[Drivers] Reptilian Disc Golf Raptor: Overstable Control Driver

[Brodysseus]

The Raptor continues to cement itself as the most reached for disc in my bag when I'm deep in the brambles.
My most thrown Raptor is also starting to develop a little bit more wiggle in the middle of its flight before it fights back.

Is this mold winning over any other players?

It's quickly becoming one of my most used discs. It is my go to forehand driver... It's gonna go right, I can always count on that. But it rides out a flex longer than a Firebird and is pretty long for me. Plus, it has less HSS than a chicken so I can get predictable but shaped shorter flexes out of it. Bonus, I've really got my flick roller dialed in with the Raptor now.

The hyzer game is on point as well and that's my main backhand use for it. Great for spikes because it really digs in. Rides out sweeping hyzers surprisingly well. And of course, I can trust it into just about any head or cross wind.

 

[Reniger]

Field tested this more with my usual bagged discs: Prodigy X1, F1, and grabbed an H1 from the dog pile.

The H1 has very similar flight ratings, so I expected a similar result. Honestly, the H1 never made my bag as it was a glide-less meathook and I pure stone hated the thing. On the counter, the Raptor has not left my bag since receiving it. On the the field!

The H1 (again, similar rating) would bite in for that overstable hook sooner than the Raptor and would tip damn near on it's edge and crash down. Repeated throws were hard for me to get more than about 280' (for reference, my main driver is a Prodigy D2 and gets out to 400' routinely)

The Prodigy X1 is a wicked overstable disc with little glide, so I thought it would be a good comparison to the Raptor, however, the X1 still has some high-speed turn before cutting back in for that epic fade. The X1 was getting out about 340-350' pretty consistently and showed more flex lines than the Raptor.

The F1 is the disc that I felt flew most like my Raptor and since I bag both, wanted to see identical shots to show if there was truly room for both or if I was just going full fanboi. The F1 is lower speed, higher glide, but same flight pattern. This resulted in the fade kicking in a bit later into the flight and not being so aggressive as it slowed down. All in all, both the F1 and Raptor resulted in very similar flex lines and placement.

The Raptor's flight was still very aggressive, but still controllable. On certain lines, it far outperformed any other disc. The spike hyzer is just this disc's bread and butter! I've never thrown a disc that has such little glide when thrown flat and low, but when it gets some sky under it sails like a leaf on the wind! Crazy good distance for that utility slot and getting around obstacles.

My sidearm is weak, so I cannot weigh in too heavily on that subject. However, even with my poor form, it preforms well on an anhyzer line to get some decent distance and still ending with that reliable, hard right finish.

Overall, the Raptor has similar ratings to an H1 but outshines it in every way. The X1 still has it's place as the longer overstable disc and the F1 is not quite as heavy-handed and will get more straight shots with a strong fading finish. The Raptor compliments a slot in my bag that my usual Prodigy line-up lacks.

GG RDG!

 

[Reniger]

Got my RDG Minis! Sexy beasts. If only they were Fossil. :thmbup:

 

[@iDiscGolf]

First big thanks to Jamie and letting me get my hands on this thing to test out!

I liked the raptor. It's a good disc. I threw it in comparison for a couple weeks to my lat64 xxx, dynamic discs felon and innova glow sexton firebird. The disc flew similar to the listed flight numbers although it did seem more like a speed 8 or 9 versus a true speed 10. (Compared, a PD is still faster and has a forward fade)

The raptor flew good on backhand, forehand and flex shots. High speed stable with a reliable fade, even when flexed out. The xxx was definitely more OS and slower. The felon and ns firebird (for me are interchangeable) and raptor had similar landing zones when thrown on identical lines. I could see throwing any three of these discs and playing out a lie with similar results.

The "armor flex" plastic has good grip and maintains that in the rain. Feels real nice when cold and wet too. To me it's really to flexible however, borderline floppy (and I'm a fan of gstar type plastics). The disc did show allot more wear and got fairly beat up aesthetically. More than any champ/star disc used. I did really like the bottom stamp "proto egg" and the bottom tooling from Daredevil Discs, I have never seen that before. The dye job was un-uniform, and I didn't mind that. It created a unique look with some swirls in it. Cool light blue too, I don't like dark blue discs too hard to find.

I wanted to give my honest opinion and over all it's a nice disc and I've had fun with it and will continue to play around with it. But, for me with a OS fairway driver in this role I not only want to be able to throw backhand and forehand throws, but I NEED utility. And for me the armor flex plastic seemed to prevent big skips I want from a firebird type disc and wears too quick with thumbers/rollers.

So if you want a disc to hit and stick this will fit the bill. I could even see someone bagging this in addition to a firebird (probably more similar to a gstar firebird?). This seems to be the RDG m.o. of hit and stick, and a big-hyzer game. I'd say it fits right in with the rest of the gang!

Thanks again RDG! :thmbup:

 

[jcassidy1990]

Second batch of Raptors are set to hit the site this evening!

 

[AndyJB]

Good...since I have been texting you for like two weeks about replacing mine haha

 

[Disc of Cheese]

Will we the sweet as pink pteros we've been teased with be uploaded to the site in this wave as well?

 

[thelorn]

Had a lot of fun using this today in a pretty tight wood course with low ceilings and requiring some beef.

Putting in bag to really try out these next few weeks.

 

[OB Four]

Can anyone compare this to a first run c-line PD?

 

[tbird888]

Much less glide. Taffy plastic instead of Champ.

 

[Quinum]

I am seeking a control driver to slot between my Bandit and Firebird. Would the Raptor fill that spot, or would it be too close to a Firebird in terms of stability. Looking for something that will give me solid distance and control in the wind, but without the super-hard fade and skip of a champ FB.

 

[Horsman]

Im using the Raptor as a direct replacement for a firebird in my winter bag, my guess it would not fill the role you are looking for

 

[skizzle34]

My Raptor has been a direct replacement for my C line PD. It is very beefy but when thrown hard (for me) it is straight to fade out to about 375'-400'. It forehands extremely well and I am beginning to like it better than I liked my PDs. Once I have one beat in a little bit I am sure I will never look back. For lower powered players I can see this thing acting more like a FAF firebird to be honest. The Raptor is no joke.

 

[kevdiv48]

I am seeking a control driver to slot between my Bandit and Firebird. Would the Raptor fill that spot, or would it be too close to a Firebird in terms of stability. Looking for something that will give me solid distance and control in the wind, but without the super-hard fade and skip of a champ FB.

I suggest an S-PD around 170 grams.

 

[Quinum]

Ah, interesting. Thanks for the feedback. Maybe something like a SPD or Thunderbird will work a bit better for me. Still might give the Raptor a try, though. Looks like a sweet disc.

 

[Moose33]

Raptor is awesome, but basically it's a star Firebird in hand and flight to me. I can BH it 325-350 and FH 375-400 and that is the exact same as my PFN star FB.

 

[JamesXC]

The difference between the Raptor and the FB is that the ArmorFlex plastic does not like to skip at all. It is very much a hit-and-stick kind of thing. That is one of the things I like about it. I can throw it and know that the fade will be there, but I don't have to give it too much height to make sure that it doesn't take a huge jump left.

 

[ilmcgee]

When are more Raptors coming in? And what plastic will it be?

 

[geo_08]

When are more Raptors coming in? And what plastic will it be?

I have some armor flex for you to try when we meet.

 

[skizzle34]

Not 100% sure on reload date for raptors but they come in armor flex and will soon be available in a champion like plastic!