I’ve always kept yoyoing, but never as seriously as I have been in the past. A few months ago I was obsessed with yoyoing but lost interest as I did have enough time. Now, getting back into yoyoing, I’m looking for a good yoyo to use. Looking for something smooth, easy to throw, aesthetically good looking, unique (if possible) and a nice yoyo that I’d be proud to own.
Any suggestions?
Dark Magic 2 would do the job.
yoyo jam dark magic two, definitely.
I’m not exactly in the same situation. I had a yoyo failure back in 1978. Didn’t touch one again until 2011!
Getting in and wanting a “real yoyo”, the DM2 met my requirements. Looked nice, stable, solid, easy to throw and could grow with me, considering the 2 bearings to allow it to move from responsive to unresponsive.
Dark Magic II. Great choice. It was mine, I highly recommend it to others, new or returning.
The Dark Magic 2 is certainly an excellent choice. What is the price range you were looking to spend?
YYJ Dark Magic 2= #1 choice on YoYoExpert.com, I think that should answer your question.
This shoudnt surprise anybody that has ever seen a post from me but i would go with a yyf protostar over the dark magic any day. Oh and the reason the dm is the #1 choice of yoyoexpert is probably the fact that its the signature throw of the person that owns the site. 
Not a problem for me, Andre is awesome, i’m just saying…
There’s more to the success of the DM2 than it being Andre’s signature yoyo. No doubt having his name on it and having a hand in it’s design AND the fact he uses it doesn’t hurt, that’s for sure. Nearly everywhere that the DM2 is carried, it has been a top seller. There are at least 3 other online yoyo stores that are not owned or operated by Andre that feature the DM2 as a “#1 Seller” or a “Top Seller” or a “Player’s Choice” or other type of stuff that seems to support how great and popular this yoyo is.
Not to say the Protostar isn’t great as well. Like anything that ISN’T a DM2, it’s different. Different isn’t bad. The Protostar is it’s own great unto itself. It’s super affordable, being solid at that $35 price point makes it very affordable. Being considered an all plastic yoyo also keeps the price down without compromising in performance. The metal weight ring puts weight where it needs to be and making the Protostar the proper weight to perform at an optimum level. It is one of those yoyos that most of us should own and have in our collection and played often.
The only drawback for the Protostar is for new people is that it requires a bind return to properly utilize this yoyo, where as the DM2 doesn’t need this right out of the box. But, this single bearing concept is also another reason why the Protostar is less expensive. However, if one knows how to bind or is willing to learn how to bind, it’s a really great yoyo. I think the Northstar, which is basically a heavier Protostar, is not as ideal for new players due to the weight.
The Northstar and Protostar exhibit metal-type performance at a plastic price. For a few dollars more(due to the extra bearing and some more costly materials), the DM2 is a plastic and metal yoyo that performs JUST AS WELL. However, do keep in mind, preferences play a big factor.
I have all three of these. My preference is still the DM2. But yeah, the Protostar is another great one, it just requires an initially higher knowledge level to function with. Keep in mind here we’re addressing the requirements of someone returning to yoyos after a long break, a break so long that play style has changed. Granted, it’s not a 32-year difference such as mine(Duncan Imperial in 1978 kicking my butt and resulting in yoyo failure, to 2011 and wanting to get into it for real now and choosing a DM2 after being overloaded with information), but it’s a long enough break where I feel the choices would be a responsive yoyo and an unresponsive yoyo, or a yoyo that can be both. Minimizing start-up costs is an important start-up cost factor. I also like the Legacy II, but I think the OP isn’t as concerned with price.
Since the OP wants to also talk style, I also think the DM2 scores way high there over the Protostar and Northstar, but again, that’s a matter of opinion. The Legacy II doesn’t score very well here. I mean, the Legacy II looks nice, but is’ a bit too plain but the caps are rather flashy.
I always forget about the narrow bearing that a lot of yyjs come with. Its very true that nothing compares to yyj for a pure beginner to be able to start responsive and go unresponsive when ready. I tend to jump to the conclusion that everyone can bind! Silly me. I personnaly started with a freehand and metal drifter and pulled a sticker off to learn to bind.
It’s not silly at all.
Your suggest has plenty of merit, it just requires a but more assumption than is typically safe to assume. One of my kids has a Protostar and he’s learning to bind on it right now, after moving up from a ONE. The problem here is he’s 5, so he’s not really all that “big” and so he really doesn’t have enough string to give him any room for mistakes in his bind. If it’s not perfect, he won’t have enough string to wrap around the axle and catch on the response pad. My 8 year old refuses to make any further progress and won’t really even try anything at this point. She can do some of the beginner tricks but is showing little interest in advancing past that.
It is through this displayed behavior why I often build in a “failure plan” to minimize losses when starting out with the yoyo. Not everyone takes to it or they go for a while and lose interest. This is especially important when buying for kids. It sounds negative, but there’s no point in giving an 8 year old a DM2 or a Protostar unless the show real interest. A ONE gets the job done quite nicely!
With adults, the advice is the same, just the maturity level is hopefully better, as well as the self discipline. Even so, no need to jump in too deep to start off. I thought before I got into this yoyo thing that “What? $100 for a yoyo? What, are you smoking crack?” Even the DM2 I thought was a big expensive but didn’t seem unreasonable once I started venturing in. After the first throw, yeah, you know what I’m talking about. Totally worth it.
Since I’m not far from being a beginner, it helps keep my perspective as to what beginners need more accessible. I also have documented a lot of stuff so I don’t forget. I want to help bring MORE people into this, and anything I can do to help relay my experiences and knowledge to others starting off is a good thing.
I think the FHZ is a good option. Readily available, super affordable and has tons of potential. Easy to modify with inexpensive parts(spacers, Terrapin X FHZ A+ Beefcake kit, remove a sticker). Yeah, it’s a good way to go. In some cases, it forces players to understand some of the mechanics of what’s going on inside the yoyo as well.
any of the newer yyr’s
