Am discraft bag

[discpunk26]

I know there are going to be haters because I throw an all discraft bag, but it works for me so deal with it. Any suggestions would be great, just make sure it is discraft or dga.

Distance
Z Nuke- all out distance, this thing bombs. When most can't reach the basket, I throw this disc and with no wind it will go over 500 ft easy. I do also throw it for some side arm out to 450 ft.
Z Nuke OS- great disc in the wind, I threw this for the first time in competition on hole 17 of the Tobbogan during Am Nats and it landed on the marker for 200' left into 20 mph headwind.
Z Force- controllable distance hyzers out to 480 and distance side arm out to 400 ft.
esp Force- distance control out to 500 but usually less
Z Surge- this disc pulls double duty as a distance turnover driver and touch side arm driver. I will use it for rollers too.

Fairway
Z Fick- skip shots, but mostly tomahawks and thumbers
3 Z Preds- I have these ranging from new overstable to beat flippy. My new one I throw side arm only unless I'm fighting a strong headwind. My oldest one has been in the bag for almost 2 years and has the glide to reach close to 500 ft. I use it mostly for long tunnels, turnovers, and short stable sidearms out to 300'. The last one is in between, so it flies a lot straighter for a lot longer then a pred should but still hyzers hard at the end, this is also my go to driver side arm and back hand.
2 esp Preds- I only keep 2 of these for extra grip, one new and very pred stable, one nearly beat for long turnovers.

Mids
Z hornet- My favorite mid, just like a pred but a bit shorter. For some courses I will add an esp hornet for little extra glide out to 330'.
Z Buzzz- I carry 2 Buzzzes, and they are growing on me, but I mostly tolerate them. When I changed my grip they got really flippy on me, so I'm working on that.
Comet- One of my favorite approach discs, depending on the course, I will have an X or Z comet in the bag, I just like how straight they go with little effort.

Putters/ approach
Magnets- I carry two for putting, and a pro line titanic ( esp Magnet ) for approaches and short stable drives
Zone- Great approach disc, doesn't always stay in the bag, just on short courses.

Any questions or comments?

[turso]

Seems pretty comprehensive to me, bit low on the understable stuff but if the beat Preds and the surge work for you, I see no reason to do any bigger changes. Personally I'd add a properly flippy Fairway into the mix, but that's because my FH sucks.

[Mark Ellis]

Well discpunk26, if you are an Amateur player and can throw a Predator 500 feet then clearly power is not the issue keeping you in the Amateur ranks. So therefore it must be control and/or putting.

Many big power players have problems with touch (controlling a disc at slower speeds and/or dialing back on power). In order to work on touch you need discs which are NOT massively overstable.

Since you have the good taste to prefer Discraft, pick up a handful of comparatively understable discs in each category: Rattlers/APX's, X Buzzz/Stratus, Flash/Rogue/Z Surge SS.

Do not put any of theses discs immediately in the tournament bag. Rather test them out, practice with them, play catch with them and learn how to manipulate them. You will need to dial down in power to control them. Learn how to throw them dead nuts flat and straight. This is not an impossible task although it may seem so initially.

On holes with short, tight tunnels these flippier discs will do the job much more competently than the power rockets you currently throw, once you learn them. When I started playing Pro many years ago I was much more likely to deuce a 400 foot hole than a 200 foot hole. Why? Because I lacked touch and relied on overstable discs for darn near every shot. Now that I have learned to throw straight and control the speed of my discs I look forward to tricky little tunnels.

Great players have power and control. It takes both to be successful in the Open ranks. Then there is that other little issue known as putting, which is another topic all together.

[JR]

How do you like Wasps? Might suit you for more reliability than the Hornet and better wind handling than the Buzzz.

[JHern]

Since you like the Comet, you might be more interested in trying the DGA Sparkle Aftershock, which IMHO is the best mid-range disc to hit the market in a while. The rim feels like a slightly lower profile Comet. It goes far and can handle power, and is more versatile than a Buzzz alone.

[discpunk26]

I have thrown the wasp, and I do really like the flight of the wasp more than the buzzz, but the wasp and hornet have too much overlap. I went back to my old grip for the buzzz and comet, and it really helps with control on shots in the 200- 300' range.

[JR]

The Z Wasp is better in the wind than the Hornet. The Aftershock is almost as good.

[discpunk26]

If you say so, but I have never had a problem throwing hornets into a headwind even throwing sidearm into a headwind, the hornet is the pred of mid range discs.

[curt]

It sounds to me like your bag could really benefit from some true fairway drivers. If you're nukes are going 500', the preds are too, and your hornet goes 330, what are you throwing for the 350-450 range? That sounds like a huge gap to be trying to power stuff down for. I'd give an XL or stalker or cyclone a chance. (I'd really rather recommend a PD, tee bird or eagle because I think discreet is lacking in this area)

[discpunk26]

My one beat pred does not hit 500 ft every throw, when I throw it flat and let it get the full ride on its turn, it can there, I've done it a few times, but the control is not there to do it all the time. I am most consistent hitting my lines between 330 and 430 ft with a pred, my forces go from around 400' - 500', all depending on what a shot calls for. I was just giving an example of how much glide and how flippy my beat pred had gotten, not say that I throw it that way all the time.

[BLURR]

I would agree with what others are saying about a true fairway driver. I would suggest getting yourself a couple of Z-Trackers. It has some stability and has great glide. It is also really easy to control.

[JR]

Then your Hornet differs from mine. I have an early one and i heard that others have similar discs to mine from the early runs. That is they fade well in calm weather and won't flip. They won't handle OAT well at all but in winds it is silly how much it loses HSS and gets flippy. I don't know if all Hornets are like yours now. If they aren't i'd stock up on the kind of Hornets you prefer.

[discpunk26]

Playing around with a surge ss and a tracker, first impressions, I like the tracker, very helpful in the 20+ mph winds in place of the buzzz. Haven't had a chance to check out the surge ss yet.

[JR]

It is the best straightish driver from Discraft. I'm sure Mark Ellis will praise some his atypical Flashes to be better and they well may be that but out of the ones you don't know what to look for and get regularly from the shelf they are almost as good at lasering as Beasts. For your power the extra LSS should help.

[discpunk26]

Played a brand new course over the weekend, and took a few discs out there to try out on the course, and I learned a lot. I brought a Z surge ss, an esp Avenger ss, a Z tracker, and a stratus. There was still snow on the ground, and no one shoveled the tee pads so these discs, and my comet were my friends. I am really liking the surge SS, great disc for control throws. I threw it a few times from almost a stand still dead straight with a touch of hyzer finish 350'. The Tracker is also becoming a favorite for tunnels and some shots out to about 400'. I had thrown the stratus before, and loved the idiot proof turns I got out of it, and still saw that here. I like the disc, but I feel as though the comet can do pretty much the same thing. Am I right?