Has anyone else noticed the trend of large manufacturers creating multiple body shapes and rim parts; then combining them over and over into “new” yo-yo’s? This is happening with Yoyorecreation and Yoyofactory in particular.
The IQ and the R-variants come to mind as well as the many different models that YYR has been turning out lately that are just permutations of body and rims from other, previous releases (toru, tone, BAE, Rami, Autiscopy).
While this may save the manufacturers money in production costs, the mix-and-match nature of creating “new” models means that you really are not getting anything “new”; just new combinations of the same parts,
Is a yo-yo made from parts of other models a “new” model? Is it innovation? Or; is it a money-grab in the disguise of a “new” yo-yo?
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fradiger
(the world is a beautiful cat and i must meow meow meow)
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do you have any examples of yoyos where they actually reused the same parts (other than bearings/axles)?
Just because they look the same from a distance doesn’t mean the rim interfacing and exact specifications of each machined part are the same. To my knowledge all of the yoyos you listed use similar design trends yes, but none of them actually reuse the parts.
Would you say the same for something like every freehand iteration from Duncan?
I don’t see it as a “money grab” as they all distinctly perform different. Honestly the closest I’ve ever felt to that was yoyofactory releasing fingerspin versions of every design with just a machined insert, but even then there’s definitely enough demand for it.
Waayy Baack in time, Spintastics and Buzzon did just that to the extreme. They had one shell and produced multiple variations with different caps and bearing assemblies. The basic shell was originally used in the Tiger Shark, I believe. Spintastics made a number of variations using various 3d shaped plastic caps and weight ring combinations. Add in a concave bearing assembly for another variation. Buzzon did the same. the initial Buzzons used the Sointastic shell with Buzzon caps. The Element X series covered 3 or 4 variations with various rim weight setups, from none to rubber o-rings and brass rings, and numerous cap variations and bearing setups, all using the same body.
YYF and YYR are basically the two premier companies when it comes to competition winning 1A yoyos. Their models often change slightly to account for competitor preference/signature models. New yoyos don’t need to be better than the model that preceded them, they just need to be the yoyo the person it was designed for wants to compete with.
Expecting every yoyo released to be “better” and financially acting on it is a silly keeping up with a Joneses thing. The only thing that makes you think you need more than one 1A yoyo is you. Miri Kim would have won WYYC 2023 with a Shutter easily. Yoyo design already basically peaked in like 2009 with Sleipnir, in 2013 with Draupnir and we’re probably close with the IQ now. Only thing that made those landmark yoyos outdated is that the way people perform freestyles in competition has changed. Sleipnir and Draupnir will still outperform 99%+ of the yoyoing population.
I think the Genesis probably wouldn’t be considered one of YYF’s most iconic yoyos if it hadn’t had >10 mono aluminum versions alone. I think a lot of people are happy when yoyo models get updated to have side effects or get a 7075 version. I can’t imagine innovation, even seemingly very incremental, as anything but a good thing.