So yeah, spin tops can be challenging, but maybe your next throw should be a top.
A wise man once told me that yo-yo people were not spin top people, but he was great at both, and juggled! Yes, the whole Duncan (Flambeau) trifecta. Call me a fanboy (many do) but shouldn’t you be able to do some yo-yo bangers, bust out some top tricks, and throw some clubs? It called how to be a player, people. A YYF fixed tip is only 6 bucks, expand your horizons, throw a top.
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In fact, picked up a Duncan imperial fixed tip just last week. Within the day I was able to get it spinning on the ground and even got it to my palm a couple of times.
Got a little ahead of myself when I saw the Stummol8, Love spin top in the YYE shop. I didn’t realize it was undersized! Can’t throw this thing to save my life. I really want to learn on a top with a bearing.
Any tips for undersized?
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I can’t do a lot of tricks but I still just enjoy throwing a top now and again. They can be a ton of fun and frustration at the same time. 
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make sure the tip is straight up when you let go, don’t throw too hard, and keep your hand very flat if you are throwing a boomerang, small tops are not forgiving.
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See if this helps
…
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I’ve got a few spin tops myself - an old wooden one and 3 Spintastics. One is a fixed tip I got free as a gift from a yoyo store, one is a bearing tip and the other is the larger “Trompo Grande”. I can make it spin (and also nearly put a dent in my wall).
I remember back in the 90s, I had taken a trip to Walgreens with my allowance to scoop up another Duncan (probably completing my Neo collection at the time) when I saw some spin tops. Needless to say, I ended up buying one and of course couldn’t figure it out. Eventually learned from somebody who used to play with them growing up and showed me how (Trompos were big in Mexico, kinda like the OG Beyblade, not sure if it’s still a thing these days).
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I discovered that if you want to give a Top throwing demonstration, do not do it in your mother-in-laws living room if she has Collectible glass wear on display.
I use to do this (what seems silly now) stunt. Somebody would be talking about tops. Eventually, somebody would ask me if I knew how to throw a top?
I would hesitantly say I w tossed a few… that’s all. Next thing ya know, here’s a top, show us a trick.
So…. No matter how much space I had, I would wind up the top and say I need more room to give it a toss. I’m left handed. So I would step forward with my right foot… then with my left foot… and then as I stepped forward on the right foot, I would throw the yo-yo between my legs. It would come over the top of my right thigh and land on my right palm.
I would toss it from palm to palm and then toss it up in the air and land it on my back. Immediately straighten up and let the top fall to the ground. Then pick up the yo-yo by the tip with the string looped and do a few gyros. Toss the yoyo up and catch it.
Hand the top back… and say, that’s the only thing I can do.
Sometimes people thought that was very impressive. And sometimes people just thought I was being a jerk and showing off.
So, I quit doing it, lol.
But honestly…. That was the only combo I learned specifically to do exactly what I did, lol.
I know very few top tricks.
So I was kinda like a Guitar player that sounds seriously good, but ONLY plays 1 song, lolol😂
Tops are a Blast, regardless. Tops are a big thing in Mexico. There’s some guys that make their own tops and they do a little busking in some of the town squares. And they do some tricks that are so amazing. They could probably join the circus.
I kind of shied away from learning tricks because of the fact that I am left-handed. I don’t believe the left-handed yo-yo string. But that being said I do believe in left-handed top string. Because one of the things that discouraged me decades ago was that when a left hander winds the top up with right handed string, The wind actually makes for a loose wind instead of a tight wind. And if you guys know anything about throwing a loose wind, you’ve broken a few things. Because the top will lock up somewhere on its way to fly and won’t go exactly where you want to go.
Then something semi magical happened. An old timer who is actually older than me believe it or not, he said you’re a southpaw. Do you throw the other way or just lefty? I told him no… I just throw tops left-handed. He said go to a store And buy yourself some curtain cord… He said lefties can seldom get a tight wind with right handed string. The twist goes the wrong way. He gets looser as you wind. He said curtain cord is Braided, So which stays nice and tight as you wrap it. That allows you to have more control on the release in more direction. And there’s much less chance of what’s called an errant throw, when the yo-yo Doesn’t go exactly where you wanted it to.
When Dale from yo-yo jam found out that I threw tops, he would send me the yo-yo jam tops that he made now and then. Most of them I have given to my buddy Yohans from yo-yo factory. He loves tops and he loved the yo-yo jam tops.
I thought I pretty much gave him everything? But several months ago when I was going through my mountain of stuff so to speak, I ended up finding several tops that I forgot I even had? Now that you’ve started this thread, I’m getting the urge to bust one out in the yard and see if I can still do my cool combo? If I can still hit it with a little practice that is, I will certainly videotape it and post it.
I have a top that Eric Wolfe made me as a birthday gift many many years ago. He machine it from clear polycarbonate or whatever? And you can see right through it like a pair of thick glasses. I will find it and post to pick up when I edit this reply. I have never had the heart to throw it because I figured if I missed a beat and it hit something it wouldn’t be beautiful anymore. . But it certainly looks sweet in the picture will show you exactly what I mean. I don’t know what happened to EWolff? He was one bad man. He made yo-yo’s. He modify yo-yo‘s he made tops he made custom kites. He was a team captain for the Chicago fire kite team. Many years ago with him at the hell they want some acrobatic, kite championships, etc. He’s quite an amazing guy. I haven’t talked to him for years. We used to talk every week. But life changes. People change things happen and people move on and people that seem to have things in common That were good subjects for conversation., End up being a little or no consequence in things fade away. Let me go find that top. It’s really slick.
PS…. Check out the date on that birthday greeting… 23 years ago! Maybe I should break down and throw that sucker? Man time flies doesn’t it?
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Thanks for that video! I think maybe I’m just throwing too hard. On the smaller top, I just can’t feel the string unwinding the way I can on the Imperial.
Can you guys recommend a good beginner top that has a bearing?
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The YYF elec-trick is ok, great for the money. I almost never play bearing tops, but the S8 Augusta is a fine top if you want to take advantage of the sale here. It comes with bearings, you can also play it fixed tip if you put in a shim under the washer on the top bearing and kind of lock it down.
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My hand slipped and I accidentally added four new spin tops to my cart and somehow managed to check out in the same fumble.
I hope other people have a similar accident.
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I just wish there was a way to snap start a top or something. I usually get burnt out on the constant winding before making much progress.
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There is definitely a way. However, it seems to be the most difficult thing to do with a top.
But If you play Koma, there’s a wind start like an engineers wind up on a yo-yo.
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That’s how tops play out at club. Excitement followed by boredom as the constant winding kicks in
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When learning tops it helps to have a teacher winding a different top while you’re throwing 
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In fairness, that describes the experience most folks have with yo-yos too. It’s all fun and games until they get tired of trying to wind the yo-yo.
It’s certainly a challenge to get anywhere with tops, but much the same can be said about learning advanced yo-yo tricks.
If you stick with it long enough to get past the typical road blocks, it’s very fun and rewarding. At least now there are some great spintop tutorials on YouTube.
@trycatchthrow , having to hold the top like that is usually because the string is too long. Try maybe 17 wraps around your tiny top.
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I will try shortening.
What do you know? A shorter string and I didn’t have to tilt!
Edit: 13 wraps seems like the sweet spot.
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Spin top
Pros:
- TBD
Cons:
- Not a yoyo
- Not RBC shaped
- Not a yoyo shaped like and RBC
Yoyo
Pros:
- Is a yoyo
- There is an RBC shaped yoyo
- There is in fact a yoyo that can be obtained that has resemblance to a RBC
Cons:
- Not all yoyos are RBC shaped
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If the string is too short, you need to tip away from your body. That’s part of the fun of experimenting with tops. You start to learn how to make adjustments and work with what you have.
It can really make you a string snob though
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