GNYoyoCoNews: Official Phoenix Review!

Heero · September 23, 2015, 12:16am

Sick zorro! I didn’t even know about your new company! Congrats! Yo yo looks illy. Can’t wait to try this out.

Zorro · September 23, 2015, 12:35pm

Yes, it’s been around for a while but nothing good has happened until a couple months ago.

Heero · September 23, 2015, 12:39pm

Awesome man. Well keep it rollin while you have momentum. Can’t wait to grt one in my hands.

Gambit · September 23, 2015, 1:25pm

Good to see things moving along man.

Any plans to update the logo any time soon? It’s looking a little out-of-place on an otherwise slick looking website…

Zorro · September 29, 2015, 4:05pm

The below is a review from one of our Phoenix testers, Joey Garcia (known as gijoey959 on these forums):

GN Yoyo Co. Phoenix Prototype REVIEW

Ok, so I’ve been following the drama and bad press just like everyone else has, and honestly, I was not impressed. I never publicly criticized GN the way some have on various sites, and I have been hoping their projects would come through for them, unlike some… but that isn’t to say I haven’t been cringing and facepalming along with everyone.

Then along came the opportunity to actually test the prototype they have released for their first actual production model, the Phoenix. At first I wasn’t sure about it, I had mainly signed up because I always like playing new yoyos, and I do like an undercut H shape on a yoyo. But with the continued criticism surrounding the yoyo, and the constant degrading of the specs, I wasn’t too sure I was excited for this one.

That all changed a few weeks ago when I received the Phoenix in the mail. This is a great yoyo, you don’t feel the weight, it is powerful and stable, yet it can be pretty nimble when you want it to be. I am almost reluctant to give this yoyo a description of “solid or floaty” because this is neither of those things. We all know why we are stepping away from the term “floaty” these days, but I do know that this doesn’t play solid to me. But we can get into all that in a moment.

First, the stats
Diameter: 59.46mm
Width: 45.5mm
Gap Width: 4.72mm
Weight: 68g
Response: CBC White Standard Pads
Axle: M4x10mm Nonmarring Set Screw
Bearing: 10 ball Buddha Whipple bearing

It was revealed early on that the some of the design and the entirety of the CAD modeling was done by Landon Balk over at 3yo3, while the machining was done at Foxland Precision (one of the primary machinists used in our community) You can really feel the quality of the design and machining on the raw metal, there are really almost no machine marks to be felt anywhere, and definitely no sharp edges. Kudos to GN for really sourcing their product well on this yoyo.

Of course we are all familiar with the early controversy with the comparison to a Cliff by GN themselves. That was actually a main criticism of the brand at first, come to think of it, and it really stuck in my mind to the point that when the Phoenix showed up at my door, the first thing I did was compare the two.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c354/5081701/20150911_154544_HDR_zps7zk8ornq.jpg http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c354/5081701/20150911_154605_HDR_zpssheiqvxa.jpg http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c354/5081701/20150911_154628_HDR_zpsdaxznlfj.jpg
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c354/5081701/20150911_154738_HDR_zpshzjfwbvj.jpg http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c354/5081701/20150911_154820_HDR_zps0hbs2ord.jpg

As you can see, the Phoenix could technically be said to have been inspired by the cliff, but the shapes are pretty different when you get down to the fine details of the yoyo. It is immediately obvious that it is much more rounded than the Cliff, whose outer rims are very angular, and the space between the two outer rims on the Phoenix is also much wider, to the point where you will pretty much never snag a middle knuckle like you could on a Cliff, if you weren’t careful. The cups are definitely not even related to each other, especially considering that the Phoenix doesn’t even have the inner rim. Finally, you can see that the shape of the bearing seat is also pretty different from standard, and seems more shallow than the bearing seat of the Cliff.

One thing I did notice immediately upon receiving the yoyo was that the response area is REALLY deep compared to what I’m used to.
http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c354/5081701/20150911_154931_HDR_zpsdnetbpo8.jpg
The Phoenix shipped to me with White YYF pads in it, and the yoyo does actually respond fairly quickly using industry standard bulk string (Fat Kitty, Blueprint, sOmething Type 2) but it didn’t bind as tightly as I like. With permission of Paul Zorrovich (Zorro on YoYoExpert.com) I poured some MonkeySnot into the response groove, and from there on, the Phoenix’s binds were tight and quick, without catching the string mid trick. Whips, lacerations, and suicides were all wide open, as you’d expect from a modern yoyo, and it seems that flowable silicone was in mind when the response was designed, as I find it perfect.

As far as the size of the Phoenix, it is definitely an oversized throw. I had trouble fitting it in my Legyoyo holster at first, but once you get used to it, it’s not bad at all. I actually find it REALLY comfortable to play. Like seriously, the rounded rims, and the large size make for a really comfortable yoyo.
The spin does have some power to it, and serious amounts of stability coming from its 68g of weight. However, I find that this is one of those yoyos that seems to make the grams disappear on the throw. I would have honestly guessed that this weighed somewhere in the high 65’s or low 66’s rather than 68-69g. It hops really easily, and doesn’t seem to thunk down at the end of the string when you throw it. If you play quickly, or at competition speeds, I can see it hitting strings pretty hard, there is no denying what the scale tells you, I’ve had it swing down and bounce off of the mount I was attempting.

All that being said, I can emphasize the unique feeling this thing has, but I don’t think I’d be doing it justice. I REALLY enjoyed having this yoyo in my posession. It almost makes me sad to send it off to the next person, it was that fun to have. This is obviously all my opinion, but the design is good looking, the weight distribution is spot on, and the play is excellent.

BUT there is the thing about actually buying one. As of the time of writing, the price is supposed to be $100 for a raw, $110 for solid colors, $125 for splash, and $135 for “fancy splash”

I understand that these are speculated prices, but come on GN. Even with my high opinion of this yoyo, I won’t be paying $100 for a raw one. This is made more worrying by the disclaimer that has been taken down, but still remains fresh in memory for quite a few of us. *Zorro, as seen below, has answered the question of the infamous disclaimer, and I’m pretty satisfied with his response. The price may not be as low as I like, but as long as you are getting an A grade, its not as large of an issue as the original review stated

The company itself has some growing pains to go through, and some bad history to move on from. The yoyo itself is great, and they should be very proud of it. I would be, and I would love to see them be able to get yoyos out for a reasonable price considering that they are a brand new start up. I’m very interested in the Wildfire they have showing on their page.
http://gnyoyoco.wix.com
It looks like a fast V shape that should promise to be quite fun.

The real question on my mind is, will the Phoenix actually be released? I can’t say for sure, but I sure hope so.

LegendaryBobo · September 29, 2015, 5:16pm

Phoenix looks really good! Good to see you guys continue with this company. One suggestion, lower the price. I personally wouldn’t want to buy a raw yoyo for $100 from a brand new company. Hope all goes well

Zorro · September 29, 2015, 5:18pm

Prices are being worked out right now. Those are just our current estimates. We would like to go lower, though.

Zorro · October 16, 2015, 6:59pm

Shoutout to JT (Cyber), who started the Cyyclical website that I’ve started following for this GN Yoyo Co update:
One to Watch: The Phoenix (Cyyclical)

Cyber · October 16, 2015, 8:18pm

Happy to help spread the word

JohnnyJ · October 16, 2015, 8:41pm

The layout of your website is beautiful. Truly an A+!

Cyber · October 16, 2015, 8:44pm

Thanks. I aim to please ;D

gijoey959 · October 17, 2015, 9:31pm

Hey, I got quoted in something, lol. ;D Couldn’t help but come check on this thread, I actually miss playing the Phoenix every day… ok, I was getting a little bored shortly before I sent it on, but it was due to the fact that I was putting multiple hours PER DAY on that thing exclusively, and now I miss it again

Zorro · October 17, 2015, 10:55pm

I am glad you liked it.

Zorro · October 18, 2015, 8:13pm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbzqO37Fp8E

Cyber · October 18, 2015, 8:22pm

Very nice!

Zorro · October 30, 2015, 6:32pm

James made some new tutorials for the GN Yoyo Co Tutorial series. These three tricks are all wicked cool and I hope you enjoy them.

Leaning Towers of Awesomeness:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j11g5rO1rnA&list=PLqmd6AZHHrYyCb4hLbQtl_-U0TFLBoXKD&index=18

Salami Banquet:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NgZ1t6-8l7Y&list=PLqmd6AZHHrYyCb4hLbQtl_-U0TFLBoXKD&index=2

Gumballs:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XG8-83oT6OU&list=PLqmd6AZHHrYyCb4hLbQtl_-U0TFLBoXKD&index=1

Have fun learning!

Zorro · December 26, 2015, 7:05pm

New Updates!
Phoenix Announcement: (from our Facebook page)
MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL OUR FOLLOWERS!!
We have a little Christmas gift to share with you and our team. Unknown to you all, we applied for a small loan to start off our Phoenix project. Well, our loan has been approved and we will receive the necessary funding in early January. We will begin work on Phoenixes immediately and should have them ready by late March to early April some time.
The yoyos will be anodized in four different colors (5 yoyos of each, making only 20 yoyos). These Phoenixes will be considered the “Original Phoenixes.” We will never produce these four colorways again on the Phoenix yoyos in the future, so these will be true collectibles. More details are below:

Material: 6061 Aluminum
Diameter: 59.45mm
Width: 45.48mm
Weight: 68.6g

Bearing: 10-Ball Centering Bearing (unnamed)
Response: Monkey Snot

OG Phoenix Price: $120
B-grades (if available): $80
*prices do not include shipping or any other applicable fees

Colorways:

Yellow/Pink Acid Wash
Blue/Red Acid Wash
Purple/Orange Acid Wash
Green/Silver Acid Wash

We hope you enjoyed this little bit of information and hope you buy from us in the future. There will be many more posts regarding updates on the Phoenix project in the future, so stay posted.

[b]New Logo:[/b] Thanks to one of our team members, we have new logo that actually looks stunning. View the first attached picture to this post.

[b]DFW Open:[/b] For those of you that don't know, the DFW Open Yoyo Competition will be held on January 23, 2016. The popular yoyo club, Lone Star Spinners, are hosting their first yoyo/kendama skill toy event. To help them out, we have proudly sponsored the event and will have a booth there (find us by looking for the banner with our new logo) where we will have t-shirts, strings, and Phoenix prototypes for you all to test. Aaron Johns will be our representative at the contest and Ryan Danielson may be attending as well. We hope to see you there. (the second attached picture is the official flyer for this contest)

Zorro · January 25, 2016, 3:32pm

Thank you, Aaron Johns, for representing our company at the 2016 DFW Open Yoyo Contest this past weekend running our booth.
Thanks to all of you who bought our new t-shirts and candy. We had a 7075 prototype Phoenix on the table for anyone who wanted to try to do so. Wish we could have seen more of you.
Congrats to Yiyang Wan (Freestyle), Jan Belagra (Gunslinger and Sport Ladder), and Dwight Daly (Kendama) for winning their respective divisions on Saturday from GN Yoyo Co.

Zorro · January 25, 2016, 9:49pm

We now have shirts and strings available on our website! Limited quantities of both, so get them fast.

Zorro · February 22, 2016, 1:18pm

We are now a huge step closer to the Phoenix.

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GNYoyoCoNews: Official Phoenix Review!

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