Quick Review: The Axiom Crave vs. Discraft Cicada comparison pits two neutral fairway drivers against one another. Both have tons of potential and are great in their own way!
Est. Reading Time: 3 - 4 Minutes
Buy a Crave, here and a Cicada, here. We also have a massive stock of fairway drivers for sale, here!
Axiom Crave vs. Discraft Cicada Overview
Late summer in 2023 saw Discraft enter the neutral fairway driver chat with the Cicada, a 7 speed disc with huge glide and a ton of maneuverability. Discs in the workable fairway driver slot are numerous but Discraft had a slot to fill in their line-up. An Axiom Crave vs. Discraft Cicada comparison is perfect, especially as the two workable fairway drivers are so similar in flight numbers.
Flight Numbers: Axiom Crave vs. Discraft Cicada
The Axiom Crave sports the flight numbers of 6.5/5/-1/1, making it almost a tweener disc in terms of speed. In the hand, the Crave feels more like a small fairway driver but at the same time feels in-line with 7 and 8 speed drivers. The Axiom Crave compared to the Discraft Cicada is .5 speeds slower. The Cicada flight numbers are 7/6/-1/1, giving it more speed and one more glide rating higher vs. the Crave.
Hand Feel: Axiom Crave vs. Discraft Cicada
Comparing the Axiom Crave and Discraft Cicada hand feel may sway some players to one disc or the other. While the differences aren’t huge, they’re apparent and important to note. The Axiom Crave’s hand feel, as described in the previous section, is slightly smaller when compared to the Discraft Cicada. The Crave being a 6.5 speed definitely gives it more of a tweener feel, meaning the rim fits smaller in the palm and the inner rim is shallower than one would expect from a fairway driver. An interesting benefit we found throwing a “smaller” fairway driver was the confidence it gave us off the teepad when being met with a tighter gap. The disc almost feels like a mid-range while acting like a bomber fairway driver.
The Axiom Crave compared to the Discraft Cicada in feel as mentioned is slightly smaller and shallower. The Discraft Cicada feels more like a true fairway driver. The Cicada fills out the hand more and is a bit deeper when gripped. The larger size of the Cicada gave us more confidence when placing it in our forehand and the power grip for the backhand. The Cicada compared to a Discraft Athena flows down into the hand due to the more neutral rim, where the Athena pushes into the palm.
Flight Path: Axiom Crave vs. Discraft Cicada
The Axiom Crave vs. Discraft Cicada flight paths are similar but there are subtle differences. Both the Crave and the Cicada were hyzer flip machines, showing some flip even on lower powered shots. When thrown on tighter hyzer lines, both discs were able to shape shots and were tons of fun to throw. Thrown flat, both the Cicada and Crave turned reliably and were able to fade back reliably as well depending on the wind.
The largest difference between the Axiom Crave vs. Discraft Cicada were the discs likelihood to flip. The Discraft Cicada surprised us with how stable it acted on sweeping hyzer shots and would push forward more than it would flip. In a tailwind the Cicada loved to be thrown flat and would absolutely bomb the fairway before fading reliably. The Axiom Crave does show a greater propensity to flip and at times flipped over when our throws were just a touch away from perfect. That fact shouldn’t discount how maneuverable the Axiom Crave is though. We can see the Crave being more forgiving on touchy, slower shots, where the Cicada might need more power to control.
Final Characteristics: Axiom Crave vs. Discraft Cicada
Both discs are great and some players might find slots in their bag for both. Here’s a quick breakdown of how we rated the Axiom Crave vs. Discraft Cicada.
Most Versatile: Axiom Crave
Farthest Flying: Discraft Cicada
Best Hand Feel: Axiom Crave
Most Fun to Throw: Axiom Crave
Highest Utility: Discraft Cicada
Looking for more Disc Golf Reviews and Articles? Check out our friends at the Birdie Blog!
