Chilly bag 2020-2021

[Alexplz]

Hey all, hope everyone is doing well.

It's been a while since I did one of these, figured I'd touch base at the end of the season and into the chilly months. Recently I decided to swap everything I could over to flexible/base plastic to combat the dew and temp at least. I don't intend to play in freezing temps, but you better believe that once it hits Fall in the PNW, any disc that touches the ground is wet essentially whether it's actively raining or not.

Without further adieu:

Putting putter:

Supersoft Wizard close to max weight
Recently after fiddling with a Wizard in a local shop I decided to make the swap from Daggers for putting. Deep dish, stable, better for throwing too. Decided on a "goldilocks" plastic blend I figured would be bearable in the hot and cold.

Throwing putters:

Supersoft and 4S Wizards of varying stages of wear, near max wt
Living the dream. Love throwing putters, that's it. I picked up a couple Diamond Wizards for when my supply of fresh throwers wears thin... little shoulder/dome on these makes them amazing stable throwers, not a fan of FH though.

GStar Rhyno max wt
Darn it, the Rhyno has just been a reliable thrower from day 1 back in like 2013. Love this mold in premium plastic, amazing in GStar, switch to Star or Champ in the spring. FH, BH, what can really go wrong when you're throwing a Rhyno?

Mids:

Recon X Mortar max wt
The other half of the one-two punch with the Rhynos. This is Recon (champ) in the warmer months. I bag these in place of Zones or Harps as I find I can more consistently range my FH upshots with these two options. Mortars are the definition of "just right" when it comes to OS mids. Small diameter, beadless, stable, exceedingly comfortable in a FH grip.

ESP Wasp max wt
These are Z in the warmer months. Wasps are just terrific, highly recommend these if you wish your Roc3s were more consistent.

Z Comet max wt, domey
The only Comets I really find I can rely on are max wt Z with dome. I recently swapped this in over a Buzzz as something that's a little more controllable powered down or with height. Likely to switch back to Buzzzes in the event I miss the resistance to wind.

Neutron Vertex just above 170g
Vertex is amazing, just what I have been looking for in an US mid. Specifically, one that is reliably understable without burning over. Reliability was the hardest thing I find in an US mid, to where I could expect it to turn some every shot, but that it wasn't so squirrely, glidey and fast that it was impossible to control. OOP, but highly recommend. If not vertexes, Tursas and Mystics are amazing premium plastic mids too.

Drivers:

GL Underworld around 170g
The underworld to me is like a Tursas that you can hyzerflip on a low line and get the distance you're looking for. It's like, the Tursas doesn't really work on shorter touch mid shots anyway, so just lean into it and bag it in fairway driver format.

G FD around 170g
It's fair to say that my drivers are built around FDs in the cooler and warmer months. They go just as far as anything speed 9 for me but can be powered down like a leopard. With this in mind I pair them with both Teebirds and Thundies to match the distances I throw FDs but with greater stability.

GStar Teebird max wt
Teebirds are great in GStar, just nice and mellow, like a favorite Star right out of the box.

GStar thunderbird around 170g
Probably Star or Champ in the warmer months. Probably not throwing this except in and around the wind.

DX thunderbirds around 168g
I used to like cycling DX Teebirds before I discovered FDs. I have yet to find a true faster FD, so I figured I'd try out cycling DX thundies just like I used to with Teebs. Working out great, as they start with plenty of stability with the extra glide to act as a winter bag distance driver. I'm interested to see how they wear, but they are holding up nicely thus far.

Star Firebird 168ish g
When looking for a cold weather firebird, I wanted something a little milder than color glow or champ, with better grip. GStar was out as I still wanted skip when needed. Highly recommend a mid-weight Star FB with medium dome as a very throwable option for anyone a little rusty like myself.

 

[wolfhaley]

I could do some work with that set up. Where exactly in the PNW are you located? I'm in central WI so I swap out to mostly g* in the winter. Star/pro/esp etc. work ok but champ/Z/lucid etc. are awful.

 

[elmexdela]

surprised to see that much overlap with your drivers

 

[ThrowaEnvy]

Looks decent, I'm kinda with wolfhaley on the plastic, but I get what you are doing with a beefy Comet. I usually drop a few grams and bag esp in the winter. More for standstill throws and wetness, but I don't need a Buzzz I got an Envy.

I love the mid weight firebird, one of my faves... I'm more of an FL user these days.

 

[Alexplz]

I could do some work with that set up. Where exactly in the PNW are you located? I'm in central WI so I swap out to mostly g* in the winter. Star/pro/esp etc. work ok but champ/Z/lucid etc. are awful.

Around around the south sound, Western WA... so very temperate. But soggy for sure.

GStar is great, and for the rest I decided to just roll with the farthest thing from Z/Champ that
I have on hand. Bagging Z in the winter for me just means an extra towel or two and a few more minutes per round drying.

 

[Alexplz]

Looks decent, I'm kinda with wolfhaley on the plastic, but I get what you are doing with a beefy Comet. I usually drop a few grams and bag esp in the winter. More for standstill throws and wetness, but I don't need a Buzzz I got an Envy.

I love the mid weight firebird, one of my faves... I'm more of an FL user these days.

Yeah the beef is needed. I'm sure a max wt beefy ESP comet would work fine or better too, just not interested in seeking one out for the odd winter round. I can see switching back to an ESP FLX Buzzz in my future.

 

[Alexplz]

surprised to see that much overlap with your drivers

What do you mean - underworld goes right, FD goes straight, teebird goes left. Then the thundies are just longer teebirds.

Oh I wonder if you mean that I am bagging a bunch of relatively similar molds.

 

[Alexplz]

Been contemplating separating my back into two sections - workhorses, and one-offs.

Like, that way I've got my workhorses that are all properly structured to complement eachother and not overlap, anticipating I'll throw these enough to cycle etc.

Then, on the other side of the coin, have a handful of discs for odd shots I lean on every once in a while (FAF firebird maybe) or discs that I just can't seem to put down but that might overlap with my workhorses in some way or just not quite fit into my gameplan (like a Proxy on top of my throwing putters or some wind-specific discs). This literally of course is just a meaningless thought experiment, but it could release me from my over thinking about plastic circles.

 

[wolfhaley]

If you're not thinking about plastic circles, why even think at all?

 

[R-Ogre]

Thunderbird is such a good mold. How flippy do DXs get?

 

[Alexplz]

Thunderbird is such a good mold. How flippy do DXs get?

Not at all thus far. A DX Teebird but speed 9 instead of 7 is sort of a holy grail for me so we shall see. Thinking of picking up a couple Escapes to try in this slot again tho, again, just as a one-off in the bag in a way.

 

[Alexplz]

Getting less chilly out there, and I've got 1 shot on board!

With that, some shakeups:

Putting with a SS Wizard, have another SS on deck for throwing - switched over from Daggers to something I prefer to throw. Putt very similarly, deep dish with the rounded lower wing and big bead.

Also bagging either a combination of Proxy / Mirage, or a cycle of beat Wizards I picked up used.

Trying out a combo of AviarX3 / Champ Mortar at present as opposed to a Zone. Zone too often seems to be between shots for me - I'm either blowing past the basket with a skip or I'm thinking "dang these really are just putters aren't they" and not getting there.

The hotly contested midrange slots...

Vertex is here to stay I think; the lower speed makes it less touchy for my arm.

Then it's either a Z Comet or a Buzzz. Or both??

Then we have either a Z Wasp or a revisit of a fresh DX Roc. I am considering giving a Roc cycle another chance, this time letting it happen naturally if it's gonna happen at all. A comet or buzzz with live in the bag alongside the Roc until the Roc potentially beats in enough to replace them. Or I might get impatient again and just roll with the Z Wasp.

For fairways, the FD is still the favored option. Looking like Underworld for flippy, a couple FDs, and a Teebird.

Picked up another GStar Teebird to throw in the bag as essentially a more stable FD.

Trying out an Anax as a lone hybrid driver. Used to love to FH the Avenger, and I heard this mold compares favorably. I like glide!

Then it's Thrashers, a Wraith, and an Archon to slot in between them, believe it or not. I would like to allow a beat wraith to kick it out of the bag ASAP, but it's actually a strangely perfect marriage between the wraith and the thrasher: the top half (vulcan) is very similar to a thrasher (or vice versa), and the bottom half is well... a wraith bottom. Nice and deep as opposed to most flippy cheater US distance drivers for noodle arms.