YoTricks Civility Review
Review by: Matthew Henry
2/3/2014
This is my first attempt at writing a YoYo review and I thought it would be a great idea for me to start with the NEW Civility Yoyo from YoTricks. Only fitting since it is their first attempt at building a high end aluminum throw and it is my first attempt at writing a review.
Back in early January 2013 YoTricks approached the Kickstarter community with the hopes of raising money to create a yoyo designed to help people learn the most advanced tricks. The throw they spent the prior year designing was called the Civility. The original amount YoTricks requested was $3500 dollars with the hopes of creating a small run. Approximately a month went by and the response YoTricks received from the yoyo community was overwhelming. YoTricks was able to gather more than 6 times their original goal amounting to $23,000 USD. Fast forward one year:
After a few production delays, adjustments and settling up with Kickstarter investors, the Civility yoyo was finally released January 31st 2014. Specs: Weight:69 Grams Diameter:55mm Width:42mm Bearing:Center-Trac Concave Bearing Response:Flow Groove Pads Available Colorways:Red, Blue, Green, Purple, Raw, Black Price: (At time of Review)$90 USD http://img.techpowerup.org/140203/20140203_163803.jpghttp://img.techpowerup.org/140203/20140203_163842.jpg Shipping and Packaging:
I ordered my Civility and used USPS Priority. The confirmation email, tracking, and shipping where all done with lightning speed. The only downside to the shipping was that a padded envelope was used opposed to a box. This to me wasnât the best option, I should know, I used to work for a shipping company and I experienced first hand how packages get treated sometimes. I really wish a box wouldâve been used instead of an envelope. (See pics below)
The Packaging was nothing special, the Civility came packaged in a plan brown container. Which was fine to me especially if the extra marketing cost was passed down to me to keep the yoyo cheaper. http://img.techpowerup.org/140203/Package2.jpghttp://img.techpowerup.org/140203/Package3.jpghttp://img.techpowerup.org/140203/Package4.jpg Looks and Feel:
The Civility looks very similar to One Drop Project, not surprising since Colin Leland had a big hand in designing this throw. However I should mention Onedrop did not participate in the production of the Civility.
The Civility has very simple elegant look to it. The finish is beautiful and the anodizing feels flawless against your skin. This throw begs for grinding and speaking of grinding I was able to pull off thumb, finger, and arm grinds with ease.
With itâs slightly rounded and gentle V-shape, the Civility felt very comfortable and stable in my hand. It never felt like I didnât have control of this yoyo. http://img.techpowerup.org/140203/Side1.jpghttp://img.techpowerup.org/140203/Front1.jpg Play and Performance:
For a 69 gram throw one may worry that the Civility will feel too heavy during play. One might also fear that your finger will take damage during extended sessions of play. Well⌠One would also be wrong!
Honestly the weight distribution on this throw is great! If I did not know how much this yoyo weighed, I would have guessed it was more in the range of 66 grams rather than close to 70.
I was able to go through my trick sets without issue. Speed combo, slacks, whips, and technical tricks all went smoothly.
So I decided to try out this throw in the arena it was specifically designed forâŚlearning Tricks. I chose 3 random New Tricks off the net and attempted to learn them. I was very impressed with how this throw reacted during this experiment. During long pauses the Civility kept its very powerful spin. I was also able to correct my position on the string very easily when landing badly. During all 3 tricks there was never a time I didnât feel in control of the Civility.
While spinning at the end of my string I didnât notice any wobble. It spun so smoothly and for such a long time, if it werenât for the slight clinging of my bearing I would have thought it stopped.
Final Thoughts:
While the Civility does not come in a splash design colorway (as of yet) nor is it the most flashy throw on the market, it definitely accomplishes what it was meant to beâŚa great metal throw for someone who wants to learn complicated tricks.
With a Price tag of just $90 bucks I would say it is competitively priced compared to other throws in its category. This fact alone might just be the tie breaker for someone who is in the market for such a yoyo. However with better known models and brands out on the market, only time will tell how well this throw ends up selling.
While I donât think it will end up as my Favorite Yoyo Ever I definitely have to say the Civility has found itâs way into my daily rotation for a very long time.
The Civility is definitely a pleasure to throw and I suggest picking one up if you have the means.
Fantastic review! Very well set out, detailed information and plenty of photos. The only thing I can think of that is missing (and this is a really minor quibble) is comparisons to other throws in terms of play/performance. Keep up the great work!
I think your size comparison pic would have been more effective, if you would have grouped the yoyos as âgap viewsâ.
When you look at side view images, that is exactly what you see⌠Side view.
I would have taken 2 sandwich view images. By sandwich views, I mean; set the Civility up for a gap view, between 2 of the yoyos from that group. Then post up another image of the Civility between the other 2 yoyos.
Size contrast is more effective when the yoyos are right next to each other and the viewersâ minds are naturally pulling the shape variations of the yoyos at the same time.
I am only mentioning this to you because you asked for feedback, most likely to make future reviews more effective in presentation.
âŚI really like your review. Very well written. Very Professionally done.
There is an old saying, âA picture is worth 10,000 wordsâ. Well, lol, I donât know if I agree with that number. But, even though side views do tell you âsomethingâ, gap views and side by side, gap views will/can tell you more.
Yep I requested feedbackâŚand what you suggest makes sense. Out of all the pics I took⌠the comparison was the most rushed out of all of them.
I think the new picture you suggest wouldâve been better.
Great review, I would really love to get it to help me make my own tricks but my parents are so cheap. I KNOW they have money for it. -_- The only bad thing was the size comparison picture, could have been taken better. You could have also compared it to other throws. Great review, keep it up!
Maybe a bit harsh but I do agree with the overall sentiment. Besides, thereâs nothing that the Civility will do that the Shutter wonât do just as well.
I think we all started off with simple small collectionsâŚand each one of us grew our collections from there. Working towards and wishing for more yoyoâs is one of the things that keeps this hobby and our community going ;D
Right. I never said he shouldnât pursue a bigger collection, all I said was to come on here and get mad at his parents for not buying him a $100 yoyo just cause he wanted it is unfair.
Itâs all good bud⌠I know what it feels like to really want a new yoyo i canât afford
NOTE to everyone else. Keep an eye out over at â â â â â â â â â â .com. I was contacted by them and they asked to use this review for their news letter and some other possible places.
