Mizuno Driver Shaft Help

[kthomas]

Need some advice for a new driver shaft for my Mizuno STZ-220.

 

Currently it has a Lin-Q Purple 6F5, and I'm really struggling feeling the driver head in my swing. I think I was a bit audacious by getting a x-stiff, when a 6F4 would've been more suitable for my swing. 

 

I recently went on a trip where I borrowed some clubs from a friend, which had a Titleist 910D2 driver with a Diamana Blue (S?) stiff 60g shaft, and I found that driver setup so much more controllable than my current driver setup. 

 

I think the 6F5 is just too much shaft for me currently, I struggle to load it with my current swing. I'm about a ~100mph, and have lately been swinging with a smooth/easy tempo.

 

I want to find a shaft that's smooth and easy to load, where I can "feel" the head and makes for a driver that's reliable and easy to hit with my swing. Under $100, as money is very tight especially with our first baby on the way.

 

I see Mizuno is now offering Lin-Q M40x and Kai'Li shafts, so those really have my eye as they are readily available on places like eBay.

 

What are some general thoughts on the Lin-Q blue, Lin-Q red and Kai'Li Blue for someone that's looking to achieve my objectives? There's also the odd Atmos Blue and Denali Blue shafts available as well.

Edited June 17 by kthomas

[Urb]

Butt/Mid/Tip

 

Linq red - stiff/med/med - probably closest to the classic Diamana blue

 

Linq blue - med/stiff/stiff - soft under hands, stiffer into tip.  Different than the other two.  

 

Kai blue - med/med/med - also close to classic Diamana blue but for me, the mid is stronger and it's more anti left than the Linq red.

 

 

 

 

[kthomas]

5 hours ago, Urb said:

Butt/Mid/Tip

 

Linq red - stiff/med/med - probably closest to the classic Diamana blue

 

Linq blue - med/stiff/stiff - soft under hands, stiffer into tip.  Different than the other two.  

 

Kai blue - med/med/med - also close to classic Diamana blue but for me, the mid is stronger and it's more anti left than the Linq red.

 

 

 

 

 

This is really helpful, thanks!

 

Another shaft that's on the radar is the Motore X F3, which is very affordable given that it's an OEM option for Mizuno.

[Saijin]

6 hours ago, kthomas said:

Need some advice for a new driver shaft for my Mizuno STZ-220.

 

Currently it has a Lin-Q Purple 6F5, and I'm really struggling feeling the driver head in my swing. I think I was a bit audacious by getting a x-stiff, when a 6F4 would've been more suitable for my swing. 

 

I recently went on a trip where I borrowed some clubs from a friend, which had a Titleist 910D2 driver with a Diamana Blue (S?) stiff 60g shaft, and I found that driver setup so much more controllable than my current driver setup. 

 

I think the 6F5 is just too much shaft for me currently, I struggle to load it with my current swing. I'm about a ~100mph, and have lately been swinging with a smooth/easy tempo.

 

I want to find a shaft that's smooth and easy to load, where I can "feel" the head and makes for a driver that's reliable and easy to hit with my swing. Under $100, as money is very tight especially with our first baby on the way.

 

I see Mizuno is now offering Lin-Q M40x and Kai'Li shafts, so those really have my eye as they are readily available on places like eBay.

 

What are some general thoughts on the Lin-Q blue, Lin-Q red and Kai'Li Blue for someone that's looking to achieve my objectives? There's also the odd Atmos Blue and Denali Blue shafts available as well.

 

First of all CONGRATS ON THE INCOMING LITTLE ONE!! ^_____^

 

SUB 100MPH club head speed?  Below $100 ?

I'd look into Fubuki V - 62g - Stiff flex.

 

It's very smooth, very stable, easy to load. And there's a seller on ebay from Arizona called ProClub I think, he's selling them off for $63 after a 10% off.

I don't know your swing , but i think for that price and the very high quality of the shaft you can't go wrong.

 

It's stouter than a blue board, but definitely much smoother than a white board.

 

 

[kthomas]

1 hour ago, Saijin said:

 

First of all CONGRATS ON THE INCOMING LITTLE ONE!! ^_____^

 

SUB 100MPH club head speed?  Below $100 ?

I'd look into Fubuki V - 62g - Stiff flex.

 

It's very smooth, very stable, easy to load. And there's a seller on ebay from Arizona called ProClub I think, he's selling them off for $63 after a 10% off.

I don't know your swing , but i think for that price and the very high quality of the shaft you can't go wrong.

 

It's stouter than a blue board, but definitely much smoother than a white board.

 

 

 

Thanks! Bringing another golfer into the world!

 

And appreciate the heads up on the Fubuki V - that's an interesting shaft at a great price!

[WristySwing]

In addition to these suggestions, don't let the tried and true shafts of yesteryear go by as they can be had for like nothing. Aldila NV/NVS, RIP and Rogue, UST V2, Tensei Blue, Ozik Red/White Tie, etc. are all great options that you can pick up for probably less than $75 shipped if you are patient. A lot of these were the hot tickets 10-15 years ago. You may balk at that, but 10-15 years ago was when the Graphite Design DI was introduced, Fujikura 757 was introduced 20+ years ago, Diamana Blue, White, and Red boards were introduced ~20 years ago too. Profiles that are still insanely popular and used on tour and in amateur bags extensively. Newer doesn't necessarily mean better, it just means newer materials that often cost way more to produce to give the shaft a slightly different feel. Which often times means little, if anything, to the overall performance.

Edited June 18 by WristySwing

[Ri_Redneck]

It's not the shaft, it's the weighting of the club. Get some lead tape and go to the range to see what a few extra grams does to the feel.

 

BT

Edited June 18 by Ri_Redneck

[kthomas]

29 minutes ago, Ri_Redneck said:

It's not the shaft, it's the weighting of the club. Get some lead tape and go to the range to see what a few extra grams does to the feel.

 

BT

 

I think this is a sensible first step, and one that's crossed my mind as well. 

 

I'll put some lead tape on the driver and try it out this week.

[kthomas]

2 hours ago, WristySwing said:

In addition to these suggestions, don't let the tried and true shafts of yesteryear go by as they can be had for like nothing. Aldila NV/NVS, RIP and Rogue, UST V2, Tensei Blue, Ozik Red/White Tie, etc. are all great options that you can pick up for probably less than $75 shipped if you are patient. A lot of these were the hot tickets 10-15 years ago. You may balk at that, but 10-15 years ago was when the Graphite Design DI was introduced, Fujikura 757 was introduced 20+ years ago, Diamana Blue, White, and Red boards were introduced ~20 years ago too. Profiles that are still insanely popular and used on tour and in amateur bags extensively. Newer doesn't necessarily mean better, it just means newer materials that often cost way more to produce to give the shaft a slightly different feel. Which often times means little, if anything, to the overall performance.

 

I think it's pretty reasonable to point out that just because a shaft is new, doesn't make it necessarily any better than a shaft that's 5, 10+ years old. I know I'm guilty of thinking newer likely means better.

 

I guess where the waters get really muddied for me is trying to figure out how old and new shafts compare, what the best value is, and what works best for my swing.

 

As an example, the Fubuki V mentioned above is really intriguing, but once it's shipped, tipped and gripped it's going to come out to a similar price as a Project X Denali Blue. 

 

But being a proper gear nerd I'm happy to research this until I'm blue in the face 🤓 

[WristySwing]

6 hours ago, kthomas said:

 

I think it's pretty reasonable to point out that just because a shaft is new, doesn't make it necessarily any better than a shaft that's 5, 10+ years old. I know I'm guilty of thinking newer likely means better.

 

I guess where the waters get really muddied for me is trying to figure out how old and new shafts compare, what the best value is, and what works best for my swing.

 

As an example, the Fubuki V mentioned above is really intriguing, but once it's shipped, tipped and gripped it's going to come out to a similar price as a Project X Denali Blue. 

 

But being a proper gear nerd I'm happy to research this until I'm blue in the face 🤓 

 

This is fair for sure. Have you given any thought to just using your shaft but getting an F4? I am not sure how much the LINQ Purples go for, so maybe that isn't possible on $100 or less. You could always reach out to UST and say you like the Purple but it is too much shaft for you now, which more value priced model do they have that would fit the bill?

[kthomas]

12 minutes ago, WristySwing said:

 

This is fair for sure. Have you given any thought to just using your shaft but getting an F4? I am not sure how much the LINQ Purples go for, so maybe that isn't possible on $100 or less. You could always reach out to UST and say you like the Purple but it is too much shaft for you now, which more value priced model do they have that would fit the bill?

 

This was my initial thought, to get a Lin-Q in 6F4.

 

I don't think it has to be a Purple, and because the newer Lin-Q shafts became a OEM offering for Mizuno, I can likely get a M40x Blue or Red with a Mizuno adapter for cheaper or similar price as a Lin-Q Purple. 

 

I'll reach out to UST and see what they say.

[kthomas]

Something else I remembered is that the Lin-Q Purple 6F5 is almost 70g weight, which I think may be culprit (in combination with too stiff of flex).

Edited June 19 by kthomas

[kthomas]

On 6/17/2025 at 2:56 PM, Saijin said:

 

First of all CONGRATS ON THE INCOMING LITTLE ONE!! ^_____^

 

SUB 100MPH club head speed?  Below $100 ?

I'd look into Fubuki V - 62g - Stiff flex.

 

It's very smooth, very stable, easy to load. And there's a seller on ebay from Arizona called ProClub I think, he's selling them off for $63 after a 10% off.

I don't know your swing , but i think for that price and the very high quality of the shaft you can't go wrong.

 

It's stouter than a blue board, but definitely much smoother than a white board.

 

 

 

Decided to grab a Fubuki V series 60g stiff, thanks for the heads up!

 

Got an additional 15% off with a coupon code for Pro Clubs, so I couldn't pass it up.

 

Looking forward to testing it out.

[Saijin]

2 hours ago, kthomas said:

 

Decided to grab a Fubuki V series 60g stiff, thanks for the heads up!

 

Got an additional 15% off with a coupon code for Pro Clubs, so I couldn't pass it up.

 

Looking forward to testing it out.

$75 down to like $63?

[kthomas]

14 minutes ago, Saijin said:

$75 down to like $63?

 

From $63 down to $54.

 

But of course they have to charge $16.99 shipping, which brings it back up a bit.

Edited June 20 by kthomas

[Saijin]

How didnyoubgetvthe extra discount? 
And why is the s’h so high?  
 

either way it’s still a great deal on an awesome shaft. 

[kthomas]

42 minutes ago, Saijin said:

How didnyoubgetvthe extra discount? 
And why is the s’h so high?  
 

either way it’s still a great deal on an awesome shaft. 

 

SHAFTS15 gets you an extra 15% when going through their website.

 

They have a standard shipping rate which is stupid high. 

 

Especially for me, since the shaft only has to go ~100 miles. 

[kthomas]

@Saijin - appreciate the suggestion on the Fubuki V!

 

Finally took it out today, and it's exactly what I was looking for. Incredibly smooth and easy to load, worked perfectly with my swing and the Mizuno STZ-220 head. 

 

Completely transformed this driver for me!

[Saijin]

10 hours ago, kthomas said:

@Saijin - appreciate the suggestion on the Fubuki V!

 

Finally took it out today, and it's exactly what I was looking for. Incredibly smooth and easy to load, worked perfectly with my swing and the Mizuno STZ-220 head. 

 

Completely tr1`1ansformed this driver for me!

AWESOME !!

 

Glad I could help a little ^_^