Hey everyone,
Just wanted to ask for different methods of non disruptive cleaning (no polishing or abrasive methods) to remove fingerprints and grime from yoyos.
Is it safe to use isopropyl for aluminum / stainless steel / titanium bodies (anodized and not anodized)?
Thanks
I’ve rarely felt the need to do this but when I have cleaned a yoyo it was with just a sponge with warm water and dish soap.
Anodization makes the metal more durable and corrosion resistant so unless you’re using steel wool or something to scrub it I wouldn’t worry too much about messing it up.
I’ve always just took the string and bearing out and washed it in the sink with dawn dish soap. Rarely have a done this but when I have it’s good enough.
Ive wiped down many with rubbing alcohol with no issues.
After I did a couple with isopropyl I noticed they felt more grippy, does this go away? Just concerned about long term effects. Don’t want it to damage the ano
I don’t think the ano is in any danger, the grippiness is probably the lack of skin oils lol
Y’all clean your yoyos?
If I absolutely need to, I disinfect them with a Clorox wipe or something
As soon as I buy a used yoyo, I disassemble it and wash it completely. With a cotton swab and isopropyl alcohol, I clean the bearing seat and replace the pads if necessary. I also remove the axle, and if it’s a carbon axle, I apply WD40, clean it with a microfiber cloth; apply a little more and put the axle back in place. I also clean the bearing and leave it the way I like it.
And I completely reassemble the yoyo 
If it’s a yoyo that I play with more often, from time to time, I take a slightly damp (almost dry) microfiber cloth with a very small spray of degreaser foam (it can’t be too much, as it contains caustic soda and can affect the anodizing). I wipe the entire yoyo, then wipe with back of the cloth where there is no degreaser foam to remove any residue.
I’ve gotten some real “gems” buying used yo-yos… Yo-yos from smokers that actually smell like burnt tobacco are awful. But the worst of all is when the yo-yo looks like it just passed through the hands of a “5-year-old toddler who just ate Cheetos, dipped their hands in Caesar dressing, and ate fried fish; all without washing their hands”… The yo-yo even changes color when it is completely clean 
Whats the purpose of doing this for a carbon axle? Why not a stainless one too?
Carbon fiber screws rust. A light spray of WD40 prevents this. When I don’t have a stainless steel axle of the same size, I do this and it works very well.
My kind of guy, great response.
And yeah I’ve seen some pretty disgusting yoyos, I go to similar lengths
Firstly I’ll inspect it for damage then play with it for 5 minutes to gather a baseline. Then I’ll take it apart, clean (or replace depending on use / damage) the bearing in isopropyl then dry it off with an air compressor. I’ll almost always replace the string unless it’s clearly unused or I really like it and don’t know where to get more. Then finally I’ll take a paper towel or cloth and wipe down the body of the yoyo in more isopropyl, then dry it with the paper towel or cloth.
If it has side effects I’ll assess them for damage and either leave them in or replace them with some spares I have. For expensive / high quality yoyos I’ll apply thin lube around the side effect hole (recommended by OD).
Cleans up all the dust, removes marks and stains (I’ve seen food / blood on some I’ve got from the bst) and a lot of the time makes it play better too.
I was just curious on if what I did would harm the yoyo, break ano or change it in any way
I messed up an fov case by cleaning the acrylic with alcohol (big nono) so I just want to be sure
Carbon axles are coated in carbon to prevent corrosion, they’re along the same likes as stainless. I think cleaning it is a good play obviously, just the wd40 isn’t necessary for the rust prevention.
I guess the only think I do with a BST yoyo is throw away the old string and play it after a quick exterior inspection. Safety throws with random strings I’m done with, used strings gross me out. On another note, someone sent me a string that was 5 feet long on a yoyo, and that thing hit the ground pretty softly with a safety throw over the hand. I thought it was more funny than anything else, who on earth has 5 foot strings? Anyway, I haven’t gotten a gunky yoyo from the BST. I usually clean under the bearing seat of any yoyo if it looks mildly dirty when I throw my bearings into an acetone bath, but I just use a dry q-tip or cotton ball to clean it to not introduce chemicals to the response area.
Well… I base my opinion on practice. Old yo-yos with carbon axles that I’ve bought (used), several of them were indeed rusty. You don’t see the rust until you apply WD40, wait a minute, and clean the axle with a light-colored cloth. It removes shades of rust. I clean the axle until this dirt stops coming off completely, give it another short coat of WD40, and put it back in place when I don’t have an identical stainless steel axle.
Interesting. I wonder if any of mine have any surface rust like that.
I have a spray bottle of Isopropyl that I use for other things like cleaning my 3D printer plate but I also use it all the time to clean new bst yoyos and ones I sell. I just spray a little on a micro fiber cloth wipe the yoyo down then use the other side of the microfiber that’s dry and wipe it off again. I prefer 91%. I noticed in the past some brands of the 99% will leave a white substance behind on things. You can also use 70% it just doesn’t evaporate as fast and not as strong. But that 91% will clean up all the grime and finger prints you have easy.
Fyi black axles are black because of an oxide layer (magnetite) applied to the screws, there’s no carbon coating.
