Disc that crack in the Winter.

[Plastic Thunder]

Yesterday, I lost one of my favorite disc, No not while in use, while it was sitting nicely in my bag. This disc was an older Champion Panther I found in a discount last June. I was planning of taking the disc out of my bag for the winter. As I removed it from the bag my buddy said, "I see light coming through your disc". Yup, it had cracked.

I have only played 2 winters, but I have had a number of disc suffer this same fate. I like old plastic. I asked Gary, who was with me, if he had ever seen another manufacturers disc fail in the same manner(he has played since the mid 90's.)? The throws Discraft and Innova, he state "no" just the Innova cracked for him. So, I sent out a bunch of text to other old guys who have played for ever and the responses were the same.

So do other manufacturers plastics fail? I am sure they do. I would like to see a broken disc not made by Innova. Post Your proof.

I love the old plastic, I love the Innova mid-range and and drivers. This is not a bash Innova post. Just want to see other proof.

 

[Uncle Matt]

I've had a old DX Roc and a Stingray fail this same way.

A buddy of mine has had countless Innova discs crack for him in the Winter.

 

[JC17393]

I've not personally broken any Discraft plastic, but I have seen it happen. It was the low-grade stuff and it was very old (like mid/late 90s vintage), but it broke completely in half after hitting a tree...like one half went to the left and one went to the right.

I think it's the nature of any plastic, no matter the manufacturer or type, that as it ages, it dries out and becomes more brittle. This is definitely more the case with low-grade plastic (DX, ProD, etc) than it is with the premium stuff, but the premium is certainly not immune.

 

[thedrew300]

I shattered an old cyclone during the winter one year, that's the only disc I've personally broken, but all of the others I have seen are innova

 

[Halcón]

It's a matter of plastic quality, and numbers. There are (I think) more Innova DX discs out there than all other plastics combined. Chances are good that if you see a shattered one, it'll be Innova.

 

[Phantom Discs]

I have seen a D Buzzz shatter upon impact. I gave a slight chuckle when it happened. Only because it was not mine. Sorry buddy!!!!

 

[whatXhappened243]

I think it's the nature of any plastic, no matter the manufacturer or type, that as it ages, it dries out and becomes more brittle. This is definitely more the case with low-grade plastic (DX, ProD, etc) than it is with the premium stuff, but the premium is certainly not immune.

This, kinda.

All plastics, regardless of the brand or quality will eventually fail. The mode of failure considered in this thread is brittle failure (shattering or fracturing). Factors that favor brittle fracture in thermoplastic polymers is reduction in temperature (winter days), the presence of sharp notches (beat in discs), and increases in the glass transition temperature, Tg. (When heated through the glass transition temp, the polymer transforms from a rigid to a rubbery state)

The reason for this is called cross-linking. It happens as a result not of age necessarily, but exposure to UV light. The molecular strands that make up plastics start out as long individual strands but begin to link together in a web-like manner. Crosslinks restrict molecular motion. A high density of branches reduces chain mobility and elevates Tg. With a high enough density of cross links, molecular motion is virtually disallowed; long-range molecular motion is prevented, to the degree that these polymers do not experience a glass transition or its accompanying softening.

For review of cross-link embrittlement, see Materials Science and Engineering, Callister and Rethwisch, 8th Ed. Sect 15.5 and 15.14.

Hope thats easy enough to understand, and that it helps. Also who says you don't learn anything useful in school.:hfive:

 

[Mbagnola1]

I personally feel like you see more Innova discs crack because there are more older Innova discs out there. Discraft doesn't have the collectable force behind it like Innova does. I have seen countless older Innova discs but the only 10+ year old Discraft i see are Z wasp & Buzz

 

[Plastic Thunder]

E3,

Now your story is funny, I laughed out loud when I read it.

 

[DSmith]

Its discs, not disc. Thats why it cracked.

 

[LeBryson James]

Did you take your bag from a hot/warm aired car to the cold outside? I had 3 10x discs crack on me because of rapid temperature change.

 

[discreid]

I had two discs crack last winter. First picture is an old Wizard to answer the OP. Second disc is obviously an old Roc. I also found cracked Ion last winter on the course.

 

[BrotherDave]

It's discs, not disc. That's why it cracked.

 

[heartman]

Pretty sure Snappy Cole cracked at least 1 '01 CE Roc within the past month ... maybe two

 

[brandocommando9]

Pretty sure Snappy Cole cracked at least 1 '01 CE Roc within the past month ... maybe two

Why people don't take CE out of their bags for winter is beyond me especially CE Rocs 3-400 for a replacement no thanks!
It rarely even gets below freezing in Seattle and the only CE I will keep in the bag is a Jls because their cheap in terms of CE.

As for broken discs I found an old cobra and a pro d buzz on the course last week both horribly shattered no just a crack.

 

[scarpfish]

So do other manufacturers plastics fail? I am sure they do. I would like to see a broken disc not made by Innova. Post Your proof.

I love the old plastic, I love the Innova mid-range and and drivers. This is not a bash Innova post. Just want to see other proof.

You may have to wait many years for that proof, as aside from the big two, and perhaps Lightning, many of the manufacturers don't really have any "old plastic" yet.

 

[HEATER]

I cracked an 11x tb last winter.
Hit an early tree really hard. It's hard to say if it would have cracked if it was in the middle of summer.

 

[notapro]

I've seen someone crack a Z Predator

 

[thrembo]

I was playing in an Ice Bowl event at Hudson Mills circa 1997, when one of my sweet J-Bird Comets went into the snow. The bottom became full of snow, so I gently tapped it on my boot to knock the snow out of it, and it snapped in half!

 

[Thumber]

Buddy busted a sweet pro destroyer yesterday. -10c here yesterday. I don't use my menu discs n the winter