What did you get in the mail, 2022?

[Hanker]

@mable

There’s obviously a happy middle ground, One Drop is a good example

Honestly I wouldn’t really say that OneDrop is in a happy middle ground. I think they’ve managed to figure out the vibe and bearing post situation because a lot of OneDrops are very, very smooth nowadays, even their side effect yo-yos. My Aitch is super smooth and the bearing comes out with little effort, which I appreciate a lot. I think OneDrop can achieve such a feat thanks to their insane tolerances in the bearing post (I think it’s like 0.005mm or something crazy like that, which is even tighter than aerospace and NASA tolerances) and them machining their own 10 ball bearings (yes bearings play a huge role as well). Here’s some comments from OneDrop talking about the bearing post and vibe situation:

Is my yo-yo supposed to squeak?

I’m glad you raised this topic. The agreed upon terminology is “Bearing Post”. “Bearing Seat” is the ledge that the inner race of bearing sits on and you definitely don’t want to sand that. That might seem too pedantic but it’s an important distinction. Also, do we really accept that it’s normal to have to sand a new product that you just bought? If it needs sanding, shouldn’t that be done before it’s sold? Speaking of bearing posts and the now very common tight bearing posts, I feel it’…

Thoughts on "Made in China"

I disagree that there isn’t a difference in quality. In order to have a metal yoyo with a retail price of $40 means that something somewhere was sacrificed. Magic doesn’t exist yet so some corner or corners were cut. Could be cheap/exploited labor. Could be cheaper materials. Could be what level of tolerance is being held. Could be other things. Just be aware you aren’t getting something for nothing. Does this result in yoyos that play different? Generally not and that’s the sentiment I…

The things that OneDrop is doing to sell a smooth yoyo that you can easily remove the bearing from is just mind blowing.

@hobbygod

Brands like OD/ART can get away with it

Frankly, A-RT can get away with anything at this point. It’s now on brand for them to sell yo-yos with defects like dings, ano flaws, scratches and vibe at full price (which are sky high [a monometal for $140, really?] for subpar quality control and some aren’t even USA or Canada made) and people will defend them and say that if you don’t like it, don’t buy their yo-yos. Nevertheless, it doesn’t change the fact that their quality control is basically non-existent and they’re perfectly happy with selling what most other brands would consider B-grades at full price with an A-grade tag.