Hey all. Aside from my daughter’s dollar store special, I haven’t played with a yoyo since I was a youth and had a Duncan Butterfly. I learned the basic tricks such as rock the cradle, around the world, etc. I stopped there as I was more fascinated with juggling and my unicycle. I became intrigued again recently when I saw a video of Augie Fash and wanted to learn. These unresponsive yoyos and string tricks amazed me.
I ended up ordering a YYJ Lyn Fury and a YYF Superstar from the store here. I’ve probably put about 5 hours of spin time in over the last couple of days (mainly today) with the large majority of the time being spent with the Lyn Fury. Right out of the box I was thinking “Yeah alright, unresponsive! Wooo!” and so I threw it down hard. It shot right back up and smashed my hand. Duh. I decided to take out the Superstar with caution more at the forefront as this was an expensive 68 grams of spintastic wonderment. I tossed it down gently and it just sat there and spun for hours or days I can’t remember it was so long. After a few more throws I realized that this thing was not going to respond without a good bind so I began working at binding. I began with a breakaway into a trapeze as seen in the How To Bind video by Houdini. I couldn’t get it to respond with one bind, so I added another and still am barely able to get it to respond consistently.
This gave me a bit more confidence and decided to go back to the Lyn Fury (after about 40 minutes with the Superstar) so I could break in the bearing. After a good amount of spin time it is now much less responsive and it’s really helping me to get quicker and smoother with my binds. I’m really hooked. No matter what I’m doing throughout the day, I’m still thinking about yoyo tricks and can’t wait to get back to it. I even dreamed about it last night, which really seems to help me learn quicker when I do that. It hasn’t been without it’s consequences however as I have beaten up my pointer finger knuckle (underside where I catch) due to binds catching and rocketing into my hand and catching it wrong. I popped a blood vessel and it’s a bit funky looking. It didn’t hurt so much when I first did it, but subsequent smashes have made it a bit tender now. The Lyn Fury hurts a lot more than the superstar when it rockets back into my hand and I catch it improperly. Aptly named, YYJ!
So pretty much I’m trying to focus on solid throwing and binding techniques to start off and really enjoying it. In about a month I’m probably going to add a Dark Magic to the stable as one of my kids has taken an interest after seeing me double bind from the trapeze, so I’ll play with the DM as a daily beater while she plays with the Lyn Fury and thick lube. Well, that and because I just plain want one. ;D
Rock on man, great to see another person picking up the sport and hobby of yo-yoing. Your story reminded me of when I got my first ball bearing yo-yo years ago (A Black Duncan Dragonfly, still have it somewhere). You’ve picked a great site to call home too, this forum compared too all the other ones out there has so much more of a community feel, the people are far more enthusiastic and helpful towards each other and there is the added bonus that Andre took the time to record a load of trick tutorials to tie the community together, I’m sure you’ll be mastering some awesome tricks in no time!
Also, if you start to hurt your hand a little too much you might pick up a pair of those really thin and cheap winter gloves you can get from a dollar store or walmart, the ones I have are made of cotton, super thin, don’t help at all in keeping the cold out, but I’ve found they really reduce the amount of force the yo-yo transfers to your hand if you catch it before the spin wears down a bit.
I’m just glad to see that someone of age isn’t concerned that people will think "why is he playing with a child’s toy?’’ I’m 37 and have been at it for 6 years. It truly is a wonderful thing. Welcome to our world!
Thanks for the welcome and suggestions, icthus, MikeMonty and buffalo1297! I just might have to check out those gloves at walmart to increase my play time. That reminds me that I have a couple of motorcycle gloves that my dog chewed the fingers off, so I’ll probably give that a try first.
I was such a baby at first with the string tightening over my finger, but after a while I didn’t notice it as much I guess. I also tried putting some Kinesio-Tex / chiropractic tape on the palm and knuckle where it hits and that has helped a bit as well.
I’m not really concerned with how it looks because I think it looks sweet. If they make fun, I’ll know that deep down they are really just jealous and don’t want to admit it. I used to take my PSP to work to play it at lunch time in the office, juggle in my office and bring in cool flashlights so this can’t be much dorkier looking than that.
What helped me with my purchase decisions was definitely the community here along with the instructional videos. Andre genuinely seems like a nice guy, and his videos have helped me a lot. I’m hoping to find at least a semi local yoyo club to meet with once a month or something.
On another note, I hope my string order gets here soon as I’m worried about my current strings breaking. I went with some Mondo Brazilian string to see how that plays.
that’s a great story. I had 3 bloody knuckles and a bruised palm within a week and a half of starting. Injuries diminish over time as you grow calusses and get better. I actually started with 5a since I didnt like the string tied around my finger, and slowly worked my way into 1a, now I hardly notice if the string it tied or not. Last week I even attempted to let go of the counterweight olny to realize the counterweight was my throwhand, lol.
My wife was nervous around me at first due to my binds catching when I wasn’t expecting it and the yoyo rocketing towards my face. Today that didn’t happen at all so I’m at least becoming less of a danger to myself and those around me. I’m really impressed with the Lyn Fury. It is very easy to use and I’m not worried about breaking it. I only played with the Superstar for 10 minutes today, but good gravy it sure is easy to land on the string, it spins forever and is really stable. It is really easy to catch as well. Even when it shoot really fast into my hand, I have not problems catching it without pain, whereas the Lyn Fury puts a beating on my hand. That said I have to really work to get it to bind, whereas I can get the Lyn Fury to bind pretty easily however I want. In that regard, it really makes me feel like a noob.
I dinged my 888 like 8 times today…Nothing got through the anno, and still no vibe. DURABLE. Period.
I did smack myself right in the chin after dropping a revolutions. I thought it was a solid bind, but I threw a break away and BOOM! Headshot! Right under the chin.
Doh! Well, you still have your teeth so I guess it wasn’t too bad? I’m glad to hear that your 888 is built tough! My Superstar seems solid, I’m just not ready to really put it at risk yet. My plaster walls, however, are not safe.
Cool story, what most people don’t realize is that yoyos have no age limits. My dad found a cheap $1 yoyo last month and proceeded to take everywhere he went throwing it every chance he got. He even surprised me by showing me a hand start. Watching him really inspired me to go for it and got myself a Velocity and have been truly loving it. Upgrading to a DM some time next month, can’t wait, but it’s stories like your that show just how much fun a hobby can be.
Anyone of any age is always fascinated by someone with good yoyo skills and any discussion of “it’s only for children” is quickly put to rest after seeing even the most simple of string tricks. My sister was watching us throw together one day and commented on how “funny” we look, two grown men throwing yoyos all day. A split the atom and atomic bomb later left her completely dumbfounded.
icthus, I believe you. He has ‘genuine nice guy’ written all over him.
Thanks for the encouragement, Wiredk! I think you hit the nail on the head. Once you see a string trick or combo it’s no longer just a toy! I’m pretty sure my next throw is also going to be a DM, so that I’ll have 3 throws with different response systems. I think I’m going to start having to sell things to buy more.
xdeadeye00x,
I never did end up using a glove. I have only caught it on the same spot a few more times, and it wasn’t very hard so I’ve adjusted. It would be too much of a hassle to deal with anyway.
Mr. Yo,
I gave it more than a thought, but I’d really like to have a throw with all of the different response systems to find out what I like most. If I end up not liking the DM, then it’ll either be sold or traded for the x-convict.
Born2YoYo,
I currently have the Lyn Fury and a YYF Superstar.
My Lyn Fury continues to become less responsive as I have now put a drop of thin lube in. It sleeps longer and I was forced to clean up my binding. Today I focused on the trapeze to reverse trapeze, bind for return over and over. I really love the repetitious aspect of it. It just feels good to get smoother and quicker as you keep training your muscles to remember the movements.
Due to the Lyn Fury becoming more unresponsive, I almost felt like I was using my Superstar. This resulted in a few yoyo missiles. This caused me to tense up, and then my binds completely disappeared on me. After a few minutes of getting frustrated I just forced myself to relax and then I was back to binding. Now, it’s actually much better than it ever has been. Before, all of my binds had a bunch of loose string. Now, I’m consistently getting less, and sometimes none (at least visibly to my eyes). Anyway, just an observation that I thought was interesting. I must chillax.
I’m currently using Brazilian Mondo poly string. I’m going through one a day so far.
Thanks, Icthus. The size of the DM is part of what draws me to it. Yoyos seem so small compared to when I was using them as a kid, that I like the idea of a bit more size/weight. Whether I’ll like it or not I’m not sure, but more throws in the collection can’t be a bad thing, right?
