I’ve been eyeing the Deep State or something shaped like it as a way to improve my accuracy. Can any of these be played as unresponsive with the right setup?
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Had a Flying V and sold it- big regret. Had a chance to snag a Walter and didn’t do it- really big regret. Never got the chance to throw a Walter but I remember hearing they were the ultimate knuckle destroyers
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Yeah Walters are “if you have to ask how much it will cost you can’t afford it” on the b/s/t these days 
… mythical rarity level.
Oh and @funkyman50 if you run a super dry, cleaned C bearing (max spin, min resistance) in a deep state it will play fairly responsive. And of course the confusion ships with flush silicone pads and wide bearing to swap out.
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The Flying V is an amazing throw! It came with a slim bearing for responsive play, but I must admit that I use it mostly unresponsively. Very smooth play and fits the hand perfectly.
@Lukoyo You might want to check out the x3 teh yo. Slightly wider than the v, and it doesn’t have the same mystique, but it’s a similar feel if you’re playing the v unresponsive
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Just had a quick google for it and it looks interesting. I’ll have to keep an eye out for one. I do favour slimline throws.
Something I’m always looking out for on the bst is a Timcor Starfire. Its a similar shape to the SB2 (another fave) but it has hubstacks.
I saw one on reddit b/s/t not that long ago, I remember asking the guy about it because I had never heard of it. Found it here, only a few months ago, probably worth messaging this person if you are interested.
Cheers for the link codinghorror! I think I’ll send a pm.
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Out of curiosity, why are nearly all metal responsives skinny, like something in between a modified Imperial (i.e., looping yoyo) and a conventional butterfly shape?
From what I can tell, most plastic responsives are normal 1A-style yoyos (in terms of body shape), and they are presumably expected to be used for 1A tricks. But doesn’t the skinnier body of metal responsives (ala Deep State, Alley Cat, Confusion) make it harder to land string tricks?
Wider responsive yoyos aren’t as stable. The faster spins with a non responsive bearing allow the yoyo to stabilize and spin true.
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So it’s a trade-off between stability and ease of landing on the string? This is presumably the same trade-off found with plastic responsives like the First Base, the OneStar, the Replay, etc. It’s unclear to me why that trade-off is (apparently) deemed acceptable for plastic but not for metal.
AlleyCat 650b is so good. They took the original AlleyCat and rounded all the sharp edges that hurt and collect dust (check), shrunk the diameter for better loops (check), lightened it to feel closer to wood/fixed axle weight (check), tweaked the shape to give it more catch zone without sacrificing comfort and the feel of flat rims (check), and gave it a new velvety finish (check).
Shoot the moons are effortless, loops work well, stalls are great, spin time is still very good. I’ve been carrying it every day for MONTHS. Fits great in your pocket. I’ve lubed it maybe twice. I think it does it all and I don’t know what I would change. Small bearing is a must!
Moonshine is great, but the large bearing makes it a little unreliable to return and a little snappy when it does. Still good though.
Confusion looks great, but I like having the catch zone of the AlleyCat 650b.
I never play with my Flying V anymore. Way too heavy compared to the other options these days unfortunately (or fortunately?).
My favorite wood is the 2015+ Baldwin. Great shape, size, and weight.
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Sadly it is no longer in production. As far as I can tell, it would have to be acquired used.
A lot of it is probably nostalgia, or accurately recreating a feeling. Nothing was mega wide when metal yo-yos (and all yo-yos) were responsive. “Period correct” you could say
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They should be making more. 
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Those metal unresponsives really do look super cool! I’m going to have to get a Confusion or Alleycat one of these days.
The only thing that has made me hesitant is that my wooden fixed axles are already perfect for this.
For people looking for Walter’s, they’re getting to the point that they’re not as hard to get. My blue Walter took a little over a year of searching. In the past 3 years though I’ve bought 6 more Walter’s. 3 of those were in the last year. All of them have been off the BST’s. With so many responsives on the market now I think people are selling/trading theirs now. Before I get a ton of PM’s, I don’t have that many Walter’s now, they all went to friends who were looking for them. I just have my Blue one now, and that’s in the “will be buried with me” category 
My suggestions if you’re looking for one are: 1. Have money aside and ready, at least $200, and expect it to be dinged up at that price. 2. Put out a WTB add here and on the Facebook BST. 3. Be patient and regularly search and bump your WTB add.
Over the past two years when I’ve gone looking for an extra Walter it’s taken between 1-3 months to get it.
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You mean metal responsives here, yes? In your opinon, what does the walter really offer over all the other metal responsives out there now? Other than arbitrary rarity of course 
It’s a shame the Dark Magic II isn’t being made anymore. What has replaced it?
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Walter was designed by someone who pretty much only plays responsive, I think that is huge! So it was thought out in a way that unless that is your primary style you may miss things. The Alleycat is another that comes to mind that gets a lot right. The shape of Walter, the heavy rims, the gap, the finish. Designed with modern responsive play in mind. Downside with most all responsives these days, Walter included, is the maintenance. You need to keep up on lubing the bearing to maintain response. Alleycat nailed that with the A bearing, greased all the bearings on my Alleycat’s and have never done any bearing maintenance with them, just pad replacements.
A lot of it comes down to the play, until you play it it’s tough to describe. I own most all of the responsive yoyos that have come out in the last 6-8 years and Walter and the two Alleycat’s have been (IMO) the best responsives to come out. Flying V is another that was really well thought out, not only as a responsive, but as an unresponsive. Gamer is another that was really well thought out.
My biggest complaint with most of the responsives that have come out have been the response, 19mm pads just do not work that well for a responsive, they’re too small, they feel very slippy.
I LOVE my Deepstate (wont ever sell mine, and it gets played a lot), but I really wish it used the .555 pads instead of the flowgroove. Would love to see a ‘Deepstate 2’ with a few small tweaks to make it strictly a responsive yoyo.
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