I’d recommend just trying as many as you can until you find what you like. I went through almost every string on the market until I decided Kitty Fat was my preferred string on pretty much every yoyo I own. Experiment with different thicknesses, colors, types, until you have what suits your collection and preferences.
Most bulk poly string is similar enough that you really can’t go wrong, although some brands do have some QC issues from my experience. I like Kitty, Sochi, String Lab, MFD Vines, Original Throw… all are good enough to pull off any tricks you can come up with. If you can’t do something on a poly string, getting nylon strings isn’t going to magically make you better.
Boutique strings generally last a lot longer and nylon can be washed to increase the lifespan, so if you’re trying to be more frugal then that’s probably the way to go. You can get months or even years out of a good nylon string. The only reasons I don’t use them regularly is they are more slippy and the colors aren’t as vibrant as poly, so that can hinder visibility. I’m not used to them enough to use them regularly, but I still throw one on occasionally to change things up when I’m bored.
Anyway, it’s all preference. You just gotta go through some trial and error.
If you are a beginner i would suggest bulk string just to save a little bit until you get a bit of practice under your belt. It’s always a good idea to try different brands and thicknesses, but i would suggest not going for a 100 pack until you find what you like, or you may end up with several 100 packs of strings that you no longer use; ask me how i know It is very much preference, honestly.
My preferred bulk brands are OT (original throw) and Monkey FingeR Vines but i do occasionally use Alphaline, Plutonium, Kitty or Sochi.
As for boutique i mainly use Bad Wolfe (plushh or slicc in goldilocs) and Zipline (Skyline III, Prestige and Smoothie; Executive Class lite is as the name suggests, very light which is good for some things but not great for slacks imo).
And even though i have found what i really like, i have to admit i still love trying new strings lol. Just recently picked up some Nytro and Nytro+ (liking the thickness of Nytro the most so far) and ordered some other boutique strings that will be arriving today and I’m looking forward to trying those. No harm in testing them all just for fun lol.
After trying most of what is out there i have found that i much more prefer a poly/nylon blend string with most throws. I do like pure nylon and pure poly at times though but mainly lean towards a blend. Grab several brands/thicknesses and have some fun!
I have found that poly/nylon mixes and pure nylon seem to last the longest, in my experience. I have heard that some pure polys, such as Markmont, lasts longer as well but I haven’t tried those yet so I can’t speak to that. A fraying string can still work well but they certainly don’t look as nice. That is one thing that pure nylon stings have over poly for sure, the fraying. They last a LONG time and still look great.
Yes, definitely as long as you get the thickness you like and all. With Bad Wolfe i would suggest Goldilocks thickness to start but they do offer a sample pack of all 3 thicknesses. To me the thin string is very thin which is great for responsive but it’s a bit too thin for unresponsive play, to me at least. With ziplines most of theirs are just a bit thinner that Bad Wolfe Goldilocks thickness. Nytro is a bit thinner than both and Nytro+ is thicker than regular Nytro. I haven’t actually compared Nytro+ thickness to the others yet. I don’t have any of those with me at work so i can’t compare atm.
Nylon is stretchier (is that a word lol) and softer to the touch which is very nice on the fingers imo. Pure nylon is extremely soft but is a bit slicker than poly/nylon mix and pure poly. Some don’t like it because of that. The poly/nylon blend will last longer than pure poly imo but will still fray some over time because of the poly in the mix. Pure nylon will last longer than both imo. I’m certainly not an expert, just a thrower that likes to try different strings lol. I really like the softness that nylon provides. If i use pure poly for long periods i have to wear a glove to help prevent string burn
I don’t know if there is a good answer to the question of what string to use.
Like NitroBobby916 said “it is all about preference”. Some folks will say a bulk string is done after 2 hours. Other people will play that same string for weeks for 2 hours a day. People just have different tolerances for fuzz, stretch, color fade, bounce, how twisted it gets etc. I’d add dirtiness level but eww, just wash your hands before you play.
I’ve found that I prefer some of the boutique strings simply because I hate changing strings. Also they are generally more whippy if you like that. I took a nylon/poly blend on one of my yoyos for a 3 week vacation and I still play it. Though it should probably be replaced at this point. I’ve used some Markmont Formulas and BadWolfe Sliccs for more that a year. Bulk string can be nice though after a couple of hours you decide I’m going to trash this one and get a fresh string that is longer or shorter or whatever and not feel bad about cutting one of your expensive strings to the wrong length.
Boutique string colors are a mixed bag. On the one hand the unique color makes it stand out and you can remember what brand it is, on the other hand, trying to see a red string in low light on a medium brown carpet… good luck, you might as well be playing blind. The best advice here is get the brightest color or white. The pretty colors do look nice if you want to dress your yoyo up for a picture or as artwork on the shelf.
To complicate things more, some strings you may love a string on one yoyo but hate it on another. Some yoyos seem to work fine with any string.
I think the advice of trying a bunch of different strings is good. Then you’ll end up like many of us with a yarn box of yoyo string where you can’t remember which yellow string is which unless you were smart labeled each of them. At this point you’ll have found ones you like and the yarn box will be for gifting extra strings to people when you give them a starter yoyo.
I’ve only been throwing for 5 months or so, so I’m not far from beginner either. My experience with Cage Free Sting was about the same. it plays pretty good initially but wears out pretty quickly. I haven’t tried any of the boutique strings yet but I have played Kitty First Class normal and fat as well as Sochi normal and fat and Alphaline. I also just ordered a 10 pack of the Kitty FC XL to try. I just ordered a bulk pack of the Alphaline as it seems to feel the most comfortable on my hands and is the right balance of thickness between the normal and fat. I do like the fat strings as well. I am no whip and slack expert, but it seems to handle those pretty well, at least for my skill level. I honestly can’t feel a whole lot of different between Kitty First Class and Sochi. I can feel subtle differences but it’s hard for me to explain what they those differences are. Performance-wise to me they are the same. I have tried various colors as well- neon green, yellow, hot pink, orange, turquoise blue. I seem to prefer the Neon green, or Antifreeze color for the Alphaline. The green is just easier for me to see and shows up better when I record myself. Just my 2 cents.
I check and adjust string tension (or torsion, whatever) after every few combos or more often if I’m working specifically on slack and whip tricks.
Nylons and blends tend to be more springy, so they seem to get twisted up more when I’m using them, but maybe that’s just me. I have less issues with tension/torsion on a well stretched poly string.
Badwolfeco slicc and Markmont drakens I’ve been using haven’t needed a string change on several of my throws. You can also put some types of used string in a pants pocket and put it through the washer and dryer to renew it.
As you play a lot, you just know. And you know the difference between the string wearing out versus time to replace the response pad. When the string just fails to hold tension (I’m lefty) you know it’s time. In the summer humidity it wears faster.
Boutique is usually better quality, softer on the hands, and lasts longer, typically imo. If it’s like most sports, pros will use whoever is sponsoring them or they use whatever they want and just say they are using who sponsors them. Even if a pro did love a boutique string, they wouldn’t mention it publicly unless that company was a sponsor, or they could risk losing a sponsor.
I think at first, when you are introduced into the yo-yo play, the string doesn’t really matter too much, but as you start playing more and using the string more for more advanced tricks, you will definitely find that having a more premium string does wonders! - At that point, it comes down to personal preference and what yo-yo you are pairing it with!
Like yo-yo companies, there is a bunch of great string companies out there as well! I personally have been using @MattB YoYoStringLab strings for about 9 years now and they have always been consistent EVERY SINGLE TIME!
I flipflop between their 2 formulas Venom and Ka-Pow!
Venom for yo-yos with a smaller gap, and Ka-Pow! for the thicker gaps!
Love both because they keep tension very well, add an extra kick to your whips and slacks, with the addition of being the softest strings in the game (in my opinion)
Hope this helps, and if you have any other questions let us know!
-Eric
If pros use boutique, my experience has been that they just tried it and liked the performance. Sometimes that can lead to a sponsorship. A little peek into YoYoStringLab: JD was next to me at a contest and tried my Type X and liked it. He was interested in carrying it, which was awesome for YYSL because I was just starting out and any exposure was great. That’s why I sponsored the contest and gave away samples. I felt if people could just feel the difference they’d like the experience. Later JD requested a thicker version for his slack style. No compensation, just wanted the thicker version and willing to help me on my journey. That became Ammo. At another contest, Ann Connolly tried a free sample of Type X which she really liked, so she bought some. I sent her a bundle of it and she kept playing it and posting before any sponsorship. Later at JD’s suggestion I contacted her about doing signature colors. At another contest Ann told me that Eric tried some YYSL while everyone was hanging out at JD’s and really liked it. He told me he always used bulk in the past without giving it a second thought, until he tried my stuff. Thanks to his input you now have Venom and KA-POW! Daniel Dietz has used YYSL. Evan Nagao got ahold of me and we worked on developing Plutonium which he then used to win Nationals, Worlds in China and lately Nationals again. When he runs low I send him bundles. Kris Toledo had been purchasing Type X before he joined the team. I see other contest players mention using YYSL and other boutique strings in their posts, so I think it’s happening more and more. I had heard in the past that consistency might be a worry for pros or contest players with using boutique since it was homemade. Also the possibility of not being able to have what they were used to if the maker stopped. So, I focused on making everything “lab grade” consistent batch to batch and improving the process for making it efficiently, so I wouldn’t burn out. Hope this peek into the “secret laboratory” of YoYoStringLab has helped.
It is very much preference, honestly.
of YoYoStringLab has helped.