HI Chuckz, How is the all wood putter project coming along? I wanted to share some more information with you regarding making all wood putters. Billy Barle’s comment regarding club head mass is very important. We have found that with a ¼” brass sole plate the heads will get heavy enough (approximately 300 grams). Putting an insert in or hidden weight will change performance and sweet spot. If you want different weights, make more than one sole plate that will fit your putter head using Bronze and or a bigger/thicker size plate. We use abalone inlay for head to ball alignment because it works great in any type of light that may come during a round of golf.
Making your shaft out of hickory is a good choice because it will give you minimal flex depending on thickness. Milling the shaft down to 6- 1/8”x3/4” pieces and laminating them back together will give you a longer lasting club. If you do mill your shaft it will also give you more options (off-sets and double bends) but, you will need to make a jig for it. You may want to invest into a tenon cutter to get a nice ½” round end on the shaft that will fit your bore through drilling of the head. www.lumberjacktools.com
Connecting the head to the shaft is going to be one of the hardest things you do. If you know what lie you want, that will tell you what angle to drill through the head (off-sets will make compound angles). If you have a good drill press, make a block/jig that the heads will sit in with the lie degree you want. We don’t set the loft degree until head and shaft are glued together. Use exotic hardwood epoxy like Smith & Co’s which will give you lasting results. www.japanwoodworker.com
If you want to use a rubber grip, just mill the grip area to ½” and slide one on. Try and keep at least 5/8” up to the grip area of your shaft or you may get to much flex. A wood grip can be made of different hardwoods giving you great feel as well as beauty. Cut/mill pieces for building up the grip to glue on the bottom, top (top piece is your call) and then sides of the shaft. Shape and SAND everything as much as possible (Sam Maloof’s best advice)down to 200 grit or more before you start applying the finish.
We use General Finishes Exterior 450 (water based acrylic) on most of Malibu Woods putters these days. www.generalfinishes.com/in-the-news.