I expect to be still learning those hundreds of tricks for the duration of my time in this hobby. I’m never going to be a competition player, and I am unlikely to delve into horizontal play. For me, there is really no benefit to widths 46mm+ that is worth acclimating to it (and I’m thinking primarily of adjusting string separation, which I have a difficult time controlling with any consistency as it is).
If anything, practicing with narrower catch zones is probably better for me at this stage in my development. That’s why I’ve grown to really appreciate the Astrea. Its catch zone is very narrow before its medium-high walls give way to the “wings”, yet it is a bi-metal with fairly massive weight rings, giving it lots of spin power/time and stability. A great practice machine.
I agree. I love my Astraea and have been practicing on it for almost a year now to force me to be very careful with plane management. Before that I used to play with the Monster Edge (width around 54mm) since I like very wide yoyos (i like the wide gap). 3 months ago I bought the Flashback (42.x width) since I want to try to see if I could learn a few dense tech tricks. To my surprise the Flashback’s catchable width is even wider (slightly) than the Monster Edge. So now its like having the best of both worlds.
I think it comes down to preference and style. Having a wider yoyo helps with some types of play but also hinders others. I think with the “banger” contest scene that we see especially in the US that is a catalyst for more wide throws to make them more consistent. Whereas other country’s throwers that value other types of tricks such as tech might find that less width helps them hit certain strings easier. Really just depends on your style and what youre looking for. As a beginner, it sure helps to have a wider yoyo, but definitely not necessary.
This is where I tend to disagree. In the context of normal play you are 100% correct. In the context of hitting behind the back lacerations and hops every time when missing can mean placing lower in a competition, having as wide of a catch zone that’s still comfortable to play with is definitely beneficial. There are some tricks where the difficulty level is so high that there’s just much less of a margin for error.
With the extra material needed to yield greater width, you inevitably end up with heavier yoyos as well. I’d much rather have 44mm wide and ~64g, than 46mm wide and ~66g.
And at the end of the day like many people have said, it’s preference, but preference is dictated by other factors, it isn’t formed in a vacuum.Judging from contests, it seems that for players with more banger type tricks, wider is preferable. For players with more dense technical tricks, like some really skilled Japanese competitors, narrower but with the whole yo-yo being catch zone is preferable.
Also for anyone wondering why I reference contest players so much in discussions like these it’s because I think we should be judging based on the highest skilled players deem most effective.
I understand that not everyone yo-yos for the same reasons, but if we’re evaluating the merits of a yo-yo shape/bearing/specs, basing that discussion on what’s enjoyable is entirely subjective and pointless as a result. Basing it on what helps the best players get the best results in a structured format is more objective. We can’t have the basis of evaluation always be “this is better because I like it more.” A non yoyoer will enjoy a Yomega Brain more than a Draupnir.
It’s like the Twlight books. Objectively, they are just poorly conceived and poorly written, but that doesn’t people from enjoying them. And tons of people hate reading classic literature in high school.
I think this is an excellent point. It isn’t about better or worse, but about choosing the right tool for the job. Same argument as “is a downhill mountain bike better than a track bike”. Each has their place
In his defense, it’s hard to be into books and not have read at least a bit of the twilight saga. First book came out ages ago (2005), and i remember being just a kid in highschool, seeing literally two thirds of the girls in my class getting the books. The curiosity would get you at any point enough to check one of the books.
