INTRO:
I’ve been looking into YoYofficer yoyo’s for some time, I remember when photos of the YoYofficer Aura first came out I was thinking “WOW, that looks good… for a chinese yoyo.” I’ve played AODA’s 3 years ago when I first started yoyoing and they were decent to me at the time. So I’ve never thought for once that chinese yoyo’s were extremely inferior like some people I’ve talked too. Anyway, fast forward 5-6 months and here I am reviewing my first YoYofficer yoyo, the YoYofficer BRAVE splash. This yoyo is YoYofficer’s second offering. The second run of BRAVE’s are splash/speckle anodized and have lost half a gram according to YoYofficer.com. Solid color versions are 68 grams and these new ones are 67.5 grams. This model borrows concepts from some of the more modern designs with it’s dual rims and stepped gap. By the specs alone, I figured this yoyo would play amazing, and boy does this guy deliver.
SPECS:
Taken from YoYofficer.com:
Diameter: 56 mm
Width: 44.6 mm
Weight: 67.5 grams
Bearing: Excellent Chinese KK C Size (.250″ x .500″ x .187″)
Response: YoYofficer black pads/same size as large K-pads
Style: 1A 3A 5A
CONSTRUCTION:
As I said earlier, this yoyo borrows from other designs that impliment a second stablizing rim. However unlike others, this yoyo has the second rim ring closer to the center of the yoyo and a smaller diameter than other designs I’ve seen. The yoyo is wide and the rounded inner shape with step feels very comfortable in your hand, and is soft on catches. I’m assuming this is made with 6061 Aluminum alloy. The annodizing is fairly hard and doesn’t come off on thumb grinds or scrach very easily. These yoyo’s have been very finely bead blasted and feel similar to that of a Big Brother Juvenille Offender if anyone is familiar. It’s very good at grinding either in hand or in palm. On a fast spinning finger grind the yoyo starts to create a semi whisle sound on your finger which is awesome. The bearing seat and axle hole have been masked during anodizing and left raw. Tolerances are very tight and swapping different bearings is tight but totally fine. The response is slightly slippy to begin with and then comes around after a few days of play. Now the black YoYofficer pads seem just fine and produce very tight normal and in air binds.
PLAYABILITY:
I’ve read elsewhere that this had a heavy feeling play, but to me this feels very lite in hand and on the string. It might be because the splash versions are a half gram lighter. I’ve also heard this yoyo being called slow. I wouldn’t call this yoyo slow, I’d rather just call it, ORGANIC. This yoyo would be something that Nate Sutter or Guy Wright might shred on. It’s a very graceful and fluid moving yoyo. It does have some decent hang time, but I hate using the term floaty…NOT!! lol. On the string it reminds me of the luxurious feel of a SPYY Punchline or the General Yo Essence. It does have a certain quality that keeps it unique though, I can’t put my finger on it. Due to it’s ultra modern design, it does feel like something new and refreshing. It’s a blast to play the and definitely a yoyo I’d grab for when I just want to kick back and play relaxed and stylized. Jon Rob 5a style comes to mind, and would be a great style for this yoyo. So to summarize… It’s not slow, it’s organic and fluid. It can move at any pace you want it to, but does prefer a graceful flow rather than darty or jerky play. As far as stability and spin time is concerned, it’s top notch. The dual rim design keeps this yoyo stable and it practically centers itself on an off throw. The spin time is superb and seems to be just as good as a Genesis or Sasquatch. Almost forgot to mention horizontal play, yes… it does that well too.
BOTTOM LINE:
What an awesome yoyo. YoYofficer has definitely impressed me. The quality of design and attention to detail tells me that these are yoyo’s made by yoyoers. You get the feeling during play that this design went through many prototypes before arriving at the finished product. The only other yoyo’s that I get that same feeling from are CLYW and One Drop. To me YoYofficer is definitely a discerning company out for the throat, and people should take notice. This is an amazing second release from YoYofficer and for the price of $50-60 depending on solid or splash, these are definitely a steal. I’d gladly pay $120 for a yoyo of this quality. If I had the player base, I’d love to give this to players blindfolded and ask them to tell me the manufacturer and see what they think they should sell for. Well, I’m rambling now. Do yourself a favor and pick one up. Send emails to yoyoexpert to start carrying this brand!!! I now have a YoYofficer AURA on it’s way to me, and I shall give that a good review as well. Stay tuned!
Thanks for reading!
