I just thought that this was odd.
When I first started on the forums a few months ago, there seemed to be a lot of positive talk about the Metal Drifter. Now, every time I ever see it mentioned, it is always being dissed.
Why the change of opinion?
I guess I havenāt really seen the non love towards the Drifter yet other than in one thread regarding a Dragonfly. I still love my Drifter, very smooth yoyo. Other than that, not sure why thereās the dislike towards the Drifterā¦perhaps the Raptor stole the spotlight?
I still love my Drifter and I have Raptors, FH2ās, FHZās, and some other High Ends. But I have to say the Drifter is still one of my Favs, mainly because when I found my old collection almost a yr ago I didnāt know much about all of these YoYo Web sites and other Companies other then Duncan and Yomega (Yomega being my main throws from my old collection). Well with me finding my old collection I decided to look up new tricks to learn only because when I origanally started throwing back in the day I only new the basics (from the Tricks Books that Came with YoYos) in which wasnāt much. In my search on the web for tricks I found this site and was in awe, chin dropped mouth wide open :o and was like where have I been. I was gone way to long lol, so after seeing what I found I was like I need some New Throws because these Yomega Raiders, Sabre Raiders and Brains arenāt gonna cut it. I was wondering if Toys R Us had any YoYos, not know that these High Ends where just that Internet Purchase for the High End stuff. But I wanted to swee what Toys R Us had and thats where I got my 1st Duncan Metal Drifter and the rest is history, Now I have like 15 new Throws all from this site. I went YoYo Gaga,lol. Itās like when ever I have extra cash I buy a new Throw, Wife complains alot. There just toys (yeah Expensive Big Kid Toys) Yeah Toys to most but not to me, itās like a new obsession. I bring a YoYo every where and YoYo every where and get some of the funniest looks, But mostly just get a Crowd asking how long Iāve been doing it, where I learned, am I gonna go to contests lol and I said I only been throwing Serious for almost a Year and I learned everything I know about it on the Internet and their like noway seriously in disbelief. As for the Contest, Iām not ready in the least but the people that get into watching are like āyou look good enough to meā I told em, Hop on the computer and watch a couple contest vids and then tell me if Iām ready. I just not quick enough on tricks and for some reason even though I land some cool and hard tricks I just donāt feel confident enough to try some of the really hard tricks let alone enter a contest. But anyway Back on topic. I feel that the Metal Drifter is not appreciated enough, Itās light and Floaty, Undersized, and Responsive out of the Box, nut a little bearing cleaning or new Bearing itās a pretty Sick Throw that can handle just about anything you throw at it, plus I leaned most of my tricks on a Drifter.
Its still being talked about, but ever since the Raptor came out, thats been the hype lately! Donāt worry, everyone still has love for the Metal Drifter! ;D
I was just noticing lately in the āHelp and Recommendations,ā a lot of post saying āDonāt get the Drifter, get (something else) insteadā
Well when you joined, it had been out for not long, most people where just getting their hands on it, and for 20$ they where very impressed.
That is my guess as to why you seen so much more positives then negatives. now people have had time to play with them compare them to other throws and give a āRealā opinion on how it plays. Which is IMOP not as good as even the 2010 fh2. Which costās less.
So now they are over the āOMG itās a metal for 20$!ā and are evaluating it on itās merits alone.
Donāt get me wrong it is a good piece of yoyo, but you can buy what is largely considered ābetter playā with less money.
So anyhow that is why I think you see more hateāin on it.
Donāt let what people think about it ruin it for you. If you like it play it. I have been throwing tom kuhn 3 in 1 no-jive, renegade, 09 YYF severe as my only throws I throw. Those yoyos where produced 10 years from each other, and they are make me just as happy. While my metal drifter sits in my desk drawer at work, as a back up yo.
I have nothing but love for the Metal Drifter.
Same question. different yoyo. The 888. Times and taste changes. The evolution of the yoyo and itās owners. Next on news 9.
The metal drifter is a great yo-yo for a really good price considering for a metal. The best part about it is that itās not cheaply made and could be a main contest throw. The thing I believe is that before 2010, Duncanās yo-yos were really responsive were really behind the times. Ever since 2010, they updated their hardcore line to fit more modern play. I also believe that they wanted to create a completely new yo-yo to be put on retail stores in order to catch the eye of potential new throwers. If you think about it, if you keep seeing the same yo-yo name (even though it was a new version) youād still think thereās nothing different.
Iām quite shocked to hear such words from the recommendation section. People should no that no yo-yo is better than another, and the metal drifter is no different. Donāt be discouraged from buying a metal drifter because of the hate. People nowadays are more used to those more expensive throws and have no appreciation for the hard work that was put into designing the yo-yo.
I personally love my Drifter. Throw it more than my DV888. Donāt be discouraged from buying because of a few opinions. The only thing keeping you from buying a yo-yo are your preferences (and your momās spending limitation).
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Drifter = Love
I got a bearing kit for like 6 bucks, tossed in the medium spacers and beefcaked (two hearings instead of one) it! Its half black and half gold (I traded halves with my daughter) and it plays better than almost every other throw I have. It gets more play than all but one. I call it my āBeefcaked Bumblebee Drifterā. The most stable throw I own.
I liked it after i took one of the friction sticker off, then it was unresponsive enough for me. I like the smooth curved design, itās comfortable. ;D
You know, that happened to me when I bought my FH2 last year. Previously, I saw the translucent reds, blues, greens, etc. at Toys R Us. I originally wanted one of those but on my next trip to TRU, there were only opaque colors available and the lime green caught my eye. I didnāt know there was a difference until after getting home, opening it up, and then reading about the freehand revision that was done. That made me more excited that I actually bought the āimproved/more modernā version.
When I bought my Throw Monkey, there was no real way to tell if it was a newer recessed one or the older one so I resorted to looking at the copyright to really tell.
Back to the drifter, I love mine. It honestly plays right up there with my Raptor, and my No. 9. Definitely worth itās $20. Iām sure if it were made with a special finish and full anodizing, it would have probably cost a bit more. I have mine running with 1 side siliconed, brass spacers (robbed my FH2010ās), and some poly string. Dead unresponsive, can arm grind this thing.
I have a metal drifter and its great but Im still waiting for the plastic drifter to come out
As soon as I bring up the point about siliconing my Metal Drifter, the silicone pad tearsā¦bummerā¦Either time to resilicone it or swap it with a Duncan silicone sticker thatās in my FH2010 as the 2010s seem to hold silicone pads a bit better.
I was just wondering, should I take one friction sticker off of my yoyo so itāll be unresponsive?
Yes, But you also should Take your Bearing and Clean in some Lighter Fluid or my favorite is Mineral Spirit and then spin it around a pen tip to spin Dry then youāll have an unresponsive yoyo. Try that
Yes, remove the 1 padā¦youāll now have a spare pad when the other wears out.
my metal drifter rocks!!
I love the Drifter! And I actually spent $30 on it because I bought from a local toy store-I like to support the little guy when I can. My reaction to it was actually the opposite of most people I think. I wasnāt terribly impressed by it at first for some reason (I donāt even remember why really), but it really grew on me over the next few months. I like it so much now and was actually going to use it in my first contest a couple months ago but it got miss placed that week. 
Duncan has been doing a great job lately, in my opinion, of putting out the best yo-yos for the money. The Drifter and Raptor a both great examples of this.
^I at first didnāt seem to have the āWow!ā feeling when I first opened mine either for some reasonā¦didnāt seem to feel as āsolidā as say my Maverick. I was still happy with it anyway. But after a few days and breaking it in, swaping out the spacers, and removing a pad, my thoughts suddenly changed. Today, I love my Drifter, feels very much like my Raptor but not having the nice finish the Raptor hasā¦meaning Iām not going to make a huge deal if a scratch happens as itās already silver to begin with. Lately, Iāve been giving the Drifter a lot of love.
When I first heard about the Drifter, I was stoked at the low price tag and how it looked like the metal FHZ. On the other hand, I began thinking it would perform like the Zombie with no real rim weight. In the end, Duncan made an excellent yo and I will recommend this to any kid or anyone else I come across who wants to get a nice yoyo that will grow with them. Now, back to messing with the Drifter!