Another question from a new thrower. I am trying to learn the snap start with an unresponsive yoyo. I have finally been able to get the yoyo spinning without a lot of wobble but I have been unable to bind at the lower speed.
I usually bind with about 1/3 to 1/4 of the string in the tail and move my hands until the yoyo binds. Do I need to try and start my bind closer to my throw hand to get more string involved. I know it probably just takes a lot of practice but I am looking for a little insight in how to start the bind.
I usually have to do a longer loop/tail, and after the bind catches, bring my throw hand closer to the yoyo so the yoyo is just winding the string, not climbing it. When it just climbs, it slows down and doesn’t wind all the way up. One way to practice this is to just drop the yoyo from your hand (don’t throw it) and try and bind it.
Keep practicing and you will increase your spin to where it’s easier to bind. Practice with a lighter responsive yo-yo. When you get a feel for how to grip it, you can snap it to a pretty fast rpm
I learned to snap start a yoyo after I heard a interview or something of @unklesteve saying “if you can’t snap start you’re not s**t”… Or something to that regard lol. I was like, ah dang ok I guess I need to learn to snap start then.
It’s like a snapping motion with a bit of wrist. There’s for sure a bit of feeling involved with it. It’s also much easier to learn on a more organic shaped yoyo.
Once it’s spinning and you have the tail, start the bind and then pull up a bit with your TH, then move your hand to meet the yoyo. After time you’ll be able to snap it up higher and higher so you don’t need to move your hand as much. I have a bad memory but I don’t remember many tutorials calling out that “pull up with your TH” bit.
I posted elsewhere that I would never, ever in my lifetime be able to do a snap start. A month later, guess I was wrong…reading all the tips here really helped, along with hundreds & hundreds of practice snaps. Swearing seems to help too. I can now retract the yoyo 2/3 of the way up and only need 3-5 safety throws afterwards! Yay.
My snap starts are different from what’s described here, so I’ll share on the off chance it helps someone out:
I snap with my nth. No wrist motion: it’s all in my thumb and middle finger. Keep fingertips on the same plane to avoid a wobbly spin. Should produce enough spin to do basic tricks, like brain twister
Since I snap nth, I do a forward bind, with a loop about 1/3 the total length of string (this is longer than I would normally use for a bind, but not much longer)
When I initiate the bind I don’t pinch the string. Instead, I flick my nth wrist towards myself to throw the loop around the yoyo. I aim my throw off plane, towards myself, and tug with th at the same time I flick my nth wrist.
Result: tight bind, no tail. I never need a safety throw after.
I’ve wondered if hand size or finger length plays into a good snap, but I only have one pair of hands so I am unable to test my hypothesis.
Not sure I could get a better snap with my nth. I may have to try it. I am pretty sure I need to start with a longer loop on the bind but I need to get my spin rpm’s up a bit more.
@IslandGuy , you should practice with both hands. I had to learn with my nth when I kind of injured my th thumb. Once you get the feel for the grip and how much ,pre-load?, you need to get that fast snap, you will be able to do it either way. It really is a lot like snapping your fingers, don’t grip it too tight.
