Curious on what the consensus is on half swaps affecting the potential value of a YoYo? As in, is it generally preferred that a YoYo remains as it was from the maker to hold any value? If a higher end YoYo is half swapped and the matching halves are sold off, and there’s no way to get them paired back together are they now two half swaps worth less, more, or no real difference.
I guess I’m curious more from a collecting standpoint. Obviously whatever makes you happy is what matters and as long as the swap didn’t affect the play in so far as introducing a terrible vibe then it’s mostly aesthetics.
i would consider myself someone that, as a collector, collects from a ‘purist’ standpoint, and would value an all original piece more than a half-swap… generally speaking.
again, this is entirely subjective. aesthetics, especially if dual purpose as an art/display piece, can very well impact another person’s interpretation of value. i’ve seen some amazing half swaps that sensibly command more than their og counterparts.
I wouldn’t say it effected the value if the half swap was done before any serious play or damage was done. They’re all machined at the same time so no half of a yoyo is made to go with an exact specific half. I see a few people trading unused half swaps as they’ve bought 2 solids and immediately swapped them. The only time I can imagine it being an issue is if it has engravings on one colour way and not the other. Half swaps like the bape colours sometime increase value. But at the end of the day it’s personal preference.
I like the question posted and I like your answer. At the end of the day we are enjoying the hobby how we like in our own ways.
For me personally I’ve seen some half swaps that were nice. Like already mentioned anti yo colors. Ivan did a magnum opus swap orange and black and I thought it looked dope.
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A few months ago someone did try to sell a life halfswap…half unicorn speckle and half Caribbean… I am pretty sure i offered to pay him to put them back together the way they were stock so I could get the unicorn one. I cant remember if it sold or not but that particular halfswap haunted my dreams… I want to say @d4nnyb0yy rescued both yoyos and reassembled them?
I’m with Grunt on this one. But then, I dislike half-swaps in general and tend to avoid them even when they are swapped at the factory. The only exception to this in my collection is my red/orange Pyro X.
All in all I do think that half-swaps appeal to a somewhat limited audience, and that will show, I think, in attempts to sell them.
I bought that one @FrankieJR and actually traded it. But I have at least a couple dozen half swaps myself and I know a few people that enjoy them as well. I agree it’s completely subjective, and we seem to be a small group lol. Sometimes half swapping yo-yos can cause vibe, sometimes it will not change a thing. It’s also important to note if the half swap is done by someone who has the 2 yo-yos and checked them after or if 2 halves were exchanged by mail and 2 people ended up with what they got. Having said this and being a huge half swap fan myself…I do believe since it wasn’t the intention of the manufacturer to half swap the yoyo(unless it was) that it does decrease their value slightly…very slightly. Except in some rare circumstances.
@d4nnyb0yy half-swapped a couple spyy that looked insane… and from an aesthetic standpoint, or folks that collect halfswaps, etc, would be ones that i would easily see fetching premiums on
That’s when you get 2 yoyos and swap the halves. And then about 10 minutes later, you swap them back🤓
Seriously, if there was no interest in half swaps. There would be no half swaps in the first place.
(The exception of course is to save a damaged yoyo with a donor half of another damaged yoyo)
‘I do’ like certain combos… Orange and silver… red and silver… silver half combined with rainbow colored half. Combining halves that are far apart in the color spectrum can be very eye catching.
But, regardless, I feel fat guy snacks pretty much summed it up.
By the way, I got a Grail from fat guy snacks that looks sorta like a two tone avocado. And I love the look.
Seems like the general feeling is somewhat mixed, though maybe a slight preference for original non swapped Yoyos.
I suppose without a Blue Book value type system (which is nice not to have) it’s just up to us as individuals to decide what we like and whether it’s worth something to us personally.
I think I’m on the fence, I like some swaps visually, others, not so much.
That is a smart observation. You will see soon enough on bst listings that some yoyos, new and old, can fluctuate in value whether they drop below retail or some older throws that more than TRIPLE in value.
It breaks down to what someone is willing to pay or what someone is willing to take. And that goes for swaps too I’m sure
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Grendel
(The Voice of All Grendel’s world wide.)
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Who’s to say?
Basically you buy what you want.
Someone’s usually selling. I’d only buy the swap if I liked the colors. Like most people I would assume. I’m going to error on the side of caution and say it would affect value only because we don’t see massive threads all wanting to swap half’s of any particular throw. Bapes will be Bapes that’s a completely different story. Jmtc.
Value is a quite personal thing. To me a half swap has 0 value, I do not like them and will not purchase any. However John, or Jill, or Sam, or Fred may have a totally different opinion on the matter and to them it may even add value. As far as does it depreciate value I would say no, but it does effect sale potential. That said by having a choice in color in general you are effecting sale potential to some degree. A very long winded thought but ill close it with this, if you want to half swap do it! Its your yoyo, your enjoyment that is paramount
For me, it would really depend on the swap. If I don’t like the colors together, it’s worth nothing to me, but if I like the combo it could be worth more to me. For example, I have a half-swap purple and pink Muse from Circle City Yoyos, and I like it better than the normal colors so to me it’s worth more. But I’ve seen a different one that was orange and pink, and I don’t like those colors together so it makes it less valuable to me.
In some hobbies, value is a little more objective, like with stamp collecting you can get books that tell you what a particular stamp is worth. But at the end of the day, value is just what people will pay. If a yoyo should be worth $500 but no one’s willing to pay that, then is that really its value? I’d say no.
However, keep in mind I’m new here and I’ve never bought a second-hand yoyo yet so what do I know?
