Just a random thought that has been crossing my mind this past week.
Why did we as a community for the most part move away from undersized yo-yos?
I’m talking about the <51mm range.
Thanks.
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Hmm I’m really not sure. I dig undersized throws, but I never ran my own yoyo company to produce any
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It could have something to do with the lack of spin time when compared to the regular-sized throws.
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They were really popular in the early 2000s and into 2010, but I’m seeing that the community is more into 54mm+ now.
Just checking if there is some performance benefit that’s been discovered, or is it more of a fad (which is my guess).
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Smaller yo-yos just make the new style hard. I practice everyday and when I try a smaller yo-yo such as my Project 2, it’s much harder to land very big and flashy tricks. Nowadays people are going really fast and typically smaller yo-yos just can’t really handle it. When go faster with my smaller yo-yos they tilt even when they’re at a high rpm. And trust me it’s now me messing up. I think smaller yo-yos are now more for fun they are for any competition. For those maybe thinking all I care about is competition, I don’t. I love yo-yos that are just fun and older and generally don’t reach for real performance driven yo-yos such as the invaders much die. Also why my yo-yo isn’t necessary designed for all competition tricks such as finger spins
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Yeah, competitive throwing has driven a marketplace trend towards bigger yoyos. Not just larger in diameter, but larger in width too. It won’t be long before 58mm throws will be considered “undersized”. 
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Wouldn’t that be width based though?
Genuinely asking. In your explanation you used the Project 2. An already smaller width than current market (not counting the flats that most yo-yos of that time had) yoyo to modern stuff.
That’s what I’m thinking too, but with advances in machining having bi metals so readily made and available I don’t see why. To me width is the real factor for landing tricks.
Keep in mind, I am nowhere near a professional level thrower.
I think it’s a lot to do with how the yoyo feels too. “Floaty” yoyos have seem to have overtaken the market, and undersized yoyos generally feel more “solid” than larger yoyos. You’d have to make a 50mm yoyo much lighter than a 56mm yoyo to achieve that “floaty” feeling, and then you’d be sacrificing stability due to a decrease in weight.
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That’s more of an answer that I can understand, but still leans more to fad than performance.
Thanks
It is width based too. But you don’t really want a really wide and small yo-yo. Atleast I don’t want a bunch of those. Also most smaller yo-yos feel a lot heavier and can feel like a rock. Bigger yo-yos, such as the T1 and the Chief are floatier and feel lighter
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Personally I like small. So far have made a 40x40 that is just a great little pocket carry. Will it win a comp? Probably not but it’s a great little one.
I’d love to see more come back.
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Yeah, I always thought that 40x50x60 (width-diameter-weight) would make for an ideal undersized yoyo form factor.
Yeah I’m not far away.
Thinking 51x42x60ish
I also haven’t played any undersized yo-yos in a while to recall that “solid” feel other than the Battosai, and yeah it’s no doubt undersized and solid.
I don’t remember the old 888s or Wooly Marmots being solid. It’s been a long time though.
Are you referring to the Difeyo XS? I’m an old man dude lol.
Wooly Marmot isn’t solid. It’s really light and floaty. But not stable enough
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So is a safe assumption based on that:
- must be “floaty”
- must be more stable than 2000s highwall designs
- must have a competitive width
Thoughts?
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Basically yeah