I definitely prefer a thicker string, but I’m not quite clear what constitutes a “normal” string thickness these days? Kitty, for example, comes in regular, Fat, XL, and even XXL
That means regular is kinda the odd man out here; there are three variants that are thicker / fatter. I know some of that is length but it’s also thickness, right?
How do you objectively measure string thickness? Is it just the number of individual strands that are wound up into the string? Kitty string website has some info but oddly enough XXL isn’t even listed!
The thickness of the string makes a big difference to yo-yo performance and so a number of thicknesses of string are available. A few years back there was no real terminology for this, there was just ordinary string, and there was Tom Kuhn string which was slightly thinner. These days there are three thicknesses of string available, 8 (4×2), 6 (3×2) and 9 (3×3). Type 8 is used for the most responsive yo-yos, and types 6 and 9 are favoured by players who prefer unresponsive yo-yos. The numbers in brackets refers to the number of strands in the yo-yo string. For example, type 8 consists of four strands each composed of two smaller strands of string. So if you see String described as slick six, this means it’s a string made of cotton and polyester made of two strands consisting of three smaller strands.
So based on that I’m thinking Kitty regular string is 8 strands, maybe?
Looking very closely at this kitty regular I have, versus the kitty fat, I would say that kitty regular is in fact type 6 string. If I had to guess…fat is type 8. Just a slight difference in thickness.
I remember reading that yoyo wikia entry way back when, and going, “What???” If you look at the photos, it looks like there were sub-windings of strands, hence the multiplier numbers, like 3x2. That’s not necessarily what’s going on today, at least with the stuff beyond basic string. Also, the materials as well as the number of strands make the difference in thicknesses. For example, Ammo, Venom and Plutonium have the same number of strands, but each is a different thickness. These are all thicker and have more strands than Type X which I would call regular thickness (although Venom is just barely thicker than Type X). The amount of winding can also change the impression of thickness too.
Are you stringlabs? I love your strings! I use the type x lemon lime and the “fatter” ammo in the very same color, depending on the yoyo to me ammo is the kitty fat of your lineup?
It’s a little more involved than just the number of threads - you can affect the thickness by winding it tighter, or by using different types of thread for the strands. The material used can also affect how it feels even if it appears to be the same thickness - they can be slicker/rougher/softer and have more or less bounce, and these can all change how quickly it binds.
Within a single brand/type of string you can usually just count the number of threads in each string, though. I think they generally try to keep the wind of the string consistent between sizes.
The yoyo wiki page seems a little outdated in its evaluation.
I’m guessing that string thickness preference is no longer a matter of responsiveness because the gap between the halves has grown so large. Even very thick strings will stay work with unresponsive yoyos, especially since many use string-centering bearings.
I’ve always wondered what 3x3 string could possibly look like. If I understand correctly, 3x2 means that there are three strands, which are then folded over to create the normal two strands that you have in the string. But if there are 3 strands, how do you put the string on the yoyo?
I’ve always wondered what 3x3 string could possibly look like. If I understand correctly, 3x2 means that there are three strands, which are then folded over to create the normal two strands that you have in the string. But if there are 3 strands, how do you put the string on the yoyo?
3x3 would just be type 9 if I’m thinking right. When I make type 6 string I hold 3 spools of thread and loop them around the rig (there and back) twice, making it 3x2. Every thread that loops from your finger to the yoyo and back is counted as 1. So if you took 3 strands of thread and folded them in half, that would make a type 3 string.
I hope this makes sense, I’m really not great at explaining things
Ahhh. and back. So really, the string that runs across your fingers has twice is many threads as it’s type number…type 9 has the thickness of 18 threads.
100% confirmed the stats are correct. Remember this is one half of each string twisted around itself (that’s how we get the loop to put over the bearing), so the overall extra “thickness” is twice this.
These are a pain to count, you really have to tease out the individual strands to get it right. I took a pic but if a strand is “on top” of the others it’s hard to see it from the pic, I had to rotate it around a few times and count again and again to make sure I had it right… I’m pretty sure I did, though, since my counts match the Kitty web page stats!
So many variables here, as I assume individual “strands” can vary in thickness as well depending on the source of the thread that makes up the string? But Kitty probably uses the same thread source on all their models for consistency.
As far as length goes, I verified all 3 are the same length per Kitty website but there is some “normal” variance, 110~115cm as stated. The “Tall” type is 130~140cm.
Definitely confirmed…
Since individual threads could have unknown thickness, let’s math this up.
The standard way to measure thread thickness is with ‘tex’, which is the number of grams per 1000 meters of thread. I’m not really sure how applicable this is to how thick a string plays, but it’s important when comparing strings based on the number of threads they have.
to me ammo is the kitty fat of your lineup?
