OBAN CT-125 Steel Shaft Review

OBAN has filled out their weight categories with the OBAN CT-125 steel iron shafts.  These great shafts complement the CT-115 and CT-100.  When OBAN partnered with Shimada all indications were that the OBAN CT line would be not only great performing, but high quality.  Right on both counts!  The new CT-125 is no exception.

Available Lengths and Flexes

The CT-125 is a taper tip (.355″), constant weight, discrete length iron shaft.  Available lengths are from 41.5 inches to 36 inches in one-half inch increments.  This gives us professional club builders a lot of options in flexes.  For example, we could build a soft R (Regular) flex starting with a 40.5 inch length for a 6 iron or start with a 38.5 inch length for a 6 iron which would build to X to X+ flex.  Still plenty of shafts to build out the wedges!

Quality

The measures of quality we look at are weight, balance point, torque, flex (CPM – cycles per  minute) and load profile measured at seven points along the shaft.  These shafts rated 92+ % consistency which is right at the top of steel iron shafts we have tested in this weight class.  Another measure of quality is how close the shafts at each length vary in flex and weight.  The weights get slightly heavier (2 grams) from the longest iron to the shortest.  This is similar to the CT-115 irons.  The flex profiles also get slightly stiffer in the short irons.  This may be a design consideration so that a set will have slightly heavier, stiffer, lower launching behavior in shorter irons (8, 9 PW), than in the longer irons (4, 5, 6).  

Performance

Our test team evaluated the CT-125 steel iron shafts against numerous other manufacturer’s shafts to look at such parameters as launch, spin, smash factor, peak height and shot dispersion.  Our tests are all done with shafts that match our testers in terms of weight, flex, swing weight, length, loft and lie.

Launch and Spin

The CT-125 steel shafts are a mid launch and mid spin shaft.  Even though the tip sections tested out a bit soft in our static tests, the TrackMan data showed typical mid launch and mid spin numbers.

Ball Speed and Dispersion

Smash factors (ball speed divided by club speed) are very consistent and miss-hits give slightly better distance and shot dispersion results than other shafts in the 120-130 gr. weight class.

 

Bottom line

If you are looking for a 125 gram steel shaft that launches slightly higher than the True Temper Dynamic Gold or KBS C-Taper but lower than the True Temper Elevate Tour or KBS Tour, the OBAN CT-125 Steel shaft is your ticket!!  Properly fit to your swing, these shafts will have you hitting more GIR and dropping strokes!

Dan Sueltz