So I came back from Toys R Us after purchasing the Yomega Fireball/Raider. As soon as I opened the box and started to use my Fireball, the sleep time could barely last 10 seconds. I then decided to try the Raider. Initially, the Raider seemed to be a lot better at sleeping than the Fireball because it lasted up to 20 seconds. However, now that I’m doing research on the two I’m hearing some mixed opinions.
One person commented on how the Raider should be able to sleep at least 45 seconds out of the box. And other people are saying how the Fireball should be able to sleep for 20 seconds. Here’s my question: Did I pick the bad lemons out of the bunch; should I exchange them for new ones?
The only thing is that the store doesn’t have anymore Raiders, only Mavericks.
If your new it’s all in the throw. When I first started yoyoing I could barely get my protostar to sleep for 50 seconds. Now I can get it to sleep for 3 minutes just by practicing the way I throw the yoyo.
The raider will sleep longer because of the ball bearing. The sleep times people say are products of years of practice. Loopers in general will sleep less than wing shapes but with practice your sleep times will improve.
Sleep times from shortest to longest:
Wood Axle, Metal Axle, transaxle(fireball), ball bearing.
New users/novice users need to expect short sleep times. It’s the reality of the situation. It’s nothing to be concerned about. Get that throw straight. The only thing you can do to fix that is practice.
There are also other factors at play too:
For the most part, loopers/modified shaped yoyos such as the Raider and Fireball, typically don’t have as long of a sleep time as wing-shaped yoyos such as the Maverick. Also, many NEW yoyos may need to have their bearings cleaned imediately, and then after that they may need to be lightly lubed using thing lube. Well, loopers typically use thick lube because you need more responsiveness.
I have a Fireball, it’s OK. I have a pair of Raider EX’s, which I like a lot better. But you also have to consider what direction you want to go in for now and make appropriate purchases. If you’re going for looping tricks and the beginner stuff, for the most part there is no need to change what you’ve got right now. Once you get through the YYE Beginner tricks, you’ve got to decide “looping” or “string tricks”. Because if you’re going to go into Intermediate, Advanced and beyond, the yoyos you have aren’t going to work well for you, you will need to get a wing-shaped yoyo like the Maverick for example, but most of us will recommend something else, such as a Dark Magic II, Legacy II or something else similar.
It comes down to the right tool for the right job.
In the meantime, don’t stress over sleep times. If you can get through the trick, you’re good enough for now. The rest will come in time through practice.
