MVP Ion

[discspeed]

I play with the best Wizard thrower out there (no, it's not Nikko), JohnE McCray. He indisputably has more power than me, but he does not throw Wizards farther than I throw Ions, especially on anything close to a golf line. My 350' shot with an Ion starts turned over and comes back on a fairly low and tight golf line, where his 350' Wizard shot is a much higher anhyzer shot that looks like a distance line. I assume that JohnE uses some of the best Wizards out there.

Has he thrown any of the Ions for shits and giggles? Just wondering if he tried it out and what his thoughts were on it.

Also, I thought the Voodoo was supposed to be closer to the Ion than a Wizard???? So maybe it's not fair to compare the two (Wizard/Ion) at all.

Climo has looked at my Ions before...I don't remember whether he putted them at the basket before or not. He is a curious guy when it comes to discs and he thought it was interesting. He DID throw my Vector and parked a 350' basket with it on his first throw. I told him it was like a really stable Roc before he threw it. He was impressed by how far it went despite feeling like a Roc (insinuating that a new Roc wouldn't have flown that far for him on that throw).

The very early Ions that had beads mostly obscured by the overmold were more reminiscent of Voodoos, but the newer ones have the bead more exposed and are definitely more like Wizards. The Voodoo did not exist when Chad designed the Ion, rather he thought the Wizard was the best putter mold on the market then. Bead aside, the symmetrical nose on the Ion is more Wizard-like than Voodoo as well.

 

[xare]

He needs something in the other direction like pine tar or gator grip.

I don't want to go with pine tar - that stuff is a b!tch to get off of ANYTHING, much less pretty Ions. I'll have to review Mark Ellis's posts regarding stickum brands and see if I can find a brand that doesn't cause cancer and give it a try. Can't hurt.

 

[JR]

I use beeswax. Not terribly impressed with it in hard rain. If you towel it you need to use a dedicated towel, because the wax will stick to the towel and spread all over so the towel also needs to be Zip Loced. I was told that weight lifters use pine tar based grip enhancers that don't stick and smudge. No idea about carcinogenic properties of those and i don't know about any brands either. I was thinking of getting some to try, but the cancer comment made me think.

 

[ferretdance03]

Try this for added grip.No residue on your hand/disc but sticky as a mofo.

 

[discspeed]

That stuff is making me curious...Does it work in wet conditions at all?

 

[JR]

Try this for added grip.No residue on your hand/disc but sticky as a mofo.

If it works in rain i'll get one.

In climbing they apparently leave a hard residue in long term use, but wiping it off should work. I checked out climbing sites near me and they have two liquid magnesium bottles. Beal Suregrip and Black Diamond something if it even had a name beyond the brand of the manufacturer. No idea about how healthy those products are in use. i think the name of another product that had chalk contained in pass through cloth was Agaudia. Same price range as the Metolius Edo Ball. If the liquids work, they don't need a separate bag to contain the chalk to keep it from smudging your bag. Metolius and Agaudia keep on keeping out magnesium carbonate dust with every motion so they need to be zip loced and still it may not be enough to keep from soiling your bag.

 

[ferretdance03]

I didn't have any issues in the rain. I kept the Eco Ball in my bag pocket and would just grab it every once in a while to get some more grip on my hand. Worked like a charm. In fact, for me in non-wet rainy rounds it's too grippy for me. I use a birdie bag or something similar to keep my hands dry during most rounds, but in the rain the Eco Ball can be a life saver.

 

[JR]

I'd have to order the Eco Ball online from the other end of the country, but have a climbing store with Rock empire liquid magnesium less than a mile from me and Agaudia magnesium powder through cloth like the Eco ball in another store close by. Another brand for liquid mag is Mammut. Mammut is a large outdoors equipment and clothing brand.

Edited for remembering the name of one brand incorrectly.

 

[jubuttib]

Does the Eco ball primarily help people with dry or wet hands?

 

[ferretdance03]

It makes your hand super grippy. Grippy to the point that in normal conditions it causes grip lock issues for me. I assume it works better for people with wet hands, but I'm really not sure.

 

[Crosseyed0811]

I thought I saw someone post about the Ion and say that after the overmold "roughed up" a little then the gyro effect of the disc was more dominant. Am I making this up? I can't find the post anywhere now. If its true, how is the best way to go about doing this? I've been putting away with mine at my practice baskets and I can tell NO difference in the disc. These things are bullet proof lol. I sometimes throw practice shots at work on the parking lot, but asphault can be deadly to discs so I avoid throwing any of my "good" discs there. Would this actually benefit the Ion?

 

[fanter]

I thought I saw someone post about the Ion and say that after the overmold "roughed up" a little then the gyro effect of the disc was more dominant. Am I making this up? I can't find the post anywhere now. If its true, how is the best way to go about doing this? I've been putting away with mine at my practice baskets and I can tell NO difference in the disc. These things are bullet proof lol. I sometimes throw practice shots at work on the parking lot, but asphault can be deadly to discs so I avoid throwing any of my "good" discs there. Would this actually benefit the Ion?

If I've understood correctly, the point of the Gyro tech is to keep weight on the outside of the disc. Wouldn't roughing it up just cause you to lose some weight in the rim?

 

[Crosseyed0811]

If I've understood correctly, the point of the Gyro tech is to keep weight on the outside of the disc. Wouldn't roughing it up just cause you to lose some weight in the rim?

Don't know, I just seem to remember someone saying that after their Ion overmold got roughed up by the chains a little and the bead worn a little the gyro seemed to really take over more. Might have dreamed it, I have been having some VERY strange dreams as of late... I blame it on the Doctor... Too much Doctor Who in your life can have strange side effects...

 

[discspeed]

If I've understood correctly, the point of the Gyro tech is to keep weight on the outside of the disc. Wouldn't roughing it up just cause you to lose some weight in the rim?

Don't know, I just seem to remember someone saying that after their Ion overmold got roughed up by the chains a little and the bead worn a little the gyro seemed to really take over more. Might have dreamed it, I have been having some VERY strange dreams as of late... I blame it on the Doctor... Too much Doctor Who in your life can have strange side effects...

I believe it was posts of mine to which you are referring...Although I think you are combining a couple on somewhat different topics. I was talking about Ions sticking in the chains better after getting roughed up from practice putting. I was then also talking about Ions losing stability for driving after taking some impacts, roughing up the bead, and scuffing up the overmold. I don't think scuffing up the overmold alone from practice putting will have a big impact on HSS and glide, rather the culmination of all things that happen during regular driving/approaching/putting use.

Regarding gyroscopics....The Ion has a stable/overstable profile, so when brand new this shape trumps some of the gyro effect. Like any other putter, with wear it will slowly lose some of that overstability. As the Ion loses it's overstability, the gyro effect becomes more dominant as the stability of the disc is no longer fighting it.

Regarding the top post...I've never seen an overmold chunked up enough to have lost any significant mass from use.

 

[Crosseyed0811]

Thanks, might be why I couldn't find the singular post So wearing them in does let the gyro have more effect, I'm going to guess its the same with the other molds as well? Just got my first Ion and Axis and haven't actually played a course with them, just done some field work and some practice putts, which to be honest the Axis works as a pretty good spin putter too

Just getting the hang of these things I think, now if I can just fix my nose up issues I might be doing some nice stuff...

 

[jubuttib]

Just got two re-tooled IONs today (white 172 medium and stamped soft) and whoa. Not to knock the textured ones, but these are just plain better. Hopefully the clear ones will wow me as well, since I won't be able to stack up on these.

They did. Instant main putting and driving putters. Still, I'm glad I have a stack of the old textured runs so that I can beat them into understable.

 

[fanter]

Regarding gyroscopics....The Ion has a stable/overstable profile, so when brand new this shape trumps some of the gyro effect. Like any other putter, with wear it will slowly lose some of that overstability. As the Ion loses it's overstability, the gyro effect becomes more dominant as the stability of the disc is no longer fighting it.

Thanks for the input/clarification.

 

[JR]

It makes your hand super grippy. Grippy to the point that in normal conditions it causes grip lock issues for me. I assume it works better for people with wet hands, but I'm really not sure.

I have no experience of the chalk in that brand. I bought another and gave it away after the first brief test :-( My skin is glass dry, hard and slippery. I can't say for sure yet, but the Rock empire liquid magnesium seemed more grippy than powder chalk. The powder chalk soils the bag so i came equipped with a Minigrip bag, Zip Loc Euro version for you Americans, and the Minigrip was immediately smudged with magnesium. The mag stayed on the discs and would build up in the bag. Not for internal use... for someone with dry skin and under summer temps the chalk from that ball actually might have lessened grip strength. I could not remove all of the magnesium and just slapped on some liquid mag and got a better grip. Not much better mind you. Alcohol smell for a while with Rock empire liquid mag. The grip was a little better than without the mags, but i need to test liquid mag alone and in the rain to say for sure.

At this point i'd say that powdered mag for those with sweaty hands, if they don't want to rub dirt. And possibly liquid mag for those with dry skin. I think this brand of liquid mag ain't enough in wet and colder weather and FLX and R-Pro or the like is needed. Or possibly pine tar based (hopefully not smudging kind) ones.

 

[Someth1ng1]

When putting/approaching, does anyone else notice the ion standing up and rolling more than the putter they were using before? Just curious if I have been overly unlucky in that regards or if its something I will need to accept. My approaches and putts are much better not counting the occasional roll away.

 

[discspeed]

When putting/approaching, does anyone else notice the ion standing up and rolling more than the putter they were using before? Just curious if I have been overly unlucky in that regards or if its something I will need to accept. My approaches and putts are much better not counting the occasional roll away.

I don't have any issues, but this largely a product of my style of play. I use the new clear medium Ions and only putt with enough spin to get to the basket...I have a very lazy putt, usually dying and dropping in the chains. I approach primarily with these same discs, and I throw them nose down with a touch of anny so that the disc is pulling up and getting flat at the end of the flight, after which they nearly always sit and stick.

BTW...These newer Ions have become my favorite to putt and drive with by some margin...Mine has lost most of it's initial LSS and is probably the straightest disc (most HSS, least LSS) I've ever thrown. I still carry a couple of older Ions for shots that must flip some, but they don't glide as far or as easy as my new ones. Due to this I'd rather manipulate the angle of release with my new one whenever possible than throw one of my older ones.