Puffin 2 First Impressions

Yo-Yo Reviews
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This is not a “review” because I haven’t had the yoyo long enough to do a proper review. However, I’ve been asked by a few people about the Puffin 2. Here’s one of the more detailed responses I gave via PM:

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The Puffin 2 is surprisingly similar to the original Puffin, and that’s a good thing to me, since the Puffin is possibly my favourite yoyo. Reducing the catch zone “bump” did not affect comfort at all-- it feels great in the hand. If anything, the new outer rim makes it even more comfy now, and I have become acutely aware of the thin rim on the original.

Spin times are very good. I’m not sure they’re quite Chief-level and are certainly not BvM2 level (from what I played of one), but they’re very very good. An improvement for sure. I’m still using the pre-lubed CTX; if I was a spin time maniac, I’d probably clean it and run it dry. But I prefer smooth and quiet operation over spin time.

The finish is the same Gruntbull finish we already know and love. No surprises there.

Fingerspins… apparently Palli wanted less nipple and to do away with the inner rim partly to assist fingerspins. I am not a fingerspin master, but it is still not my best fingerspinning yoyo. Even the original Puffin is just as good-- I actually liked the “Chief inner rim” for fingerspins.

It is more stable than the original Puffin for sure. They succeeded in that goal. Although it still feels manoeverable, I noticed right away that some of my newer tricks that I execute sloppily and which would normally knock the Puffin off-axis are NOT affecting the Puffin 2 in the same way. Win!

Horizontal is fine. I only know how to do banana turnover. The very rounded catch zone makes me feel like I’m going to accidentally reject the string more than on other yoyos, but it’s hard to say… when you suck at a technique the way I suck at horizontal, it’s hard to make judgments.

Overall, I’m very impressed. And I’ve been finding myself jaded lately, wondering why top-tier yoyos aren’t blowing me away. The Puffin 2 didn’t necessarily “change the whole game” or anything that drastic, but it put a genuine smile on my face and seems to be an overall improvement.

Does it replace the original Puffin for me? Right now, yes… because it’s so new. But I LOVE the original Puffin, so time will tell.

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Additional thoughts:

  • I am finding the Puffin 2 to be killer for rejections! Seems like you hardly have to work at them at all.

  • I mentioned stability above, but it’s worth mentioning again: the Puffin 2 is significantly and appreciably more stable than the original. Even with sloppy-ish play, I’m not sending it careening off-axis.

-The outer rim is a thing of beauty. I’ve hardly ever taken note of this part of a yoyo before… the only other time it really mattered to me was comparing the smooth wonderful Punch Line to the Punch Line Repeater. The latter had a thin “line” that you could feel with your thumb, and was a step back. The opposite is true here: it sounds like a silly small detail (and maybe it is), but while holding the yoyo ready for a throw, the thumb sits comfortably on that “wing”-shaped rim. Switching back to the OG, I missed it immediately. The substantial rim also signifies more weight in that area, which is good for the overall stability and spin time thing.

Conclusions: If you passed on the original because people talked about stability or spin time issues, you should jump on the sequel. If you adored the original (as I do) because of its quirkiness, there is still a lot of its character in this one; just “serioused-up” a little. I can’t help suspecting based on some public comments by Chris that the 2014 line-up will eventually hit YYE… maybe the 2nd run or something? That’s PURE speculation, so don’t hold your breath. But in any event, the point is that my first impressions are positive enough to recommend people “on the edge” to just go for it. A proper full review should be coming later… maybe… if someone doesn’t beat me to it with a better one that I agree with. :smiley:

https://fbcdn-sphotos-d-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-frc1/t1/1620362_263704990455352_1714467025_n.jpg

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Thanks Greg,

I really appreciate reading your thoughts about the puffin2. It sounds like a winner.

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Nice intro thoughts on the puffin 2. Great job. This “first thoughts” review was even better then what most people post for they’re full actual reviews. Can’t wait to read your full review!

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I’d love to see a side by side comparison of the profiles. I’ve been searching for a used original Puffin (at this point, I’m still leaning towards this option) but it may be easier to just get the new one. Amazingly I cannot find a decent side by side anywhere though and it’d help me a lot.

EDIT: And although I have no right to nitpick, the string off would be pretty handy ::slight_smile:

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a bit late but here is one :slight_smile:

1869×1233 326 KB

1512×864 188 KB

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I’d love to hear your thoughts on the puffin 2 and puffin 1!

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I’d be curious to hear people’s thoughts on the Puffin 2 vs Gnarwhal 2. I sold my Gnarwhal 2 earlier this week (enjoyed the throw but wasn’t digging the colorway) and just got my Puffin 2 yesterday. Surprised by how similar they feel in play, with the Puffin 2 just being a little more beefy and “confident” and the Gnarwhal 2 a little more zippy.

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Man. How can they call that a sequel? It doesn’t look bad, but it doesn’t look anything like the original!

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I will have to disagree. I own both, and the original Puffin is one of my favourite yoyos of all time. I felt the Puffin 2 had a lot to live up to, and was prepared for disappointment… but it captured the Puffin spirit perfectly, in terms of looks and also play.

If you took an image of their silhouettes and overlaid them (somebody actually did this with CAD files I believe… I can’t find the image for the life of me) they are actually VERY similar; it’s just that extra ‘bump’ in the original that becomes a smooth transition instead.

In the hand, they feel similar; that bump doesn’t inform the feel quite as much as the rim curves, which are still identical. So yeah… similar in the hand. The Puffin 2 has the edge, because the “wing-shaped” inner rims feel great on the thumb.

With almost identical dimensions except for a tiny weight difference, they feel very similar on the throw as well. The difference? Puffin 2 has the “edge” in terms of stability, if you value stability and see it as an improvement. Since there’s no significant amount of “float” lost, I will happily take the extra stability.

Back to the premise, “doesn’t look anything like the original” I would have to say that’s a first-impression reaction only. When you really compare them, they’re quite similar indeed. And since they’re not identical, it is indeed a sequel.

If you own both of them or play both of them for a significant amount of time (more than just 5 minutes, though for some people 5 minutes will be enough, I’m sure!) you will know just how much DNA these two share. Hint: a lot!

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I’ve been thinking about getting the Puffin 2, Ac2 or chief. What would you get?

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For me? I think I’d go Chief.