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Best Disc Retrievers

Challenging disc golf courses are sometimes preferred by adventurous disc golf players. Near mountains or hills, rocky surfaces, forest-like or watery areas are some of the challenging places where they can play the sport. If you are regularly playing in these kinds of courses, investing in a disc retriever might be helpful on your part.

A disc retriever is simply a device designed to rescue discs that end up in water hazards. While in many cases disc golf discs can be fished out of the water by using a long stick or taking your shoes off, retrievers designed specifically for disc golf are just more efficient and convenient.

Disc retrievers typically consist of some sort of catching head and a pole or rope that allows you to reach for and then pull your lost disc to shore. A good disc retriever will save you hundreds of dollars over time in saved discs.

There are several different disc golf retrievers on the market right now. In this guide, we will compare several of the top-selling retrievers and go over their different functions, advantages, and disadvantages.

Disc Retriever Comparison Table

Retriever Name Retriever Type Best Choice For Key Highlight
M-Retriever Telescoping Pole Quick Rescues Best Retrieving Head
Disc Gator Tent Pole Mid Range Retrieval Best Grabbing Mechanism
InZone Kwik Stick Telescoping Pole Short Distance Retriever Durable
Golden Retriever String Throw Distance Retrieval Minimal Storage Capacity Required
Disc Claw String Throw Budget Price Minimal Storage Capacity Required

Leaves Water Clearer

1. M-Retriever

M retriver disc golf retriver
 

The Magnificent things M-Retriever is a fantastic disc retrieving device. This disc retriever features a 14 foot telescoping pole and a unique head that is perfect for picking up and sliding your favorite disc back to shore.

This retriever utilizes a telescoping pole that is only 20 inches long when folded down and extends to 14 feet when fully expanded. The head of the M-Retriever is conveniently designed to easily scoop up discs out of bodies of water or just off the ground if bending over is difficult for you.

When you purchase the M-Retriever, there are several different parts that make up the retrieval head that you will need to assemble. Be sure to screw the head on tightly as I lost mine in my first attempt to rescue a disc in raging stream water during spring runoff.

Other than the issue with losing the head, this is a great disc golf retriever and the one I most recommend in terms of being able to get your disc out of water in the least possible time.

PROS

  • Easy to store.
  • Head quickly screws off.
  • Quickly and easily grabs discs.

CONS

  • The screw on the head is not very long and easily falls off.
  • Not useful for retrieving discs beyond 14 feet.
  • Multiple parts that are easy to break or lose.
  • Not currently available on Amazon.

 

2. Disc Gator

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The Disc Gator is a fantastic disc retriever with a unique trigger collapse head. Like the name suggests, the disc gator head closes like the fierce jaws of an alligator. Simply set the trigger mechanism (similar to setting a mouse trap), slide the disc gator head towards your disc and once it engages the trigger, “SNAP” your disc is caught and you can easily slide it to shore. This snapping mechanism makes this retriever the best option if you are trying to retrieve discs that are floating on top of the water. While most discs sink to the bottom of ponds, some discs actually float, especially if they land upside down.

The Disc Gator utilizes tent pole technology to extend for more than 11 feet. Extend the pole the same way you set up a tent by stretching the elastic and then fastening the male side into the female side. Once the pole is extended you can screw on the Disc Gator head. The disc gator head uses the same type of screwing mechanism as a broom handle and so this head can actually be used with other broom style or similar poles.

Compared with the telescoping M-Retriever, the tent pole style used in the disc gator is much more flimsy. Because the tent poles bend so easily the disc gator is not recommended for retrieving from flowing water. Trying to retrieve a disc while the pole is bending is much more difficult than using a solid surface that stays straight in a current.

In addition, the elastic and thin materials that make up the tent pole wear quickly. I don’t think that my gator tent pole lasted a full year before the interior elastic broke and I had to re-tie it to make it work again. During the first several runs, the disc gator used telescoping poles for its earlier versions which I like better.

One thing that I like about the Disc Gator head compared with the M-Retriever is that you don’t have to take the head off between each use. The Disc Gator easily stands upright in a disc golf backpack or cart with the gator head fully assembled.

PROS

  • Great mechanism for grabbing discs.
  • Head quickly screws off.
  • Easy to store, and its not necessary to remove the head.

CONS

  • Tent pole bends easily in flowing water.
  • Tent pole can be annoying to assemble and is not as durable.
  • Not useful for retrieving discs in bodies of water beyond 12 feet.

3. InZone Quick Stik

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The InZone Kwik-Stik is a simple disc retriever that utilizes a durable telescoping pole. There are several different varieties of the Kwik-Stick and several different head options. The most simple Kwik Stick retrieval option features a simple hook at the end of the pole. This “simple” functionality also makes the Kwik Stik the best retriever choice from removing discs stuck in trees.

When fully extended, the Kwik stick extends 14 feet. When collapsed it goes down to just 18 inches and easily fits into most disc golf bags. Another nice thing about the Kwik stick is that you don’t have to fully extend it to use it. Lets say your disc is only six feet away from the shore, you can unscrew the telescoping feature of just a few links and be able to quickly rescue your frisbee. Of the different disc retrievers I’ve reviewed, the Kwik stick pole is made of the best materials and is the most durable.

Because the head of the Kwik-Stik is so simple, it is not quite as efficient at grabbing discs out of bodies of water as is the M-Retriever and the Disc Gator. The hook makes the Kwik Stick more efficient than simply using a stick and does provide some additional stability. The basic functionality is usually adequate for reaching your disc and sliding it to shore, especially in spring runoff and other rapidly flowing water scenarios where the other retriever styles are ineffective.

The biggest disadvantage of the Kwik-Stik is that its initial assembly is rather complicated. To fasten the head you must use a heat shrink feature to essentially weld the head to the pole.

PROS

  • Simple Design
  • Multiple head options and styles
  • Durable Pole
  • Great for rescuing discs from trees.

CONS

  • Only basic disc grabbing capabilities.
  • Initial head installation is rather complicated

 

4. Dynamic Discs Golden Retriever

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Unlike the three previously mentioned disc retrievers, the Dynamic Discs Golden Retriever does not have a pole. The Golden Retriever features a unique metal head designed to essentially fish discs out from the bottom of bodies of water. To retrieve your disc, hold onto the rope with one hand and throw the head beyond the location of your disc and then slowly pull the head back towards you using the rope in hopes that you’ll be able to catch the disc and fish it out of the water.

The thing I like best about the Golden Retriever is that it is very compact, light weight and easily fits into almost any disc golf bag. With the bigger pole retrievers, I generally remove the retriever after every disc golf round and it usually remains in my car trunk. I need to deliberately remember to add the retriever back to my disc golf bag before playing a round. With the compact retrievers like the Golden Retriever, I simply keep it in a pocket of my disc golf bag pocket permanently and it is always there when I need it.

The other main advantage of the Golden Retriever is that it has more than twice the potential range for retrieval as do the pole retrievers. The rope that comes with the Golden Retriever measures 50 feet, but there is no reason that you can’t use an even longer rope if needs be. While the thin rope is plenty long, this also makes it susceptible to tangling and I’ve wasted way to much time trying to untangle my rope after it’s been stowed away in my bag for a while.

In theory, the Golden Retriever disc rescuing solution is really good, but for practical purposes it is sometimes pretty frustrating to actually retrieve by the sliding fishing scoop method. The first issue is that it often takes several throws to get the head in the right location, where you will even be able to drag the disc in. This is especially difficult if the water is mucky and you can’t see exactly where your disc is to begin with. Even if you do get the head right behind your disc, there is no guarantee that you will correctly snag it and you may need to reel in and throw again.

The Golden Retriever also doesn’t work very well if the floor of the pond you are fishing from is either very soft and muddy (the head easily gets stuck) or very jagged and rocky (also gets stuck on rocks instead of your disc). When you can throw the head away from the current in a flowing stream it is possible to retrieve your disc, but throwing with the current makes this retrieval more difficult.

PROS

  • Reaches much farther than other retrievers. Up to 50 feet!
  • Compact size makes it convenient for every disc golf bags.
  • Low price. Pays for itself after saving only a single disc.
  • Available in a variety of different colors.

CONS

  • Generally slower to retrieve discs than using pole retrievers.
  • String easily tangles

 

5. Hive Disc Claw Retriever

Disc Claw Disc Retrieval Device
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The Hive Disc Claw retriever works essentially the same way that the the DD Golden retriever does. The main difference is a slight change in the shape of the retriever. The rope that comes with the Disc Claw is also much shorter. Only 20 feet in length compared with 50 feet for the Golden Retriever.

While the Golden Retriever has a bottom bar that extends along the bottom, the Hive retriever features only a single bar in the middle of the device and “claws” along the ends that scoop up the disc.

The Golden Retriever slides against the ground more easily, while the claw design is more apt to get stuck on objects that are not your disc. But, the Claw actually grabs the discs better, especially after you have already caught it and are pulling the disc in. The tighter shape of the claw keeps the disc snug and it is less likely to fall out while retrieving.

PROS

  • Reaches farther than pole retrievers.
  • Compact size makes it convenient for every disc golf bags.
  • Low price. Pays for itself after saving only a single disc.
  • Grab discs better than the Golden Retriever.
  • Stirs up less dirt than Golden Retrieve.
  • Available in multiple colors

CONS

  • Generally slower to retrieve discs than using pole retrievers.
  • Doesn’t slide as well as the Golden Retriever
  • String is not as long as the one included with Golden Retriever

5/5 - (3 votes)