My all time favourite yoyo is the ILYY Lio (55mm diameter, 41.5mm width, 67 grams, organic shape). I want to find something with similar dimensions and shape, but wider, a bit lighter(63g-65g), and “floatier”. Preferably something from the last few years so it’s possible to find new or used. It seems like the Grail is close to what I want but it is out of my budget (say $100USD). Bonus points for simple colorways.
Feel free to leave suggestions that are out of my budget though, I might be able to afford them one day.
Kind of temped to pick up the Atmos Abel and some bearings/pads when it comes out this week but we’ll see.
The GWAY Saboteur and Heaven Sent Creep would probably fit the bill. Mk1 also makes the Contact, which some have compared to the Grail (I think they are pretty starkly different, but that’s just me).
I enjoy old school ILYY stuff quite a lot, and the Saboteur is one of my favorite yoyos. It’s got a highwall with very deep schmooves and an updated profile - it’s wider than many Lio era yoyos and has a bit of a scoop in the catch zone. Plays on the floatier side of things but not as floaty as a Grail/Lynx/Peak.
Edit: there’s a b grade Creep for $35 on the BST right now, and I think GWAY and YYE both still have Saboteurs available.
I’m also a big fan of the Lio. I agree with the saboteur, contact and koi. I’d also add the rain city skills show pony to the list. I have all of the above and the show pony is the one I teach for most often.
Edit: creep is also excellent – closest to the grail of the ones listed above.
The Big Boy in my collection is the RSO Bowl XL Popsicle edition
66mm diameter, 51.5mm width, 4.4mm gap, 61.7g weight. It is amazing and it sound as pretty as it looks. The sound is like a Tibetan monk’s meditation bell.
XL Bowl is big, 61.7g is light “ish” but for its size and it feels even lighter in the hand and on the string. I was totally blown away in a positive way, how unexpected different the XL Bowl was to what my mind and hands thought it would feel like.
I generally like mid to undersized throws this experience opened me up to getting a few larger throws.
I know there are a lot of large throws out now this is the 2 Pennie’s on the one I have.
Hitting rejections, triangles and hooks with the XL Bowl gives a slight bell ring when the string slaps the yo-yo wall.
Creep is great but I wouldn’t call it lightweight. Gonna echo the praise for the Mowl Q here, it fits both categories OP is looking for, big AND lightweight. I don’t think you’d regret getting one at all, it’s exactly what you’re looking for.
I just got a Peach via trade and I really like it so far. Big, comfy, floaty, amazing regens… the weight isn’t an issue for me. It definitely feels lighter on the string than you’d expect though. Oh, and thumb grinds for daaaays.
I figured I’d post a follow up. I ended up tracking down a Creep, a Mowl Q, and a Mk1 Contact.
Out of the three, I have a hard time deciding between the Creep and the Q as a favourite. While the thread was about ‘lightweight’ yoyos and the Creep doesn’t really fall into that, I love the weight of it. I like it so much I got one from the final run as well so I can have a pair. The Q is great, it feels surprisingly stable and long spinning for something so light. I don’t have strong feelings about the tighter gap. I think the Creep slightly edges out the Q as my current favourite yoyo but I highly recommend them both.
The Contact is a b-grade and is cheaper than the other two, so I’ve been using it as my daily carry. I like it! It feels a bit less stable and doesn’t spin as long as the other two, but that doesn’t matter too much if it’s something I’m throwing while waiting for the train.
I have a Atmos Cloudberry waiting for me, and I am trying to track down a couple of the other Atmos organics, so I’m eager to give those all a try. Buuuuut that’ll be a while as I need to take a break from making any purchases for the next few months.
Thanks everyone who made recommendations in the thread
