Opening: I have truly enjoyed being a yo-yo player of almost 6 years. Yo-yo’s have always been my stress reliever and study break throughout the years. While looking for a new skill toy to practice with, I decided to give spin tops a try since my grandmother brings me wooden spin tops from Mexico at times so I have a bit of experience using them. I wanted to buy a good spin top to practice tricks with since I do not know how to do anything impressive with the wooden ones. When Yoyofactory introduced both the Short Circuit and the Elec-Trick, I immediately knew I had to get one. Even better was the affordable price at which they came in. I decided to buy the Elec-Trick and give it a test. I have played with this spin top for about 1 week now and here is my review on it. Please do leave feedback on this since it is my first spin top review.
First Impressions: When I got the spin top, I immediately noticed how solid it felt weight wise. Not to heavy and not too light. I decided to get the solid green version instead of the light up version to save some money. The light up version would probably be a good option for someone with money and experience. I still love the solid green version even though it does not light up. I also ordered extra spin top string which I think is a bit different from yo-yo string, though not entirely sure. I immediately wanted to try this spin top and see how it played.
Play: Since I had no prior experience using bearing tipped spin tops, I right away noticed I would have to get a bit used to them. I cannot emphasize how durable this spin top is. It is very durable and it is able to take any hits to the ground with ease when I miss a boomerang. After about 2 days of practice I was able to land most of my boomerangs and I am now practicing more advanced tricks. The spin time on this spin top is impressive as it spins long enough to help me set up for the different tricks I practice, which is essential for any player getting into spin tops. Since I am a beginner I cannot really post more on play since my tricks are limited for now, so I will update this section accordingly.
Final Thoughts: I am truly happy I purchased this spin top since it has taken my skill from minimal to a lot more skills than I had before. If you are looking for a spin top that is very durable, has a long spin time and is at a affordable price, the YYF Elec-Trick is for you. Or if you want to truly go the beginners way the YYF Short Circuit can also be for you, although I did not purchase one. I am so into practicing spin tops right now that I even find myself not practicing yo-yo as much anymore. I did not quit yo-yo, just spin tops are my new thing as of now. What do you all think? Please leave comments and feedback. Thank you for reading.
Thanks for sharing your experience, I think it will help encourage folks who haven’t yet to give it a try. You have good review points but I read this more as a spinner’s log, star date 1. Keep coming back and share your status.
Spin top string is different from yo yo string in several ways; thicker, 3-ply instead of 2-ply, usually cotton no blends, no loop at one end, lasts much longer than yo-yo string, you can even wash it with your clothes (just don’t get it near any fabric softener).
You might pick up a fixed tip also, bearing tips are great but to get the full experience you should have both. The Short Circuit is fantastic.
Thanks a lot for the comments/ feedback. I liked the comment about washing the string with clothes since I did not know about this. I actually did try yo-yo string and it did not go well for me because of the reasons you mentioned about thickness and so forth. I am actually thinking about buying the spin top upgrade kit sometime in the future, although I am not sure if it will allow me to modify my spin top from bearing tipped to fixed tipped. You mentioned you read this more of a spinners log, can you maybe tell me how I could have done this so that it can be considered more of a review?
Special thanks by the way for the Spin Top trick ladder video posted by you. I am slowly progressing through the tricks provided in the video and it has helped me know what types of tricks are possible.
I may be a little old fashioned on this subject, but I would normally expect a product review from an expert who has tons of experience with tons of similar products, and be able to explain what specifically is good or bad about the product. Amazon is filled with reviews by non-experts who, on the one hand may have zero knowledge on the subject and may mislead others, but on the other hand a review from the perspective of a new user that is written well may help other new users with what to expect. So while a new user will not be able to elaborate on the technical subtleties, he can certainly state what is easy and what is frustrating about getting started. This perspective is more about the experience than the product itself in my opinion, so less like a review, more like a story, experience, log, etc. Don’t change a thing, you write well, this is just a minor (but interesting it think) observation.
I’m wondering if I should have gotten the non LED version as these just spin sideways, although on the tip, no matter how they’re thrown? Top heavy maybe with the batteries and lights if that even matters on tops? My bearing king’s do fine but I really don’t know much at all about spin tops. I’ve tried different hand positions from palm up to palm down, arm positions and throw angles (high to low, level, etc.), but nothing works for the LEDs and me.
Glad you like yours and I may have to give the solid top a go! Nice overview/review too!
I have thrown the LED Elec-trick and it spun fine for me, I don’t remember it being weird or anything… If you are using the stock strings on your BK’s, they are very short, and may have gotten used to that… Is the tip pointed toward you after it unwinds?
I’m sure it’s just me then. I’ve read through your post which were a great help and informative but the LED still gets me? My bearing king has a custom string I made back when I still made my own yoyo strings. I threw the stock away but I’m pretty sure I made it longer.
The tip is usually pointed away from me. I’m going to watch some videos and see if I can make some changes to get me working right.
There’s is correlation between the length and thickness of the string, and the weight and diameter of the top. The short answer to the equation is to find the right distance to wrap up the barrel. I don’t have the Elec-Trick, but I have received countless tops that came with too short a string. If you’re lucky, it’s too long, and you can shorten it.
If it is coming off pointed away from you, the string is too short. This makes sense because the more upper body weight, the longer the string needs to be. So, if you don’t have longer string, throw with your palm cradled underneath the top and the tip pointed straight out away from you, or even down toward the ground a bit. You may have already tried this :-\
I definitely have had to do that with many stock strings. It works fine, but it’s not ideal. You can go to the hardware store and buy cotton string, and cut it to the right length. It’s not the best string, but at least you can get a good length.
There is someone on here who makes excellent string, but doesn’t charge enough. He made some for me, and I still feel guilty to this day for not just sending him some extra money! ;D
Nah, I got a bunch of thread on e-bay for cheap and it only takes me 4 minutes to make a string. Making LOTS of string is really boring though, other wise I would make a bunch for YYE to sell.
I had tried the hand positions before to no avail but now I’ve actually got something working. Weird part is I can throw it upright now with the stock string or longer string I made?
I hold the top like normal then tilt the tip to my left some and palm down. Tip is about 10 o’clock if straight up is 12. Then I just keep my arm almost level through the whole throwing motion. I’m know I had tried this before but I guess being relaxed helped as tense and annoyed?
Nah, I got a bunch of thread on e-bay for cheap and it only takes me 4 minutes to make a string. Making LOTS of string is really boring though, other wise I would make a bunch for YYE to sell.