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General Yo-Yo
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Hi all,

Thanks for a great site. This is my first post. After 30 years, I just rediscovered throwing when I happened upon an old Duncan Imperial yoyo.

Since then, I bought a plastic Sage yoyo from ■■■■■■■■■■. It’s their recommended starter yoyo, and I’ve been slowly working through their “first 50 tricks” list.

I have a stressful job, and I’ve found it a great distraction. I work from home and take a break to throw 4-8ish times per day. I’ve also enjoyed just lurking in this forum.

I’m having enough fun that I’m itching to get a couple of high-quality yoyos. I know I don’t need to, but I enjoy good equipment. I think of it as an investment because I’ll be playing for a long time.

The first thing I’ve thought about is something that doesn’t hurt so much when it returns a bit too fast. I love responsive play, and I’m super thin with a bit of arthritis, so I may be more sensitive than most. I’ve heard that organic yoyos can be better with this, so I’ve thought of getting a hybrid triple zero from Luftwerk.

Since I appreciate the free tutorials on ■■■■■■■■■■, I’m also considering getting a civility. My hope is that with more rim weight, I won’t have to throw it quite as hard and my knuckles will fare better. (In it’s fourth edition, it’s a bimetal - still only $75, though.) Another possibility would be the bimetal ascent, which is H-shaped, but the rims are perfectly flat - might not hurt on the knuckles.

On the other hand, I love responsive, and since looping is featured in the first 50 tricks list, I’ve also thought about learning 2a. It seems like great 2a yoyos can be had for cheap. I was thinking of getting a pair of yyf 720s, hornets, or even YT Oracle/Match.

Finally, and this may seem a bit wacky, but because I like responsive but not the pain when it returns, I’m thinking of getting a Henrys Viper Axys. They are still around and occasionally I see them getting love, even to this day. Perhaps even a viper rewind or a newt, but those seem harder to find.

Anyway, those are some thoughts. What do you recommend?

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welcome! i feel like knuckle dusters reduce in frequency such that it doesn’t so much need to be planned around, but generally speaking you’re correct that organics are widely considered the most comfy shape. otherwise you seem to have a good handle on what interests you and why. i think you should follow your instincts

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Welcome!

Hybrid 000 is a fantastic choice for unresponsive. Anything made by Luftverk is going to be top notch.

Metal responsive yo-yos can be painful, but I hear great things about the one drop deepest state.It has their tm side effect system so you can adjust the weight by switching them out. That might help you find a good balance.

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Thank you both for the feedback! I appreciate the validation that responsive can be a bit more painful (at least with a bit of arthritis).

Glad to hear that the hybrid zero is good. I took a look for the deepest state and it looks like it’s sold out. I’ll keep an eye out. As an old web dev and forum admin, it’s a trip to see a yoyo championed by a legend like coding horror. I remember reading his blog back around 2010.

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Here is a deepest state on the BST.

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That was quick, @Shwa! Thank you

I’ve had a couple of realizations. The first is a follow-up on this:

The converse of what Christian wrote is that if I switch to unresponsive, focusing more on string tricks and having it not return until I bind, pain won’t be so much of an issue. That’s nice to know.

The second realization is since my goal is to have 4-5 yoyos I love in 6 months, maybe I should focus on the getting the yo-yos I know I will want to have in my collection in six months. For example, if I know it will be harder to choose a responsive yo-yo, maybe I should put that off. Instead, I could get an unresponsive one that will make it really easy to learn string tricks and just play with that while I learn more about what I like and I don’t like.

I.e., if pain genuinely is less of an issue with unresponsive, then maybe I can just get a yo-yo like the ascent with flat edges so it won’t hurt too much but that will also make string tricks easy because of its wide catch area and good rim weight. Likewise, I could post a separate thread about the best classic inexpensive 2A yo-yos like 720s or Hornets and get those because I know that in six months I will want a pair of loopers in my small collection.

After I have played a bit more and learned a lot more, I could take on the harder challenge of finding a responsive yo-yo that won’t hurt my hands. It probably guess without saying, but while I want to buy quality and appreciate good engineering, I have to keep my collection small to save money. I have to make every yoyo count. I also suspect I will enjoy switching up styles, so I’m eager to get a variety early.

Honestly, I’m just thinking out loud. It’ll probably take me a while to figure out what I want to get. I do appreciate everyone’s feedback, though. It’s fun to think about.

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Hi Rob - this is also a concern for me as I’m catching a lot - and old. And the little guy can get moving, no? I also had a Sage & had the same issue. I really like the turbo confusion at 53 gms for hand comfort & versatility. Loops quite well imo. You will trade off that extra … locked in feel … you get with a heavier, say 57 gm throw like the confusion gt (also a favorite). There also is the idea of learning how to slow it down when it gets too fast - working on this - so one can catch comfortably. I have a deepest state also, but haven’t thrown it enough to have an opinion. The ultimate comfort - imo - is a RBC at 49 gms. I hope this helps you - Welcome!

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i just remembered @MarkD said more Asterisks are on the horizon and i think you might enjoy that. it’s pom plastic so comfy and doesn’t hurt nearly as much if it raps the knuckles, but it’s unresponsive and has al rings to give it a power boost. i use mine for 5a also so i can verify it takes a beating as well

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I do recommend playing both styles. Responsive helps with understanding regeneration and tilt management. It just give you a better feel for the yoyo on the string. Unresponsive is just endless fun if you really get into it… “Double On, Baby”. Knowing and feeling both styles helps you to become a good all around player. All that or you can just say, what mood am I in? I carry both, all the time.

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Thank you, everyone. This is very helpful advice. The turbo confusion looks great, and so does the asterisk. I appreciate the feedback.

I think I have a plan. Since I’m just starting out, I’m going to hold off on responsive for now, focusing on string tricks and looping. There are great tutorials for 1a, and it seems to be easier to protect your hands with string tricks.

I’m really attached to the list of 50 tricks I’m learning, and it recommends starting to loop early, so I’m eager to try it. Hopefully @Shwa’s idea of “multiple styles helps you become all-around good” will apply if I work on both string tricks and looping.

With looping, it helps that the baseline yoyos are super cheap compared to other styles. From a pain-avoidance angle, I know just which yoyo I want to start with (YT Oracle, because it’s softer plastic and only $10), which helps with regret avoidance.

Once I get a bit more experienced, I’ll reopen the more challenging question of responsive play.

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just a thought but with your concern over getting hit 2a might not be your best bet. i know i also just suck at 2a but one thing that infuriates me when I’m practicing is constantly smacking my hands and shoulder/collarbone area. also looping probably has the fewest transferable skills between styles. if you want a super laid back style that doesn’t abuse you physically 4a is great fun. if you haven’t considered it yet give it a look!

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I am the opposite!! I find V>H>O

It’s funny how preferences can be vastly different.

I find more things to wrap my hand around less comfy, so I prefer the smaller diameter where the three fingers hold on the V

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Great point. Thanks. I had assumed that 4a would be way too hard for me as a noob. Is it easier to pick up than it looks?

I’m not naturally super coordinated and having the string connected to the yoyo just feels like it it might make learning easier. At the same time, a string disconnected from the Yoyo might be fun to demo to my nephews. I bet I could freak them out and make them laugh.

Could I try 4a with a Henrys Viber Axys? I’m already seriously considering it because I think it would be comfortable for responsive play. If it would be a feasible throw for 4a, that bumps it up higher on my list.

With that said, the cost of entry for 2a is so cheap compared to other styles, that I might try it anyway. I’m planning to just get a single Oracle for $10 plus shipping. I like the Oracle because it is a Loop 360 but it’s made out of a softer POM plastic, very cheap, and explicitly targeted at looping beginners. I know I’ll want to try looping eventually because the rhythm of it is appealing to me, so I don’t think I’ll ever regret the purchase.

Confession: I may get the Match 2-handed pack because the price is so good. The Match is basically a Sunrise (a Loop 720 with different spacers and bearings - faster response for learning looping but worse sleep, IIRC). The pack comes with two Match yo-yos (to share with my two nephews), lube, strings, finger wrap (I need) and arm wraps, for only $36. Between the Oracle and the Match pack, that would be $46. Three yo-yos and many supplies for less than all but the cheapest monometals.

For now, I can also just keep using my sage plastic yoyo, which can be converted to unresponsive. From what I read, at my skill level, there’s really no rush to upgrade. (I’m only considering upgrading if I can find yoyos that I’m confident I’ll eventually want to buy and try.)

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100% yes. i feel like 4a has a low floor and a high ceiling which i personally appreciate. i brought mine to my friend’s who only knows a couple basic mounts and a responsive trick or two, plus he was like 5 beers deep when we started and he picked up the basics and was tossing it around within 2 hours (plus more beers)

i agree with this entirely and think it applies to any skill level other than trying to go pro. you could throw a dart at a dartboard to choose a yoyo and it’ll be good enough to learn on for as long as you want to use it. hype and fomo are strooong drugs

having said that i also agree with you that the barrier to entry for 2a on the gear end is so low it’s almost silly not to try if it interests you at all

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