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Thanks for taking the time to discuss.
You missed one thing -
Silicone (At least the Monkey Snot), is consistent. Response will vary from pad to pad, but if you know the yo-yo, you can beef up the yoyo silicone a bit, or recess more. It does get kind of fussy 
Some yo-yo’s are an odd size, you take whatever pad is available, and it just might be slippy.
You raised a good point, a week or two of replacement is too much, but I tend to rotate my snotted yo-yos for this reason or at least plan to…
I’m new to silicone, at least doing it myself, but I have been yo-yoing long enough to know there is a substantial difference in play to the better. If I had to try to sum it, it’s the bind - snappy, but no snag during play.
PS - Try the Monkey Snot, it would be a good follow up. Maybe they’ll comp you 
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I slowly use mine until all the silicone is gone and then have a day where I do them all at once. I have been using flowable silicone from auto zone forever, never bought pads. The only time it fails to last a long time for me is when I put to much and try to slowly grind it down and end up ripping the whole thing out. Curing is pretty important too, if you don’t cure it for the suggested time it can cause premature wear. Flowable rips to shreds easily and isn’t as durable as most the pads you get pre made.
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How often do you need to replace pads?
It varies for me some depending on the pads, but I would say several months of constant play.
Unfortunately, I didn’t time it, but I had a topdeck I used as my EDC for I think a year straight, and replace the pads once.
Pads last a long time, the problem with getting solid data on it is the number of variables.
Most people don’t throw just one yoyo constantly for months on end 
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I do want to try monkey snot some time 
Would your yoyo get damaged from not changing the pads?
No.
but you might.
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Not really any way I can think of.
Unless you slip the bind and ding it or something.
Silicone is great to apply to large numbers of yoyos at once, but for me, its a big fuss to go through just to do one or two throws at a time. My collection is not anywhere near the size of a lot of people, and the endeavor of getting everything ready ends up preventing me from siliconing yoyos that need it for a long time.
The good and the bad about flowable silicone response.
-
The good> if you know how to prepare, apply and finish the flow applied rings; you will seldom encounter any kind of problems.
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The bad> If you get a tube of flowable silicone and you don’t know what you are doing; then your troubles will arrive with a quickness.
Improper preparation and/or application techniques are responsible for most failures.
…
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This. I have silicone in some yoyos from 2011. I know some people that have it from the early 2000s. It all depends.
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I think this thread is important for beginners like me, that’s why I revived it. 
For me, living in Germany, it is not so easy to buy pads for One Drop yoyos, for example.
And I heard that a lot of people are happy with silicone instead of pads.
The con seems to be that it is a bit of a barrier to get into it. You might have heard that people have problems with it… and like me, where and how to start?
Definitely, for the first time, it is not so straightforward like changing a pad where you exactly know that it is the right pad for your yoyo.
So, the good thing seems to be that silicone lasts long… and should bind snappy and reliable but without snag. Like @stevejspins pointed out.
To be honest, as I’m writing this, I really still don’t have much of an idea about this topic… I think there might be a difference between silicone that you heat up and the kind that comes pre-pressed from a tube? Am I seeing this right? Oh man, I really have no idea haha. 
@Kray recommended this to me. Thanks a lot! That’s what I’ll start with for now…
Silicone Motorsil Seal D Red 60 g -70 to +300 Degrees Celsius : Amazon.de: Automotive
Any tips for my first silicone session?
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There is a pretty long and more recent discussion here: Permatex 22074 Ultra Grey for very unresponsive return system
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What @hsb said.
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Thank you so much. With that title, I would have never clicked it… I now know everything and will join the ultra grey cult very soon 
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Haha! I’m a proud member of the ultra grey cult and I figure it’ll be helpful for the silicurious to some up of the main things about silicone right here.
First of all there’s a lot of different kinda of silicone that all create different response levels. Grey is the hardest so that means it is the slippiest and least likely to snag. Lots of people find it too slippy for them and prefer other silicones. Clear flowable is the most grippy. Bc it is flowable, it will self level and is the easiest to apply. You can always add a recess using a guitar pick or corner of a credit card. This will lessen the level of response. It does take some fine tuning to really figure out your preferences for each Yoyo, but once you do, you can get your response set up exactly how you like it.
The main con is that it is harder to do than just plopping on a new pad. Pads are waaaay more convenient and with silicone, you must wait some time to let the silicone cure.
Another pro for sili is that it is way way way cheaper than pads, even if you are sloppy when applying.
Also don’t worry if the application is sloppy, when the sili cures, you can peel off the excess very easy. Just make sure you flatten out the silicone enough after applying to reveal the ridge that holds the response.
Let us know if you have any specific questions and enjoy the journey!
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I’m an ultra grey fan as well, I found using a 3 ml syringe (or a child medication syringe) is very helpful with application. I use the edge of a guitar pick to smooth it out, I haven’t recessed mine yet, I keep the sili flush with the edge and it works perfectly for me (obviously your mileage may vary). Good luck and have fun!
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Bro with “Silicurious” you deserve a sponsor from Turning Point, stonks in creativity
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