A random collection of thoughts on the Pocket Change

I thought I’d give this style a try as opposed to my big long in depth reviews. Here goes…

Nice color schemes (I got the pink rimmed one) - very fun looking.
Size A bearing and plastic is not something I’m sure I’d go for again, but it is very unique in my collection, so points awarded.
Center Trac bearing was a nice and unexpected addition, though the gap isn’t really wide enough to take full advantage of it.
Big vibe, probably due to so many loose parts.
Definitely a step in the other direction from the vast amount of dead smooth metal YYF models - which seems to be what they were going for.
I like the packaging. It’s personal and includes specs, and even a small instruction manual/trick book (even though at one point they refer to it as a “Grind Machine” (???). Probably a copy/paste section from the PGM manual that slipped under the radar. I’d like to see this kind of customized packaging on YYF premium metals sometime down the road.
Loose spacers and bearing make on-the-fly take aparts for knot fixing a risky feat.
Spin time that reminds you to throw like a man if you want to get anywhere.
I felt like I needed to use thinner string to maximize the potential of this one - I have an Angel Hair in this one, felt like there was too much friction otherwise.
Removing one metal spacer and tightening the gap leads to some pretty good responsive play.
Removing the outer rims creates a fun mini throw, though too light to be truly functional in this state.
Bearing size and shape lead me to believe this would be a pretty good 5A throw, though I’m not really good enough at 5A to make a firm statement on that.
Ability to swap out rims with Offstring excites me. I’ll add more on that once I get an Offstring.
On a good throw, it gets me through most of my longest combos - no complaints there.
Feels kind of hollow - different from other solid plastic throws (Lyn Fury is my frame of reference)
Definitely won’t replace your high-end metals, or perhaps even high-end plastics. More comments later when I get a Protostar as an additional frame of reference.
Versatility combined with low price point are enough for me to recommend the Pocket Change.
As far as a skill level, I feel like the Pocket Change’s market is on iffy grounds. It’s meant to be played unresponsive, which rules out many beginners, and the big vibe and hollow feel may be a turnoff for advanced players. I’d see intermediate at best would be the Pocket Change’s most appropriate target group, or an advanced player looking for something different like myself.

hmmmm… I had a different experience with the pocket change:

mine had little to no vibe. mabye try tightening the parts more?
If you take out one pad it should do fine with a regular string

also, the protostar totally wrecks the pocket change, It’s so much better

Yeah I tried tightening it as much as I could, and it would help a little with the vibe for a minute, then it would slip back into a looser position. I’ll try taking out a pad and seeing how it plays.

EDIT: I took out a pad and it plays a little bit more unresponsive with a regular thickness string than 2 pads and an Angel Hair, which is good. I tightened the side caps to the very tightest it can go and it tuned out a little vibe, but it still fails the fingernail test miserably (it’s definitely the yo-yo, not my throw), and the vibe is extremely heavy on grinds. I’m wondering if I should contact YYF Ben about this and see what he has to say…

what is so good about angel hair string?

Nothing really. It’s nylon I believe and it lasts a really long time before wearing out. It also performs more easily for whips and lacerations than polyester strings. I just used it as an example in this case because they’re very thin.

mine was responsive no matter what for a while too. It will definitly become less and less responsive as you go though. hmmm mine never untightened though… mabye the vibe on yours chatters it loose? is it really that bad?

It seems like your expecting too much from a 12 dollar yoyo.
I have one and mine vibes, and I don’t really care about it.

No need to contact YYFBen about the vibe.

No not at all. The vibe itself never really bothered me for that very reason. However I believe that consistency is an important aspect of a product, so if some come with vibe and some without, that’s an inconsistency that should be brought to light.