Pros:
-This thing is smooth, and at $10 new and readily available at every Toys R Us I’ve been to lately, it’s a no-brainer if you want something to toss around while you’re on the phone, or just for stress relief at work or whatever.
-
It comes with inserts that take it from a pretty responsive modified imperial shape to a full-on butterfly with minimal response that works pretty well for intermediate string tricks.
-
For a guy who was into yo-yos in the 90s when I was 10-13 this feels very much like an upgrade to the Yomega Fireball etc… that I was used to playing with, but with a more comfortable shape and a steel bearing as opposed to the plastic ones the old (and possibly new, haven’t bought one in 20 years) Yomegas came with.
Cons:
It was pretty hard to modify to the butterfly shape, and the inserts didn’t really add enough weight to make it worth it.
While more useful in butterfly shape for string tricks, it winds up quickly and is still a little too responsive, especially when trying to learn new tricks (which seems to be the primary focus).
So let me just say, I really like this yo-yo. It was my dive back in to higher performance after being out of the game since I was a kid. Sure, I kept up with my basic tricks and would randomly pick up old stock BC yo-yos and cheap duncan imperials when I knew I’d be bored somewhere and needed something to do (I go on lots of work conferences that take a whole week, but they need me for like, 2 hours). This was a step forward for me.
I prefer the modified imperial shape on it as opposed to its “upgraded” butterfly. Its a neat gimmick, but I have a YYF Fast 201 that adjusts easier and has a better weight. The pro Z is no slouch, though. With a sleep time around 45 seconds and a rather forgiving, yet responsive return, its a perfect yo-yo to learn on or just get back up to speed on basics. Its probably going to live in my desk at work, since its so quiet and it’ll be nice to use wandering around downtown during lunch or on calls.