I actually haven’t clicked the purchase button for the Chief yet. I really appreciate the extra insight. I do lean towards the Gradient, as it’s the least expensive option, and being fairly new to playing, and not very good, for instance, I can’t consistently get out of a wrist mount yet!
Some of the other suggestions in this thread also have me second guessing. Like the Too Hot, which then lead me to looking at the Transcend. I wish I knew someone close by that had a Chief, Gradient, or Space cowboy so I could see which I like best.
After purchasing the OD Cascade and being a bit disappointed in it, I’m a little shy about buying another high end yoyo without knowing for sure.
Well, I am not that good myself so perhaps take what I say with a grain of salt
The Gradient isn’t the easiest yo-yo to throw. At my skill level it is easy to lose control of it, but it is pretty much at the opposite end of the 1A spectrum from the Downbeat and I like it a lot just for that reason. It is fun to practice a trick on a slower yo-yo like the Downbeat or Civility and then move to the Gradient just to see how it feels at a faster pace.
Also, it is funny that you mentioned both the Transcend and the Cascade, because I asked about those two in another thread earlier today. From the sound of it the Transcend is perhaps the way for me to go if you are disappointed in the Cascade. I did noticed that those two yo-yos have very similar shapes and specs, so if you didn’t care for the Cascade I wonder if you might have the same reaction to the Transcend. I can’t say for sure since I haven’t tried either of them myself.
So the reason for my disappointment in the OD Cascade is that it feels too light, and for some reason it likes to tilt more than any other throw I’ve got.
The too light complaint doesn’t make a ton of sense, as it’s not much lighter (1.6 grams) than the YYF Shutter or Horizon, both of which I really enjoy. And I swapped the side effects for some brass (heavier ones) and it still just feels too light.
But the tendency to tilt, which could just be me being terrible at breakaways, is really a deal breaker for me. It makes play more frustrating than it should be, especially when i’m trying to land a new trick.
What you say about the Gradient is what drew me to it in the first place, that it would be different to what I already own. I’d like to have several kinds of yoyos for different types of things. I got the Horizon to practice grinds with, and it lives up. I got the Down Beat cause I wanted something heavy and slow (turns out to be my favorite way to play so far). Overall I want to have a well rounded collection, with solid throws and fun variety.
Thanks again for the input I really appreciate it.
You should be able to throw clean breakaways with 1 minute long combos on a Darkmagic, which is very highwalled. The Cascade is 10x more stable than that throw.
Well I hope I haven’t led you astray then on the Gradient. To be fair, your experience with the Cascade (i.e. tilting) is similar to mine with the Gradient, at least at first. However, as I have improved with my quality of throws and play I have found the Gradient quite good.
For the price it is a great throw and I haven’t regretted picking it up. Everybody’s experience will be different though
As a side note, my experience with the Downbeat, Gradient, and Space Cowboy have taught me that you don’t have to spend top dollar to get great throws. That isn’t to say I won’t buy a more expensive yo-yo ever again (some of the CLYW throws are very tempting) but I probably won’t do it that often.
Based off of what your looking for…the space cowboy is probably your best bet. It’s heavier and very stable. I own the space cowboy and the Chief…that’s my photo earlier up. I prefer the Chief. Sounds like you would prefer the space cowboy. It does sound like you still have some area for improvement with your breakaway too. I prefer lighter throws. My current favorite is the puffin 2 by clyw. It’s smaller…lighter…but very stable and spins more than long enough.
