You are employed by a small manufacturer of sporting goods equipment, and your design team has recently proposed a new line of high-performance golf clubs. The club head is to be a "standard" AISI 431 martensitic stainless steel investment casting with a metal insert incorporated into the striking face, as shown in Figure CS-40.The insert will be produced by powder metallurgy and will consist of a copper-based alloy laced with particles of tungsten carbide. After a mild acid etching of the copper matrix, the carbide particles will protrude sufficiently to better grip the surface of the ball, emparting an enhanced amount of backspin to better control the "bite" of the ball upon landing. Since its purpose is to modify the striking face, the insert is rather thin, about 1.5 to 3 mm to I in.) in thickness. It must be incorporated into the club face in a manner that does not dampen the impact or compromise the "feel" of the club.
1. You must devise a means of incorporating the insert into the face of the club. What are some possible means of joining or bonding dissimilar metals? What are the advantages and limitations of each of your alternatives?
2. An additional joint occurs where the club head is attached to the shaft. If a graphite fiber reinforced epoxy is being considered for the shaft, how might it be attached to the stainless steel head? If the shafts were metal, what other methods might be possible?
3. For production simplicity, it might be preferable to use the same joining procedure at all locations. In view of your answers to Questions 1 and 2 above, does this appear to be a possibility for this product? If the composite shaft were selected, which joining method would you recommend?
4. Are there other ways that might be considered to produce a raised-carbide surface on a stainless steel golf club face? What might they be, and what do you see as advantages and limitations? Consider both manufacturing and performance. Would you expect them to be cheaper or more expensive than the proposed insert?