I used to think of “plane control” to mean keeping the yo-yo from tilting sideways with respect to the ground. When I do a trick that has a few back and forth string landings in it, the yo-yo stays upright ok (with effort sometimes of course), but that vertical plane seems to rotate left a bit with every step of the trick (i.e. counterclockwise if you’re looking down from above) so I end up facing 90 degrees or more to my left than when I started the throw. Any idea what causes that and how to work on keeping it from happening?
I’m no expert but I’m guessing it’s your throw. Something that helped me a lot in the last year is to play fixed axel. Fixed yoyos are unforgiving if your throw is off and will teach you to throw clean and straight.
This tends to happen to me towards the end of a trick, because the yoyo is running out of spin. Lots of stuff can increase spin time, but I usually default to a harder throw, especially if it is a longer combo.
I tried videoing to see and I think it’s me moving my hands to position the string gaps so I can land on the correct string.
That sounds more like precession, and happens when the string isn’t centered in the gap.
Is it just more practice, or is there something I can keep an eye on?
I think it’s just something you develop naturally over time. Practicing using a less forgiving yo-yo may help speed up the process. I use a Basecamp Sherpa unresponsive with a OD flat bearing to work on my form and precision. It’s not as unforgiving as a fixie, but it still requires you to slow down and focus a bit more to keep it from tilting.
I practice mostly with plastic, but it happens regardless of what I’m using. Been working on the same trick for well over a month, but I think I’m ready to at least try the next one.
I like having at least a couple of new tricks to work on at a time. That way I don’t get bogged down and can always come back to something later if it gives me too much trouble. Hell, I’m still trying to get Yuuki Slack probably a year after I first learned how to do it.
Well, I’m currently at Zipper so I’ve got a long way to go!