US20130059674A1 - VCM Golf Club Grip System - Google Patents
VCM Golf Club Grip System Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- US20130059674A1 US20130059674A1 US13/537,051 US201213537051A US2013059674A1 US 20130059674 A1 US20130059674 A1 US 20130059674A1 US 201213537051 A US201213537051 A US 201213537051A US 2013059674 A1 US2013059674 A1 US 2013059674A1
- Authority
- US
- United States
- Prior art keywords
- grip
- golf club
- grips
- thickness
- weight
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Abandoned
Links
Images
Classifications
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
- A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
- A63B53/00—Golf clubs
- A63B53/14—Handles
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
- A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
- A63B60/00—Details or accessories of golf clubs, bats, rackets or the like
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A63—SPORTS; GAMES; AMUSEMENTS
- A63B—APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT
- A63B60/00—Details or accessories of golf clubs, bats, rackets or the like
- A63B60/06—Handles
- A63B60/22—Adjustable handles
- A63B60/24—Weighted handles
Definitions
- FIG. 2 Perspective view of a medium width grip
Abstract
A golf club grip system is presented comprised of golf club grips of identical weights regardless of their grip thickness. The identical weight may be maintained by altering the grip material compound, grip construction method, or by varying the length of the grip along the golf club shaft as the grip width is varied.
A set of standardized grip widths is also presented that varies in increments of the thickness of duct tape, thus providing a standard method of adjusting the thickness of a golf club grip on a shaft.
The system is designed to permit pre-manufactured golf club grips to be selected by grip thickness and feel, while remaining identically weighted to all other possible thicknesses. This uniform weighting removes the need to adjust club head weight or perform dynamic or static swing weighting after grip thickness is selected.
Description
- This application is a Continuation-in-Part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/466,328, which is currently co-pending.
- This invention relates to golf club grips and grip replacement systems.
- Customization is the key component in proper fitting of golf clubs, but is lacking with one of the most important aspects of the club: the golf club grip. The only contact the player has with his club is via the grip, and hence the grip fit to the player's hands must be comfortable and sure.
- If the grip is too small, the hands tend to be overactive and there is loss of control. If the grip is too large, proper wrist hinging will be impeded and there will be loss of power. Having the proper grip size also increases the longevity or wear of the grip.
- Arriving at the correct sizing for grips for club builders has traditionally been to add buildup tape to standard, mid-size, or jumbo grips to get a proper size, but club balance suffers in the process. This is true even if no build up tape is used but larger sized grips are substituted for a standard size.
- Current golf grip sizing uses nebulous sizes such as “+ 1/32nd”, “+ 1/16th”, and “+⅛th”. There is a need for a system of consistent, predictable size increments based on a reasonable metric. Golf club grips from various manufacturers in the industry also have inconsistent size, length, and weight increments
- The present invention provides a system for producing a set of golf club grips that are of varying thicknesses but of the same weight. The grips will maintain the same texture from size to size, and maintain the same “feel” and touch.
- The present invention also establishes a set of standard grip sizes to the golf industry. The method of the present invention includes setting standard size increments based on grips with installed thicknesses of multiples of a single layer of duct tape.
- The present invention also maintains overall club balance and swing weight while permitting wide variations in golf club grip thickness. Typically, adding an additional weight of 4 grams to the grip by building it up with tape or installing a heavier grip requires an additional 2 grams of weight added to the head to maintain a constant swing weight balance. For example, switching to a midsize grip may typically add 8 grams to the grip and require adding 4 grams to the club head. Adding the weights at both ends increases club weight as well. Using grips that vary in thickness but maintain a constant weight solves this problem.
- Installation of golf club grips is labor-intensive with the current methods, involving repeated applications of buildup tape and may require golf shafts to be pulled with weight added inside them at the tip end. Typically, custom grip installations can take up to an hour of time. The pre-manufactured, variable-thickness constant-weight grips of this invention can be “blown on” by means of vacuum pressure in approximately 10 minutes without using build up tape or installed with conventional double sided tape and solvent.
- It is an objective of the present invention to provide a golf club grip system that maintains a constant grip weight from size to size.
- It is an objective of the present invention to provide a golf club grip system that maintains a constant texture and feel from grip to grip.
- It is an objective of the present invention to provide a golf club grip system that establishes a consistent grip sizing system based on thicknesses of build up tape.
- It is an objective of the present invention to provide a golf club grip system that maintains overall swing weight balance and club weight.
- It is an objective of the present invention to provide a golf club grip system that reduces installation times for custom golf grips.
-
FIG. 1 . Perspective view of a small width grip -
FIG. 2 . Perspective view of a medium width grip -
FIG. 3 . Perspective view of a wide grip - The present invention is comprised of a set of identically-weighted golf club grips 101 that have
varying widths thinner width grip 102 is longer on the club shaft than thethicker grips 104, each having in this embodiment commensuratelyvarying lengths FIGS. 1 , 2, and 3, the grip lengths are exaggerated for emphasis, and are not representative of the true lengths of the invention. - The golf club grip 101 of this invention is comprised of a proprietary blended material, in the preferred embodiment a soft plastic or rubber compound, but may in alternate embodiments include a polymer, leather, or synthetic compound. The weight of the grips in the set comprising the present invention will be chosen in the range of 50 to 54 grams for the preferred embodiment of the invention and maintained throughout the grip set. Alternate embodiments will be in the weight range of 40 to 60 grams.
- Core grips sizes for the invention will run from 0.580 to 0.620 inches.
- There are a variety of grip manufacturing methods that can be selected from to produce the single-weight, multiple-size grip set of the present invention. The preferred method is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,503,430 to Downey, but other plastic molding methods are available.
- Materials for the grips can be selected from any of the popular grip materials as long as grip weight is preserved across the widths. A typical material would be thermoplastic, rubber or a rubber blend. The preferred embodiment for this invention uses a set of grips comprised of thermoplastic compounds.
- The present invention includes a standard set of custom grip sizes based on the thickness of a layer of duct tape. The present invention eliminates the need to build up grips with tape or other means by providing a set of pre-manufactured grips in a variety of sizes that can be ordered by customers by grip width number.
- The method of the present invention involves measurement of the golfer's grip requirements and then custom fitting a grip to the golf clubs. Because the weight of the golf club grip remains the same for all grip thicknesses, the club does not need to be dynamically swing weighted afterwards to adjust for added weight at the grip; the pre-calculated weight stays the same for any grip choice.
- Measurement could be performed by providing a set of grips on cut-down shafts for the golfer to try for hand feel. The grip size associated with the best-feeling club shaft would be ordered or available on site, and could be installed by blowing the grip onto the golfer's selected club shafts by means of vacuum or air pressure, or traditional double-sided tape and solvent.
- While the foregoing describes a preferred mode; variation on this design and equivalent methods may be resorted to in the scope and spirit of the claimed invention.
Claims (1)
1. A golf club grip system, the system comprised of a set of golf club grips,
the individual golf club grips in a plurality of thicknesses and lengths, for each golf club grip in the set the weight of material comprising the golf club grip remaining the same over the range of the set of golf club grip thicknesses,
the plurality of golf club grip thicknesses provided in a range that varies in increments of the thickness of one layer of duct tape,
the golf club grips in the set each having the same texture on their external surfaces, the golf club grips in the set comprised of materials selected from the list of thermoplastic compounds, leather, or synthetic materials.
Priority Applications (1)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US13/537,051 US20130059674A1 (en) | 2009-05-14 | 2012-06-29 | VCM Golf Club Grip System |
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US12/466,328 US20090286617A1 (en) | 2008-05-15 | 2009-05-14 | VCM Golf Club Grip System |
US13/537,051 US20130059674A1 (en) | 2009-05-14 | 2012-06-29 | VCM Golf Club Grip System |
Related Parent Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
US12/466,328 Continuation-In-Part US20090286617A1 (en) | 2008-05-15 | 2009-05-14 | VCM Golf Club Grip System |
Publications (1)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
US20130059674A1 true US20130059674A1 (en) | 2013-03-07 |
Family
ID=47753569
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
US13/537,051 Abandoned US20130059674A1 (en) | 2009-05-14 | 2012-06-29 | VCM Golf Club Grip System |
Country Status (1)
Country | Link |
---|---|
US (1) | US20130059674A1 (en) |
Cited By (1)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US20150251064A1 (en) * | 2014-02-18 | 2015-09-10 | James I. Chapin | Weighting assembly for golf club |
Citations (10)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US4022470A (en) * | 1975-10-08 | 1977-05-10 | Stephen Vidal | Grip for implement handle |
US4189144A (en) * | 1976-07-20 | 1980-02-19 | Amf Incorporated | Golf club |
US4995609A (en) * | 1987-02-27 | 1991-02-26 | Callaway Golf Company | Iron golf club heads |
US5467984A (en) * | 1991-10-17 | 1995-11-21 | Taylor Made Golf Company, Inc. | Balanced golf club |
US5686158A (en) * | 1991-11-21 | 1997-11-11 | Jmk International, Inc. | Low specific gravity silicone rubber golf club grip |
US5749792A (en) * | 1996-08-30 | 1998-05-12 | Engfer; Jeffrey R. | Golf club handle oversize grip kit |
US5772525A (en) * | 1994-12-15 | 1998-06-30 | New Vision Golf Corp. | Golf putter |
US6296576B1 (en) * | 1999-07-06 | 2001-10-02 | Raymond A. Capelli | Golf club having a swing-weight housing allowing variable swing-weights and automatic counterbalancing |
US20080139333A1 (en) * | 2002-02-28 | 2008-06-12 | Lon Klein | Golf club head |
US7553240B2 (en) * | 2007-01-10 | 2009-06-30 | Acushnet Company | Golf club heads with interchangeable hosels |
-
2012
- 2012-06-29 US US13/537,051 patent/US20130059674A1/en not_active Abandoned
Patent Citations (10)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US4022470A (en) * | 1975-10-08 | 1977-05-10 | Stephen Vidal | Grip for implement handle |
US4189144A (en) * | 1976-07-20 | 1980-02-19 | Amf Incorporated | Golf club |
US4995609A (en) * | 1987-02-27 | 1991-02-26 | Callaway Golf Company | Iron golf club heads |
US5467984A (en) * | 1991-10-17 | 1995-11-21 | Taylor Made Golf Company, Inc. | Balanced golf club |
US5686158A (en) * | 1991-11-21 | 1997-11-11 | Jmk International, Inc. | Low specific gravity silicone rubber golf club grip |
US5772525A (en) * | 1994-12-15 | 1998-06-30 | New Vision Golf Corp. | Golf putter |
US5749792A (en) * | 1996-08-30 | 1998-05-12 | Engfer; Jeffrey R. | Golf club handle oversize grip kit |
US6296576B1 (en) * | 1999-07-06 | 2001-10-02 | Raymond A. Capelli | Golf club having a swing-weight housing allowing variable swing-weights and automatic counterbalancing |
US20080139333A1 (en) * | 2002-02-28 | 2008-06-12 | Lon Klein | Golf club head |
US7553240B2 (en) * | 2007-01-10 | 2009-06-30 | Acushnet Company | Golf club heads with interchangeable hosels |
Cited By (1)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US20150251064A1 (en) * | 2014-02-18 | 2015-09-10 | James I. Chapin | Weighting assembly for golf club |
Similar Documents
Publication | Publication Date | Title |
---|---|---|
US10350466B2 (en) | Golf club shaft with high balance point and golf club including same | |
US10046216B2 (en) | Golf club with improved weighting | |
US10792546B2 (en) | Golf grip | |
US7798912B2 (en) | Variable hardness hand grip | |
US6461259B1 (en) | Table tennis bat with adjusting gravity mechanism | |
US20160250531A1 (en) | Interchangeable Sports Grip | |
US8882616B2 (en) | Racket and a process that allows the entire length of the racket handle accessible to receive insertable and removable cartridge carriers of various weights for play testing and racket customization | |
US10441860B1 (en) | Golf putter with adjustable counterbalance weight system | |
CN102100964A (en) | Lightweight golf grip | |
JP2018516122A (en) | Variable length shaft and adjustable mass for golf clubs | |
US20130059674A1 (en) | VCM Golf Club Grip System | |
US20090286617A1 (en) | VCM Golf Club Grip System | |
US9522313B2 (en) | Counterbalanced putters | |
US20100292021A1 (en) | VCM Golf Club Grip System | |
US20190269986A1 (en) | Systems and methods for selectively enhancing the weight and aerodynamics of sporting equipment | |
EP3283183B1 (en) | Universal swing training apparatus | |
US20040163215A1 (en) | Handle of golf club shaft | |
US617796A (en) | Rubber ball | |
CN201098509Y (en) | Rotary entwining type handgrip belt | |
JP3138775U (en) | Golf shaft and golf club | |
JP5407238B2 (en) | Golf ball set | |
CN104524751A (en) | Badminton racket capable of adjusting equilibrium point | |
WO2005011816A3 (en) | Training umbrella golf grip | |
KR20040064049A (en) | Multi purpose golf shaft | |
JP2003199853A (en) | Golf club shaft |
Legal Events
Date | Code | Title | Description |
---|---|---|---|
STCB | Information on status: application discontinuation |
Free format text: ABANDONED -- FAILURE TO RESPOND TO AN OFFICE ACTION |