Tom Kuhn Appreciation thread

I’m not sure this fits here but Tom Kuhn gets a shoutout from the Yoyo Man for his custom yoyos.

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Any information on the differences between these two?
I’m guessing the one on the right is the first run and that’s why it hasn’t got the back stamp. It’s super glossy and the signature is underneath the finish. I don’t know if you can tell from the photo but the one on the left is a matte finish.
The stamp also looks black on the glossy and red on the matte. Is that a stamp or laser?


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I have the exact same pair as you, with the same variations. One signed and more glossy, and one double-sided and more of a natural finish. I believe that the one-sided variation was created for Tom to autograph, possibly for a yo-yo event in the Bay Area in 2002. It is the less common of the two, and with Tom’s signature I am sure it is worth more. One thing to note; the signature on mine is on the gloss finish, not under it.

As for the darkens of the stamp, I’ve been looking into this for my book on Tom Kuhn Yo-Yos. This type of stamp is heat pressed into the yo-yo, not laser engraved. A similar process was used on the Beginners and Original yo-yos. The ‘color’ of the stamp has to do with multiple factors; the heat, the wood, and the pressure.

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Thanks for sharing this info Chris - mine is a blank back, medium dark stamp. Sadly, no personal signature.

Many of the BC-era regular woody’s all had light/partial stamps - the one I have in a Hummingbird box is nice and dark. I wonder if the “brand” that was being used was getting worn out by then.

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I am looking for photos of old No Jive cardstock boxes with price stickers on them, especially price stickers that also have a date. I am working on dating the release of the different colored cardstock boxes (and a chronological list of variations to the No Jive 3-in-1 yo-yo) and boxes with dated price stickers are very helpful. If you have one, please snap a photo and send it my way!

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Hi, Stephen! I hope the silver SB-2 I sent you last year is holding up well. :slight_smile:

It’s a little late, but the proper name for that blue/green colorway is “Gamma Ray.” Here’s mine from 1999:

I really like how the anodization looks like watercolor paint on them.

It’s the only anodized TK that I have, though I’d love to get a Tortoise Shell SB-2 some day.

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That is a wonderment! I would love to see the tortoiseshell one. The silver is fine. I have too many yoyos. I just discovered a mobile gamer that I have two of in the samecolor. I seem to have lost my marbles and have moved on to loosing my yoyos!

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I found a tortoiseshell from '92 in my local used comic/toy shop. Snatched it up real quick.

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i have a beautiful tom cat if you’re interested

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For the past year or so I have been writing a book on Tom Kuhn Custom Yo-Yos. This book will feature photos and details of over 300 individual Tom Kuhn Yo-Yos within its covers. I’m trying to get photos of as many Tom Kuhn Yo-Yo variations as I can to make this book as complete a reference to the company’s yo-yos as possible. I am hoping that you may be able to help me track down a few specific yo-yos that I still have not found:

If you have a personal anecdote about Tom Kuhn, or his yo-yos, or photos of Tom Kuhn or his yo-yos from the 70s and 80s, I’m interested in hearing about them. I’m also interested in any aluminum Pocket Rockets with splash anodization, and any oddities (e.g. Butterfly Smo-Bro, Walnut No Jive 3-in-1s, etc).

I am happy to make an offer, trade for other rare Tom Kuhns, or figure out how to best photograph the yo-yo for the book. Please help me in making this work as complete as I possibly can

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I’m pretty sure I sold that Cobalt SB4 with the lasered rims to Matt Wright @yoyobrothers in like 2015 or so. I don’t think there was ever another one.

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I feel like there has to be at least five of them floating around based on this old IG post:

@yoyobrothers - can y’all hook me up with some awesome photos (or sell/trade?).

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Yeah I want to say Brad only ended up getting one engraved though. It was awhile ago lol. Man that yo-yo was a hot mess. Played fine enough it just was a huge problem the way the kickstarter ran.

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These Regen Combos in this video are awesome! Some of the best POV footage, love your GoPro days.

Tom Kuhn No Jive 3 in 1 Wood Yo-Yo Complete MINT Condition | eBay

Were there many 3-in-1s produced that look like this one? I’ve always wanted to pick one up, but I really like matte/raw wood finishes as opposed to gloss. The one in the ad looks like it has a matte finish.

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I’m not sure that’s as matte as it seems.

Here is the listing that got to me today.


^Same throw after polishing the nut and wiping away the “smoker’s patina.”

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Some players swear by the Green Box years, they are different than the more common BC boxed versions.

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There were not a lot of No Jives made with the matte finish. They’re hard to come by and crappy eBay photos make it a guessing game. I’m not convinced that this eBay listing is a matte finish No Jive and it’s too high for me to take a chance on. I’ve tried to convince myself I’m right, but I have my doubts.

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Ugh. I can imagine the smell. On the plus side that No Jive looks like it’s solidly from the 1980s and has a much nicer color than the eBay posting.

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