First let me say thank you to everyone who responded to my last post about getting back into yo-yoing. I truly appreciate you welcoming me to the forum and all the incredible help and advice you provided.
After looking at, reading about, watching videos on, all of the options you gave me as far as a great yo-yo to get back into it, I’ve decided to go with the Shooting Star yo-yo and use it as unresponsive. Now I just need to narrow my color choice from four down to one.
When I order the yo-yo (from YoYoExpert of course) I would like to order several other items, but being away from yo-yoing so long I’m not sure what I should purchase. So I’m hoping you can help me once again.
Here is what I’m planning on ordering when I order the Shooting Star, but I’m not sure what type/brand/amount/etc. I should order.
a) extra string for the Shooting Star
b) lube for the Shooting Star
c) string for my Yomega Raider responsive yo-yo*
d) lube for my Yomega Raider*
e) new bearing (and possible axle) for my Yomega Raider (edit: want it to remain responsive)*
*to be honest, instead of ordering all of this for my Raider, I thought about ordering a new responsive yoyo at the same time I order the Shooting Star, but don’t figure there is a responsive yo-yo the same quality as my Raider for as cheap as me replacing those items on my Raider (although the AoE and Arrow Elite have been mentioned here)
Again, I’m not sure what I should be buying in each of those situations so any guidance you can give will be greatly appreciated.
For lube, me personally I don’t think it matters what brand you use that much
For responsive, you want to buy thick lube (loop / response thicker), for unresponsive you need thin lube (long spin thinner)
For bearings: here’s a recent thread that might help.
(They are talking about unresponsive bearings though and idk if you would want responsive or unresponsive)
I don’t know much about the raider so i don’t know what that would need as much as the shooting star.
I tried to help with what I could! Hopefully you find this helpful
For your Raider bearing just Google MR84 bearing. They are 4x8x3 and any one will do. On your Raider. Was it ever “cranked” modded? Tightened and tightened and tightened until it was very responsive?
I ask this because as this narrows the gap, it will affect what string you buy. String thickness will have a major impact on responsiveness, especially on a looper like a Raider.
Unresponsives and loopers will be affected differently by string so it’s difficult to recommend one string to rule them all. String composition will change the way your whole setup feels and plays. There have been many fine suggestions given on string here and I’ll add, check out Zipline strings as well. I’ve been using their Slushie strings for my loopers, including Raider, and I love them. Also I just love the Executive Class lite for most of my others. Hope this helps.
Do NOT get fat string for the raider haha. That thing will snag up on it. I dont have one, but fat string on a slim yoyo like that is probably not great.
Maybe get like a little sample pack or something so you can try the string sizes. But if you get like 100 strings maybe go with regular size first for both. Brand doesnt matter most that arent just stock will be good string until you find your favorite, id go with something more affordable to you now. Regular will be just fine on both of em.
Like i said, i dont have a raider but did look at it. It should be able to do all the looping you want. But also you should be able to do things like stalls on it. Check out the Fixed Axle February threads for the trick videos. You can probably do all of those tricks on the raider. It doesnt count as fixed axle but it should for modern responsive march. But a lot of the tricks are probably doable on it.
i just went through the same thing 100% a few months ago , i ended up getting 2 shooting Stars …1 responsive and the other unresponsive ,so as not to keep switching out bearings . i ended up with normal kitty for my responsive and kitty fat for unresponsive . i also ended up buying a NEW ICEBERG and SPEEDAHOLIC FX , because i couldn’t resist , they are waiting for me to use , once i master the SHOOTING STARS …i ended up getting a few replacement pads and a couple of spare bearings …concave…so as to save on future shipping …will need eventually …good luck JACK
Most modern axles are merely set screws with Allen heads on them. Loopers are different though. They have more of an actual axle, ie. not threaded in the middle. It takes a bit more to remove those. But loopers won’t need a bearing tool, the bearings just slide down the axle. For the others, there will be one tool that will remove C bearings, and a different one for A, D, and MR85. ZGRT makes one called the Throw Key that will do both, though for Cs I’ve found the one from Magic Yo-yo to work better.
Half spec bearing just means it’s a slim(responsive) c bearing so normal bearing removal to will work for that and when u have it setup responsive as well
From what I’ve read, I need ‘standard’ string for the Freehand One responsive I’m ordering and ‘fat’ string for the Shooting Star unresponsive I’m ordering. Is this correct?
So when I went to look at strings, the less costly strings such as Sochi strings, Monkey Finger Vines, and Eagles strings allow me to select either normal or fat. But the string choices from YoYo String Lab don’t seem to offer that choice, so I’m not sure if they are for a responsive (thinner) or a unresponsive (thicker) yo yo.
I’m not advanced enough to tell the difference in string right now, but I would like to know if the following strings are meant for responsive or unresponsive yo-yos.
- YoYo String Lab Type X - YoYo String Lab AMMO - YoYo String Lab Venom - YoYo String Lab Plutonium - YoYo String Lab Ka-Pow!
I plan on ordering a couple ten packs from Sochi (10 fat, 10 normal) and Kitty String First Class (10 normal) since they seem to get pretty good reviews and are on the cheaper side.
Yo strings don’t really work like this you can use thin—super fat for either responsive or unresponsive yo-yos. It depends on the Yoyo and response set up. You’re super new and I wouldn’t worry much about string until you advance into slacks and lacerations. I would just get a 10 pack of thin,normal, and fat of kitty strings or original throw strings. This will keep you covered so you can decide which thickness you like for each Yoyo the best. This is just my opinion tho.
I like to use thin string on my Freehand 1. Seems to give longer spins and still binds/returns just fine. I use iyoyo slackies in thin that I already happened to have. I know some people prefer normal/fat string for the freehand as well. Just depends on what you like.
Right now i own a 100 pack of really thin string made by Rain City Skills because i own their micro yoyos. I also own a BUNCH of regular size string. I have maybe a handful of thick strings and I dont think im using any of them right now.
I hate when my yoyos snag, so no matter the style i prefer the thinner string. I suppose thick string is nice if you do a ton if laceration tricks or like go horizontal or maybe go really fast. But i dont, and since i play slow my yoyo spends more time on the string. The thicker the string the more drag.
Usually my string choice, for me at my level, is just based on how narrow the yoyo gap is. If normal string is too thick i go to my super thin string. I personally never felt the need for thick.
If you cant decide, regular should cover you everywhere until you feel the urge for change. Nothing against thick string either, just might be something you are over thinking a bit on this one.
As a new player, generic string should suit your needs. For looping I prefer cotton string but it can be hard to fine. A 50/50 (slick 8) cotton/poly blend works well too.
For string tricks I use slick 6, another 50/50 cotton/poly blend. Most people prefer other types though.
As for lube for the Raider, a can of 3-in-1 Multipurpose Lubricant will work nicely.
