Driver Plastics

[Warhammer]

I know that plastic is a subjective thing, but in general for a driver, should I go for a higher quality plastic? My thinking is the longer you throw, the less control you have, the more liklihood of putting your shot somewhere you don't want it, etc. Therefore, a champ or higher quality plastic would be ideal.

What say you guys?

 

[surgeflx87]

If you want something to break in quicker , go with lower quality plastic( dx pro rpro pro d elite x etc.) If you want something with a longer break in period, and to stay more stable during its life, go with the higher quality plastic ( champ, esp, star, elite z, opto etc. ). But this does not apply to all discs, it honestly comes down to personal preferance. Such as many people prefer the roc in dx plastic.

 

[LoPan12]

Get whatever fits your budget. If you can, for champ/star or the other counterparts. If your tryin a new disc, and your on a budget, get cheaper plastic until you know what you want.

 

[ManU]

well that all depends on your arm (how far you do throw), what you want from a disc, and what courses you play on

if you play on heavily wooded courses Star/ESP or Champ/Z might be good
BUT
Star/ESP and Champ/Z are more stable than the base plastics...so may not actually fly as far

the base plastics have better grip and more glide

personally I like to find the mold i.e. disc that I like and then get it in various forms

for e.g. I throw Star OLFs and Pro OLFs
I also throw ESP/Z and X Crushes

my Pro OLFs and X Crushes fly further than their "higher quality" counter parts

I also don't play on courses where there will be a lot of tree hits

if I play different courses at tournaments I take a mix of discs and choose according to the risk

hope that helps

 

[Warhammer]

Tree hits primarily come from the tree seekings discs I throw, not because they are heavily forested.

 

[mashnut]

For the discs I throw for distance, I love pro plastic, it's a little more durable than dx but it still has good grip and a ton of glide. I get 20' more out of a pro wraith than I do out of a star wraith. For overstable discs, I like premium plastics so that they'll keep their flight characteristics longer.

 

[Marmoset]

As others have said, it depends on what you want. Mashnut's description is pretty close to what I would have typed.

But it really comes down to which disc you are talking about, how far you throw, how you throw, the terrain on your course, etc.

 

[bboykin]

For the discs I throw for distance, I love pro plastic, it's a little more durable than dx but it still has good grip and a ton of glide. I get 20' more out of a pro wraith than I do out of a star wraith. For overstable discs, I like premium plastics so that they'll keep their flight characteristics longer.

Ditto

 

[CwAlbino]

I prefer EliteX plastic, then Z. For innova, I really like pro but it seems to beat in faster than X. I like echo star the best for innova.

 

[DannyM]

I primarily play heavily wooded courses so I mostly have Star/Champion discs. When I do play wide open courses, I do carry a Pro Katana, which gives me about 20 extra feet on my drive

 

[Technohic]

For the discs I throw for distance, I love pro plastic, it's a little more durable than dx but it still has good grip and a ton of glide. I get 20' more out of a pro wraith than I do out of a star wraith. For overstable discs, I like premium plastics so that they'll keep their flight characteristics longer.

I agree with this, but I will add to sometimes the disc you really like isnt in the type of plastic you want.

 

[Greevus]

Champ/Star/Z all the way for drivers. Unless you want a quick-flipper. I like to throw flat and work the disc, so a nice seasoned champ will hold its flight forever.

 

[garublador]

For fairway/control drivers I think most people are best off with the lower end DX/D/Pro/X type plastics. They're easier with which to learn line shaping. At the point where you're good at line shaping (as in probably doing well in Advanced), or you're happy with how good you are and aren't expecting to do a whole lot better (and don't lose discs), then finding molds in higher end plastics might be a good idea.

For overstable drivers it's usually a good idea to get them in high end plastics unless you like how they beat in.

For distance drivers it depends on what mold and how far you're throwing. Most people will get better results from lower end plastic speed 9ish drivers after they fix their form a bit. Most people also don't fix their form and/or give these discs enough of a chance, IMO. Some molds just don't do all that well in the low end stuff (e.g. Orc), so if you have the arm and are using them then getting them in high end plastics makes the most sense. I'll also say that this is the mold in your bag that matters the least, so picking the "wrong" plastic usually has very little effect on your score.

 

[Apoth]

As so many others have said already, it really depends on a number of factors. My favorite driver so far has been a DX Destroyer - great distance and glide for me - but I don't throw it anymore because it took one tree hit before it became understable. So I've switched to pro destroyers instead. For other discs, it depends on the flight characteristics I want and the courses I tend to play. For my super overstable drivers (preds, forces etc.) I prefer Z/Champ plastic because it is generally the most overstable to start with and will hold that flight characteristic the longest. For many of my other drivers that I want to beat in a little but still hold that characteristic for a while, I've started to prefer echo star.

 

[gkeberhart]

I have had Pro and DX versions of most of the discs I throw now. I used them until I was able to get the Star and Champ discs to break into where I wanted them, Now I have more champ and stars being rotated in and out so I wont have to redo this process again.

that being said Pro and DX has always flown further than Champ and Star for me but it definitely does not hold up as long.

 

[KNole]

i prefer champ plastic because it can take punishment. when dx hits a tree it can leave a nice gash but champ plastic can hit a tree dead on and still be perfectly fine.

 

[eegor]

I play in west Texas quite a bit... cheap plastic doesn't last long at all. I get better quality plastic... if I can't use it, I trade it.

 

[gkeberhart]

I am just saving you all the troubles, here are the characteristics of all the plastics

Here is the run on Innova plastic

DX: Most overstable out of the box but beats to the most flippy; second best glide.

Pro: Starts off a little less understable than the posted stats, beats to flippy; most glide.

Champion: Starts off overstable and beats to the posted stats; second fastest plastic too Pro.

Star: Starts off a hair overstable beats to a hair understable (relative to posted stats); is a blend of pro and champ plastic; slowets plastic of the four types offered which also means the least glide of the four.

hope that helps in your future selections; I prefer Pro for effortless distance but I also like DX and Champ, I am not sold on Star yet but some discs only come in that plastic unless you get a CFR

this should be stickied somehwere IMO

 

[slowRoll]

I know that plastic is a subjective thing, but in general for a driver, should I go for a higher quality plastic? My thinking is the longer you throw, the less control you have, the more liklihood of putting your shot somewhere you don't want it, etc. Therefore, a champ or higher quality plastic would be ideal.
What say you guys?

I prefer the ESP plastic from discraft because it provides good grip and doesn't beat up too quickly. I think it's funny hearing people talk about the costs associated with discs. I'd rather own 1 esp surge than 2 DX wraiths. Quality over quantity all day.

BTW, an important thing to remember is once you have certian discs tuned to fly the way you want; it's best not to smash them up on wooded courses. Our TN state champ has discs he won't even throw on wooded holes. So carry a couple of the same mold so you don't have to ruin your good stuff.
I'm like Noah, 2 of these, 2 of those...

 

[gkeberhart]

I throw my disc on any hole wooded, rocky, and water. what is the point of having it in the bag if you have no intention of throwing it in half of the situations it should be used for.