Driver help for newb

[PMantle]

Will try to keep this short, but it seems I have so much to say. I may get terminology wrong-please try to make my non-sense make sense the best you can. Not been playing long, but have seen huge improvement from first few round. Biggest issue now seems to be driving on long open holes.

I have owned a few distance drivers, and the only one that I can throw far consistently is an ASS. I can flip it and it glides beautifully. I failed with a Wraith. Threw a bud's Archon and was amazed. Looked at the charts and figured it was due to it being a bit more understable. Bought my own. That one is acting just like a Wraith for me. I suspect that speed is too much for me, but the bigger issue may be the huge rim. I have short fingers. I just don't feel comfortable gripping it and I get lots of nose up throws.

Last point: if I throw all my longer discs 10 times, and add them all up, my Cyclone is going to win that battle even though it will not have a single drive in the top 2 or 3.

I guess my question is, what would be a good step for a newb longer than a Cyclone? Should I just drop down to lower speeds in the Innova line?

Thanks for any help.

[keltik]

Welcome to the forums and welcome to Disc Golf.

The Cyclone is an excellent driver for your entire career in golf. It is a very shape-able driver and it is slow enough that players at almost all levels can control it. What plastic Cyclone are you throwing?

Now you want to try a faster disc. do you want it to fly like the cyclone but just longer? or do you want a different flight? how far are you throwing your Cyclone now would you say?

I'll recommend some discs anyway.
Discraft: XL (similar to the A-SS just slower), XS (a less glidey slightly longer Cyclone)
Both of these discs are just a touch faster than your Cyclone and are easier to grip than a Wraith/Archon size disc.

Innova: Gazelle (slightly more stable Cyclone but same speed), Cheetah (slightly stable than Cyclone but same speed) I mention these for reference points.

Teebird (faster Gazelle), Eagle X(faster Cyclone, similar in some aspects to an XS (Z plastic only) these however usually start off a lot more overstable), Eagle L(a less stable Eagle)

Leopard (similar speed to Cyclone but less stable, very good in the woods)

Latitude 64°: River (long glidey slower driver, speed similar to Teebird, neutral stability), Saint (same as river but slightly more OS).

[PMantle]

Thanks for the reply and recs. I'll try to answer the questions and give more info.

I can throw the A-SS just under 300'. I honestly don't know how far I throw the Cyclone-I guess I need to figure that out. The Cyclone I have is the Elite X rated at 1, not the D rated at 0.

I have a Tracker that I use when I need something more stable, but can barely throw it out of my shadow. Love it for the two hard dogleg left holes I play and for approaches that must fall left. I have a Leopard that I loved at first, but now crashes hard unless I throw it easy. Have a Stratus that flies similarly, but glides better for me. Currently carry: Archon, A-SS, Cyclone, Tracker, Stratus or Cobra, Leopard, Buzzz, Aero and Soft Magnet.

As far as what I want, I am not looking to duplicate the flight of the Cyclone-I don't think. Just something that maybe a new arm can throw farther on open holes. The Cyclone does not act as overstable for me as the inbounds flight chart suggests. It does fall left, but only at the very end, and not very hard. If the answer is-keep throwing the Cyclone, I can live with that.

In my town, I can only buy Discraft, Innova and Millenium. Anything else would have to be ordered. What about Orion/JLS?

[keltik]

I forgot about Mill. the JLS is an absolutely fabulous driver that should serve you well. It and the XL are very similar discs (almost identical). I think either an MJLS or an X XL should be a good choice for you at your current level. and don't stop throwing the Cyclone.

[PMantle]

Thanks. No, I won't stop. I see it being-when in doubt, throw the Cyclone. It doesn't seem to care if I release a little high. It also seems to float forever down wind when my other drivers get knocked down.

I think I can get a cheap JLS at Academy. The Orion and Astra is only in more expensive plastic.

[pask2155]

A valk might be something fun to try. It's faster and you can grow with it... It was a world record disc... Lol

[PMantle]

A valk might be something fun to try. It's faster and you can grow with it... It was a world record disc... Lol

You know, a friend let me use one of those and a Sidewinder, but that was before I could throw at all. Not saying I can throw well now, but I can compared to then. I should probably give both another go.

[JR]

And the next development step from the Valkyrie up is a modified Valkyrie named Beast. It is more power hungry, faster and harder fading with less flipping. Is your Leopard DX plastic because that flips hard soon and Pro also breaks in to flippy? Champ and Star won't any time soon and they start out more resistant to flipping too.

[PMantle]

And the next development step from the Valkyrie up is a modified Valkyrie named Beast. It is more power hungry, faster and harder fading with less flipping. Is your Leopard DX plastic because that flips hard soon and Pro also breaks in to flippy? Champ and Star won't any time soon and they start out more resistant to flipping too.

Yeah, I'm now wishing I had gone Beast instead of Archon.

Yes, the Leo is DX. I actually found a thorn tip embedded in the leading edge yesterday. That one is on my list of discs to replace with more durable plastic. I have a lot of uses for one on the course I play most. That one, and the A-SS in Z.

[brittwink]

A valk might be something fun to try. It's faster and you can grow with it... It was a world record disc... Lol

I've thrown Valkyries since I started 3 years ago, and it's been my favorite driver since I first threw it. You can't go wrong with a Valk

[JR]

And as your power increases the same applies to the Beast but it is a usable disc even at under 300' for some lines. And forcing it on most lines so it has a very large distance window in which it can operate well as long as there is skilled technique involved.

[PMantle]

Thanks to all. Just sold a climbing stand, so I have some disc cash. Looks like some valks, beast and JLS to come. I need numbers for soccer field throwing anyway.

[discspeed]

If you want to be really hip you could also get an MVP Volt...It sounds like something that would work for you...It's more stable than the ASS, but a lot more dependable as well. It will still fly on great anhyzers with the added ability of flying really straight or on hyzers well too. It's not as fast as a Beast, but it is sneaky long for it's speed.

[PMantle]

The MVP line is confusing to me. Being new to all this, I don't get some of the concepts. I do love the youtube vids of some of you guys(Mike-thanks for those). They have helped me a lot. Seems like many use the MVP putters for lots of things. I just don't know where any of those would really fit in my bag, and I cannot see them in person.

Would a Volt be used off the tee on long holes over the other stuff listed above? Looks like it's being called a fairway driver. We really don't have many long holes though. I can think of only 6/18 where max is super important, and that may be a stretch. Only two of those is distance a factor in making a 3 for me at this point.

[money 21]

i might hav missed it but what plastic is your cyclone? I would pick up one of the other 2 plastic to complement it. same with the ass get a some in other plastics. weird thing about disc golf different plastic fly differently.