Powerbilt Air Force One Updated for 2011 By ED TRAVIS

Powerbilt Air Force One
Updated for 2011
By ED TRAVIS

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Over the years Powerbilt has been one of the
legendary names in the golf club business, having
been in the bags of the many tournament winners
including Fuzzy Zoeller. The irrepressible Zoeller won
12 times on the PGA Tour and 10 were with Powerbilt
including a Master’s and an U.S. Open. The point
being, this division of Hillerich and Bradsy Co. (Bionic
gloves and Louisville Slugger bats), has been making
clubs since 1916 and has strong credentials from
their past success. Today they continue to be
innovative and forward looking.

The Air Force One driver (a great name for a driver!) was
introduced two years ago with the usual features and
benefits of the now de'rigueur-a titanium head and
graphite shafts driver. However Powerbilt figured out
how to add really different…nitrogen gas.

As with a lot of new things there was a good deal of
skepticism in the trade as in, “This has to be another
gimmick,” and “So what good does nitrogen do? Any?”

The Air Force One clubhead had nitrogen gas under
high pressure to support the head structure which
allowed Powerbilt engineers to make a much thinner
face without having to use internal supports.
The Air Force One - Air Foil 2 for this year comes in
two models. The high-MOI (top) and the Tour
(bottom). Both have are filled with nitrogen gas
under pressure which allows the club face to be very
thin.
A thinner face means more trampoline effect at impact
and therefore more ball speed which in turn equates to
more distance.

Powerbilt says the trampoline effect of the Air Force One
is right at the maximum allowed by the USGAThe use of
high pressure nitrogen in sports equipment is not new
having been in race car tires and baseball bats for
years. It helps race cars run faster and gives bats have a
larger sweet spot for more hits.

The new version of the Air Force One is the Air Force
One – Air Foil 2. The nitrogen is under 85 psi pressure
and the clubface is about 20 percent thinner than most
others coming in at only 2.6 mm thick. There are two
models; a high-MOI driver designed to lower the amount
of side spin for $249 and the Air Foil 2 Tour model with
less offset, a more compact appearance at address and
a price of $299 including a stock Fujikura Motore F-3
shaft.

Powerbilt also added this year Air Foil 2 fairway woods,
hybrids and even Hollow N7 irons all “gassed up” with
nitrogen just like the driver. Suggested retail for the
fairways is $149, for the hybrids $119 and for a set of
irons (4-PW) $599 or $799 graphite shafted.
Powerbilt has introduced both hyrids and fairways using
the pressureized nitrogen gas for improved performance.