So, I am just getting back into yo-yo after a couple decades or so hiatus thanks to my younger sister sending me a box of my old stuff she found that contained a Yomega Fireball, which I then showed off to my kid, and that ‘sparked some joy’, to put it lightly, in both myself and the little one.
Anyway, I am really digging it and starting to add to my collection for the first time since like mid 90’s, and I’m trying different things, and researching a lot (this is an AWESOME forum and community!!), and I’ve got some sweet stuff coming in the mail that I’m totally psyched for, including a lovely GWAY Daredevil.
I’m thinking I might want to get some more to try from GWAY, too, and the Player Grades look like great deals, but I have a question: I have no issue with anodizing being imperfect, but when it says there might be some vibe, what’s that mean exactly? How much is “some”? I’m obviously no expert, so it is generally so mild that a dude like me wouldn’t notice, or at least it won’t hurt performance or pleasure at all?
Take whatever modern yoyo you have and throw a sleeper.
Take your fingernail and put it right up against the hub of the yoyo while it’s spinning.
The amount of vibe that you feel / hear from that interaction is “vibe” so depending on the strength usually people will say “there’s slight vibe, or fingernail vibe” which ultimately means you will get a little vibe/buzz from your fingernail coming into contact with the spinning yoyo. Dead smooth is when the yoyo spins with absolute precision, you’ll know it when you see it. Something that was only “normal” within recent years.
The vibe you’ll experience from b-grade throws is minimal (fingernail vibe) that can’t be felt on the string, nor will it majorly affect it’s playability. Everything from the 90’s or whatever era you came from has considerably more vibe than anything you’ll buy today.
edit: tldr you should just buy it, you won’t notice the vibe and you’ll most likely dink the yoyo somewhere some how anyways, which will induce vibe.
I’ve got a player grade saboteur from them. It’s one of my favourite yoyos. I also have the Fayetteville and their latest release the regulator. They’re all most excellent.
Welcome back! I know that @GWAY_Throws has high standards in separating A grades and “Player Grades.” I wouldn’t worry about the quality - I really don’t think he would sell anything that had more than mild fingernail vibe.
Just got player grade saboteur and regulator in the mail yesterday! They play awesome. I can almost never tell the difference between an A and a B, unless the anodizing has a clear blemish or imperfection. I couldn’t find even that on these two.
I just bought a Gway regulator (cause of my desire for normal size throws under 63G) it has quickly become like an Ol’ reliable type throw. Probably not the best quality but amazing performance nonetheless. I would say if Gway only has 3 releases and they managed to get one throw perfect, then there is not much room to screw up. Their throws have really positive reviews on their yoyos so yeah. From my experience Gway is a good company.
Thanks so much for all the quick and informative responses and all the welcome backs!! You guys are awesome, and it looks like I will be ordering more from GWAY!
Yeah I have one of each of their releases. They all have a very unique feeling and identity. But are all great. They’re all also among my best performing monometals.
I liked my saboteur so much that I thought maybe I liked Organics…but the Koi from yoyofriends just didn’t click with me. So it might not be the round shape.
Thanks to everyone with the kind words. Usually if a Yo-Yo has significant vibe or just looks terrible I don’t sell it in any capacity so any player grade will play just fine.
I usually follow a process similar to this when I get a order of Yo-Yo’s in:
Visually inspect each piece, move the ones with anodization flaws into a separate group.
Check each yoyo for quality on the string, if it has too much vibration it might mean swapping bearings, axles, pads, or halves.
Box up the yoyos that pass both the paint and play checks as A grades.
Tinker with the Player Grades more to get them as smooth as possible or make the choice to permanently decommission them.
Vibe is extremely subjective however I try to air on the side of caution because as a consumer I am fairly picky and want to make sure that people are happy with the final item they get (regardless of grade). If there is ever a specific question I can answer for you please shoot me a message!