Clear Element RANT

[jon_boi]

So, I'm typically a 1st run Element thrower and ordered some of the clear evolution elements off sunking for 10$. My hopes were to get a stable element that glides a ton. They arrived today and they are NOT clear. They are more opaque than my nike elements or almost any other e element i've had for that matter. Second, one of them has a really bad dimple on the top of the disc (gateway quality). Third... I'm guessing these are the retooled elements others have been talking about but the inside of the RIM has a curved connection to the disc. It's no like 90 degrees flight plate to rim, it's like a quarter pipe. Making the rim feel really shallow and making it difficult to find a comfortable power grip (top of nails parallel to flight plate).

I haven't thrown them yet, so perhaps I'm being a bit hasty, but I am honestly quite annoyed (mostly at gateway's quality and "retooling with the same name").

Somebody please tell me that these things are sweet. I'm imagining them being very understable, but I'm just hoping at this point they throw like a beat in roc that got lucky with a Z comet.

Probably more of a rant, but would love reviews about how they fly since I will be steaming until I can throw them later in the week.

-Jon

 

[Frank Delicious]

did you just rant about a disc you hadn't thrown yet?

 

[dgdave]

Dave Mac said they added something to make them not totally clear.

They are the retooled elements and they should fly a bit more stable than your 1st run. I think they are very nice ( I havent thrown the clear ones, but I have thrown E, S, and Glow and they are all pretty close) they are close to a comet, but are slightly faster and slightly less glide.

 

[jon_boi]

did you just rant about a disc you hadn't thrown yet?

Yea.. I know. It's probably a bit knee jerk, but i guess I just didn't quite get what I expected. I remeber feeling the same way about moisture marks on my first run and then loving them... I'm just annoyed by the way the inner rim feels and the divot. I'll probably be paying $100s for opaque CE elements with divots in a few months.

I guess going back to work after two weeks of daytime disc has made me a bit testy.

-jon

 

[dgdave]

He he.....

You said testy

 

[cmrichar]

I dont see why you are so dissapointed. The Retooled elements have that nice curve underneath, which I find to be super nice. Prolly the most comfy disc I have ever held. That will help the disc against the rim being bent on tree impacts. I knew what color they were considering it had a picture, but I could care less if its 'clear' becuase the plastic is going to have the same durability regardless. I am still waiting for my clear elements.

I have thrown S, E, and glow and I find all of them to be more stable than the original elements. I have also heard that the clear evo plastic was making the discs more stable IE spirit and warrior, but I havent heard how these elements fly, I am pretty excited about them myself.

 

[JR]

He he.....

You said testy

Sheesh another word to avoid

 

[readysetstab]

Third... I'm guessing these are the retooled elements others have been talking about but the inside of the RIM has a curved connection to the disc.

this is what i dislike about the new gateway molds as well. don't know why, but it just feels wrong. i had to take the warrior out of my bag after just a couple of throws because the grip annoyed me so much. i like the perpendicular edge. feels like my fingers can get in there better.

 

[JHBlader86]

Third... I'm guessing these are the retooled elements others have been talking about but the inside of the RIM has a curved connection to the disc.

this is what i dislike about the new gateway molds as well. don't know why, but it just feels wrong. i had to take the warrior out of my bag after just a couple of throws because the grip annoyed me so much. i like the perpendicular edge. feels like my fingers can get in there better.

Took time for me to get used to, but after some field work I find the disc comes out smoother from my hand.

 

[JerryH]

I am currently throwing a retooled Element although it is an organic one. While the grip is different and took me a little time to get used to, I love the disc. It is more stable that the original or first run Elements and has a good amount of glide. I am using it for tunnel shots between my Wizard and fairway driiver. Give it a go, I think you will like it.

 

[Clizark]

Mike Gets most of if not all of Gateways mishap discs. If you call in your order an tell him you want one with no cosmetic flaws
he will fish one out for you. Otherwise you get what is on the front of the bin.

As far as the disc being good or not, I am not sure if I like them yet either. The s element Dave sent me cracked, and the pink e warrior, well I have a stack of EX elements to handle that Job. My Clear stuff is coming in on Monday so I will post my opinion about those towards the end of the week.

 

[jon_boi]

So... after a long week of wind, I finally got a couple days in with my clear element.

I realize, that my initial instinct was a bit harsh so i went into it with an open mind. Upon receiving these bad boys, I was a bit pissed about the grip being so different from regular elements. These are the retooled elements and apparently the mold going forward. As expected, I was a bit disappointed. For me, I really like to use my first run elements to pull a power grip for longer mid drives (~330-360') where I have some height to work with with a continuous line (i.e. not dog leg), but want to minimize skip. This shot is not the forte of the new Clear Elements, as it's just not possible to get a true power grip with the curved rim. It feels really shallow because of this curve and the almost concave flight plate. It will definitely slip out of your hands if it's a tad bit moist. I suspect S elements will be more forgiving, but the Clear E had a lot of slips out of my hand. I can throw a fan grip and that was actually fairly comfortable with the new rim, but it still felt shallow for a midrange and I didn't feel like i could get a very tight grip... again may be less severe in other plastics or smaller hands.

Now for the flight..

It was actually fairly interesting. What I was hoping for was what I get out of the first run elements, but with a tad more stability. I think the first run element and Comets are great discs because it just holds a line really well the entire flight. The new retooled Clear E elements do not share this attribute. They are almost like a high speed driver, but slower. What I mean by that is they sorta have very different low and high speed stability. At higher speed, they like to fly flat and strait. You can use a minor hyzer at really high speed and not worry too much about it flipping too much beyond flat.

As it starts loosing spin, it has a definite fade, but rather than a hard fade, it sorta glides like a midrange thrown with a slight hyzer. So the net result is a strait flight takes a gradual fade as it slows down, but the fade has enough glide that it travels on hyzer line quite a bit. Thrown side arm, or with tons of snap, you'll see the disc can hold it's line till it looses it's hieight.

Overall, I don't know that I know of another midrange disc that throws quite the same. It's got an interesting driver-ish line, but I don't see this being a real life changer for me... I'll give it a few more weeks, and maybe pull it out for tighter dog leg holes, but I suspect it will spend most of it's life out of my bag.

My Grade: B-
Pros - Plastic seems pretty durable. Strait at high speed. predictable fade. Fast for a midrange
Cons: Grip. Slick plastic.

 

[JHBlader86]

Well if you dont like it I'll gladly take it off your hands.