JP4852821B2 - Golf club head and manufacturing method thereof - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a metal golf club head and a manufacturing method thereof , and more particularly to a golf club head formed by welding a face portion and a crown portion to a head base made of a cast product and a manufacturing method thereof. It is.

  For golf club heads, particularly wood-type golf club heads, metal hollow golf club heads having a hollow interior are widely used. FIG. 4 is a front view of the wood type golf club, and FIG. 5 is a side view thereof. As is well known, in this wood type golf club head, a cylindrical hosel part is projected upward from the side near the player on the upper surface part, and a shaft is inserted into this hosel part and bonded by an adhesive. Has been.

  Conventional metal golf club heads having hollow portions, particularly wood type golf club heads, are often manufactured by a casting method using lost wax. When the hosel part is cast integrally with the head body by this lost wax casting method, the shaft insertion part in the head body following the hosel part is connected to the head body as a whole due to the demolding gradient of the split core. The weight on the heel side of the head will increase.

  As a solution to such a problem, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-17484 discloses in FIG. 3 that the sole surface is opened to form an opening 11 and the hosel insertion hole 12 is opened to the top as shown in FIG. The hollow head main body 10 and the lower half body 20 in which the cylindrical hosel 21 and the sole plate 22 are integrated are separately cast by the lost wax method, and the lower half body 20 is lowered below the head main body 10. A golf club head fitted and welded from the side is described.

  When the lower half body 20 in which the cylindrical hosel 21 and the sole plate 22 are integrated as shown in FIG. 3 is cast by the lost wax method, a portion to be the cylindrical hosel 21 of the wax molded body hangs down. The crossing angle between the hosel and the sole plate is likely to deviate from the design angle.

  That is, the wax molded body molded according to the shape of the lower half body 20 of FIG. 3 is softened by receiving the temperature and radiation in the foundry, and the originally tilted hosel part falls slightly further to the horizontal side. come. When such a wax molded body hosel is tilted, the cast lower half of the hosel is misaligned, and the lie angle of the golf club head is misaligned, so that the production yield of the golf club head is deteriorated. In order to increase the manufacturing yield of the golf club head, it is necessary to correct the angle of the cast lower half of the hosel, which reduces productivity.

The present invention provides a golf club head that solves the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, has a center of gravity on the toe side, and can efficiently manufacture a high dimensional accuracy golf club head at a high yield, and a method for manufacturing the same. With the goal.

The method of manufacturing a golf club head according to the present invention includes a heel side surface portion, a back surface portion, a toe side surface portion, a bottom surface portion forming a sole surface, a face portion forming a front face surface, and an upper surface. In the method of manufacturing a hollow golf club head having a crown portion that forms an upper surface and a hosel portion that protrudes upward and extends to the bottom surface portion, the side surface portion on the heel side, the bottom surface portion, and the hosel portion was the head substrate and integrally cast by a lost wax process state, and are not welded, respectively the face portion and the crown portion relative to the head base, inside the golf club head, the side surface of the hosel portion and the heel side The hosel part protrudes upward from the upper part of the head base and extends in the head base until it reaches the bottom part. And release, the hosel portion is a process for the preparation of the extended Mashimashi in which the golf club head so as to be stretched between the bottom surface portion and the upper portion of the head substrate, the head substrate in the lost wax process in the molding of the wax pattern, by forming upright pins on the portion to be the shaft hole of the hosel portion, characterized by forming a wax pattern of the lower end of the hosel portion is open on the bottom surface of the head substrate Is.

  In such a golf club head, since there is a gap between the hosel portion disposed inside the head base and the side surface on the heel side of the head base, the center of gravity of the golf club head is increased by that amount. Can be positioned on the toe side.

  In the golf club head of the present invention, the hosel portion extends so as to be bridged between the lower portion (sole portion) and the upper portion of the head base. For this reason, when casting by the lost wax method, the hosel part of the wax molded body does not tilt even when softened by receiving high temperature or radiant heat, and a high dimensional accuracy golf club head is manufactured at a high yield. The

  Furthermore, in the golf club head of the present invention, the face portion can be made thin by press forging, thereby increasing the rebound of the ball and increasing the flight distance.

  In the present invention, it is preferable that at least one of the back portion of the head and the side portion on the toe side is integrally cast with the head base.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a golf club head having a shape with a stable lie angle and the like by optimizing the position of the center of gravity of the golf club head.

  According to the present invention, a golf club head with high dimensional accuracy can be manufactured with a high yield.

  Hereinafter, embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a golf club head according to an embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a front longitudinal sectional view of the golf club head.

  In this golf club head 1, a face portion 3 and a crown portion 4 are welded to a head base 2. The head base 2 is obtained by integrally casting a side surface portion 5 on the heel side, a back surface portion 6, a side surface portion 7 on the toe side, a bottom surface portion 8 and a hosel portion 9 by the lost wax method or the like.

  The head base 2 has a hollow shell shape, and an upper surface and a front surface are open. The hosel portion 9 protrudes upward from the top of the head base 2 and extends in the head base 2 until it reaches the bottom face portion 8. A gap V exists between the hosel portion 9 and the side surface portion 5 of the heel portion.

The casting of the head substrate 2, lost wax process (inventory Instituto Instrument casting method) Ru is employed. As a method for injecting the molten alloy into the mold, a centrifugal casting method, a vacuum casting method, a vacuum melting casting method, or the like can be employed.

  For the face portion 3 and the crown portion 4, for example, a thin plate material formed by press forging can be used.

  The thickness of the hosel portion 9 of the golf club head 1 is preferably 1.2 mm or less, particularly 1.0 mm or less, in order to reduce the weight of the hosel portion 9 and make the center of gravity the toe side. However, since it becomes difficult to cast if it is too thin, the thickness of the hosel part is preferably 0.5 mm or more, particularly 0.7 mm or more.

  If the length of the hosel portion 9 (the length of the central axis) is excessively long, the weight of the hosel portion becomes excessive. Therefore, the length is preferably 100 mm or less, particularly 85 mm or less, particularly 75 mm or less. However, if the length of the hosel portion is excessively short, the mounting strength of the shaft is lowered, and therefore, it is preferably 30 mm or more, particularly 40 mm or more, particularly 50 mm or more.

In this embodiment, the lower end of the hosel portion 9 is open to the sole surface as shown in FIG . When the lower end of the e Zell portion 9 is open to the sole surface may shape the pin portion to be a shaft hole at the wax molding an upright position increases the further accuracy.

  By reducing the thickness of the face portion 3, it is possible to increase the repulsion of the ball and increase the flight distance, and to increase the depth of the center of gravity. In the case of a titanium alloy or a stainless alloy, the thickness of the face is preferably 1.5 to 2.5 mm, and particularly preferably 1.8 to 2.3 mm.

  Further, by reducing the thickness of the crown portion 4, the golf club head can be reduced in weight, and the center of gravity of the golf club head can be lowered. Further, the thickness of the sole portion, the back surface portion, or the toe side is increased by the weight reduction of the crown portion 4, and it is possible to make a golf club head having the same weight but a deep center of gravity depth or a low center of gravity height. Become. The thickness of the crown portion is preferably 0.5 to 1.0 mm, particularly 0.7 to 0.9 mm.

  After the face portion 3 and the crown portion 4 are welded to the head base 2, excess welded meat is removed by a grinder or the like to finish it smoothly. Thereafter, plating or painting is performed as necessary to complete the golf club head.

  The golf club head of the present invention is applied to a metal golf club head having a hollow portion, and can be used for a wood type golf club head, a utility golf club head, an iron type golf club head, etc. It is suitable for a golf club head and particularly suitable for a golf club head for a driver having a large head volume.

  As such a golf club head for a driver, the head volume is 220 cc or more, preferably 250 cc or more and 450 cc or less, particularly preferably 300 cc or more and 400 cc or less, and the head weight is 205 g or less, preferably 170 g or more and 195 g or less, particularly preferably. 175 g or more and 190 g or less are suitable.

  The metal used for the head is preferably made mainly of stainless steel, maraging steel, copper alloy, titanium alloy, aluminum alloy or the like. Further, for example, a material having a specific gravity larger than that of the head main body such as tungsten or a tungsten alloy may be used as the weight material for adjusting the position of the center of gravity and the head weight.

  The face portion may be made of the same material as the head base or the crown portion, or may be made of a different material. For example, a metal having a low elastic modulus or a metal having high hardness or tensile strength may be used for the face portion.

  Since the face portion bends when the golf ball is impacted, forging or pressing a plate material is preferable in terms of strength without internal defects such as voids, and the thickness of the face surface can be designed to be thin.

  For example, when an α-β titanium alloy is used for the head body, the Young's modulus is approximately 10900 kg / mm, and when a β titanium alloy is used for the face member, it is approximately 10300 kg / mm or less, which is preferable because the face member is more easily bent. . Specifically, the head body can be made of Ti-6Al-4V, and the face member can be made of Ti-15Mo-3Cr-3Al-3Sn or the like. Ti-4.5Al-3V-2Mo-2Fe is easily plastically deformed at the time of molding and is suitable for manufacturing the face portion.

  In the above embodiment, the back surface portion 6 and the side surface portion 7 on the toe side are also cast integrally with the head base 2, but one or the side of the back surface portion 6 and the side surface portion 7 is separated from the head base 2. Alternatively, it may be coupled to the head base 2 by welding.

[Example 1]
The golf club head shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 was manufactured as follows.

  As shown in Table 1, the head base was made by Ti-6Al-4V by centrifugal casting using the lost wax manufacturing method, and the face part and the crown part were forged from the plate material using Ti-4.5Al-3V-2Mo-2Fe. Manufactured.

  The face portion was designed to be thin and formed by forging using a 1000-ton press molding machine so as to increase the initial speed of the ball by using deflection and to reduce internal defects. The thickness of the face part was 2.5 mm. The wall thickness of the crown portion was 0.9 mm. Since the crown portion is thin, the thickness of the sole portion is increased by the weight of the crown portion, and the center of gravity is lowered by setting the sole portion to 1.5 mm. The thickness of the hosel part was 1.0 mm. The other thickness of the head substrate was 1.0 mm.

  In order to prevent oxidation of the welded portion, the face portion and the crown portion were welded to the head base body while blowing argon gas to obtain a golf club head.

  The above-mentioned head base and the face portion and the crown portion are fixed by welding, and a golf club head is obtained through a normal polishing process and a painting process.

  The head volume at this time was 320 ml (cc) and the mass was 188 g.

[Comparative Example 1]
The head body other than the sole part was integrally cast with a Ti-6Al-4V material including the hosel part. A golf club head was manufactured in the same manner as in Example 1 except that a separately press-formed sole portion was welded to the head body.

The golf club heads of Example 1 and Comparative Example 1 were compared by measuring the moment of inertia IY based on the center of gravity axis, the center of gravity depth Z _G, and the deviation DX _G from the center of gravity on the face from the face center. . The results are shown in Table 1. Incidentally, X _G in Table 1, as FIG. 4, showing the distance from the toe tip of the head length direction to the center of gravity of when set golf club head to the normal lie angle. Further, the face center was set to the face center position in the head length direction with reference to the contact point between the sole portion and the measuring instrument bottom when set at a normal lie angle.

  As shown in Table 1, it can be seen that the center of gravity of the golf club head of the present invention is moved closer to the face center position than the cast golf club head of the comparative example. This makes it possible to fly the ball farther using the deflection of the face surface, and in a general golfer, the deviation between the face center and the center of gravity position is small, so that it can be hit with a sweet spot without a sense of incongruity. Became.

  In Example 1, a golf club head with high dimensional accuracy could be easily mass-produced, and a process for correcting the lie angle was unnecessary.

1 is an exploded perspective view of a golf club head according to an embodiment. 1 is a front sectional view of a golf club head according to an embodiment. It is front sectional drawing which shows the manufacturing method of the golf club head which concerns on a prior art example. It is a front view of a wood type golf club. It is a side view of a wood type golf club.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Golf club head 2 Head base body 3 Face part 4 Crown part 5 Side surface part on heel side 6 Back surface part 7 Side surface part on toe side 8 Sole part 9 Hosel part

Claims (2)

A heel side surface portion, a back surface portion, a toe side surface portion, a bottom surface portion that forms a sole surface, a face portion that forms a front face surface, a crown portion that forms an upper surface, and a protruding upper portion And a method for manufacturing a hollow golf club head having a hosel portion extending to the bottom surface portion,
The heel side surface portion, bottom surface portion and hosel portion are integrally cast by the lost wax method to form a head base, and the face portion and the crown portion are welded to the head base, respectively.
Inside the golf club head, there is a gap between the hosel part and the side part on the heel side,
The hosel part protrudes upward from the upper part of the head base and extends in the head base to reach the bottom part, and is open to the bottom part. A method of manufacturing a golf club head extending so as to be bridged between a bottom surface portion and the upper portion,
In the molding of the wax mold of the head base in the lost wax method, the wax in which the lower end of the hosel is opened to the bottom surface of the head base by forming a pin in a portion that becomes a shaft hole of the hosel A method of manufacturing a golf club head, comprising molding a mold. 2. The method of manufacturing a golf club head according to claim 1 , wherein the face portion and the crown portion are made of a press-forged plate material .

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