Hi guys, I’m really confused because I cant decide which yo yo im going to buy. I want to buy cheap yo-yos because I’m still a beginner(not an absolute beginner, i can do all intermediate frontmount tricks). Can you help me decide? Here are the list the yo yos i consider to buy and the reasons.
Duncan FHZ: YoExpert says that it is Duncan’s premiere string trick yo-yo and its cheap, I can turn it into an unresponsive yo yo by just removing one silicone sticker and people in this site say that it is still slightly responsive (which is great for me).
Yoyofactory Whip Ann Connoly version: It’s unresponsive, cheap, i want to learn how to bind, people in this site say that it becomes responsive
Duncan Metal Drifter: Because it’s the cheapest aluminum yo yo available, looks cool, YoExpert says its great for beginners
Yoyojam Legacy: Its for beginner, intermediate, advanced (i looked at all the categories and found this on all of three of them) designed by André Boulay to be the ultimate in learning both beginner and advanced string tricks
And last but not least, which pad lasts longer: the Response Pads for YYF and YYJ or the Duncan Silicone Pad? Im asking this because I can’t always go to the shop to buy extra pads because my shop is like 50 miles away from my house and Im just a student and I cant drive. ???
I have a legacy 1 and I’ve only had to replace the response once. I really like the metal drifter it plays nicely and I use it instead of my DMII sometimes but I’ve replaced it’s response 4 times in a yr.
I gotta disagree with YYE on this one. Duncan makes a LOT of better stuff than the FHZ. You’ll want to clean the bearing out using solvents, such as mineral spirits or pure acetone. From other people’s description, it sounds like these are darn near impossible to get in the Phillipines. Paint thinner works too. Even so, the gap is a bit small, and so you’ll want to remove a sticker from the response system and maybe also get the Duncan Spacer kit to play with adjusting the gap. Otherwise, the yoyo ranges from semi-responsive to very responsive. The friction stickers don’t last long(I can wear a set out in a day). I think the newer FHZ Pulse uses the silicone stickers. I forget, I’d have to open mine up. The silicone stickers last a good long time.
You’ll learn to bind quickly, so focus on full unresponsive play. You’re ready for it.
You’ll want to master the bind return, which isn’t that hard to do. Don’t get the Whip(any version) at this point. The light weight will give you less spin times. For now, get something heavier. The Whip is a great yoyo, but not now.
I again disagree. The bearings come gunked up and in need of a serious cleaning and depending on the version of metal drifter, you may need to clean the bearing and/or remove a sticker. It’s not a bad yoyo, but you don’t want to deal with issues. You’re better off saving up for something else. The only advantage it has is it includes counterweight since it was designed with 5A in mind.
OK, we’re heading in the right direction. The Legacy II has a good sized and weight, plus 2 bearings, letting you go from beginner to advance pretty much as far as you want to go. The pre-installed narrow bearing lets the yoyo play responsive, while the SPEED bearing included gives you full unresponsive play by widening the gap. The higher inner walls make this yoyo not so ideal for horizontal play, but if you’re getting that far, you’ll have upgraded to something else anyways. The Dark Magic II is better, but this yoyo, despite it’s price, is really, REALLY good. I had to get one so I’d stop playing with the one my kid got.
While it may sound like more work, I would strongly suggest a YoYoJam Classic with a YoYoJam SPEED bearing. Leave the response with the stock rubber rings, which should last an insanely long time. The shape gives you a more generous catch zone, good weight, good size. Truly an amazing plastic. The slim bearing pre-installed gives you responsive play, while the purchased bearing gives you unresponsive play. I wouldn’t recommend this if I didn’t have it and believe in it. This is an amazing plastic.
It depends on how you play. Whatever you buy, you may wish to invest in a 4 or 8 pack of silicone stickers if you go Duncan or a couple of pairs of YYJ response pads. If you get the Classic, response pads can be optional.
Please note, I don’t dislike Duncan. I’m just relaying my experiences and also my recommendations. I have ALL the stuff you’re interested in and been down that road. I have a lot of Duncan stuff and am planning more soon. The Flipside, if you can get it, would be an ideal choice. For around $20, you get a silicone pad response, an SPR type system that lets you change between A and C sized bearings, and it includes an A bearing for responsive play and a C bearing for unresponsive play. Note: you can get unresponsive performance out of A-sized bearings. My future Duncan purchases include an Echo and a Barracuda.
YoYoJam makes a lot of good stuff, and I think the Legacy II or the Classic would be an ideal way to go. Personally, I think the Classic with a siliconed response system and a YoYoJam Speed bearing is an awesome set-up. If you want to use YYJ response pads, that’s another great way to go too. The Legacy II gives you everything you need to get started though, so without having to do any user-friendly modifications(such as using flowable silicone for the response system), you’re done. Even so, the Classic with the stock rubber response rings and a YoYoJam Speed bearings is still a great yoyo. I’m even seeing people compete with this configuration.
Also, will it be wise if I buy the Duncan Metal Drifter because it’s my first metal yoyo? Or buy the Legacy because it can be responsive or unresponsive (but both of them can do that). Im still confused between my top 2 choices. Im planning to buy this week, any advice?
Probably legacy. It’s like a rock: Indestructible and does what it needs to do… The Legacy two is WAY better than the first one (the one I have)because you can put a narrow bearing in it (the old one has plastic things that touch at the width of a regular bearing), The legacy also is nice and heavy for the front mount tricks. You may need to upgrade again (far down the road of tricks) because I dislike mine for grinds but that’s really it
The YYJ Speed bearing is included in the box of several YYJ yoyos, including the Legacy II, Chaser, DM2, SR-71, SFX, Hitman Pro, XCon Pro, Vexed and Speeder 2.
A thin bearing is pre-installed for responsive play. I just take that bearing out immediately and use the SPEED bearing as soon as I open it up.
Buy the Legacy II.
The Duncan Metal Drifter, if the new one, needs the bearing cleaned properly to get it unresponsive. The Duncan Silicone stickers last a good long time for the response system. If you can’t clean the bearing out, you can replace it with a different A-sized bearing, such as a CenterTrac or KK to get unresponsive play. I cleaned out the bearing in my kid’s Metal Drifter and it’s dead unresponsive. It’s also a newer one.
The Legacy II I feel performs better and you can change between responsive and unresponsive as simply and easily as changing out the bearing. The response pads last a long time and can be siliconed if you wish.
If you want a FHZ-like yoyo, get a ShinWoo Phantom. It is basically a FHZ improved in every single way.
Silicone compatible
Weight rim
Less vibe
A more comfortable diameter
All-in-one spacers (switching between narrow and wide gap by flipping over the spacers)
Cap art looks better (IMO)
Cheaper
There is also the large bearing PRO version, which I have not tried yet.
I would go with the whip from the ones you listed. But if you wanted something you didn’t mention yyj classic. Plays responsive the way it comes but get a wider c bearing and response pads and it plays great as a no responsive YoYo.
In YOYOJAM Legacy, can I play responsive without using the silicone pad because studio42 says that the other bearing is responsible for responsive play.
The yoyo ships with a half-width bearing pre-installed and you can immediately play responsive. There is a full width C bearing included in the package. If you put this full sized C bearing in, the yoyo plays unresponsive.
You WILL need the silicone pad, as that is the response system. If you don’t want to use it, that’s fine, but you’ll need to remove it and replace it with something else, such as flowable silicone. If you remove the silicone pads, not only will you not be able to play responsive, it will be darn near impossible to bind it back, and your throws will result in nearly no spin time.
Whip or Drifter. IMO, they are the best yo-yos out of that list for beginners. I have the Legacy 2 and it is super shaky. The only problem with the Whip is that it is very light, so it may be hard to control, especially with a longer string. So, if you have problems with a light yo-yo, get the Drifter.
