Written by: Simon Sode-Larsen
A Common Misconception.
You have probably heard this claim before, that flattop drivers are more overstable and that domey discs are more understable. This however is not exactly true!
In my experience, flatter discs tend to do everything more extreme, fade harder and if they turn over – they do it fast and hard, whereas a disc with more dome on top seems to be more moderate in their ability to turn and fade.
But that is just my experience with flat vs domey drivers.
So What Is Actually Determining If A Disc Is More Under Or Overstable?
Here is an example with two discs from my bag, both speed 7 fairway drivers.
The Evader is my straight flier and will turn a little when thrown hard, but that is nothing compared to my underworld that I use for rollers.
If we look at the profile of the two drivers the biggest difference here is the height of the parting line or as I like to call it – the height of the ¨wing¨ of the disc.
Drivers with a lower wing tend to turn more since the wind moves over, rather than under the disc and pushes on the top of the nose of the disc, which makes it turn over.
How To Apply It
Luckily for us we don’t have to compare different molds to determine weather over or understable, for that we got the flight numbers!
But where this knowledge really becomes useful is when we start comparing the height of the wing of drivers in the same mold – to help us predict if the disc is more or less stable than another in the same mold.
My main distance driver is the Raider from Dynamic Disc, it is one of the most underrated distance drivers out there! I love the feel in my hand, the way the disc cuts through the air and the reliable flight I seem to achieve with it.
So naturally I bag more than one of these incredible distance drivers – actually I have 3 in my bag and they all fly differently from each other.
It is very difficult to make every disc identical – especially with drivers there seems to be some difference in flight from disc to disc, even within drivers of the same mold and plastic!
I used that to my advantage when picking out my distance drivers. I went to our store in Sydhavnen where I found all our Raiders and put them next to each other and compared the height of the wing on each one of them and the result?
First I picked out the one with the lowest wing and as expected it was slightly understable and hyzer flipped from the first throw.
From there I picked out the one with the highest wing I could find and finally one that fit in between – and voilá!
I now have the exact distance driver lineup that I was looking for!
3 disc of the mold that I enjoy so much, in 3 different stability variations, from hyzerflip to headwind fighter.
I have now used this method for quite a while, both for myself and with our customers.
The results tend to be that I no longer get surprised by a disc that was supposed to be understable but wasn’t or the other way around.
So if you are looking for a backup for your favorite driver or looking to find one that is a little more or less stable than the one you have in the same mold?
Bring it along next time you visit one of our stores and then let’s have a look and see if we can find the perfect driver in your favorite mold!