[Discraft] Comet love?

[mzuleger]

There's an LE comet on ebay if anyone is looking. I'd grab it myself if I didn't already have a bunch.

 

[Skamanda]

Looks domey. Could be a good one. The flat, orange LE ESP ones were all too flippy. Judging by the seller's name, he may well be one of the TDs local to me...

 

[adriens95]

I was admiring the Z Comets at my local PIAS and noticed more variance in dome than I expected. My flat ESP was noticeably more understable than my other domier Comets and I was wondering if that held true in Z or not in y'all's experience. It's been a few years since I threw Z Comets and I couldn't tell you how domey they were.

 

[isamoor]

So, most Z comets have a modest dome. You can find the occasional flatter one, and those are usually flipper in my experience.

I was placing an online order last month, and the retailed had a couple Z Comets in the high 160s. That's kinda rare, and they were cheap, so I bought them. It wasn't from OTBDiscs, so I didn't realize they were super flat topped. They feel weird in the hand, and they don't fly quite like I'm used to. And it's not that they're super flippy, they just react differently than I'd expect. I'll probably go back to just cycling and beating in heavier, domier Z comets.

 

[adriens95]

So, most Z comets have a modest dome. You can find the occasional flatter one, and those are usually flipper in my experience.

I was placing an online order last month, and the retailed had a couple Z Comets in the high 160s. That's kinda rare, and they were cheap, so I bought them. It wasn't from OTBDiscs, so I didn't realize they were super flat topped. They feel weird in the hand, and they don't fly quite like I'm used to. And it's not that they're super flippy, they just react differently than I'd expect. I'll probably go back to just cycling and beating in heavier, domier Z comets.

Yeah most Zs that I've thrown have had a moderate amount of dome and one or two of them in the shop seemed flatter like the ones you described. I'll probably end up with an ESP since the Hex has taken a lot of my stable Comet shots but flat Z could be a middle ground of sorts.

 

[isamoor]

Had a flukey warm day yesterday. Played the monster 27 hole wooded course nearby. Got a couple dozen birdies, and half of those were comet shots. Whiffed one ~15' birdie putt off a comet drive. I parked the next hole with the same comet, so I'm assuming the disc was just feeling bad for me and decided it would do all the work the next time.

I was also actually doing some mindful nose angle work with the comets in the woods. It made for some engaging play. (Didn't get all the angles correct, but more often than not was still rewarding.)

 

[Naenae]

Had a flukey warm day yesterday. Played the monster 27 hole wooded course nearby. Got a couple dozen birdies, and half of those were comet shots. Whiffed one ~15' birdie putt off a comet drive. I parked the next hole with the same comet, so I'm assuming the disc was just feeling bad for me and decided it would do all the work the next time.

I was also actually doing some mindful nose angle work with the comets in the woods. It made for some engaging play. (Didn't get all the angles correct, but more often than not was still rewarding.)

Tell me more about how you work the nose angles and to what purpose, etc.

I'm just barely to the point where I am comfortable with what my Comet is going to do at any given power, but I'm always thinking of keeping the nose neutral to neutral down.

 

[isamoor]

Nothing too crazy or fancy. More nose up will increase stability of the flight. So it'll go a bit shorter and fade more. More nose down will be more prone to drifting right (for RHBH), and tend to travel farther overall.

And then mix that with hyzer angle. So an anhyzer throw focusing on nose down will hold the turn most of the way to the ground (for a fresher comet; a seasoned comet might even cut roll). An anhyzer with nose up will probably straighten out before it finishes. A hyzer nose up will get down pretty quickly. A hyzer nose down can either hyzer flip to straight, or with enough hyzer angle it can get you a long sweeping flight to the left (for RHBH).

I generally manipulate comet nose angle by switching between three and four finger fan grips. Forcing my pinky onto the rim naturally raises the nose 3-5deg.

I don't personally try to manipulate spin rate with comets much. I just always focus on maximizing spin rate no matter the nose/hyzer/speed etc. And I can do some mindful spin manipulation by focusing on getting the comet deep into my pocket before activating my arm.


I'm sure other seasoned folks can share other great ideas and perspectives.

 

[Skamanda]

Tell me more about how you work the nose angles and to what purpose, etc.

I'm just barely to the point where I am comfortable with what my Comet is going to do at any given power, but I'm always thinking of keeping the nose neutral to neutral down.

With the nose up, you can force a sharper turn on some hyzer/anhyzer lines. It can force a stall though, so you have to be careful how much angle you give it. Like isamoor said, it can cause it to fade out of an anhyzer.

It can be quite useful for hyzers though


I mostly use nose down for long turnovers, or big high anhyzers. My LE ESP Comet (my flippiest one) will just float on a turn from my hand, to a flat finish with the nose down.

This shot is a hair nose down


It's a lot easier to get the nose down on an older comet, from before the mold change that flattened out the top.

This is a steep hyzer, with a much tighter grip (ie- more spin) than I use for other shots, with the nose down (relative to the line - you can see the top of the disc because of how much height this shot needs)

 

[texasissouth]

Fish has some cool UV Comets for sale in various places, I'm struggling to not buy one, has anyone thrown a UV Comet? They look generally stable.

 

[Skamanda]

Fish has some cool UV Comets for sale in various places, I'm struggling to not buy one, has anyone thrown a UV Comet? They look generally stable.

The UV Comets are about the same stability as the Z swirl Comets. They have a long straight path to their flight, followed by a pretty dependable fade. For a comet that is. I wouldn't say they're so special as to genuinely inspire FOMO, but the z-swirl and UV ones both have a tick more glide than the production Z ones. Don't pay collector's prices (unless you specifically want to support Fish), when you can get the non-tour series UV ones or Z-Swirl ones elsewhere for pretty close to regular disc prices.

 

[texasissouth]

The UV Comets are about the same stability as the Z swirl Comets. They have a long straight path to their flight, followed by a pretty dependable fade. For a comet that is. I wouldn't say they're so special as to genuinely inspire FOMO, but the z-swirl and UV ones both have a tick more glide than the production Z ones. Don't pay collector's prices (unless you specifically want to support Fish), when you can get the non-tour series UV ones or Z-Swirl ones elsewhere for pretty close to regular disc prices.

Oh are you saying they fly similarly to the 2020 swirly Z MJ Comets? That makes it more tempting, I love that run

 

[Skamanda]

Oh are you saying they fly similarly to the 2020 swirly Z MJ Comets? That makes it more tempting, I love that run

Not sure about the 2020, but the 2023 ones with the dinosaur stamp fly about the same. The UV ones are maybe a little straighter, but still just as resistant to turn. Between the two, I bag my Z Swirl ones because the UV plastic eventually stops changing color, so I'd have to dye them in order to use them year round.

 

[Skamanda]

Does anyone know where I can reliably find Comets with the old shape? High shoulder, old school Comets, but not necessarily old Comets?

I gather that they changed the mold, or the manufacturing process, and they just come out a lot flatter anymore - but I swear I've seen modern ones with the proper shape. Anyone seen any recently?

 

[Naenae]

Does anyone know where I can reliably find Comets with the old shape? High shoulder, old school Comets, but not necessarily old Comets?

I gather that they changed the mold, or the manufacturing process, and they just come out a lot flatter anymore - but I swear I've seen modern ones with the proper shape. Anyone seen any recently?

I gather you want them domier, with better glide? Have you kicked the tires of a Svea yet? I bag both that and the Comet (2022 Michael somebody). I like and regularly use them both. They fly fairly similar, but the Svea keeps its momentum longer. I lean on it when I want it to stay in the air a bit longer than the Comet. YMMV.

 

[Skamanda]

I gather you want them domier, with better glide? Have you kicked the tires of a Svea yet? I bag both that and the Comet (2022 Michael somebody). I like and regularly use them both. They fly fairly similar, but the Svea keeps its momentum longer. I lean on it when I want it to stay in the air a bit longer than the Comet. YMMV.

With those Comets, the flight is a bit different (more glide, more of a flex line with softer fade than modern ones), but it's more about how much more consistently they come off my hand.

I bag 6-7 Comets in my full tournament cart, and the two old ones feel identical, but the other 5 all feel completely different from any of the other ones. The way the dome comes up is different, and the amount they come up does too. They don't grip as nice.

I've thrown other understandable mids, and some are very nice, but nothing flies like a Comet.

 

[Naenae]

With those Comets, the flight is a bit different (more glide, more of a flex line with softer fade than modern ones), but it's more about how much more consistently they come off my hand.

I bag 6-7 Comets in my full tournament cart, and the two old ones feel identical, but the other 5 all feel completely different from any of the other ones. The way the dome comes up is different, and the amount they come up does too. They don't grip as nice.

I've thrown other understandable mids, and some are very nice, but nothing flies like a Comet.

Not even 5 of your other Comets, at least as I understand your predicament. I'm just saying there might be another solution out there, if only in some circumstances.

 

[isamoor]

If you want to shop online, I recommend OTBDiscs. They post a dome rating for each disc. And yes, Comet domes are variable. Looking across their inventory, I'd say high weight Z is still domiest. And the UV MJ ones are mostly reasonable as well.

You don't get a rating for the elusive "shoulder height" however.

 

[VictorB]

Depending on the plastic you prefer, there's definitely some variability across the mold in different plastics. Each of the tour series years offers something different, whether it's sparkle Z, esp glow swirl, swirl esp, swirl z, etc....

For the first time in a number of years I've taken all comets out of my bag. Mainly because I haven't played all winter and my throw is just not on point. I'm using a TSA Glow Mana** for now, paired with Pathfinders. We'll see how this works out. If you're all lucky, I could be moving some very nice discs this year

 

[Skamanda]

If you want to shop online, I recommend OTBDiscs. They post a dome rating for each disc. And yes, Comet domes are variable. Looking across their inventory, I'd say high weight Z is still domiest. And the UV MJ ones are mostly reasonable as well.

You don't get a rating for the elusive "shoulder height" however.

I already looked through the pics OTB and Infinite have showing the profile of the Comets they have in stock, and the shape is all the "new" mold Comet.

The older ones - PFN Z and LE ESP, pre-stamp Glow Z (haven't seen a moon stamp one to know if it's the same), as well as X, X-stamp Z, Tourney Pro, and Elite Pro, have a completely different type of dome to them.

Modern Comets, when domey, are an arc across the whole disc, similar to most other "domey" discs. Modern Comets, when "high shoulder", have a gradual arc to a flatter top, which while different from most other discs, is more like say...a Domey TSA Construct or Mantra. They're more similar to the shape of the Ron Russel Comet, or from what I remember those gummy DGLO ones back around the same time.

The "old" mold Comets have a very steep shoulder, by comparison, to a flat top. Similar to the dome on a domey Scorch. The wing edge curls up from the bottom, then there's a flat run at a pretty steep angle in to about the ring of the stamp, where it flattens out and the top of the flight plate is just flat across the top.

Depending on the plastic you prefer, there's definitely some variability across the mold in different plastics. Each of the tour series years offers something different, whether it's sparkle Z, esp glow swirl, swirl esp, swirl z, etc....

For the first time in a number of years I've taken all comets out of my bag. Mainly because I haven't played all winter and my throw is just not on point. I'm using a TSA Glow Muse for now, paired with Pathfinders. We'll see how this works out. If you're all lucky, I could be moving some very nice discs this year

Do you mean the Glow Mana? The Muse is a stable/overstable putter. I threw an Aura Mana the other day, and was left wanting by the lack of glide.

I asked Chandler Fry for his thoughts comparing the two a couple weeks ago, now that he's on team Thoughtspace, and has offloaded most (all?) of his Comets (to my benefit). His words:

"The flight is comparable, but the glide isn't there. It's nice on a hyzer flip, but it just falls out of the sky. Also the feel is off. I don't think there's any disc that truly replicates a Comet."

Still, if you end up getting rid of yours, I'd love to see what you've got to offload