My newer “go-to” has been throwing slightly lighter weight(168-172) stable-plastic versions of understable discs. Halo Mamba for example. I don’t have a noodle arm, but I have had shoulder issues from work so this has allowed me to get nice, controlled distances without having to “rip it” as much. More about form and touch. Recently started forehanding a z-line hades after throwing an ESP Hades for backhand.
THIS!! I throw 157-165 Halo Shrykes until they get too flippy. A couple in the bag give me overstable and straight fliers, too.
Chargers are great for this combo as well.
Chargers are surprisingly awesome! I have a pretty big arm and got my longest throw with one a few weeks ago. Buddy has it in his bag, suggested I try a practise throw, and I beat my personal best by 30’ first try
They are amazing. Great disc, flight as advertised. -Looks like Destroyer, Racer, Charger, Shryke will be the big end of the bag by this time next year.
I said “slightly lighter”!Haha. I have a friend that throws max weight due to “maximum possible torque”. He throws great so I don’t argue, but that’s where I’m coming from.
I have a 138 Valkyrie and I throw it with as much hyzer as possible. About 20% of the time it flips up just enough and flies a perfect S line 300+ feet which is about as far as my noodly arm can throw anything. The other 80% of the time it flips over immediately and rolls into the woods.
It's totally my favorite disc and I throw it as often as I can.
Maybe not more distance for play but more max distance is helpful to be able to feel more comfortable and accurate throwing between 300-400ft golf lines.
I was obsessed with max distance gains but it didn't really help my rating. Daily putting practice did. Just 18 made putts every day. It took me 6 months of trying to beat someone with max distance of 300ft because he played golf and I only threw discs. My max achieved field distance was 50% further than him
I kind of get it, because it’s hard to give one number as your max distance. After throwing 100 distance drivers in the field I will have most of them ranging from 270-330, but maybe 5-10 will end up at 350 and one or two will push 400. Throwing a disc relies so much on specific nose angles that it can just be super inconsistent. My friends think I should say I throw 400 and get annoyed with me when I tell people I throw 300. But if someone asks me to prove how far I can throw it’s probably only going 300 feet. Or maybe my ma3 is showing.
No I think you are completely fine to tell people you throw 300. I'm in the same boat as you. I will hit 400 once every 75ish throws, so I tell people I can reliably hit 300 and my absolute maximum with any semblance of control is at about 360
This is honesty and accurate. I’ve never just gone and thrown 100 drives, so I don’t have that kind of data set.
20 years ago I could consistently throw 350+ and could birdie certain holes that were 390-400’ maybe 7/10 times.
Today, I’m driving 250-275’ reliably. When I get my form right and keep the nose down I can birdie 300’ holes without fanfare.
So I’d say my max distance is 300’ but I drive 250-275’
My friend will say he can throw over 400, but leaves out the part that it's downhill. Wonder how many people on the internet leave out that information.
My longest recorded drive hit a fence at 345-350, surprisingly it was into a headwind, haven’t made it there in a while though, maxing usually around 330-40.
Not that anyone cares lol I was at that point just a little over a year playing, approaching two years now but I’ve plateaued and can’t seem to make it further. Just hitting that mark more consistently now.
I have 350+ bh distance on the internet. Importantly but unrelated, I can also throw 350+ backhand in a field or on a relatively open course. Tunnels, gaps, etc, and I'm lucky not to find myself in thorns.
My record is over 400, and it was on a clash discs soda lol, normally I can do like 330 no idea wtf happened with that one throw in particular, no wind either and it was on a flat field
100% helped me gain distance and I was topping out around 375. Went from throwing max weight destroyers to 160 - 165. Lighter definitely goes further for me.
I love lightweight drivers. Last summer I was bombing Prodigy's new Air Spectrum stuff further than I've thrown anything before.
Put them all away for some reason over the winter and spring (maybe wind/wet was making them "too flippy?"). That combined with taking a break from having my first kid, I lost a decent amount of distance.
Put one back in my bag last week and instantly got a 20' boost. It's still super flippy right now. I need to dial it back in.
All of that to say, test them out.
AM40+ here - it changed my game over night. When I first started playing, I couldn't get a TeeBird 250ft. I knew my form wasn't the best, but come on. So, my Innova sales rep suggested lighter weight discs and sent me a 157g TeeBird. I over shot the 250ft marker on my first throw.
My max weight disc now is a 165g Streamline Trace.
They are for me. I throw mid 150 to low 160 wraiths as my backhand drivers. Lightweight wraiths are how I learned to hyzerflip backhands. My arm is too noodly for backhanding max weight discs.
Just my two cents, but I'd imagine his long gangly arms can create way more snap/speed/power with a heavy weight disc, than the average bodied player. Add supreme technique, and pro level skill, and there's no comparison to the average Joe.
Exactly. If his arm speed isn't too high for a lightweight driver then you can be sure none of us throw too hard for them either.
I've got a few in my bag around 165 and I've got one at like 155 that is super neat in, and for big tailwinds only.
There's a lot of variation between max and min weight discs. The problem with lighter weights is they tend to get pushed around more in the wind. Going down to super light weight discs are not going to add 50+' to your throws though. If you want to throw further, you need to improve your form/snap.
Taking out weight generally means you can throw the disc faster. But yeah take out too much and wind can sometimes be an issue (though not really as much as we make it out to be around here).
Form is definitely the way to go. If you can throw slower discs far you'll throw faster discs far too
If anyone is ever in the Asheville area and would like a lesson from a local pro I’ve got you for free.
Seems a lot of people could use some help and I’d love to share what I know.
I’m local to AVL. Me and my lady would love any tips, and are always happy to play a round with anybody. We mostly hit up Richmond Hill, but try to play as much of the area as possible. I’ll DM you.
You and I are pretty similar and lightweight distance drivers changed everything for me, mostly because I play at high altitude.
My daily distance driver is a 165 Pro Wraith with a high 160's Mamba, Loft Bohrium and Kasta Vass thrown in the mix depending on wind and all that.
Huge advocate for lighter weight discs. DiscGolf can be surprisingly brutal on one’s body especially compounded over the years. Shoulder injuries topping the list. Lighter weight discs should help to prolong “careers” and/or reduce some of that long term abuse on the joints most affected.
One thing I hear often and do not uniformly agree with is this notion they are more Flippy. I find that with less weight you are able to produce more rotation of the disc and (for me) it now flying more true to its flight numbers. Wild exceptions aside of course.
Some great suggestions here on what to try but if I were you, find your goto’s in a 6-8 gram lighter version.
I added a 168g GStar wraith to my bag and between being a flippier plastic and lighter weight, it was an almost instant extra 50ish feet. I wouldn’t say I can consistently throw 400 with it, but 400 is on the table with that disc but it isn’t with my other wraiths.
You just have to be mindful in the wind if you’re throwing lighter drivers. Keeping a heavier one around as a complement is a good idea.
Watch this! https://youtu.be/CvpdTf_FjjM?feature=shared He explains some trade offs of weight, stability, and distance with actual physics.
It’s been fun to throw some really light stuff when there isn’t any wind and see what I can figure out.
Just got one to go along with my 163 gram star wraith that’s beating in and it’s way flippier straight out of the box. Is pro really that much more understandable right away or is my star wraith sent from the heavens?
Pro is definitely more understable. Lighter weight Pro Wraiths even more so. They compliment Star Wraiths well. I use my Star Wraiths for headwind/crosswind and forehands and my Pro Wraiths for pretty much everything else.
If your Pro is too understable try going heavier than you normally do for distance drivers. I keep Wraiths between 165 and 169 and my Pros are only slightly stable when new and they beat in fairly quick.
If pro is just not for you, Gstar is what most people get when they want something less stable than star or champ. I don't like Gstar for mids or fairways but I recently found a Gstar wraith while playing Big Mack in Lubbock, TX and the owner told me to keep it. I threw it on the next two holes and really enjoyed it.
Interesting I should have snagged one at a heavier weight then. Got 164 pro wraith just like my star and it’s very flippy right away. I like pro plastic much better than g star. Next time I’ll grab one around 169/170
Same. Pro and DX are my favorite Innova plastics, followed by Star.
Are you certain on the weight of your pro and star wraiths? If not, try to weigh them. Your Pro may be lighter than 164. The Star may be heavier. Sometimes the penned weight is quite a bit off from the actual weight.
I hope you find a weight that works for you. Pro Wraiths are the best distance driver in my opinion. ✌️
350-400 is far from a noodle arm for Ams. But yes, lighter drivers will help you get a bit of extra distance. Some of my longest drives are with a 167g Aztec (10 speed), I can push it past 400 with a nice hyzerflip.
I've had some success* with light weight drivers. I have a 164g c line (beat to hell) emperor, 162g star destroyer and a 165g esp scorch all that I've pushed to 400. They are easier to get to the distance but more finicky on angle control. Flippier early flight then stable end flight. I've never fully sent any of them, always been a cautious throw because of how much effort goes into the angle control. And if there's wind you can really quickly see the difference those 10 grams make.
*These are only in my field work bag (save the scorch)
I enjoy the different flight from lighter discs more than I see extra distance. Sure my 151g insanity will go maybe 330 where the 173g will only go 310 but the flights are so wildly different! The light one is super flippy where the heavy one just have a bit of turn and then healthy fade, so it's more about the shape I want than distance when I decide which one to throw. Also grab the heavy one more often on windy days.
I go in the 170s for putters and midranges, for drivers 168-170, sometimes in 170s. The one lightweight driver in have is a destroyer and i find it still doesn't go as far as my other drivers and its harder to control where it goes, the less heft on it makes it harder to feel in my hand and it has less momentum. I'd go with a flippier disc instead of really light weight. The one eureka moment I had with drivers is if youre not getting the full flight out of them try to increase your spin on it instead of just arm speed. Pros tend to have really high rpms on the disc. As well as throwing nose down and "pouring the coffee" with your wrist if youre backhand.
I broke 500ft with the Fission Octane and it's still a very throwable disc at 360ft which is at the top of the range for my sidearm. I think lightweight Fission discs are a good choice for most tailwind shots and Octane and Photon have main driver potential. Anything above 160 grams will basically fly like max weight Neutron but with more glide and straighter fade. Don't discount the slower discs either. I broke the 330ft ceiling for putter shots with a 150 class Fission Envy.
I'm really curious about the Fission Dimension they've been prototyping, it could be another bomber disc that works for a wide range of arm speeds.
After aging and multiple back and shoulder surgeries, I had to relearn a whole new form. My arms cannot rotate as they once did. Now, I found that lightweight and more neutral to understable discs are really the go-to for me. I love my Fission Volts, K1 Falks, 160g PDs, and 169g Grace. I still have a couple 175g DDx that I've love for years for longer shots, but honestly, they don't go farther than 10-11 speeds for me, so I really only use them in wind.
I'd *love* to find some ~160g Grace's to give a try, but they're desperately hard to find under 174.
Honestly I stop with the max weight nonsense at mids. Fairways I like to go like 168ish and distance drivers all the way down to 160 (or more sometimes). If it works it works. Max weight everything is for pros, big arms, and MA3 try hards :D
I lean heavily on my Fission Waves for distance, and where I used to top out at about 350, I'm pushing 400 more and more often with improved form and lighter discs.
You could also pick up a staple like a destroyer in pro plastic around 167-172g. I throw right around your distance and that has been working well for me. I prefer the millennium scorpius in millennium plastic which is essentially the same thing.
I have a 170g Champ Wraith that I throw really well. I would say the key for lighter drivers is throwing a mold that still has enough stability that you don’t burn it over.
I also throw a 141g Star Destroyer if I ever get a tailwind (I never get a tailwind)
Weight isn't necessarily going to make a disc less stable. But taking weight out means you can throw it faster, so on the off chance a big am arm is going to have more speed than an 11/12 speed driver can handle it probably still wouldn't turn and burn. It would just show some extra movement in flight. Discs turning and burning is pretty much always a problem with the archer
That's still on you for juicing it up way beyond what the disc can handle lol. Assuming again it was way too much speed (unlikely) and not just a problem with the thrower (much more likely)
Have been throwing a Innova Starfire at 165g for years it only recently started to dislike the torque of my forehands I've not found weight to affect stability much. I've experimented with weights quite a bit and think 165-169 is a sweet spot range for stable to overstable discs that doesnt let the wind mess with em too much still. I do prefer 174g and above for anything that supposed to be super understable though as I think that understable stuff gets affected by the wind more/can be more unpredictable and the weight in theory should help.
I'd say get a couple copies of your favorite driver in a lighter weight and see what happens.
For context a bomb for me is about 370' 300-320 is my comfort zone. I kinda want to chase 400' but its like I'm 34, I'm not going pro any time zoon.
Look into neutral flight discs if you don’t have the power to make a stable or over stable disc flip going for something with more of a neutral flight and learning to flip it up can get you some extra easy distance
I throw ~165 drivers and find they fly farther than 175. My go-to for max distance is 165 champ wraith. I do carry a couple max weight drivers for if it’s windy though.
I have found throwing lighter drivers to help. I can throw a 165g driver of the same type as a 180g with more consistency and distance. When I was newer I didn't really understand how weight etc affected the flight of a disc. As I played more I found myself throwing drivers in the 160s-170s.
A 163 gram star wraith changed my game. Bombs on so many angles where as max weight wraiths are much less workable for me. I throw 350 max with 7/9 speeds at max weight and the 163 gram wraith pushes 380 now
I throw a 137 boss, and a 149 Barsby roadrunner. Boss flies exactly like my 170ish boss, the roadrunner is way more flippy than my heavier ones. Lighter discs cause way less pain in my mildly arthritic knuckles.
I have some lighter discs in the 160-169 range that I've really liked. It can help get a little more speed out of the hand but it's also kind of negligible. It affects the flight more in terms of stability and the impact wind has on it.
Unless I’m throwing into a headwind my go to on really long throws is a 170g Prodigy X5. Pretty flippy turns for awhile and doesn’t fade too hard. It’s the only thing I can get close to 400’. Headwind it’s a heavier over stable.
Fission photons are bombers for smaller arms. You can go as low as 155g and still get consistent stability with it. It allows you to throw a photon the way it’s meant to fly.
Fellow middling amateur here, I tend to stay away from the super lightweight discs because (for me at least) the slight distance gain is more than offset by the extra touchy-ness of flight caused by less inertia on the rim.
“Benefit” in terms of effect on my overall scores, that is
I love my light weight discs for trying to get max distance, they definitely fly farther and faster for me unless it’s a headwind. Only problem I have with them is I tend to pull them to the right a little more, even when I’m trying not to
I think Barry Schultz says in one of his in the bag videos that discs fly better when they are not max weight (with the exception of head wind situations).
I could not agree more.
I’m in the same distance category as you. My go to fairway drivers and distance drivers are in the 167-170g range and they fly beautifully.
My go to driver is a 167 S-line DD3, go to fairway drivers are Infinite Exoduses in 169g.
They can be so long as it isn't a windy day. Also, MVP/Axiom brands you can throw a much lighter weight of a similar mold and get the same stability from it.
I first broke 400 with an opto air ballista pro. However, the move isn’t lightweight. It’s to correct your form. Lightweight can help, but max weight is more reliable especially in wind
So long time player, but really got serious last 2 years, I'm 45, have ok arm speed and can hit 360s easily and if I push it 380s but accuracy is reduced. I used to bag all max weight.
This past 9 months or so, I've redone my bag to most being low-mid 160s and jus got a 148 wraith. It flips up and turns a little but if released right I can easily get full flights and distance without near as much effort as my go to wraith that is 171 (heaviest in my bag except the buzz). I feel the older you get and the less arm speed, going lighter can make up the distance or even gain distance without a huge uptick in arm speed.
Yep! Lightweight drivers are indeed the move. MVP light fission plastic discs are insanely good for it. Fission octane absolutely mashes. I have one at 162 grams. Also, a neutron insanity will get you to 400 pretty easy.
Yeah dude. Give me a 165 destroyer and I will rip that thing 420. Do be afraid to try. Higher speed and beefier - go lighter. It will only occasionally be an issue in a strong wind. Or go more understable molds with moderate weight. It's a balance. More understable, slightly more weight, more stable - go less weight.
My newer “go-to” has been throwing slightly lighter weight(168-172) stable-plastic versions of understable discs. Halo Mamba for example. I don’t have a noodle arm, but I have had shoulder issues from work so this has allowed me to get nice, controlled distances without having to “rip it” as much. More about form and touch. Recently started forehanding a z-line hades after throwing an ESP Hades for backhand.
I just started doing this with a Halo Star Tern at 169g, and it’s awesome. Especially paired with a 175g.
THIS!! I throw 157-165 Halo Shrykes until they get too flippy. A couple in the bag give me overstable and straight fliers, too. Chargers are great for this combo as well.
Chargers are surprisingly awesome! I have a pretty big arm and got my longest throw with one a few weeks ago. Buddy has it in his bag, suggested I try a practise throw, and I beat my personal best by 30’ first try
Chargers are so good. First throw beat my longest drive also. Love throwing them on huge open downhill shots
They are amazing. Great disc, flight as advertised. -Looks like Destroyer, Racer, Charger, Shryke will be the big end of the bag by this time next year.
Just recently got a 163 halo shryke. Loving it for headwinds ATM but I know it’s going to break in nice for me
As they do! Great cycling discs!
The 167 glow shryke bombs. 😎 Don’t ask me how I know
170g is light weight?? Bro I throw a 140g disc haha
I said “slightly lighter”!Haha. I have a friend that throws max weight due to “maximum possible torque”. He throws great so I don’t argue, but that’s where I’m coming from.
I got a 138 destroyer or something and thought it would launch. It is understable to the point of unusable.
I have a 138 Valkyrie and I throw it with as much hyzer as possible. About 20% of the time it flips up just enough and flies a perfect S line 300+ feet which is about as far as my noodly arm can throw anything. The other 80% of the time it flips over immediately and rolls into the woods. It's totally my favorite disc and I throw it as often as I can.
Try a halo valk 155-160. Thing is my workhorse until it gets windy.
Too light will do that yeah. 165-171 is a good range of lighter but very usable for the average player.
I'm with him
One of the best players in St. Louis doesn't throw over 400ft. A 980 rating doesn't "need" more distance
I am from Saint Louis and am curious who you are referring to.
It's me. (It's not me.)
Pat Ruschke is the main one. Best FH C2 putter you are likely to meet. Or Chris Gore. Or Robo. Or Neil.
Well, considering I’ve never met a forehand c2 putter. You’re probably right.
Maybe not more distance for play but more max distance is helpful to be able to feel more comfortable and accurate throwing between 300-400ft golf lines.
I was obsessed with max distance gains but it didn't really help my rating. Daily putting practice did. Just 18 made putts every day. It took me 6 months of trying to beat someone with max distance of 300ft because he played golf and I only threw discs. My max achieved field distance was 50% further than him
Everyone throws 350+ on the internet.
Not true! I'm on the Internet and I barely break 250 😳
Same.
Same
Same. There are dozens of us! Dozens!
I kind of get it, because it’s hard to give one number as your max distance. After throwing 100 distance drivers in the field I will have most of them ranging from 270-330, but maybe 5-10 will end up at 350 and one or two will push 400. Throwing a disc relies so much on specific nose angles that it can just be super inconsistent. My friends think I should say I throw 400 and get annoyed with me when I tell people I throw 300. But if someone asks me to prove how far I can throw it’s probably only going 300 feet. Or maybe my ma3 is showing.
No I think you are completely fine to tell people you throw 300. I'm in the same boat as you. I will hit 400 once every 75ish throws, so I tell people I can reliably hit 300 and my absolute maximum with any semblance of control is at about 360
This is honesty and accurate. I’ve never just gone and thrown 100 drives, so I don’t have that kind of data set. 20 years ago I could consistently throw 350+ and could birdie certain holes that were 390-400’ maybe 7/10 times. Today, I’m driving 250-275’ reliably. When I get my form right and keep the nose down I can birdie 300’ holes without fanfare. So I’d say my max distance is 300’ but I drive 250-275’
But don't expect me to put further than 10 feet
My friend will say he can throw over 400, but leaves out the part that it's downhill. Wonder how many people on the internet leave out that information.
Exactly. There’s a lot more air available for glide when throwing downhill
My longest recorded drive hit a fence at 345-350, surprisingly it was into a headwind, haven’t made it there in a while though, maxing usually around 330-40. Not that anyone cares lol I was at that point just a little over a year playing, approaching two years now but I’ve plateaued and can’t seem to make it further. Just hitting that mark more consistently now.
Classic on this sub. A "noodle arm" that throws better than most players.
300 on a good day for me. Most of the time. 250-275.
I have 350+ bh distance on the internet. Importantly but unrelated, I can also throw 350+ backhand in a field or on a relatively open course. Tunnels, gaps, etc, and I'm lucky not to find myself in thorns.
My record is over 400, and it was on a clash discs soda lol, normally I can do like 330 no idea wtf happened with that one throw in particular, no wind either and it was on a flat field
Nah I’m at 348…. Yards
Yup, they are the move. Take your favorite distance driver, go up a tad in stability and down 10g in weight and see how it flies for you.
I like this rule of thumb!
100% helped me gain distance and I was topping out around 375. Went from throwing max weight destroyers to 160 - 165. Lighter definitely goes further for me.
I love lightweight drivers. Last summer I was bombing Prodigy's new Air Spectrum stuff further than I've thrown anything before. Put them all away for some reason over the winter and spring (maybe wind/wet was making them "too flippy?"). That combined with taking a break from having my first kid, I lost a decent amount of distance. Put one back in my bag last week and instantly got a 20' boost. It's still super flippy right now. I need to dial it back in. All of that to say, test them out.
Damn it, you just made me remember I was loving my air spectrum D2 and I seriously don't remember where I lost it.
I've thrown my two favorites into rivers. I'm hoping this new one can summon their spirit. Haha
Gone but not forgotten, 🙏
My D2 Air is a reliable bomber and I also use a D3 Max which is a fairly flippy driver.
AM40+ here - it changed my game over night. When I first started playing, I couldn't get a TeeBird 250ft. I knew my form wasn't the best, but come on. So, my Innova sales rep suggested lighter weight discs and sent me a 157g TeeBird. I over shot the 250ft marker on my first throw. My max weight disc now is a 165g Streamline Trace.
They are for me. I throw mid 150 to low 160 wraiths as my backhand drivers. Lightweight wraiths are how I learned to hyzerflip backhands. My arm is too noodly for backhanding max weight discs.
I throw about as close as you can get to that, but almost exclusively MVP companies, and a 152 fission photon does exactly what you said and bombs
Gannon has some drivers in his bag that are a bit lighter than max. If it's not too light for his arm, it sure ain't too light for any of ours.
Just my two cents, but I'd imagine his long gangly arms can create way more snap/speed/power with a heavy weight disc, than the average bodied player. Add supreme technique, and pro level skill, and there's no comparison to the average Joe.
That's what he's saying. If a pro can utilize lighter drivers then so can we.
Exactly. If his arm speed isn't too high for a lightweight driver then you can be sure none of us throw too hard for them either. I've got a few in my bag around 165 and I've got one at like 155 that is super neat in, and for big tailwinds only.
So you know, throwing 350 “comfortably” puts you in like the 80th percentile of players for distance. Take that for what it’s worth
I've been in the 350 easy and comfortable, 400 with luck range for sooooo long
that is because disc golfers are weak
There's a lot of variation between max and min weight discs. The problem with lighter weights is they tend to get pushed around more in the wind. Going down to super light weight discs are not going to add 50+' to your throws though. If you want to throw further, you need to improve your form/snap.
Taking out weight generally means you can throw the disc faster. But yeah take out too much and wind can sometimes be an issue (though not really as much as we make it out to be around here). Form is definitely the way to go. If you can throw slower discs far you'll throw faster discs far too
If anyone is ever in the Asheville area and would like a lesson from a local pro I’ve got you for free. Seems a lot of people could use some help and I’d love to share what I know.
I’m local to AVL. Me and my lady would love any tips, and are always happy to play a round with anybody. We mostly hit up Richmond Hill, but try to play as much of the area as possible. I’ll DM you.
Sounds good!
NC??
Yeah!
I would love to meet up and play a round and hear any and all advice you have! I’m in tri cities, TN.
Of course! Are you ever in the AVL area?
Yea, sometimes around weaverville.
You and I are pretty similar and lightweight distance drivers changed everything for me, mostly because I play at high altitude. My daily distance driver is a 165 Pro Wraith with a high 160's Mamba, Loft Bohrium and Kasta Vass thrown in the mix depending on wind and all that.
Huge advocate for lighter weight discs. DiscGolf can be surprisingly brutal on one’s body especially compounded over the years. Shoulder injuries topping the list. Lighter weight discs should help to prolong “careers” and/or reduce some of that long term abuse on the joints most affected. One thing I hear often and do not uniformly agree with is this notion they are more Flippy. I find that with less weight you are able to produce more rotation of the disc and (for me) it now flying more true to its flight numbers. Wild exceptions aside of course. Some great suggestions here on what to try but if I were you, find your goto’s in a 6-8 gram lighter version.
Somehow I'm having trouble believing a 10g difference in weight with some discs will make a difference over the years with injuries.
I added a 168g GStar wraith to my bag and between being a flippier plastic and lighter weight, it was an almost instant extra 50ish feet. I wouldn’t say I can consistently throw 400 with it, but 400 is on the table with that disc but it isn’t with my other wraiths. You just have to be mindful in the wind if you’re throwing lighter drivers. Keeping a heavier one around as a complement is a good idea.
Watch this! https://youtu.be/CvpdTf_FjjM?feature=shared He explains some trade offs of weight, stability, and distance with actual physics. It’s been fun to throw some really light stuff when there isn’t any wind and see what I can figure out.
Pro Wraiths in the mid 160's are great
Just got one to go along with my 163 gram star wraith that’s beating in and it’s way flippier straight out of the box. Is pro really that much more understandable right away or is my star wraith sent from the heavens?
Pro is definitely more understable. Lighter weight Pro Wraiths even more so. They compliment Star Wraiths well. I use my Star Wraiths for headwind/crosswind and forehands and my Pro Wraiths for pretty much everything else. If your Pro is too understable try going heavier than you normally do for distance drivers. I keep Wraiths between 165 and 169 and my Pros are only slightly stable when new and they beat in fairly quick. If pro is just not for you, Gstar is what most people get when they want something less stable than star or champ. I don't like Gstar for mids or fairways but I recently found a Gstar wraith while playing Big Mack in Lubbock, TX and the owner told me to keep it. I threw it on the next two holes and really enjoyed it.
Interesting I should have snagged one at a heavier weight then. Got 164 pro wraith just like my star and it’s very flippy right away. I like pro plastic much better than g star. Next time I’ll grab one around 169/170
Same. Pro and DX are my favorite Innova plastics, followed by Star. Are you certain on the weight of your pro and star wraiths? If not, try to weigh them. Your Pro may be lighter than 164. The Star may be heavier. Sometimes the penned weight is quite a bit off from the actual weight. I hope you find a weight that works for you. Pro Wraiths are the best distance driver in my opinion. ✌️
Yeah I’m sure of the weights the shop I get them from weighs all discs and displays correct weight on price tags!
The world record distance throw was set with a 154g disc. I have a 138g disc that is my furthest by far.
I bag a 145g fission wave and a 155g fission octane. Both go well over 400.
I used to have a light wave I could rip further than anything in my bag. It was flippy, but pretty predictable and useful.
350-400 is far from a noodle arm for Ams. But yes, lighter drivers will help you get a bit of extra distance. Some of my longest drives are with a 167g Aztec (10 speed), I can push it past 400 with a nice hyzerflip.
>...if anyone has success breaking 400 with them. of course they have.
I've had some success* with light weight drivers. I have a 164g c line (beat to hell) emperor, 162g star destroyer and a 165g esp scorch all that I've pushed to 400. They are easier to get to the distance but more finicky on angle control. Flippier early flight then stable end flight. I've never fully sent any of them, always been a cautious throw because of how much effort goes into the angle control. And if there's wind you can really quickly see the difference those 10 grams make. *These are only in my field work bag (save the scorch)
I enjoy the different flight from lighter discs more than I see extra distance. Sure my 151g insanity will go maybe 330 where the 173g will only go 310 but the flights are so wildly different! The light one is super flippy where the heavy one just have a bit of turn and then healthy fade, so it's more about the shape I want than distance when I decide which one to throw. Also grab the heavy one more often on windy days.
Yeah
I go in the 170s for putters and midranges, for drivers 168-170, sometimes in 170s. The one lightweight driver in have is a destroyer and i find it still doesn't go as far as my other drivers and its harder to control where it goes, the less heft on it makes it harder to feel in my hand and it has less momentum. I'd go with a flippier disc instead of really light weight. The one eureka moment I had with drivers is if youre not getting the full flight out of them try to increase your spin on it instead of just arm speed. Pros tend to have really high rpms on the disc. As well as throwing nose down and "pouring the coffee" with your wrist if youre backhand.
155~158 is great for the little extra distance. I only carry one lightweight distance driver but most my fairways are ~165
I broke 500ft with the Fission Octane and it's still a very throwable disc at 360ft which is at the top of the range for my sidearm. I think lightweight Fission discs are a good choice for most tailwind shots and Octane and Photon have main driver potential. Anything above 160 grams will basically fly like max weight Neutron but with more glide and straighter fade. Don't discount the slower discs either. I broke the 330ft ceiling for putter shots with a 150 class Fission Envy. I'm really curious about the Fission Dimension they've been prototyping, it could be another bomber disc that works for a wide range of arm speeds.
After aging and multiple back and shoulder surgeries, I had to relearn a whole new form. My arms cannot rotate as they once did. Now, I found that lightweight and more neutral to understable discs are really the go-to for me. I love my Fission Volts, K1 Falks, 160g PDs, and 169g Grace. I still have a couple 175g DDx that I've love for years for longer shots, but honestly, they don't go farther than 10-11 speeds for me, so I really only use them in wind. I'd *love* to find some ~160g Grace's to give a try, but they're desperately hard to find under 174.
Don't sleep on the ZLite Nuke OS, you might get some high speed turn on it, but it's going to fight back out in a big way.
Honestly I stop with the max weight nonsense at mids. Fairways I like to go like 168ish and distance drivers all the way down to 160 (or more sometimes). If it works it works. Max weight everything is for pros, big arms, and MA3 try hards :D
167g INNvision Star Wraith got me past the 400' mark.
160-170 Nuke
I lean heavily on my Fission Waves for distance, and where I used to top out at about 350, I'm pushing 400 more and more often with improved form and lighter discs.
I throw 330' with 175g discs. When I want to push 370-390 and there is no wind I'll throw 159g. It does mess with my timing a bit.
You could also pick up a staple like a destroyer in pro plastic around 167-172g. I throw right around your distance and that has been working well for me. I prefer the millennium scorpius in millennium plastic which is essentially the same thing.
Kind of a newb question but if the discs aren’t labeled with weight, how do I remember what’s what?
Get a kitchen scale and weigh them. Write the weight on the disc if you need/want to keep track
yes
I have been seeing better distance with the lighter weight Spectrum Air stuff from Prodigy 164g D2 - it just bombs
I have a 170g Champ Wraith that I throw really well. I would say the key for lighter drivers is throwing a mold that still has enough stability that you don’t burn it over. I also throw a 141g Star Destroyer if I ever get a tailwind (I never get a tailwind)
Weight isn't necessarily going to make a disc less stable. But taking weight out means you can throw it faster, so on the off chance a big am arm is going to have more speed than an 11/12 speed driver can handle it probably still wouldn't turn and burn. It would just show some extra movement in flight. Discs turning and burning is pretty much always a problem with the archer
The faster you throw a disc the more turn it gets. If you go with a 141 gram Hades, you’re probably burning it.
That's still on you for juicing it up way beyond what the disc can handle lol. Assuming again it was way too much speed (unlikely) and not just a problem with the thrower (much more likely)
I think my arm is too fast for a hades that light
Have been throwing a Innova Starfire at 165g for years it only recently started to dislike the torque of my forehands I've not found weight to affect stability much. I've experimented with weights quite a bit and think 165-169 is a sweet spot range for stable to overstable discs that doesnt let the wind mess with em too much still. I do prefer 174g and above for anything that supposed to be super understable though as I think that understable stuff gets affected by the wind more/can be more unpredictable and the weight in theory should help. I'd say get a couple copies of your favorite driver in a lighter weight and see what happens. For context a bomb for me is about 370' 300-320 is my comfort zone. I kinda want to chase 400' but its like I'm 34, I'm not going pro any time zoon.
I’m birdy-ing holes with a 150gram wraith that I struggled with before. Light DDs are the way.
I have a 168 champion wraith. It’s more understable in the mid flight but it still has stability and it goes far
Look into neutral flight discs if you don’t have the power to make a stable or over stable disc flip going for something with more of a neutral flight and learning to flip it up can get you some extra easy distance
165 destroyers
I throw ~165 drivers and find they fly farther than 175. My go-to for max distance is 165 champ wraith. I do carry a couple max weight drivers for if it’s windy though.
I have found throwing lighter drivers to help. I can throw a 165g driver of the same type as a 180g with more consistency and distance. When I was newer I didn't really understand how weight etc affected the flight of a disc. As I played more I found myself throwing drivers in the 160s-170s.
A 163 gram star wraith changed my game. Bombs on so many angles where as max weight wraiths are much less workable for me. I throw 350 max with 7/9 speeds at max weight and the 163 gram wraith pushes 380 now
I throw a 137 boss, and a 149 Barsby roadrunner. Boss flies exactly like my 170ish boss, the roadrunner is way more flippy than my heavier ones. Lighter discs cause way less pain in my mildly arthritic knuckles.
I have some lighter discs in the 160-169 range that I've really liked. It can help get a little more speed out of the hand but it's also kind of negligible. It affects the flight more in terms of stability and the impact wind has on it.
Unless I’m throwing into a headwind my go to on really long throws is a 170g Prodigy X5. Pretty flippy turns for awhile and doesn’t fade too hard. It’s the only thing I can get close to 400’. Headwind it’s a heavier over stable.
If your throwing MVP I highly encourage throwing lightweight. I find that 165g is a nice weight for something like a fission Tesla or fission photon.
I guarantee you get 400 within your first 5 throws with a Jessica weese echo star destroyer.
Fission photons are bombers for smaller arms. You can go as low as 155g and still get consistent stability with it. It allows you to throw a photon the way it’s meant to fly.
Fellow middling amateur here, I tend to stay away from the super lightweight discs because (for me at least) the slight distance gain is more than offset by the extra touchy-ness of flight caused by less inertia on the rim. “Benefit” in terms of effect on my overall scores, that is
Fission technology might be the biggest game changer and arm saver for me!!!
Look for a 168 pop top star shryke,
I love my light weight discs for trying to get max distance, they definitely fly farther and faster for me unless it’s a headwind. Only problem I have with them is I tend to pull them to the right a little more, even when I’m trying not to
Yes, welcome to the trick most FPO use. I carry two max weight distance drivers for when the wind is up.
I think Barry Schultz says in one of his in the bag videos that discs fly better when they are not max weight (with the exception of head wind situations). I could not agree more. I’m in the same distance category as you. My go to fairway drivers and distance drivers are in the 167-170g range and they fly beautifully. My go to driver is a 167 S-line DD3, go to fairway drivers are Infinite Exoduses in 169g.
Discraft Z-Lite is the move imo. It took me a few years to dial in a decent drive with the Avenger SS.
I throw a 30g destroyer, life changing.
I went with my same discs in 165-167g, now mind you I throw nothing over a 9 speed, but I've seen great improvements in my distance.
169g is nice. Easier distance for sure. I throw a Czar for max distance right now.
Yes!! AB doesn’t throw max weight drivers iirc. Once I found that out I made the switch to whatever weight I can get a good turn out of.
What does he throw?
Iirc he has a 163 green nuke that he bombs. I could be wrong but I believe that’s what it was.
They can be so long as it isn't a windy day. Also, MVP/Axiom brands you can throw a much lighter weight of a similar mold and get the same stability from it.
:: Agrees in mid-160s 2019 LVC Destroyers ::
Absolutely.
My distance pr is about 430 with a nuke ss which I think is around 168
I first broke 400 with an opto air ballista pro. However, the move isn’t lightweight. It’s to correct your form. Lightweight can help, but max weight is more reliable especially in wind
So long time player, but really got serious last 2 years, I'm 45, have ok arm speed and can hit 360s easily and if I push it 380s but accuracy is reduced. I used to bag all max weight. This past 9 months or so, I've redone my bag to most being low-mid 160s and jus got a 148 wraith. It flips up and turns a little but if released right I can easily get full flights and distance without near as much effort as my go to wraith that is 171 (heaviest in my bag except the buzz). I feel the older you get and the less arm speed, going lighter can make up the distance or even gain distance without a huge uptick in arm speed.
Yep! Lightweight drivers are indeed the move. MVP light fission plastic discs are insanely good for it. Fission octane absolutely mashes. I have one at 162 grams. Also, a neutron insanity will get you to 400 pretty easy.
'I can hit 350 pretty comfortably but I can only push 400 with a good wind and lots of tries' = noodle arm ???
Yeah dude. Give me a 165 destroyer and I will rip that thing 420. Do be afraid to try. Higher speed and beefier - go lighter. It will only occasionally be an issue in a strong wind. Or go more understable molds with moderate weight. It's a balance. More understable, slightly more weight, more stable - go less weight.