This is my 3rd review. Tell me how I did! Any suggestions are fine.

Intro- No review of this yoyo can be complete if the events leading up to the release date are left out.

It’s July 2013, all is good in the yoyo world. Then this video came along:

This video caused quite a stir. Gentry wasn’t throwing a G-Funk.  There was no sign of a Super G or any current YYF throw for that matter. The yoyo featured in the video was something new, different, and unexpected.

Three weeks later we finally learned the name from a YoyoNews first look. No, really that was subject to some debate.

http://yoyoexpert.com/forums/index.php?action=printpage;topic=63755.0

However, the lasting impact of that first look had to be the announcement of the price. It said $45. At first I thought it was a typo.

These days great options around the fifty dollar price is the new normal. At that time though, a full sized metal for less than fifty was revolutionary. The offerings from YYF, before shutters release, were the DV888 or a G-Funk. Maybe you could find a 2.0. All those yoyos were undersized. The shutter was really the first full sized at that price, other than throws from Chinese companies like MagicYo or YYO. Since the Shutter’s release many companies have hopped on the budget metal bandwagon. Notable throws include C3’s Level 6, Duncan’s Echo2, the CZM8, even OneDrop joined the party with the Benchmarks. YYF really set a trend that’s here to stay.

Then Gentry did this:

He messed around and got first at nationals. Not only did he earn a win, but he also sold a lot of Shutters that day. Things couldn’t have been sweeter for YYF. Not only were they the only ones offering a full sized metal for $45 dollars, but one of your most popular team members just won Nationals with it. Weeks later YYF produced splash and blasted champions editions for the same price. (splash was $5 more) Yoyofactory was supplying just what the consumers wanted, and they didn’t have a problem doing it.

All of these events leading up and early in its release helped to grow the massive hype around this yoyo. Unlike most people, I wasn’t feeling it. I refused to believe that it could be that good. I knew it was $45, but was it a good yoyo?

Specs:
55.83 mm Diameter
44.33 mm Width
67.5 Grams
SPEC Bearing
White CBC Pads

My First First Impression- Before the blasted editions came out, I tried one at the yoyo club in Chandler, AZ. It had a red/black colorway with a gold CT installed. I did not like it at all. It seemed to have so much hype, yet was really nothing special. The thing that made it most unattractive was the finish. I couldn’t stand the smooth (polished?) finish. Instant turn off.

The period in between- After an underwhelming experience with the Shutter I decided to go with a mystery box. Pretty much held me over the winter and much of the spring. (In AZ it seems like there’s only spring during late January to mid March. Were in high 80s and 90s quite often now) During this period there was no renewed interest in the Shutter.

My Second First Impression- Well I couldn’t help it. I caved in and gave the Shutter a second chance. This time I would be paying for it. When it finally arrived I was a bit nervous to try it. I put it off for a day. It wasn’t hard either considering the guys at a best buy sent along a YoyoSkeel Satisfaction. (But that’s another review) When I finally got around to it, I was pleasantly surprised. The yoyo was solid yet nimble on the string, and the finish better.  I did find it lacking in stability though. It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t great either.

Gap features: The Shutter comes stock with white CBC pads and a normal flat bearing. The pads seemed slippy at first, but they wore in after a few days. As for the bearing it seemed okay, but I switched it for a CTX. It seemed that the switch enhanced the stability. That’s weird as I’ve never seen a change in stability due to bearing switch.

Construction- The Shutter is not a Super G. It is a completely new design, and may I say beautiful to look at. Everything from the shape to the laser engravings and even the anodize complement the yoyo greatly. As for functionality, the inner cup is sunk in about a quarter inch and allows for great fingerspins. The Shutter has two functioning inner rims for IRGs. The Shutter has a tweaked V-shape that also fits well in hand.

Playability- This yoyo is a string trick beast. It will handle anything you throw at it. It’s nice and smooth on the string. It also has some hang time. I’m not using the word floaty because it means different things to certain people. The stability is fine and the spin times are quite long. It’s really a blast to play with. As far as speed, I’m not a fast herky jerk type guy. I’m more stylized and flowy and that’s how I play with this yoyo. I’m sure it’ll go as fast as you need.

Bottom line- The yoyo plays well. This yoyo really grew on me. After initially disliking it, I have found it to be a daily carry. It’s good for grinds and anything else you like to do. This yoyo should be recommended for its play not its price alone. For the skeptics, this yoyo delivers.

Thoughts?

I really liked that you had a little bit of back story to it. I haven’t been around very long so I didn’t know anything about Gentry Stein.

Good to know.

Nice spin on the standard review

Thanks. I try to make them insightful and interesting.

@isnortcomet, Glad you learned something new!

Nice review, as usual. I think the Shutter is great, but I believe it will be overshadowed by the slightly higher priced TooH.O.T. this year. That thing is a killer.

Nice review, honest, and great background on the Shutter release too.

Great back story, great review. You have given me something to think about.

Thanks. I was trying to explain the hype and why it formed so quickly.

I hope you don’t think too long. You’ll have much more fun playing this yoyo.

Not too long at all. I think k a good majority of us would rather have a review the is really informative be too long then a short, lame review that’s just a few lines like how some people have posted on here… But overall, great review. I never looked up the back story on this throw so this was a new insight for me on the shutter. Good work!

Thanks

Great review, and I really enjoyed the backstory. Hey, that could be your specialty – give us a new thread with backstory on some of the major brands and recent releases! That would be some great reading!

Should I get one?

I know this review is sort of old now but I really enjoyed it. I feel like most reviews are done in the honeymoon phase in which the user can find nothing wrong with their yoyo (or people intentionally only review yoyos they really like), so it’s nice to see a review that is very honest and recognizes the weaknesses of a yoyo (even if they are partially due to personal preference) while also highlighting the positives.

If you like what you read in the review, sure!

You forgot about the Raptor, Echo, and Metropolis. Other than that, nice review.

Tried an Echo/Raptor. Shutters are on a different level. The shutter could easily sale for 70-80 dollars. I’d say it’s the first super high quality metal at 50 price range.

Not at all diminishing the play of those other throws, but the shutter is a different breed. Also those yoyos didn’t start a massive influx of budget metals upon their release. There have been other cheap metals, but the shutter was the first to raise expectations of a $42 dollar throw.

(Yep got mine for $42)

I just thought it was weird you mentioned the Echo2 but not the Echo1.

The echo had to be improved to compete. Duncan could feel it.

So what if I snubbed to echo2’s predecessor? I reviewed the shutter and mentioned releases that came as a response.

I know I was just confused.

^ Gotcha