face 3 which is the front surface and the shaft mounting portion 8 on one side, according to the first aspect, At least the face 3
Since the spring steel is formed of spring steel, the spring steel has excellent fatigue strength. Therefore, even if the thickness of the face 3 is thinned, the face 3 can be thinned without being repeatedly hit by a ball hitting. Therefore, it is possible to provide a high-performance golf club with a wide sweet area and a high ball repulsion force at a low cost.

Further, in accordance with claim 2, the face 3 has a thickness of 2.5 mm or less, so that a sweet area is widened and a high-performance golf club in which the repulsive force of the ball is enhanced is provided. You can

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, but various modifications can be made within the scope of the present invention.

For example, although the above embodiment has been described by taking an iron type, hollow iron type or wood type golf club as an example, the present invention is not limited to this, and a putter may be used.

In the first and second embodiments, only the face material 14 is made of spring steel.
The whole may be forged using spring steel. Further, the type of spring steel is not limited to SUP10, and other spring steel may be used. In the case of forming the head 1 from the face material 14 and the head body 1A, the material of the head body 1A is S
The material is not limited to 20C, and may be other iron-based material, stainless steel, titanium-based alloy, or the like. Further, the joining of the face material 14 and the head body 1A is not limited to laser welding, but other T
Welding means such as IG welding, press fitting or fitting by plastic deformation of the material, or adhesion using an adhesive may be used. Further, the window hole 11 and the cutout portion 16 may be forged at the same time when the head body 1A is forged, without cutting or polishing. Further, a small convex portion 18 is formed along the peripheral edge portion 12 on the side of the top 4 and the sole 5 of the head main body 1A, but the convex portion 18 is not limited to this, and other portions of the peripheral edge portion 12 and the peripheral edge portion 12 are formed. It may be formed on the entire circumference of, or may be formed on the entire circumference or a part of the peripheral edge portion of the face material 14.

[0041]

According to the invention of claim 1, the face portion is provided on the front surface,
In a golf club in which a shaft is connected to a head having a shaft mounting portion on one side, at least the face portion is formed of spring steel, and the spring steel is excellent in fatigue strength, so the thickness of the face portion can be reduced. In addition, since the amount of added elements is small and the cost is low, a high-performance golf club having a wide sweet area and enhanced ball repulsion can be provided at low cost.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, since the thickness of the face portion is 2.5 mm or less, it is possible to provide a high performance golf club in which the sweet area is widened and the repulsive force of the ball is enhanced.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, a recess is formed on the back surface of the head, and the head has a head body formed on the front surface so as to communicate a window hole corresponding to the face portion with the recess. Since the undercut portion is formed on the face portion side of the lower inner surface of the concave portion, the face portion is fixed to the window hole, so that the sweet area is widened and the metal portion in the portion close to the face portion is eliminated. It is possible to provide a high-performance golf club in which the ball is efficiently deflected to enhance the repulsive force of the ball.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, a back shell is formed on the back surface of the head through a hollow portion, and the head has a front surface that communicates with a window hole corresponding to the face portion. It is composed of a head body formed and a face member fixed to the window hole, and an undercut portion is formed on the face portion side of the lower inner surface of the hollow portion, so that the sweet area is widened and the portion close to the face portion is formed. By eliminating the metal portion, it is possible to provide a high-performance golf club in which the face portion is flexed efficiently and the repulsive force of the ball is enhanced.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view showing a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the first embodiment of the present invention viewed from the front side.

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the first embodiment of the present invention viewed from the back side.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view at the time of machining showing the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view at the time of welding showing the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view showing a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view showing a third embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 head 1A head body 2 shafts 3 faces (face part) 8 Shaft mounting part 9 recess 9C Lower inner surface 11 window 14 Face plate (face member) 16 Drilling part (undercut part) 41 hollow 42 back shell

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A golf club in which a shaft is connected to a head having a face portion on the front surface and a shaft attachment portion on one side, wherein at least the face portion is formed of spring steel. 2. The golf club according to claim 1, wherein the face portion has a thickness of 2.5 mm or less. 3. A head main body having a recess formed on the back surface of the head, and a head body formed on the front surface so as to communicate a window hole with the recess corresponding to the face portion.
The golf club according to claim 1, further comprising a face member fixed to the window hole, wherein an undercut portion is formed on a lower inner surface of the recess on the face portion side. 4. A head body having a back shell formed on the back surface of the head through a hollow portion, and the head body having a window hole formed on the front surface so as to communicate with the hollow portion in correspondence with the face portion. 3. The golf club according to claim 1, further comprising a face member fixed to the window hole, wherein an undercut portion is formed on a lower inner surface of the hollow portion on the face portion side.