JP2009153802A - Method of manufacturing golf club head and golf club head - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To permit smooth fluidity in the casting step, to improve the strength and reduce the weight of a golf club head, and to provide the golf club head excellent in the weight allocation and producing high and clear hitting sound. <P>SOLUTION: The golf club head is composed of a head body 1 whose inside is hollow and which includes a thin part 4A and a thick part 4B connected at least to the periphery of the thin part 4A. The method of manufacturing the golf club head includes the casting step for integrally forming the thick part 4A together with the thick part 4B so that the thick part 4A having a swelling part with the thickness, to which the thickness to be removed in the following step is previously added, swells outward of the head body from the outer surface of the thick part 4B, and a step of removing a part of a prescribed thickness of the swelling part formed in the thin part 4A from the outer side along the outer surface of the head body 1. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a golf club head and a golf club head.

Conventionally, various attempts have been made to optimize weight distribution by reducing the thickness and weight of a golf club head.
For example, a technique for improving strength and reducing weight by forming a thin portion and a thick portion on a crown portion or the like constituting a head body of a golf club head is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1). .

As a method of manufacturing a head body having such a thin portion and a thick portion, for example, a method of manufacturing by casting, a method of manufacturing by welding, and a method of manufacturing by fiber reinforced resin are known. .
Japanese Patent No. 3628920

  However, for example, when the head main body is manufactured by casting, there is a problem in that a hot-water flow failure or the like occurs during casting, and a thinned portion cannot be formed well. For this reason, it was difficult to improve the strength and reduce the weight.

  In addition, when the head body is manufactured by welding, it is conceivable that the head body is manufactured separately for the thin portion and the thick portion, and these are then welded to form the head body. When the head body is manufactured in this way, there is a problem that the weight increases due to the build-up of the welded portion or the weight distribution varies. In addition, variations in strength were likely to occur.

  In addition, if the head body is made of fiber reinforced resin with a high specific strength, the hitting sound is lower than that of the metal head body, and vibration is absorbed, resulting in a high-pitched and clear hitting ball like the metal head body. There was the difficulty that the sound was not obtained.

  The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, and has a good hot water flow at the time of casting, can improve strength and reduce weight, and has a superior weight distribution and a high-pitched and clear hitting sound. It is an object of the present invention to provide a golf club head manufacturing method and a golf club head that can be used.

  A method of manufacturing a golf club head according to the present invention that solves such a problem is a golf club head comprising a head body, the interior of which is hollow, and includes a thin portion and a thick portion continuous to at least the periphery of the thin portion. In the manufacturing method, the thin-walled portion has a bulge portion having a thickness added in advance to a thickness to be removed in a later step, and is outside the head body from the outer surface of the thick-walled portion. A casting process that is integrally formed with the thick portion so as to bulge out, and the bulging portion formed in the thin portion is removed from the outside along the outer surface of the head body by a predetermined thickness. And a step of performing.

According to this golf club head manufacturing method, in the casting process, the thin part has a bulging part with a thickness added in advance to a thickness to be removed in a subsequent process, and the outer surface of the thick part It is integrally formed with the thick portion so as to bulge out to the outside of the head body. In other words, in the casting process, the thin-walled portion has a bulging portion, is thickened and is integrally formed with the thick-walled portion, improving the hot water flow during casting, and from the thick-walled portion to the thin-walled portion. It can be a continuous shape.
Thereafter, in the removing process, the bulging portion formed in the thin portion is removed from the outside by a predetermined thickness along the outer shape surface of the head body. In other words, the portion removed by the removal process is added to the thin portion as a bulging portion in advance, and the bulging portion is removed by the removal processing after the casting process, thereby forming the thin portion. As a result, a golf club head having a high-quality head body in which a thin portion and a thick portion are integrally formed along the outer shape of the head body is obtained.

  Further, in the present invention, the removal process is performed by chemical milling, so that a die is not required, and the head body in which the thin part and the thick part are integrally formed along the outer surface of the head body. Can be easily obtained. In addition, it is suitable for high-mix low-volume production, and the cost can be reduced. Further, it is possible to obtain a golf club head having high strength and high accuracy without requiring skill such as machining.

  Moreover, in this invention, the said removal process is a process which removes including the part ranging from the said thin part and the said thick part of the periphery from the said thin part at least.

  According to this golf club head manufacturing method, the thin portion and the portion extending from the thin portion to the peripheral thick portion are removed by the removal process. That is, the part to be removed is performed from the thin part to the part entering the thick part, and the end of the removal process is located on the thick part side.

  The golf club head of the present invention is a metal golf club head having a head body having a crown portion, a sole portion, a toe portion, a heel portion, and a face portion, and having a hollow inside. At least one of the thin-walled portion and the thick-walled portion connected to at least the periphery of the thin-walled portion is provided, and the thin-walled portion swells outward of the head body from the outer surface of the thick-walled portion. The bulging portion integrally formed in advance with a predetermined thickness together with the thick portion so that the bulging portion has a predetermined thickness from the outside along the outer surface of the head body. It is formed by being removed.

  According to this golf club head, the thin portion is integrally formed with the thick portion so as to have a bulge portion and bulge outward from the outer surface of the thick portion. Therefore, the thin wall portion can be formed to be thick with the thick wall portion so that a good hot water flow in the casting space of the mold can be achieved. Thereby, it can be set as the shape continuous from the thick part to the thin part, the hot water flow at the time of casting can be improved, and it can be set as the continuous shape from the thick part to the thin part. Further, since the bulged portion is formed by removing a predetermined thickness from the outside along the outer shape of the head body, the thin portion is formed by removing the portion to be removed beforehand by the removal processing. In addition to the thin-walled portion as the protruding portion, the thin-walled portion can be easily formed by removing the bulged portion by the removal process.

  In addition, the golf club head of the present invention is preferably configured such that the bulging portion is formed over the thick portion.

  According to this golf club head, the removal process for removing the bulging part is performed from the thin part to the part entering the thick part, so that the end of the removal process is located on the thick part side. A golf club head having the head body thus obtained is obtained.

According to the golf club head manufacturing method of the present invention, at the time of the casting process, the thin portion is formed with a bulge portion having a thickness added to a thickness to be removed later. The thick-walled portion does not have a discontinuous shape, and the flow of hot water can be improved to prevent sinking or the like, or adverse effects such as variations in strength due to differences in cooling rates. Thereby, stabilization of quality and ensuring of intensity | strength are realizable.
Also, in the removal process, the bulging part formed in the thin part is removed from the outside by a predetermined thickness, ensuring the necessary strength and reducing the thickness that cannot be obtained by casting alone. can do. Thereby, strength improvement and weight reduction can be achieved, and a golf club head excellent in weight distribution can be manufactured.
In addition, since the thin wall portion and the thick wall portion can be integrally formed by casting, unlike the case of using a conventional fiber reinforced resin, the hitting sound is not low, and a clear hitting sound can be obtained with high sound. A golf club head that can be manufactured can be manufactured.
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In addition, since the thin part and the thick part can be integrally formed by casting, it is possible to prevent an increase in weight due to build-up during welding and a variation in weight, and a lightweight and highly accurate golf Club heads can be manufactured.

  In addition, according to the golf club head manufacturing method of the present invention, even if the outer surface of the head body has a three-dimensional curved surface or the like by performing a removal process by chemical milling, this can be obtained with high accuracy. At the same time, it is possible to manufacture a golf club head capable of improving strength and reducing weight.

  Further, according to the golf club head manufacturing method of the present invention, the portion to be removed is performed from the thin portion to the portion entering the thick portion, and the end of the removal process is located on the thick portion side. The thickness of the thin portion can be easily formed to a predetermined thickness. In addition, even if there is a variation in thickness in the peripheral portion of the thin portion, the portion is located on the thick portion side, so there is no shortage of strength due to the variation in thickness. It is possible to manufacture a golf club head that is excellent in strength and can be improved in strength and weight.

In addition, according to the golf club head of the present invention, the thin portion can be formed thickly together with the thick portion, so the thin portion and the thick portion are not in a discontinuous shape, improving the hot water flow, Stabilization of quality and securing of strength can be realized.
Further, since the bulging portion is formed by removing the bulging portion by a predetermined thickness from the outside, it is possible to realize the thinning that cannot be obtained only by casting while ensuring the necessary strength. . Thereby, strength improvement and weight reduction can be achieved, and a golf club head excellent in weight distribution can be manufactured.
In addition, since the thin wall portion and the thick wall portion can be integrally formed by casting, unlike the case of using a conventional fiber reinforced resin, the hitting sound is not low, and a clear hitting sound can be obtained with high sound. A golf club head that can be manufactured can be manufactured.

  In addition, since the end of the removal process is positioned on the thick portion side, even if there is a variation in thickness in the peripheral portion of the thin portion, the portion should be positioned on the thick portion side. As a result, a golf club head that is excellent in accuracy, can be improved in strength, and can be reduced in weight without causing insufficient strength due to variations in thickness.

Hereinafter, embodiments of a golf club head according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
In the drawings to be referred to, FIG. 1 is a front view showing a golf club head according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a plan view, FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. FIG. 5 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing the thin portion after the bulging portion is removed. Further, in the following description, the terms “upper and lower” and “left and right” are based on the description of FIG. 1, and the words “front and rear” are based on the description of FIG. That is, for example, the side on which the face part 2 described later is provided is the “front” side, and the side on which the back part 3 described later is provided is the “rear” side.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the golf club head includes a hollow head body 1 integrally formed by casting from a metal material such as titanium, a titanium alloy, or a stainless alloy. The head body 1 is provided on the front surface side, and includes a face portion 2 for hitting a golf ball, a back portion 3 (see FIG. 2) provided on the rear surface side, and an upper edge portion of the face portion 2 to the back portion 3. A crown part 4 extending toward the back part, a sole part 5 (see FIG. 1) extending from the lower edge part of the face part 2 toward the back part 3, and between the crown part 4 and the sole part 5. And a side part 6 (see FIG. 1) extending from the toe side edge (toe part) of the face part 2 to the heel side edge (heel part) of the face part 2 via the back part 3 side. .
As will be described later, the feature of the present embodiment is that the crown portion 4 integrally formed by casting includes a thin portion 4A and a thick portion 4B (see FIGS. 2 and 3). This thin portion 4A is formed to be thinner than that formed only by casting. Details of the formation of the crown portion 4 will be described later.
The face portion 2 and the crown portion 4 can be specified by a ridge line between them, but may be specified by a portion that is smaller than the radius of curvature of the surface portion that forms most of the face portion 2. The same applies to the relationship with other parts other than the face part 2, for example, which defines the crown part 4.

  In the present embodiment, the head main body 1 is integrally formed by casting the back portion 3, the crown portion 4, the sole portion 5, and the side portion 6 except for the face portion 2, and is integrally formed by these castings. The face portion 2 is joined to the object by welding. In addition, the part formed integrally by casting is not restricted to this, For example, each part except the sole part 5 may be integrally formed by casting, and the sole part 5 may be welded to these later. In addition, a portion integrally formed by casting may be appropriately selected and configured.

  It should be noted that even if a slight dent or the like is formed on the face of the face portion 2 due to a collision with a hard foreign object such as a stone such as a score line (not shown), such a dent is not conspicuous. A large number of minute streak-like grooves or protrusions may be formed at minute intervals.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a cylindrical shaft fixing hole 7 is integrally formed on the heel side of the head main body 1, and the shaft fixing hole 7 protrudes upward from the head main body 1 to form a hosel. A portion 7a (see FIG. 2) is formed. A shaft (not shown) is inserted into the shaft fixing hole 7 from above the head body 1 through a resin spacer or socket.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the head body 1 formed in this way is configured such that the crown part 4 includes a thin part 4A and a thick part 4B provided at least around the thin part 4A. . That is, as shown in FIG. 2, most of the crown part 4 is a thin part 4A except for the thick part 4B. It is what was planned.

Such a crown portion 4 is formed mainly through the following casting process and removal process.
The casting process is a process of forming the back part 3, the crown part 4, the sole part 5, and the side part 6 except for the face part 2 by casting, and the thin part 4A and the thick part 4B of the crown part 4 are cast. It is a process of forming integrally with other parts.
At this time, as shown in FIG. 4, the thin portion 4A ′ formed at the time of casting is integrally formed with the thick portion 4B so as to bulge outward from the outer surface 4b of the thick portion 4B. Is done. As shown in FIG. 6, the thickness T of the thin-walled portion 4A ′ is formed to have a bulging portion 4a ′ having a thickness obtained by adding in advance the thickness t2 for the removal process in the subsequent removal process. It is formed to be thicker than the final thickness t1 (see FIG. 5) of the thin portion 4A. That is, the thin portion 4A ′ is formed with a thickness T obtained by adding the thickness t2 of the bulging portion 4a ′ in advance. Therefore, the thickness T of the thin portion 4A ′ is T = t1 + t2.

  Specifically, for example, if the thickness t1 of the final thin-walled portion 4A is 0.5 mm and the thickness t2 for the removal process in the subsequent removal process is 0.3 mm, it is formed by casting. The thickness T of the thin portion 4A ′ is 0.5 + 0.3 = 0.8 mm. In addition, a favorable hot water flow is realizable by making thin part 4A 'into the thickness substantially the same as the thickness of thick part 4B. That is, by setting the dimensions so as not to be discontinuous from the thick portion 4B to the thin portion 4A ', the hot water flow is hardly impaired and a good hot water flow can be realized.

In the removing process, the thin portion 4A ′ formed with the bulging portion 4a ′ as described above is formed by a predetermined thickness (from the bulging side) from the outside along the outer shape of the head body 1 (from the bulging side). This is a process of removing the thickness t2 for the removal process (here, the thickness of the bulging portion 4a ′). That is, the thin portion 4A ′ that has the bulging portion 4a ′ that is preliminarily removed and that bulges to the outside of the head body 1 is thinly formed by the removal processing. As a result, a golf club head having the head body 1 in which the thin portion 4A and the thick portion 4B are integrally formed along the outer shape of the head body 1 is obtained.
In this embodiment, such a removal process is performed by chemical milling (chemical cutting).

  Specifically, in the removing process, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, masking M is applied around the bulgingly formed thin portion 4 </ b> A ′. Masking M can be easily performed by using a vinyl-based resin. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 6, the boundary M <b> 1 of the masking M is set at a position biased toward the thick portion 4 </ b> B around the thin portion 4 </ b> A ′. That is, the thin portion 4A '(the bulging portion 4a') and the portion 4C extending from the thin portion 4A 'to the peripheral thick portion 4B are also removed by the removal process. That is, the part to be removed is performed from the thin part 4A 'to the part entering the thick part 4B, and the end of the removal process (boundary M1) is located on the thick part 4B side.

In the removing step, the head body 1 subjected to the masking M is degreased and washed with an alkali, then immersed in a chemical milling treatment solution (corrosive solution: for example, mixed acid of hydrofluoric acid and nitric acid), and exposed surface (thin wall portion) The outer surface of 4A ′ and the outer surface of the portion extending over the thick portion 4B) are dissolved and removed by a predetermined thickness (the thickness t2).
Thereafter, mascante coating, drying, scribing, peeling of the processed portion, etching, pulling up, smut removal, immersion in a glossy liquid, removal of the residual film, and the like were performed to obtain a predetermined thickness (the thickness t1). A thin portion 4A is obtained. As shown in FIG. 7, a stepped portion by chemical milling may be formed at the end of the removal process (boundary M1). In this case, the removal process becomes smooth by performing a process such as polishing. You may form as follows.

  As described above, in the removing process, the thickness t2 of the bulging part 4a ′ corresponding to the removing process is suitably removed by chemical milling, and the crown part 4 having the thin part 4A having a predetermined thickness t1 is obtained. It is formed. Moreover, since the removal process is performed by chemical milling, the head body 1 in which the thin portion 4A and the thick portion 4B are integrally formed along the outer surface of the head body 1 without using a mold or the like can be easily obtained. Can get to. In addition, it is suitable for high-mix low-volume production, and the cost can be reduced. Further, it is possible to obtain a golf club head having high strength and high accuracy without requiring skill such as machining.

Here, in the above example, the final thickness t1 of the thin portion 4A is 0.5 mm, but the thickness t1 of the thin portion 4A is preferably set in the range of 0.4 to 0.7 mm. More preferably, it is set in the range of 0.5 to 0.6 mm. If the thin portion 4A has a value larger than 0.7 mm, it is difficult to obtain the effect of weight reduction, which is not preferable. Moreover, since it becomes difficult to ensure intensity | strength that the thin part 4A is a value smaller than 0.4 mm, it is unpreferable.
Further, the thickness T of the thin portion 4A ′ formed by casting and the thickness t2 for the removal processing can be appropriately set in consideration of the final thickness t1 of the thin portion 4A.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, in the casting process, the thin-walled portion 4A ′ is formed to have the bulged portion 4a ′ having a thickness obtained by adding the thickness t2 to be removed later. Therefore, the thin-walled portion 4A ′ and the thick-walled portion 4B do not have a discontinuous shape, improve the hot water flow, and prevent the occurrence of adverse effects such as sinks and variations in strength due to differences in cooling rates. be able to. Thereby, stabilization of quality and ensuring of intensity | strength are realizable.
Further, in the removal processing step, the bulging portion 4a ′ formed in the thin-walled portion 4A ′ is removed from the outside by a predetermined thickness t2, so that it can be obtained only by casting while ensuring the necessary strength. Thinning that cannot be achieved can be realized. Thereby, strength improvement and weight reduction can be achieved, and a golf club head excellent in weight distribution can be manufactured.
Further, since the thin portion 4A and the thick portion 4B can be integrally formed by casting, the hitting sound is not lowered, and a high and clear hitting sound is obtained unlike when a conventional fiber reinforced resin is used. A golf club head that can be manufactured.
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Moreover, since the thin portion 4A and the thick portion 4B can be integrally formed by casting, it is possible to prevent an increase in weight due to build-up during welding and a variation in weight, and it is lightweight and highly accurate. Golf club heads can be manufactured.

  Moreover, even if the outer surface of the head main body 1 has a three-dimensional curved surface or the like by performing a removal process by chemical milling, it is possible to obtain this with high accuracy and to improve the strength and weight. Club heads can be manufactured.

  Further, the portion removed by chemical milling is performed from the thin portion 4A to the portion entering the thick portion 4B, and the end of the removal process (boundary M1) is located on the thick portion 4B side. It becomes easy to form the thickness of 4A to a predetermined thickness. Even if there is a variation in thickness in the peripheral portion of the thin portion 4A, the portion is located on the thick portion 4B side, so that there is no shortage of strength due to the variation in thickness. Thus, it is possible to manufacture a golf club head that is excellent in accuracy and can improve strength and weight.

  In the above-described embodiment, the thin portion 4A is provided in the crown portion 4. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and extends in the front-rear direction at the center of the crown portion 4 as shown in FIG. The head body 1 may be cast and removed so that the thick portion 4B ′ is formed. Further, as shown in FIG. 8B, the head main body 1 may be cast and removed so that two thick portions 4B 'are formed. Further, as shown in FIG. 8 (c), the sole portion 5 may be provided with a thin portion 5A and a thick portion 5B, or as shown in FIG. The part 6A and the thick part 6B may be provided.

  In the above embodiment, the thinned portion 4A formed by bulging is removed by chemical reaming. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the removal may be performed by mechanical polishing, cutting, or the like. .

1 is a front view showing a golf club head according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is also a plan view. It is sectional drawing which follows the AA line of FIG. It is an expanded sectional view which shows the thin part which bulged and formed. It is an expanded sectional view which shows the thin part after performing a removal process. It is a partially omitted enlarged cross-sectional view showing the relationship of the thickness of the bulged thin part. It is a partially-omission expanded sectional view which shows the mode of the thin part after performing a removal process. (A)-(d) is explanatory drawing which shows another example.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Head main body 2 Face part 3 Back part 4 Crown part 4A Thin part 4A 'Thin part 4B Thick part 4B' Thick part 4C A part 5 Sole part 5A Thin part 5B Thick part 6 Side part 6A Thin part 6B Thick part Part M Masking M1 Boundary

Claims (5)

A method for producing a golf club head comprising a head body including a hollow portion and including a thin portion and a thick portion continuous with at least the periphery of the thin portion,
The thin-walled portion has a bulging portion having a thickness added in advance to a thickness to be removed in a later step so that the thin-walled portion bulges outside the head body from the outer surface of the thick-walled portion. , A casting process integrally formed with the thick part,
Removing the bulging portion formed in the thin portion from the outside along the outer shape of the head body by a predetermined thickness; and
A method of manufacturing a golf club head, comprising:   The method of manufacturing a golf club head according to claim 1, wherein the removal treatment is chemical milling.   3. The golf club head according to claim 1, wherein the removing process is a process of removing at least the thin portion and a portion extending from the thin portion to the peripheral thick portion. 4. Manufacturing method. A metal golf club head having a head body having a crown portion, a sole portion, a toe portion, a heel portion and a face portion, and having a hollow inside,
At least one of the above portions is provided with a thin portion and a thick portion continuous with at least the periphery of the thin portion,
The thin portion is
It has a bulging portion that is integrally formed in advance with a predetermined thickness together with the thick wall portion so as to bulge to the outside of the head body from the outer surface of the thick wall portion,
The golf club head according to claim 1, wherein the bulging portion is formed by removing a predetermined thickness from the outside along the outer shape of the head body.   The golf club head according to claim 4, wherein the bulging portion is formed over the thick portion.

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