[Question] Different Discs vs Same Discs with Different Wears

[Jmscrimp]

I have recently have begun moving from multiple different discs to fewer models with different levels of wear. So I now have:
3 Aviars -Dx, champion, gstar
2 Rocs -Dx, gstar Roc3
Champion Eagle
2 -TeeBird echostar, star, champion
Champion Firebird
Pro Starfire
Star Sl
2 -Destroyer Blizzard, Star


Where do you stand on this logic? I want to continue to simplify but having trouble getting rid of anything I have left.

 

[hugheshilton]

Lots of people on here minimize molds and lots of people don't. There are plenty of threads with people going back and forth about how they like to minimize molds and cycle the same mold vs. people saying how they like discs in premium plastic that are more durable so they need more molds. Blah, blah, blah, that discussion seems to go on and on endlessly. It's all down to personal preference. There are good arguments on both sides so do whatever you feel like improves your game and makes you have the most fun.

As someone who does try to minimize molds (and sometimes still fails miserably), I think your bag looks fine. I would question the potential overlap between the Teebirds and the Eagle (Eagle seems redundant with those 3 Teebirds). Also, a Pro Starfire and a Star SL *should* be the same disc, but then again it's 2 different plastics so maybe you have more wear on one than the other. Generally though, you've got most of the really classic Innova molds in there. I think the most plain-Jane, classic Innova bag ever would be some variation of Aviar, Roc, Teebird, Firebird, Destroyer. There are lots of other good discs to choose from, but those are the Innova molds that make it into the most advanced and pro level bags from what I've seen.

 

[Bennf]

The Starfire is a great mold and I'm glad you agree with two in the bag.

Mold "reliance" let's call it for simplicity isn't bad but I definitely am the type of player who always liked a swiss-army bag selection so it never truly affected me.

Then you get back to grinding and you miss how consistent that wizard or star *insert pet mid here* or whatever truly is. My only real point here is consider diminishing returns when you artificially constrain your toolbox.

 

[MarkDSM]

Does the Eagle have a special purpose, like your fh fairway? If not and bagging a teebird arsenal and a firebird, the eagle can go. Maybe a ch leopard in its place... Or a good beat in star TeeBird

Three aviars a little much? If minimal, the champ and DX should do, or the champ and the g. (Assuming none these are big beads )

 

[bankiebomber]

Each to their own. For drivers I have gone back to carrying lots of one Mold in different plastic / wear. For me it is easier mentally to choose a disc for a shot using this bag strategy. Keeping it simple lets me focus on other things. For the same reason I have also gone back to Innova for all my drivers because the range of plastics allows for better mold tuning.

 

[SD86]

I have recently have begun moving from multiple different discs to fewer models with different levels of wear. So I now have:
3 Aviars -Dx, champion, gstar
2 Rocs -Dx, gstar Roc3
Champion Eagle
2 -TeeBird echostar, star, champion
Champion Firebird
Pro Starfire
Star Sl
2 -Destroyer Blizzard, Star

Where do you stand on this logic? I want to continue to simplify but having trouble getting rid of anything I have left.

This is very interesting, because the 'debate' normally has been fewer molds, all of the same plastic and seasoned in to different levels of stability -vs.- different molds (and different plastics) for various shots. Your bag has the same molds, but in different plastics. That probably puts you closer to the second group than the first.

I've done the 'same mold/different plastic' thing, mostly with putting vs. throwing putters, but in the end I've just put in my bag what works for me in the plastic that works for me.

Your bag is fine, by the way. You know better than anyone what shots you need and what courses you play.

As ever: JMHO, YMMV.

 

[bhadella]

The more/longer you play using a stable (molds stay the same) bag, the more likely you will be to cycle discs. Should I throw away every Star Teebird I have once it's no longer "fresh" because it would overlap with another mold? I just spent a year getting to know the flight of it, why in the world would I want to throw it away and not use it? Sooner or later, it will take over the spot in the bag that another disc (a TL) used to fill. Maybe in time it will beat up enough to take over a role that my Patriot fills. Same thing with all molds.

 

[CreemCheese]

I'm more of a different mold for drivers and mids. Putters I'll either cycle or use different plastics of the same mold until I've had them long enough to show wear. I normally either lose a disc before it gets too beat, trade it off, or give it to a kid on the course.

 

[pjhayes7]

The more/longer you play using a stable (molds stay the same) bag, the more likely you will be to cycle discs. Should I throw away every Star Teebird I have once it's no longer "fresh" because it would overlap with another mold? I just spent a year getting to know the flight of it, why in the world would I want to throw it away and not use it? Sooner or later, it will take over the spot in the bag that another disc (a TL) used to fill. Maybe in time it will beat up enough to take over a role that my Patriot fills. Same thing with all molds.

^^^This is the reason to cycle molds. Early on, you try different discs to see what they do. As you start to settle in with a fewer molds, you become familiar with what they will do in a certain situation. Although the flight changes over time, you are there as it happens (you don't notice your own hair growing). Why throw away that familiarity. Now you have to decide which molds you like best of the ones you already have and maybe get rid of the ones that are redundant (usually a beat in more stable kicks out a fresh less stable disc).

For example, you may stay with Firebird, Teebird, TL, and Leopard (all in Star for this example). Say you don't have as much power, so you throw the TL the most for dead straight. Eventually it is probably going to kick that Leopard out b/c it will have the same flight and you are more comfortable with that mold and how it feels. But do you put a fresh TL back in the bag or let the eventually beat in Teebird take that straight shot. In this example, drop the beat in Teebird, replace it with a fresh one, and put a fresh TL back b/c that is the mold you throw the most.

But the advantage of instead dropping the understable discs and only replacing the more stable ones as they beat in is you have to buy less new discs. In the above example, you are dropping two discs and replacing two. But if you always let the beat in disc replace a less stable one (beat Teebird replaces fresh TL, beat TL replaces fresh Leopard, replace beat Teebird with fresh Teebird). Here you are still dropping the Leopard, but you are only putting one fresh disc back in the bag (less money spent and less time relearning how that fresh disc flies).

I am cheap, so minimizing molds and cycling is more cost effective for me.

 

[dwindacatcher]

I cycle drivers and have different mids for each shot. Mostly because I've never found a mid I like round after round. Today I love the buzzz, next week I hate it and I use a mvp vector.

 

[slowplastic]

Yeah, if you're going to cycle let it happen naturally from how your bag is working over time. I don't get the stress people place over minimizing molds. I think that's way more stressful than being able to buy a disc off the shelf and have it work for that role immediately. It feels a little different, so what? So does a beat to crap disc. And when that new disc beats in, it can work toward a cycle. Just do what works for you.

 

[ODRB]

Yeah, if you're going to cycle let it happen naturally from how your bag is working over time. I don't get the stress people place over minimizing molds. I think that's way more stressful than being able to buy a disc off the shelf and have it work for that role immediately. It feels a little different, so what? So does a beat to crap disc. And when that new disc beats in, it can work toward a cycle. Just do what works for you.

^Yup. I end up with cycles over time. Then I will lose something (usually a beat Roc or Beat OLF) and have to swap a Comet or an OLS or Roadrunner in for a while. Then one day I will notice The Comet can go back on the rack until I lose another beat up Roc.

 

[SD86]

The more/longer you play using a stable (molds stay the same) bag, the more likely you will be to cycle discs. Should I throw away every Star Teebird I have once it's no longer "fresh" because it would overlap with another mold? I just spent a year getting to know the flight of it, why in the world would I want to throw it away and not use it? Sooner or later, it will take over the spot in the bag that another disc (a TL) used to fill. Maybe in time it will beat up enough to take over a role that my Patriot fills. Same thing with all molds.

Flip side of this: one gets a disc seasoned in to that perfect spot, particularly if cycling... then one throws that disc into a deep lake with foul-smelling mud that never washes off, and water moccasins are swimming around. IOW: disc is lost, and after all that time wearing it in, what will one do to replace that disc for the shots it made?

And THAT is why I don't cycle discs. I might buy backups and rotate them monthly or so (I especially do this for the Gold Line Fury) so they season in more slowly and consistently, but I don't cycle them. I'd rather have two different molds for different shots than the same mold that requires wear to get into a 'zone'. This is also why I prefer premium plastics for all but putters.

As ever: JMHO, YMMV.

 

[peterpiperpan]

I cycle the discs I throw the most, and have individuals for the other slots. For me that means control drivers, fairways, and putters (especially driving putters) get cycled, while my mids and max d drivers don't. It makes the most sense for my situation, because I don't throw my mids enough to get a good cycle going, but I work through PDs and P2s quickly enough to have a cycle of them. It took some time to get there though, so I had an opto Pure in the bag until my P2 seasoned up enough to cover it, etc.

 

[skurf]

Moldwise, is a Pro Starfire the same as a Star SL?

 

[slowplastic]

Moldwise, is a Pro Starfire the same as a Star SL?

Yes, unless something changed recently.

 

[Jmscrimp]

Lots of solid logic out here on this thread. Thanks for all the feedback.

I know when you look at my bag in the original post the Eagle seems out of place, but I just cant get it out. It is a laser. I need to get the Star SL out because it is a dangerous game to rely on a disc that is done for, thats why I backed it up with some Pro Starfires.

 

[mattc]

^Yup. I end up with cycles over time. Then I will lose something (usually a beat Roc or Beat OLF) and have to swap a Comet or an OLS or Roadrunner in for a while. Then one day I will notice The Comet can go back on the rack until I lose another beat up Roc.

Yep, this^^^
I always seem to loose the most beat up one, and have to drag out the understable mold to cover for a while.

 

[SD86]

I know when you look at my bag in the original post the Eagle seems out of place, but I just cant get it out. It is a laser. I need to get the Star SL out because it is a dangerous game to rely on a disc that is done for, thats why I backed it up with some Pro Starfires.

I have a couple of Pro SLs (Starfire-Ls) and a Factory Second Star SL that I found in a used bin. They fly about the same on the range (the Star was a touch straighter, as it was seasoned in more), but I don't use the Star SL because I'm afraid of losing it. It sounds like you've stocked up on Pro SLs, and you can probably get more, including form the Proshop.

As ever: JMHO, YMMV.

 

[thirtydirtybirds]

Personally I like cycling, especially rocs, and aviars (throwing ones, not putting ones). I feel that it made me understand the mold better, and ultimately throw those molds better. I know what to expect from rocs and aviars now, when a fresh one goes in the bag I know what it's gonna do and I damn sure know how to work my most used ones.

I tried using several molds for mids and putters, but it didn't work for me as well, but it works well for others.