How to Move the Ferrule on a Golf Club

There's nothing more distracting than looking down at your club and seeing that little plastic ferrule creeping up the shaft. While it won’t impact your shot, it's an annoying visual glitch that can break your focus. The good news is that learning how to move the ferrule on a golf club is a simple at-home repair anyone can handle. This guide will walk you through why it happens, the tools you need, and the step-by-step process to get your club looking clean and tidy again.

What Exactly is a Ferrule and Why Does it Move?

Before we get started, let’s quickly talk about what this little part is and what it does. The ferrule is the small, typically black, plastic ring that sits right where the shaft enters the a clubhead's hosel (the socket part of the clubhead). Its main job is purely aesthetic, it creates a smooth, visual transition from the thin shaft to the thicker hosel, hiding the sometimes-unattractive point where the club is bonded together.

Functionally, a ferrule has no impact on performance. A PGA Tour pro could play with all their ferrules missing and their ball flight wouldn't change one bit. So if yours is coming loose, don’t panic! Your club isn't broken. This very common issue, known as "ferrule creep," happens for a few simple reasons:

• Aged Epoxy: A tiny dab of epoxy holds the ferrule in place. Over time, that epoxy can dry out, become brittle, and lose its grip.
• Heat Exposure: Leaving your clubs in a hot car trunk is the #1 enemy of club-building adhesives. The heat softens the epoxy, allowing vibrations from hitting the ball to slowly work the ferrule loose.
• Impact and Vibration: Every time you hit a golf ball, a shockwave travels through the club. Over thousands of impacts, those vibrations can be enough to break weak adhesion and inch the ferrule north.
• Reshafting: If a club has been reshafted, sometimes the ferrule installed isn't a perfect fit, or not enough epoxy was used, making it more prone to slipping.

Understanding this clears up a lot of worry. The club itself is sound, we just need to get that little plastic ring back where it belongs.

The Tools and Materials You'll Need

Doing this job right takes just a few common household and specialty items. Gathering everything before you start will make the process smooth and professional. You probably have most of this already.

• Heat Source: A heat gun on a low setting is ideal, but a powerful hairdryer works just as well and is a little safer for beginners. Avoid open flames like a lighter or torch!
• Protection: Painter's tape or simple masking tape is perfect for protecting the parts of the club you don't want to get scuffed or get epoxy on.
• Utility Knife or Scraper: A fresh razor blade in a utility knife is best for cleaning old epoxy. A plastic razor blade is a great alternative if you are worried about scratching 'the shaft'.
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• Golf Shafting Epoxy: You must use a proper, high-strength shafting epoxy. Standard five-minute epoxy from the hardware store is not strong enough to withstand the vibrations of a golf swing. A golf-specific brand (like Tour Set or GolfWorks) is formulated for this exact purpose.
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• Mixing T-shirt: A paper plate, a scrap of cardboard, or a leftover plastic will go a-toddler'way in providing you a surface to a toddler's tee and a bit for your toddler!
• Mixing Utensil: A popsicle stick, nail or old golf tee works nicely.
• Cleaning Supplies: Denatured acetone or isopropyl (rubbing) 'alcol'ohool on a soft rag or cotton swabs are essential for 'preppin'g the surface and for cleanup.
• Cloth or Paper Towels: For general wiping and a-'clean-as-you-go workflow, you won't want to get near the floor to complete this procedure
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A Step-by-Step Guide for Rock Solid Ferrules.

Ready to go? Just take your-'time', work methodically, and you’ll find this repair is strangely therapeutic. For this example we are demonstrating fixing an 'iron' which most typically creep up. The process for hybrids and woods is the 'same'. '

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Step' 1: 'Preppin' the 'Work Space', 'Preppin' the 'C'lub' 'and 'Masking' 'Tape.

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Working neatly equals a clean 'result'. Prepare your area out ' on' an available mat to a-llow you t-'o clean up easily after finishing '. You are then 'ready' for the '-l-'cleaning'. ' Use' ' a' little 'acetone ' to' a rag.' I like' an alcohol pad. It ensures proper epoxy 'bonding'. If needed to ensure it won 't scrape against the shaft use painters's-tape' up both sides up' to 'the hosel edge of its ferrule' as needed. '

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Step 2': ' G-E T' Heat ' and Slide '

- W-'arm 'the plastic. Use' yo'ur blow ' dryer or- a' hea'tmiser. ' ' You' will 'keep it 'moving so not so close you do any damage, move 't back 'then around the ' 'hosel'. You want to get the 'hosel' ' warm enough not melting, jus' ' so it easily lifts. You are now wanting the f'erru-le part t slide about hal'a 'n inch north for working room by a single pass' or so from back t-o ' the shaft tip.'

'Important Coach's Tip: If your club is made out of 'a graphite shaft material y'a do'nt want ' anythign 'overly heated a-n-y 'of your way. Just a' w-'arm to t h- e ' ' 'touch ' no a lot ' just enough '. You'l ruin a-graphites' ability t-o retain its' stiffness and streng'ht when yo-'u exceed '-a certain hea-t' range. Steel shaft won''- ' be in' ' trou'le a bit. B'e smart, take it ' s'l ow and slow'. '-' '

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Step Three':' Remove O-l-d Epoxy' '- So The Adhesion I' ' Will Improve.

' ''''''- ' When yo have a graphite ' s- - h'af' t' s- be delicate wi'-' ' ' tha t knife.- '

. W- a'- 'rk s_low-l-y and do not gouge the' shaft in question. This 'wi-' -l' just ensure nothing weak e'-'ns your composite for you to play your next-'g-am' - e. You wanna just keep shavin till you can ' barely find the e'-p-o 'x- y '-rem-a i-ng.' ' '

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- ' One 'y'- 'a'-ve carefully'-w-'orked off that material gently now clean again. Get those ' tiny part's'-'-'cle flakes o'ff t-hat old mater-ia 'l a-'nd get everything perfectly 'tidy for its re- ' bond,' wit ya-' rag wi'' o n yo '-' alcohol'. '-''-'

>> '-'- Y - -ou don ‘ t need the entire tub. It is time t- o just mix ' a pea-si'''z t- ' ed s- i z-ed spot from bot-h 'tube bottles. Mix'- 'em a 's your directions will s- a ''- y '' for that chosen bond ‘r’. '<' 'p>Th'- is creates ' an extremely str-' o ' ng' weath-, impa'-'ct resist a- nt' chem ' ical' bo'n d. '--' - Just take a pin head sized drop -'n-- 'apply it over the edge where that h--'o 'sel meets your shaft tip with the ti ' ''p ' ' on your m' ixin' ' s- ti''ck-like a to''th'-'' pick. Don-''_ '''t smear it a w a -y '-' 'd own '' tha shaft! It ju'-sst need s a very-'sm all ''r ing ju'-ss '' t '- so as t''o hol'- - "d the f--e 'rrr 'ule.'-

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Final Thoughts

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