Looking to buy a yoyo

Yo-Yo Reviews Looking for Help/Recommendation
1

Ok, not sure where I should have put this in the forum, as I couldn’t really see somewhere specific, but here made the most sense.

I’m new to the whole yoyoing thing and am tired of buying cheap yoyos at a random store which break within a week, so I was wondering if maybe I could get some advice on a good, not too expensive yoyo. and maybe some information to help me know what I should look for? I was thinking I was to try and learn tricks, probably both string and looping, but not sure which might be better to start off with. I’ve been looking around and don’t want to just get a yoyo cos it looks nice, I’ve also read up on some information, but I’d prefer get an opinion from people who actually use these yoyos, Could anyone help steer me in the right direction?

Maybe also if you could help direct me to somewhere I could try to learn tricks, I would be grateful, thanks in advance for any help.

2

A Yoyojam plastic such as a journey, Lyn Fury, Speedmaker, etc. would be fine and if you want it to be responsive for a while i would suggest some thick lube, I’ve played all of these (and ghave all of these) and they would all work fine (except for 2a, their mostly for string tricks)

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3

Thanks, what would you suggest as a starter, Im looking at them Yo Yo Jam yoyos, I like the look of the Unleashed, Speed Maker and Journey ones…

4

Yoyo Factory Velocity is great for starters. I still use it today sometimes. Plus u can change from responsive to unresponsive so u can use it for string tricks and looping

5

So, I found online a package deal for a ‘beginner pack’ for Butterfly or Imperial or Profly or Proyo, with a trick book, some other accessories… Are those yoyos good? (Butterfly, Imperial, Profly or Proyo)

6

butterfly sleeps for about 6 seconds. not good. imperial is even worse. check this out: http://shop.yoyoexpert.com/product/541/YoYoFactory-Starter-Set
its a good starter set. yoyofactory is a good brand. set comes with a multi tool and a dvd, etc. but if you get this, buy some extra string. it only comes with 5 strings
you can learn tricks here: http://yoyoexpert.com/learn/

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7

A duncan metal drifter

8

You could buy something like a Yomega raider or some other either Modified or Imperial(google those shapes if you don’t know what they are) shaped yoyo to try looping. These are more common in toy stores but make sure you don’t buy an all plastic yoyo. Stick to either Yomega or Duncan if you buy at a toy store. These are decent yoyos to learn basic looping tricks.

For string tricks I might be able to hook you up. Send me a PM

9

I picked up a YYJ Journey last month to get back into the sport and it’s been a fine throw. It’s very low maintenance. Whatever you choose, get a 100-pack of string and you’ll be good to go for months of use.

10
  • Starter set (as someone said)
  • YYF ONE
  • Dark Magic 2 (if you’re feeling like spending some money)

I suggest any of those 3 because they all come with a thin and a thick bearing and that is full of win hehe n__n

Also (as someone said) get strings. Bulk of 100 strings. you don’t want to run out of strings and then wait and pay extra for a new bulk of strings (like me Grrrr >:( )

11

YoYoJam has quite a few yoyos in the range of very affordable.

If we’re talking just starting out and cost is a major factor, the YYF ONE is an ideal start. At $10, order the package with 2 bearings and you’re ready to start and move to advanced, but I would recommend the YYF Multi-Tool since the bearing will be difficult to remove.

Back to YYJ, there’s many choices un the under-$30, and in some cases under $20 price range. While I don’t “need” many of these because I am using “better” stuff, I still want them anyways.

The YYJ Prelude is under $15 and comes with the slim bearing. You can upgrade to the full sized bearing buy purchasing one later, but I would recommend at the beginning so you’re ready to move up when you’re ready. The regular C-sized YYJ bearing is $6.99, while the Speed bearing is $7.99 but you can go with any C-sized bearing, including YYE, YYF and even Terrapin X. The Lyn Fury and Kickside are popular starter models as is the Speed Maker and the Journey. Read the product descriptions and see which one sounds like the best match. Another option might be the new Pinnacle, which while intended for 5A play, can easily be used as a 1A yoyo by not using the counter weight.

Stepping up a bit, there’s the Legacy II and the Chaser. The Legacy II is essentially a Dark Magic II in an all plastic design and comes with a slim and regular C bearing. Since it’s all plastic, the price(just under $24 currently) is nearly half of that of the Dark Magic II. The Chaser is a brand new model at this point, and while the price is fantastic at $27, but is unresponsive, which unless you know how to bind or are ready for that, it’s not an ideal purchase just yet.

Stepping up a bit, a lot of options come out. The two that stand out to me is the Dark Magic II, which is what I personally use and recommend, even as a beginner. If you’re into a different shape, the Speeder II is also loads of fun, but at a slightly higher cost. Both of these ship with a slim bearing pre-installed, but also include a YYJ Speed bearing for your advancement into unresponsive yoyos and play. If you’re willing to still spend more, the XCon Pro is another option that also includes two bearings like the DM2 and Speeder 2. As we’re talking prices from around $41 to $56, see what you like and what you want to spend.

One of my kids just got a Legacy II for Christmas from a sister in law. It’s solid, it’s got a nice feel. I’d have to say, I’d have no problems recommending this yoyo over a DM2, especially if budget is tight.

Know yourself and be realistic. Also keep in mind I’ve only been recommending string trick yoyos. If you want a looping trick yoyo, I recommend if you’re being cheap, go with Shinwoo Loop at $10. If you want to spend more, then the Yomega Raider, then then YYJ Unleashed and the YYF Loop900 are the yoyos I’d recommend in order of least to most expensive.

Now, since you’re serious about diving in, the following recommendations:
Since you’re buying a new yoyo, you’re already paying for shipping. It’s time to add accessories without adding to the shipping costs:
If you’re beginning, you may want both YYJ Thick and Thin Lube. If you’re into looping, you may also want both to control how thick the lube is. If you’re string trick only and can bind, forget thick lube entirely.
You need bulk strings. 100 works best. Slick6 or 100% polyester. Pick a pretty color you dig and go for it! Neon Green tends to work best if you’re videoing yourself is all I’m going to say, but white 100% poly is $2 less.
Buy some replacement responses, at least 1 set. Chances are what comes in your yoyo will last you 3-6 months anyways, but be ready.
The YYF Multi-tool is great. While the string cutter is probably the most handy tool for you, the bearing puller is good to have and you never know when that hex tool is going to be handy for you.

My thoughts are to keep you throwing with minimal down time. Nothing kills momentum like something silly like running out of strings.

12

I started out with a Yomega Fireball but this would probably be a bad choice. I would go with something like the Yoyofactory One, i have this yoyo and it can easily be switched from responsive to unresponsive by switching out the included extra bearing. You might also want to take a look at the Yoyojam plastics in the 15 dollar area. Something like a lyn fury or a kickside as others have mentioned

13

There are many great decently priced beginner yo-yos.  I personally think the yyf velocity is an amazing player because you can play responsive and unresponsive on it.  It may not be very wide, but it packs a punch.  You can start out with this yoyo being responsive and allowing you to throw it down and getting it to sleep and come back with a tug.  Responsiveness allows you to do the basic tricks, but it can’t handle the tricks with more wraps.  The good thing about the velocity is that once you get to getting good with responsive then you can make it less responsive.  You can simply change it by twisting the inner part of the sides.  When it is less responsive you can learn how to bind.  Then you can twist the sides and make it unresponsive.  This requires a bind, and the yoyo doesn’t come up with a tug.  although it may be a little harder to bring it back up, an unresponsive yoyo can handle much more tricks.  They can’t loop, but there can be many more wraps around the gap.  This allows you a much wider range of tricks.

However, if you aren’t ready to commit  a full twenty dollars to yo-yoing then the yyf one is amazing, because it goes from responsive to unresponsive like the velocity.  The only difference is that this one requires you to switch out the bearings.  This task becomes much easier for you if you use the yyf multitool.

A bind tutorial can be found here:

http://yoyoexpert.com/learn/030-intermediate-bind-returns.html

The yyj chaser plays amazing for only seven dollars more than the velocity.  this one comes unresponsive and the only way to make it responsive is to use a thick lubricant.  Anyhow, the chaser is amazing.  It has a very nice gap, so it can handle  a lot of wraps around the gap.  In my opinion this is the best of all the options here.  It is cheap and it plays better than some of the metals out there.

I hope I have helped and given you the information to advance in the art of yo-yoing.