This isn’t a full blown review, just thought people could post their opinions here as i think a few people ordered these.
Just gonna do this in quick bullet form as i’m tired, but wanted people to know about the Leo Sniper before they sell out again. It’s also sold as the YoYoLaboratory Style, although the Leo Sniper is the same price($160) and imo looks better and is a more compelling package overall.
Specs:
Weight (g) 66.5
Diameter (mm) 55.95
Width (mm) 39.83
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Super interesting design. D-bearing, brass weight rings that make up almost 50% of the mass of the yoyo, 7075 body, narrow, but not overly so.
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Came with an off-brand concave bearing(i.e. not a Dif-e-Yo KK), but that doesn’t really concern me as i’ve never noticed an appreciable difference between $15 KKs and $2 chinese concave bearings. Stock bearing was super smooth and literally silent, the kind of quiet that usually accompanies an over-lubed responsive bearing, but it wasn’t responsive, although i suspect a cleaning wouldn’t hurt, but didn’t bother me or seem to hamper performance.
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Nice packaging. Comes in a nice clear box with all sorts of labeling that probably says interesting stuff if you know Japanese. Also comes with a pair of IrPads(not installed, has another unknown set of pads pre-installed), sticker, and 25 page manga(Japanese only).
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Sturm Panzer’s whole thing seems to be about this backstory and mangas and characters and such, probably easier to follow if you know Japanese, but still a pretty interesting concept, and it all seems well done so i feel like it’s a value-add, especially if you can read it, but even if not it’s pretty fun to look at.
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Long story short, i feel pretty safe in saying that this is without a doubt the best D-bearing yoyo ever made(Fragment and Uragment in an extremely close 2nd). Even if it had a C bearing i’d say it was one of the top C-bearing yoyos made, but in a currently-limited D-bearing market there’s seriously no contest.
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D-bearings are awesome, i really enjoy them. I feel most of the animosity towards them is due to older narrow-gapped and overly-responsive designs that would lead to them biting you unexpectedly, but i believe this is a design flaw and nothing to do with the bearing. The feel of spin they impart is seriously unique and the way they bind and return as well as their stability is quite different than the standard C.
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If i had to compare it to another yoyo the first thing that comes to mind is the yoyorecreation Triplet. The shape is slightly similar, although the Leo’s shape is more interesting, but in terms of width and overall feel in the hand they’re similar. On a throw they’re quite different with the Leo of course being quite a bit lighter and quicker due to weight and bearing, but probably the closest comparison i can think of. Similar to the Triplet it’s basically all catch zone, so the slightly narrow width isn’t a hinderance at all, and actually really welcome when doing tricks that require cutting through close segments. I don’t play 3A, but if i did this would be the ultimate yoyo i bet.
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Stickers in the hub. I thought these would be super tacky and i’d instantly peel them off, and to be fair i am still curious what’s underneath and how it would look without them, but i actually like them. They’re super high quality, perfectly centered, have unique graphics, and a nice glittery sparkle effect that looks great when spinning. They’re that kind of domed, thick, curved, almost squishy sticker, which is much better than a 2D sticker would have looked.
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Play. I’m bad at yoyo reviews and words are terrible at describing yoyos, but it’s everything you’d want a high-end yoyo to be, and honestly even at $200 i’d think it was fairly priced. The best thing about it is how unique it is. I mean in a world of what feels like hundreds of yoyo companies, this is a yoyo that offers a package no one else comes close to. The weight rings give it stability and spin that’s just extraordinary, which when combined with the D-bearing makes it feel seriously fast, but not in the fast point A to point B way, but fast as in you can just feel how quick and strong the yoyo spins. It’s also really stable, binds like you’d expect and is just great. I dunno how to describe it, but i own and have owned nearly every high-end yoyo there is for the most part, including every YYR save some protos i haven’t tracked down yet, and on first throw the Leo made me say “wow” out loud, like a weirdo.
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To any manufacturers reading this, take note, i ONLY bought this because of the D-bearing. Like i said it would be a great C-bearing yoyo, but i own a YYR Draupnir, which imo is the finest C-bearing yoyo ever made, so i probably wouldn’t have shelled out $160 for this otherwise, but D-bearings are unique, and rare, and amazing, and a market that imo is about to blow up, so i’d really like for more companies to look at either releasing small bearing versions of their current throws, or design modern D-bearing yoyos that really play on the strengths they offer.
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Anyway i think Sturm Panzer are a company that’s about to become super popular. The Stealth Ogre was crazy unique and had tons of praise(although i haven’t had the good fortune to play one, but will hopefully grab one in the future), and in a world of yoyos that are all so similar they’re one of the only companies that leaves me genuinely excited about what they may release next. Design, price, play, their whole package is on point.
Would definitely recommend anyone grab one if they’ve been thinking about it. Last time they released they sold out within a few days, they’re still in stock as of this post, but i suspect once word gets out they might disappear for a bit again. If you’re tired of the same ol’ 56x44 67g C-bearing cookie cutter yoyos, then give the Leo Sniper a try, it’ll definitely surprise you.
I hope to post some more comparison impressions as i play with the Leo Sniper and my other yoyos some more, and will add those to this thread. This turned into a lot longer post than it’d wanted, ugh i’ve become everything i hate, apologies, anyway enjoy.
