Beginner buying 888x

What do you think when you see a beginner spend 100 on a 888x?

That they are wasting their money, or i guess you can look at as an long term investment?

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Good for them? Seriously dont be jealous or judge, an 888 would be great to learn on.

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I agree.

I saw kids at a meet over the weekend, many with throws in the $60 and up range, and one kid couldn’t throw his to save his life.

I’m all for “buying above”, but there’s a point where you have to step back and look at it. Some people don’t like this position I take, but today, with short attention spans, you have to build in your loss plan into the initial equation. Do you want to blow $10 on a ONE? Or maybe $15.30 on a Lyn Fury or mabye $25 on a Legacy II, taking the chance that if the kid says “no”, you’re out that, or the kid says “yes” and you upgrade soon.

I’d say a logical jump is a ONE for trial. Heck even a Duncan Butterfly will rock for testing! The next step up is a ONE(2 bearing package) or a Legacy II, if we’re still trying to determine how far this is gonna go. If we’re into responsive, then, well, the options open up a lot, with the Protostar or even Northstar being great choices, or if you want to go cheap, the PSG or Asteroid. If they are really into it, then why not at that point.

But, a $100+ throw in the hands of a noob? That’s just not thinking! Sorry if I offend. I am a parent. I throw. My kids throw I got $100+ yoyos. My kids DO NOT and WILL NOT for quite some time. My 5 year old has the most expensive yoyo of the kids, with a $35 protostar he’s learning to bind on(and coming along nicely).

If my kids want to try more expensive stuff, I got 2 cases FULL of stuff to try. Then maybe I’ll buy.

I normally would not comment on ‘most’ reccommended type posts, but since I have been watching kids accidentally SLAM their yoyos into the Pavement; I decided to chime in on this one.

It would be nice to get a New Corvette the day you get your Drivers License. But it would be better to just get an old truck until you figure out how to ‘not Bump into Stuff’; lol.

If you can afford it(100 buck yoyos) and it has to be an Expensive yoyo or you won’t feel like playing; well I guess a 100 bucks is they way it is.

But my view is that when you are just beginning, that you should have a good plastic yoyo that can take a beating. Some players are just alittle more Bold or adventurous when they don’t have to be concerned about putting some beauty marks on a 100+ metal.

Even nicer would be if ya got the money, to buy 2 yoyos: a Plastic for the practice sessions and a Metal for ‘in over carpet’ or ‘out over grass’.

final thought is simple; any yoyo that makes you happy and keeps you throwing, is the right yoyo.

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actually if you think about it, 888x can be a starter yoyo. if the kit comes with a responsive bearing, you can learn easy tricks on it. a dvd comes with it so you can learn easy tricks to expert tricks. the 888x is a yoyo that comes in a set that can grow with you if you buy it on yoyoexpert.

My son and I have been throwing for 8 months and we both started on plastics which we still use and buy. When we feel like a particular trick is worthy it moves to the metals. Although you don’t want to see the look on a child’s face when they ground their first nice metal ( been there ). So make sure the responsibility level reflects the investment. That old plastic won’t go to waste if you keep it running.

We found lots of new players wanting to learn on something nicer and have refined 888 pretty specifically for that purpose. Bearing, finish, included extras even size shape and weight distribution. If you have opportunity, I can’t think of anything better.

I have to agree with Studio42 and Yoyodoc. A lot of it is that its simply a monetarily poor desiccation. But If you can afford to keep buying $100 yoyos every time you trash an old one I guess go for it.

The problem with that outlook, which I would absolutely have if I had the money :P, is that frankly beginner player cannot throw the high end yoyos. I’ll relate my own experience here. But keep in mind I am still very new and have a LOT to learn. So this maybe totally different than other people’s experiences.
When I started I bought a popstar and a ONE. I really liked them both but starting off I couldn’t handle the metal popstar. I know it isn’t a high end yoyo but it still requires a level of play greater than a ONE. I couldn’t throw it well or move it around and every time the string tangled and the yoyo shot back it gave me an adrenaline rush out of fear. I didn’t have the experience to deal with this chunk of metal launching at my face. I ended up putting that yoyo away and stuck with my ONE thinking that it was pretty crappy. Recently though, I got it back out and things are completely different. I actually really enjoy playing with it. But, because I didn’t have the experience before I thought it wasn’t worth playing with.

The other thing about about starting with the high end is that you can’t appreciate or understand WHY it is high end. To really know yoyos and yoyoing and why things are the way they are, you have to experience a lot of different things. That applies for lots of things in life in general. You can’t appreciate the clutch on BMW when you haven’t had to drive an old junker who’s clutch needs replacing.
When I upgraded from my ONE I knew exactly why I needed to upgrade and when I got my new yoyo I could immediately tell the difference and do things I couldn’t do previously. And when I get another yoyo I will hopefully have grown beyond my current level so I can understand the difference from what I have now.

What other 100 throw would you recommend to them

I agree with yoyofactoryben I personally own a 888x and I must say that it’s an undersized yoyo wuch for one will help little kuds if they have little hands. And I think you guys are forgetting another point, they don’t have to throw down $100 for an 888x they could do what I did and surf eBay and hope to find a good second hand deal. That’s how I got my 888x and I felt pretty good that I was able to get it almost brand new for $50. So yea if they really want to fork over the money for a new one, then let in the end you don’t know how they’ll fare.

It’s your money, it’s none of my business what you do with it. If I see you’re having problems with what you bought I’ll try to help you out. I hope you’d do the same for me. :wink:
I try not to burden myself with such things. It’s better to celebrate the persons acquisition and be glad for them. If you really want one of my thoughts, “He’s going to learn to bind earlier than I did.”

People seem to often feel the need to justify their opinions, by suggesting others be just like them. I guess that’s just our nature. Different roads, paths and journeys, not just with yoyo’s but regarding life as well. It’s interesting how we all want to be different but really don’t want others to be to different from ourselves.

I digress.

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Don’t stereotype with these people. I’m all for it if your putting in the effort to look stuff up and you’re aware of what you are doing. Someone I know, not too well anyhow, STARTED with an SPYY Solaris, he looked up stuff and was careful with it and he managed to learn to bind and started getting into the lower leveled sidestyle stuff like Buddha’s revenge and Matrix with his yoyo still in mint condition last I saw him quite a while ago. Admittedly he doesn’t seem to throw as often anymore but still it shows that there are people who will make the effort to keep their stuff in shape and try to make sure they’re doing the right thing. And after that, I gotta say if you have the money you have all the right to spend it as you want, just make sure you take care of whatever you’re spending your money on.

Now those kids that buy 888s and then first thing out of the box they start walking the dog. Now THAT I can’t stand.

Most of the replies are questioning you spending $100. 888 was designed for you. Enjoy it :slight_smile:

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Well if the issue here is the matter of buying an 888x for $100 for a beginner, I would also agree with Studio42 and advise against it.

BUT, if the beginner wants an 888x not because they have $100 to spend but because they want that yoyo, I would suggest that the beginner go on the BST and look for a cheap beater 888x.

Me? I started out people I know on a FHZ or similar low-mid range plastics. Once they can do 10 second sleepers and several tricks, I give them a $15 unresponsive Aoda to beat to hell while they are learning to bind. After that, I feel that getting an 888 would be great. You have to try dozens of yoyo’s before you know what you like.

It depends on the person. I gave 2 of my friends albatross to learn on and it helped them because of the extended spin time as compared to a low end plastic.

If you have the cash and someone to help teach you why not go big?