Fiberbuilt Performace Mat System - impressons

[tonybrown32]

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Tony, if you get a chance, can you post a pic of how you screwed your rubber sections to your base with the casters. I think I might be interested in doing something similar.

Ok, heres a few snaps of my platform. Its made of a 2x2 furring strips square frame, 4 feet x 5 feet, 1.5" thick sheet of pink foam insulation inside the frame for support, all sandwitched between a couple sheets of osb.

Put a couple locking caster wheels on one edge, and a sturdy handle on the other... just grab the handle, tilt the whole thing up onto the caster wheels, push it ovet and lean it against the wall and lock the caster wheels when not in use.

I used some large flat washers and drywall screws to secure the rubber base to the platform through the zip tie holes so i didnt have to make new holes in the Fiberbuilt base. A little duct tape to keep the styrofoam panels from popping out of the base when tipped up for storage. A few bungies and eye hooks to keep the stance matt in place when tipped up for storage as well. I take the hitting strip out when not in use, its heavy and dont want to crush the fibers with a bungee.

Hope this gives you a few ideas..

[captnkrusty]

Thats perfect. Thanks!

[StanMI]

As said in all the other posts........ This thing is great !! I can play for hours now and no back pain. Elbows and wrists feel great also.

[NinjaB]

I purchased one of these too, really like it so far except the trays in the corners are kinda a silly design, would like the mat to go all the way to the edge especially for putting. Also when I ordered the holiday special was $400.

As with the others, my elbows really appreciate this upgrade, coming from a monster mat I was starting to get tennis elbow on that but not on the fiberbuilt.

What tees are you using? It's a pain to move the skytrak every time to use the adjustable tee with the tee hole cut outs. I've been using a tomahawk tee, but it sinks in so much it is a pretty low tee height for driver.

[wbond]

Try the aero spark tee. Same concept as the tomahawk but it's taller. I found the same issue and that is the one of the downfalls of the FB.

[tonybrown32]

I purchased one of these too, really like it so far except the trays in the corners are kinda a silly design, would like the mat to go all the way to the edge especially for putting. Also when I ordered the holiday special was $400.

As with the others, my elbows really appreciate this upgrade, coming from a monster mat I was starting to get tennis elbow on that but not on the fiberbuilt.

What tees are you using? It's a pain to move the skytrak every time to use the adjustable tee with the tee hole cut outs. I've been using a tomahawk tee, but it sinks in so much it is a pretty low tee height for driver.

Yeah, I would have preferred an end to end hitting strip as well instead of the corner trays. Probably a cost saving measure to supply only three 1x1 squares for hitting, instead of four. The hitting space is adequate though, but not very conducive to putting if you do a lot of sim golf. For driving range/swing practice only its not an issue.

I tried tomahawk tees too. I would have to stack 3 together to get them high enough. Havent found a good solution yet. Since I dont play sim golf, just use the skytrak for range and game improvement features, I just use the adjustable tee in the tee holes now. Works great, but again not as conducive for sim golf where you dont want to be moving the skytrak all over to use driver each hole.

[frodaddy00]

Everyone is hyping up this Fiberbuilt mat I may need to contact them to get 1 or 2 of those 1x1 hitting squares. Somebody said a sales rep would sell them direct does anybody know the price??

You might try these rubber tees I bought before I found out about tomahawk tees..they may not sink into the loose fibers as badly - https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B018VG5ESW

[captnkrusty]

Ok, I have played a few rounds on my new fiberbuilt and I am very happy with my decision. Just a few thoughts on the tomahawk tees and putting.

I usually tee my driver lower anyway, so I really like the way the ridges of the tomahawk tees sit in the turf, its stable and I don't have a problem with the ball falling off the tee, or moving when I ground the club. I do like the idea of stacking the tee's together if you need extra height.

I really don't think the putting is bad at all off of the fiberbuilt mat. Stingreye was right, you can putt off of the stance mat with the GC2 because of the bigger field of vision, but I found, that for me, I prefer hitting off of the hitting mat. I haven't noticed any crazy jumps off of the mat, or weird reads on the GC2.

I purchased straight from Fiberbuilt, and with the holiday pricing it was $400 for me also.

So, all in all Very happy with the purchase.

[bknoxville]

Shout out to TonyBrown for helping me out late last year when I ordered my Fiberbuilt.

Any golfer that has ever experienced joint pain or others pains from repeatedly hitting golf balls off a mat:

Do yourself a favor and get a Fiberbuilt mat system.

Any golfer that wants to avoid getting joint pain or others pains from repeatedly hitting golf balls off a mat:

Do yourself a favor and get a Fiberbuilt mat system.

[Maddustfpv]

After getting wrist/hand tendinitis from hitting at the driving range . i started looking for a mat that reduce the impact in my wrist . Fiberbuilt Flight Deck was exactly what i was looking for .

the only down side of this mat is the oval shape and it can slide depending on what surface is placed. i solved the 2 issues by cutting my DIY stand mat so i dont have to place the ball by hand in the FB mat and adding a thin anti-slip carpet mat on the button of the FB flight deck. i glued with adhesive spray . Problem solved very cheap and happy with my flight Deck!

[RyanP]

I bought the Fiberbuilt flight deck to try out based on the original review here and don't agree on some things. Actually quite dissapointed with it and may return it. I wanted a mat that didn't cause pain or injury and have a realistic feel. It only gives one of the two things I wanted. I am currently trying Fiberbuilt and CCE real feel. (CCE is probably not a mat I should use with my injury, but it was supposed to give good feedback so I tried it anyway). Problem is it was too much feedback.

First off, IMO there is nothing realistic feeling about the Fiberbuilt. Turns out, the very first thing when I opened the box is It is just an upside down stiff bristle shop push broom in green color. If anyone is wondering what it is like, that is EXACTLY what it is. You could literally go to home depot, buy a couple stiff bristle push brooms or scrub brushes, turn them upside down, spray paint it green and you have a fiberbuilt golf hitting strip. Googling them, it turns out that that is what their main products are and the focus of their business, nylon scrub brushes and broom/bristle type products.

1) I will admit, it is nice feeling to hit off compared to other range mats. I have elbow injuries and a torn tendon from another sport and it feels fine on this mat. As far as any discomfort, this mat feels Better than any mat I have hit off. So that is a huge plus if that is all you care about. This is the #1 reason I wanted to try it due to my elbow injury, but that is about the only benefit IMO, unfortunately.

2) I live in Texas with a hot/dry summer climate so the fairways are nothing like this. This mat is like hitting off short tee every hit. The stiff scrub brush bristles literally tee up your ball for you. I guess that is fine if that is what you want to practice, but hitting it off the turf in the fairway or any grass I have ever been on is nothing like this. If I wanted to practice off a tee, i'd use a tee. I want to practice off turf, you know.. the more difficult part of the game.

3) WAY too forgiving. You can't tell if you hit it fat unless you intentionally try to hammer the club into the bottom of the mat. Skytrack shows hardly any difference if any. I wanted to work on this but this mat will not really be of any help on this, especially with the tee'd up lie it gives. The original poster said you could feel a fat shot and were penalized so I thought this may work, but for me, Not enough feedback on this mat in my opinion. You can swing right through it, which is why it doesn't cause pain.. but it also masks a poor strike. Which I feel would translate poorly to firm turf.

4) Tomahawk style tees have a hard time standing up on broom bristles for hitting driver/woods. Keep tipping over. Annoying.

5) Putting off this? I honestly don't even know how you could (like people said, and I should have listened, it is pretty bad for putting). It's like putting off a shop broom with uneven nylon bristles. No way you could get a straight or remotely even roll off that.

6) You can't set your club behind the ball, it sinks/wabbles in the broom bristles and just feels awkward.

7) About 1500rpm Spin difference between this mat and CCE real feel for me. Not sure which is closer to reality, assume fiberbuilt as it was higher. Well, at least fiberbuilt spin numbers make me feel better about myself lol. Good spin off mid irons which I struggle with in real conditions, terrible spin on wedges.. hmm?

Saying that, the CCE Real feel strip I tried along side it is about equally as bad in the opposite direction, Hurt my elbow within about 30-40 balls, can't take a divot without grabbing the club face, shots are punished by like 20-40% if you even touch the turf. (Which everyone warned of in advance and I thought I would try it anyway).. It is far worse than a real fat shot unless it was absolutely horrific. I feel this thing would cause me bad habits, already trying to scoop the ball without touching the turf due to fear of it grabbing my club and causing injury flareups which is totally throwing off my swing and making me do awkward things. Down and through my A!! Down and through will cause an injury over time on this thing almost guaranteed. I do Prefer wedges off it for some reason, maybe because swing speed is much lower so it doesn't grab as bad. I couldn't hit wedges of fiberbuilt anywhere near my distances for some reason? Maybe because I have never hit wedges off a tee and that is what it feels like.

So now I have to keep searching for a mat, DIY Divot action next I guess? Would sure be nice to find something that provided some needed feedback,(but not too much), felt somewhat like actual turf, didn't cause pain or risk of long term injury after repeated use, and didn't grab your club like hitting through wet grass covered in hot tar. I may keep the fiberbuilt just to use when I feel any pain setting in to my elbow, so I can still hit balls on the sim, but I don't think it plays realistic at all and wouldn't even attempt to putt off it ever again. I can see the fiberbuilt has "some" benefits. Improved ball striking not being on of them though. Which is what I want to work on. Friends and family could hit well off it, without complaining too much and nobody would hurt themselves or complain about massive distance loss for a poor strike for one thing..

For sim play I would feel like I am almost cheating with a tee'd up ball on every strike though. I don't really want to cover up my faults and make it that easy, the real world of golf certainly isn't like that. My opinions only. TIFWIW. I am a newbie to all of this home sim golf world.

[butette]

I have never tried the Fiberbuilt but looking at pictures I pretty much come to the same conclusion you did, not very realistic if you play on harder, firm fairway. In that respect, I think CCE mat feels closer to the kind of fairway I play on.

[frodaddy00]

I started out with CCE and agreed it was painful to use. I then built a DIY Divot Action based on some of the threads found here in the forum.

I then made a version 2 DIY Divot Action with my CCE mat top (10" x 30" insert). I figured I wasn't going to use that CCE insert anymore so I cut off the bottom foam and used it as the top surface of my v2 DIY Divot Action. It feels good to me and seems like I get good results.

The downside for me with these DIY Divot Action mats is that the lexan keeps cracking. I'm on my 3rd one where the previous 2 have cracked.. maybe I need thicker plexiglass....

[tonybrown32]

Just goes to show how subjective feel can be, and each person will need to try it out for themselves and see what works best for their application. I don't think there is a perfect mat, all come with compromises. For me the Fiberbuilt comes closest to meet my needs. I think the feel is very realistic for the courses I play, even if the looks of the fibers are a bit off putting.. allows me to hit down and through without the jarring impact of other mats. I do say I prefer the feeling of hitting a well struck shot off the stance mat or a CCE type mat... what I don't like is the jarring feeling on those when I hit one fat.

In my application, I don't putt off the fiberbuilt, nor do I play simulator courses/tournaments, so those factors aren't a factor for me. It's for practice only using a skytrak to dial in distances and shot shapes. It's great for that. My distances and spin seem spot on off the Fiberbuilt and have no complaints... and my forearms, back and elbows are happier too

Agree on the spin number differences between the Fiberbuilt and other CCE type matts I've tried... more spin off the Fiberbuilt, and I feel the Fiberbuilt is more accurate based on my on course experience, and using my Skytrack at the range off the turf. Also more important to me so that I can dial in distances when practicing indoors... accurate spin as a big effect on distances. If I recall, there's a good chart on the Fiberbuilt site comparing spin of their mat to others, also showing Fiberbuilt has more realistic spin numbers..

Bottom line, choose what works best for how you use the mat, and your application...

[Baller]

Just noticed this thread... I have the Fiberbuilt “4 x 7 Fiberbuilt Single Sided Performance Mat” found here: http://fiberbuiltgolf.com/commercial...rformance-mat/

It is bigger than the one you’re posting abuot and has an area past the hitting strip where I can out my launch monitor (GcQuad). Im sure the hitting strip is the same and the construction sounds similar.

I’ve had this mat for about a year and I’ve had a few others including CCE, Divot Action, and a couple other I don’t remember. This is the best mat if you plan on hitting a lot of shots, which I do, almost every day. It really saves your joints from the hard mat impact. I’ve had problems hitting too much on pretty much all the others.

BUT, do not be fooled, as someone else mentioned, this mat is NOT forgiving. My angle of attack is perhaps a little steeper than some, but my ball striking is fantastic (just saying to give a reference point). I might mis-hit one ball in a whole round of golf. BUT on this mat, I get penalized quite a lot. Sometimes I have to hit a ball off of the stance mat to reset my frame of mind.

Just something to be aware of. No mat is real turf.

[frodaddy00]

Can anyone tell me the height of these 4' x 7' Fiberbuilt Performance Mat after it is fully assembled. I'm very close to pulling the trigger on one but I have height restrictions in my garage. I'm hoping its around 2 inches because any taller and I start scraping my ceiling with woods.

[Baller]

The one I have is exactly 2”.

[frodaddy00]

cool thanks!

[tonybrown32]

Just noticed this thread... I have the Fiberbuilt “4 x 7 Fiberbuilt Single Sided Performance Mat” found here: http://fiberbuiltgolf.com/commercial...rformance-mat/

It is bigger than the one you’re posting abuot and has an area past the hitting strip where I can out my launch monitor (GcQuad). Im sure the hitting strip is the same and the construction sounds similar.

I’ve had this mat for about a year and I’ve had a few others including CCE, Divot Action, and a couple other I don’t remember. This is the best mat if you plan on hitting a lot of shots, which I do, almost every day. It really saves your joints from the hard mat impact. I’ve had problems hitting too much on pretty much all the others.

BUT, do not be fooled, as someone else mentioned, this mat is NOT forgiving. My angle of attack is perhaps a little steeper than some, but my ball striking is fantastic (just saying to give a reference point). I might mis-hit one ball in a whole round of golf. BUT on this mat, I get penalized quite a lot. Sometimes I have to hit a ball off of the stance mat to reset my frame of mind.

Just something to be aware of. No mat is real turf.

Agree.. exact same experience here for me. I hit a LOT of balls over the winter, and the fiberbuilt is far less fatiguing on the joints and forearms for me. I also don't think it's forgiving. I certainly drop yards on my Skytrak shots when I hit one fat... and I certainly know when I hit one fat. Maybe I'm just more in tune with the feel of the ball off the club face. I judge my fat/thin shots by how the ball comes off my face, not so much by the turf. If I hit one severely fat, my club even bottoms out to the hard bottom surface which you can also feel... I feel like the Fiberbuilt has actually improved my ball striking by allowing me to hit down and through more easily. I would tend to try and sweep the ball off my Monster Tee or CCE type mats after a while, to save myself the impact... I feel like it created a few bad habits, and I would hit more thin shots on the course.

[RyanP]

Agree with you on a lot of it Tonybrown and no disrespect to your original review. We just must swing different and play on much different turf so the feel to me is just way off.. The mat certainly is forgiving to the joints though, I literally feel nothing in my elbow, which I tore the tendon nearly completely in half year ago and it still has searing pains when I aggravate it. Which is making me consider keeping a fiber built panel just to be safe. I have a drop in insert hole cut into my DIY stance platform, so I may return the weird shaped flight deck and get a 1x1 panel to drop in for extended hitting sessions. I do also think the spin is better off it than the others.

Not sure if they make it but I would kinda like a tighter lie fiberbuilt, with more bristles, may 2/3rd the height, and a more even cut. That may work out just right for me.

[Baller]

Yeah, I was looking at their site the other day and wondering about one they call "High Density Fiberbuilt Fairway Grass" and I'd guess that it is more like that, because I would love that as well, but not sure and if so, how much better. Might be good to get a panel and compare but you may have to buy a set of 4 for it. No idea on cost. Found here: http://fiberbuiltgolf.com/commercial...density-fiber/

For those that don't understand the penalty, what happens is that your ball gets pushed down into the fibers when you hit down on it and it kills your ball speed, which would not be penalized in a real fairway.

[Solstice72]

wbond Are you still using the aero spark tee for this mat? They are selling those adjustable tees on fiberbuilt website. Did you feel the Aero spark is better than to get Fiberbuilt's?

[wbond]

The aerospark tee i have is the same as the tomahawk tee, but taller. It works fine for me. I would use this over the adjustable tee from fiberbuilt because it's easier to attach my teeclaw lanyard to it and keep it from flying around.

wbond Are you still using the aero spark tee for this mat? They are selling those adjustable tees on fiberbuilt website. Did you feel the Aero spark is better than to get Fiberbuilt's?