Hey everyone, thanks for stopping by to read this review.
After hearing a lot of buzz about One Drop and how great their yoyos and bearings are, I finally broke down to try one out and see for myself. I have to admit that at first I was not attracted at all to their style of shapes and colors as they seem so dull, flat and plain looking. And so, I never even bothered to look at them in the past. However now, my opinion has been swayed and fortunately for me they have Black!
Hijacked Specs from somewhere else:
Base Weight (two halves, response pad, bearing): 58.8 grams
Weight with aluminum spikes: 63 grams
Weight with brass domes: 66.4 grams
Width: 40.9mm
Diameter: 54mm
Stock Response: Flow Groove
Gap Width: 4.34mm
Bearing Size: Large (C) stainless steel (One Drop 10 Ball Bearing)
Finish: Pyramatte™ (Semi bead blasted tumble finish) and anodized.
Appearance: Once I actually saw it in person I gotta say that I fell in love…hehe. I thought OH… HOW SWEET IS THIS!! Actually said it out loud too. Yet another example of how online pics just don’t capture the real look. The 54 is attractive to me for it’s name and overall simplicity as it’s not a complicated looking yoyo. It’s fine pinstripe inner circle and number reminds a lot of the Art Deco period of the early 20th century. Simple, plain, smooth, refined and elegant. The aforementioned combined with a shiny aluminum spike contrasts it into a black leather and spikes biker type feel hehe. I really like it.
The box it comes with is a lot smaller than what I expected. Somehow I got the idea that it’d be a larger box but Nope, this box is so strict that the top of the yoyo is flush with the box. In plain language, it just fits. There is a small hole in the front too, which could simply be for ventilation.
Play/ Feel: The feel of this yoyo is very very smooth, soft, supple and plush in the hand, especially on the returns. My understanding is that it has a Pyramatte finish. This is a trademarked finish that is a semi bead blasted tumble finish. So what does this mean for us?? Well… it’s AWESOME for grinding!!
The play for this yoyo is so excellent all around and can meet and exceed many players’ expectations at this level. It has excellent excellent balance, stability and momentum. The 54 has a nice wide catch zone making catches effortless. On the string the 54 is very floaty and smooth and boy can it grind! Arm, finger, palm, thumb or transfers, it can handle it all easily and there’s enough juice to keep going after your grind! The inner rim by the way, feels similar to the 888x just to give you an idea. There are no snags or drag during sidestyle play thanks to it’s low walled gap. And with it’s superior float, you can hop, or black hops all day with this too. The flow groove response is great and powerful, making binds really tight with no slippage. Feeeeeel the power!!
The side effects are basically axles with weighted end caps that you can easily replace by popping them in or out. The 54 yoyo comes stock with two sets of side effects; one aluminum and one brass set. With the aluminum spikes, the yoyo weighs 63 grams, and with the brass domes it weighs just over 66 grams. Personally, I don’t like the brass color so I tend to stick with the sharp silvery aluminum and black look! Plus, One Drop has other weights available for just $10 bucks so you can fine tune your preferences even further. The dynamics of these axles is very interesting to observe because although they add center weight, they do not reduce the rim weight effect on spin like some other spike yoyos that I\ve tried. Perhaps because the side effects are not actually part of the yoyo halves, is what makes the difference.
When comparing it to throws with weight rings or side caps, I’d say these are very comparable. But I do believe weight rings provide a bit more momentum than center weights do. Also One thing of notice is that the axles do slow the yoyo down a bit in terms of tempo (not spin). In other words this is not a really fast player. I feel it plays slower than one would expect at both it’s weight settings but it doesn’t matter to me… the thing plays awesome!
The 10 ball bearing is everything I had heard of in terms of performance. It is smooth, long spinning and just plain great. And Quiet! Well it’s still new so I don’t know how loud it will be when it’s broken in. The minor pet peeve I have with the bearing though, is that it has beveled corners. I don’t like this because it makes me feel that the width of the bearing is narrower than it should be on top. I don’t see why it can’t be straight across like a Spec bearing for instance and have a 90 degree edge. However, still… this does not impact play for me at all. It’s just a pet peeve of mine.
A final point to be aware of is when you tighten the halves together, it’s hard to know when to stop as it feels real soft all the way through. It could be because of the O rings holding the side effects in place This is one of those yoyos that you might overtighten if you are not cautious so I stop turning as soon as it feels snug.
Conclusion: I really, really like the 54 as I find it to be a great performer for any level trick and I am more than satisfied with it. I also like it because the 54 has a very relaxing and refined feel to it that makes for soothing and stress free play. It is definitely a safe bet for any yoyo enthusiast and I highly recommend it.
