The Mantis didn't click with me. I picked up a Z line on a whim as it felt nice in the hand. On the course, it didn't fly like I was expecting. In Z I imagine these start out more overstable than other plastics. Based on the flight numbers I was expecting a Valkyrie type disc, but the mantis and less turn and more fade and went much shorter distance than the Valkyrie or even the Teebird I compared it to. The Z line plastic was pretty hard and slick as well. I know people throw this well, and pros like Missy Gannon utilize it regularly. But it was a pretty easy hard pass for me. 

The Discraft mantis flies a little differently in every plastic. I prefer the stock Z-Line plastic as that fits the flight I am looking for. The Mantis is a very under stable fairway driver. I love it for woods golf as I am able to rip on it in tight lines and get beautiful hyzer flip or turnover flights. 

I have a very beat in z line mantis that is one of the flippiest discs I have ever thrown. It was the first disc that really elevated my game because I was able to learn hyzer flips and angles on it. The disc is very trusty if you know what you're doing, but also a great beginner disc to learn on.

Controllable fairway driver. Goes well on any angle you put it on. I use this for RHBH shots from around 225-300ft. If I put it on hyzer it will flit up to flat and then slowly fade left the rest of the flight.

One of the best, out-o-the-box, straight fairway! I love the feel of this disc in the hand. I use this as a BH only tree weaver. Would not recommend for a FH.

The Uli Ledgestone Z swirl plastic seems to be the least stable out of the box. Then regular Z, then the new SE Big Z with a mini stamp being the most overstable (more so at the end of the flight)

Can't wait for these to break in for buttery hyzerflips

Yeah. This is a great disc. Super easy to control. Very reliable S shots.

The only reason this isn't in my bag is that I can throw my Leapord3 with more consistency.

I do plan on practicing with this disc as I can throw it further than my leopard3.

This might be the most underrated disc in recent memory.

I've got 2 of these discs. They're both nice. I like them but they aren't exactly irreplaceable for me. 

Pro-D Mantis: I've beaten this one up pretty good, and it's now strictly a hyzerflip and anhyzer disc. This was a great disc brand new as a rookie, it helped me get more distance until my form was good enough to use a beefier disc.

Z Line Mantis: I've only had this one a little less than a month and it doesn't have a lot of flight time with me yet but i think its starting to break in. Its significantly more overstable than my Pro D even when that one was new, which i like. Its very similar to my Stalker. I see a lot of reviewers saying theirs was domey, but mine is super flat. One of my flattest discs actually. It has a 300' pretty S curve when thrown flat and smooth, and the 4 glide really shows when throwing low ceiling shots, which is normally when I'll use it most. Otherwise my Stalker can get the job done with more predictability i think. Still dig it though. 

The mantis a great fairway driver.  When I first got my z buzzz, I was a little surprised with how stable it was.  I was expecting something less stable than my teebird but it seemed about the same as my beat in teebird.  After getting used to the mantis, I can get nice s turns on it out to about 300 hundred feet.  The mantis is a very controllable disc that goes a little farther than a teebird, but I tend to prefer the teebird.  The mantis doesn't goes as far as some higher glide discs, but the 4 glide rating makes this disc more controllable in wind than a river or other high glide fairway driver.  The mantis will make a great addition to players of varying skill levels.  For lower level players, this is a long fairway driver that will go straight with some fade.  For more advanced players, this disc will s or turn over, making this disc more situational.  Overall, the mantis is a great disc.  I recommend z or esp plastic.  Z can be a bit slippery, but for fairway drivers grip isn't the most important.  Esp will give a good amount of control with slightly less durability than z.

Disc - 174 Z Mantis

Feel - The Mantis has a nice small rim and is a little bit deep but not uncomfortable. It fits nicely in the hand for both backhand and forehand shots though I hardly ever throw it forehand. It has a bit of dome which helps with the glide as well. Z plastic is fairly slick in my opinion and probably my least favorite "candy" style of plastic but it is very durable and gives good enough grip in good weather.

Flight - The Mantis has a very nice, predictable flight. Obviously, for every players throwing style and arm speed, it will fly differently but for the most part it is a good under stable fairway driver. I enjoy this disc for hyzer flip to turnover shots that do not finish back at all at the end of the flight. It is easy to get this disc up and going and it has a good amount of glide.

Overall - I would say that the Mantis is a great disc for many players and definitely can fill a role in many players bags. I would definitely recommend this disc to beginners as a step up from their leopard or other first driver.

I have a 170g Z Line Mantis.  I was hoping it would feel and fly kind of like a Leopard3 with more distance.  It feels significantly domier and has a lot more turn than I expected.  A few times I've thrown it with maybe a *touch* of anhyzer instead of flat and it just turned and glided and turned and glided and turned and glided while I waved bye-bye in frustration.  

Maybe it would fly consistently straighter on a hyzer flip, but honestly, hyzer flipping is not going to be the experience for most beginners like me.  I still keep it in the bag, and now that I've gotten used to the turn I am using it more often with more confidence.  It just wasn't quite what I was expecting or hoping for.  

Great disc! I bought a second after I really beat up the Ace Race version that I got long ago. Throws very similar to the Ace version, just a bit more overstable, but only just, probably on account of the old disc being beat in.

Great for slow speed flex lines and hyzer flips, almost always comes back on a big flip for a good straight line. 

Good second or third driver for a beginner to grow into.

The Ace Race version of this disc was pure perfection. It was the first disc I carried 2 of. Long S shots were a breeze. I could flip it off a hammer/thumber, and have it hold the line when needed. It became my go-to disc for 200-300 ft. flicks. It stayed so stable, didn't skip too much, and was a wonderful addition to my bag. Had they kept it the same, I would have another Mantis in my bag. But sadly, they tried to fix what wasn't broken. I'll just use the heck out of the AR version till it just can't go anymore. Then try to get more.

This is my favorite fairway driver that I've thrown.  I own 2 of them, one being z-line and the other being Big Z.  Both scale up at 167/168.  The Big Z is less stable than the regular Z.  I only can throw about 330, and I use these for everything 280-320 distance.  The Z can hold straight for 300 on flat releases, and the big Z shows more turn out of the box.  My big z hyzer flips to flat and holds fantastic until later flight where some S shows up.  My next order will have to include a Ti, as I heard that's the most stable.  If I can keep these two discs going and add a more stable version into the bag, I could cover all my fairway shots with 1 mold.

To me, the Mantis in opaque Z plastic is a workhorse fairway driver. There's almost nothing this disc can't do when shaped properly. When thrown hard and flat, it will ride right for a bit and then swing back left at the end for a perfectly straight flight. Thrown on hyzer it will flip up and fly dead straight with some slight fade at the end. Throw it on anny? Well buddy you just threw one beautiful turnover shot that will land nice and flat.

The rim is a perfect size for my preferences and works well for both forehand and backhand shots. The only time I would advise against throwing the Mantis would be into a stiff headwind, unless you're planning on a roller.

So I bought this at the local shop as a compliment to my undertakers. I've been wanting to try the mantis for a long time. The one I grabbed was Z plastic and max weight (sticker said 175-176) 

I'm not a super far thrower. I can get about 375 typically. But this thing was very surprisingly overstable. To the point where I was questioning if it was actually a Mantis. It was much more overstable than my undertakers. It flew more overstable than my most overstable eagle. I was pretty confused. I would throw a push hyzer looking for the flip up and just got absolutely none. It would just hold that angle to the ground. 

It's either due to the max weight or maybe I got a weird one, but not at all what I was expecting. I'm gonna keep throwing it though because it's still a reliable disc. 

Picked up a Mantis when they were first released, played a couple of rounds with it, and filed it in the "no, thank you" box as it just wasn't flying the way I expected.  Fast forward four years and found it while digging through some discs, and gave it another try.  Loving it now! The disc didn't change, so it must have been me! I'm getting a nice, subtle turn followed by slightly more fade at the end of flight. A gentle "S" when I release it properly, and glides a little further than its rating, to me.  Glad I re-found it. A permanent place in the bag now!

I use a titanium ace race 2013 mantis which is my go-to thumber and windy driver. Apparently it's more overstable than the production model that's available. I throw a lot of thumbers and after experimenting with discs that I had at my disposal, this is the one that gave me the most consistency coupled with distance. I am not that strong and this disc is a fairly easy to throw fairway driver, although I personally like the zombee better... except in the wind.

Note: I had to select a plastic... thought I could write it without, but since I already wrote this, I'll preface that I used "elite z" as the plastic type because it is probably closest to the specs on the ace race disc that I have in titanium.

I personally stuggle with understable discs. I've played for years, but for some reason they seem to turnover on me too frequently and don't hyzerflip very well for me.

With the Mantis, this changed. I feel like its flightpath is as similar to an ultimate frisbee disc as possible (driver-exclusive). It floats forever after hyzerflipping and doesn't require a whole ton of power to rip a solid, super-controlled 250ft drive. I've thrown this 350+ with power, but my main purpose is control shots on technical lines.

For beginners you don't have to worry about keeping the disc extra flat out of the hand- instead, a little disc dip is recommended and is mostly comfortable for novices. It isn't too fast, either, so I strongly recommend this disc as a first faster driver.

8/6/-1/2

This disc is a very good disc that has lots of easy length. This disc does not need a lot of power to work properly. It is very controllable and will stay in the air for a long time. This is a disc that you can use on a tight fairway because it is so controllable.

the feel of the disc just doesn't feel good in the hand for me.  i had a hard time trying to keep the disc from flipping over.  i would say this is a great beginner disc 

Just got my beautiful new 170 g mantis in tough as nails elite z plastic.been a year or so since I got any new z plastic. This disc is really grippable. I don't  know anything about the ace race disc or how it flew but this one flies great. I was looking for a slower stable to understable disc I could get some distance out of without throwing as hard as I can. This disc did not disappoint. It was exactly what I was looking for. At 48 with a bad back and knees I just can't  throw fast discs anymore. Actually I never could throw them worth a darn. This disc did just what I got it for, how rare is that huh. Don't know why discraft changed the mold on this from the original ace race but I'm glad they did. Long and short of it is I love this disc and will be getting more. Some of my best distance with any disc I've thrown. If you have a noodle arm like myself and need something slower for your distance drives give the mantis a throw.

I don't know whether I got a bad Mantis or not but mine is more overstable than my TeeBird and almost as overstable as my Predator/ Firebird

I don't know why Discraft decided to tweak this mold, but they made it decidedly less stable all around than the original Ace Race version. Still, the Mantis isn't a terrible disc. It doesn't really fill any gaps in my game...I would liken it to a DX Gazelle from Innova. The Gazelle isn't a great comparison...it is more overstable at the end of it's flight. But the Mantis is close. It's one of those discs that isn't great, but isn't terrible. Straight with a little fade....the perfect neutral disc.

DISCLAIMER
First off let it be known that the TI Ace Race version of this disc was the best fairway driver EVER made. Its a shame Discraft changed its design, hopefully they'll re-release the original mold at some point in the future. 

OK now onto the review of the production Z version...

Excellent beginner driver, feels great in the hand and easy to get it to go far.
This disc has a lot of dome, and probably the best glide of any Discraft disc.
When thrown flat this thing will get some moderate turn, but mid flight it fights and starts coming back. Hyzerflip it for a straighter line. Put it on anhyzer for a long turnover. You can even flip it up for a decent roller. While its not as good as it could have been, the mantis is still a phenomenal disc that has many uses.

Looking for a great starter driver? Get the Mantis
Need more stability? Email discraft and nag at them to bring back the ace race version of this disc.

BTW: If anyone has any ace race versions they want to unload to me, let me know :)

Pros:
Easy Distance
Lots of lines available
Comfotable grip
Glides for days

Cons:
Not a stable as the original version
Doesnt like wind so much.