From One Drop: It’s always intriguing to make a signature yo-yo. We always invite the player to contribute as much as possible to the design so that this important moment for them is the best it can be. A good measure of success is if the yo-yo is a reflection of the person. Ethan Cheung is a player on our team who is focused on competitive yo-yoing, but he doesn’t sacrifice any artistry in this pursuit. This rare combination makes Ethan stand out.
If you watch Ethan Cheung’s performance at Worlds 2018 in Shanghai you will notice precision, artistry, clarity, mastery. If you look at his signature yo-yo, the Virtuoso, you will notice the same characteristics. The 7075 aluminum alloy design is very focused towards function as a hard core competitive yo-yo with all the performance you would expect. If you look closely, you’ll also see the artistry with the clean flowing lines, the minimalist cup, the light bead blast, and the beautiful “projection profile” on the face of the rim giving a small nod to our first yo-yo, the Project.
Ethan explains his thought process on designing his signature yo-yo:
“At a glance, the design is reminiscent of the Format:C: which was the yoyo that allowed me to push my own boundaries and place 10th at Worlds in Iceland. But if you look more closely, you’ll notice the grooves on the rim - a tribute to the original Project and the roots of One Drop. For this signature model, I wanted a yoyo that would allow me to explore more styles of movement, that complements any style of play thrown at it. It is this balance of comfort and performance, of minimalism and detail, that makes us proud to present: the Virtuoso.”
I think it might boil down to use in a contest. With the having to tune side effect throws from time to time it may be less consistent than a non SE can offer.
“Hate” is a strong word. They don’t hate Side Effects at all. Most of the time the reason is because a flat hub is not possible with Side Effects (one of the only downsides to the system). If they want a flat hub, then that rules it out. This isn’t always the reason, but most of the time.
After the Sugar Glider, we have two new Side Effect yoyos coming.
I have a handful of SE throws and they are great, though not necessarily because of the side effects. I mean, side effects are cool and all, but the one reason I don’t love them is that I can rarely find them in the color(s) I want.
I think a common misunderstanding with Side Effects is that one has to change them. At the core, they are the axle system. But there is the added benefit of being able to change them. If you never change them, they function just like any other axle system.
Soooooo, is there a chance that there might be a side effect version of this? To own both would be amazing. Compare and contrast how different the same yoyo but with side effects is.
I can see this being a possibility, but personally I’ve never had to tune any OD with or without SE. If anything, I feel less concerned about taking them apart than other yoyos.
I wondered if one reason might be that competitors usually have an idea of exactly how they want the yoyo to perform. The tapped axle at least locks in the play characteristics that are effected by weight and weight distribution. I imagine it also might make designing, and conceptualizing the weight distribution a bit more straightforward.
Yeah, same here. I am intrigued by its shape, and I’d like to hear how it feels and performs compared to, say, the VTWO and the Top Deck (my two favorite One Drops).
