Can anyone compare these two yoyos? How they feel on the string? Power, stability, control?
I’m wondering that since the Vulture is more narrow it won’t be as nimble, but the R4 may not have as much power or stay on plane as well.
For the record, I don’t own a bi-metal, so I don’t have anything to compare to, aside from budget monos. Any insight for a newbie?
I can’t speak to the vulture, but I like the R4. It’s a very light feeling yoyo, and it is really comfortable to hold and catch, which is important to me. When I was looking to do a competition, I was deciding between the yoyos I had duplicates of, and I had 2 moonlights and 2 r4s. I went back and forth between them and I chose to compete with the r4 instead. The moonlight felt extremely heavy compared to the r4 on the throw and catch, but they are very similar in weight. This just probably speaks to the extreme differences that is experienced in the designs of all yoyos, but because the vilture and r4 have many similarities (weight, width, diameter, inner ring bimetal) I would guess that they would feel slightly different, but have a lot in common. The only major different is the metals, 6061 for the r4 and 7068 for the vulture. This could be significant, but potentially not. 7068 is denser, so it might feel like a “boosted” r4, to use a one drop term(reworked weight distribution, tends to have higher rim weight).
cant speak for the R4, but i would pass on the vulture in lieu of a YYFr overclock. i feel like the overclock bests the vulture in every way, lots more power, stability, and more comfortable in the hand.
How would they feel on the string? Some of my favorite throws are the Shooting Star and the Throwback Summer Solstice. These throws have good power but are still quite nimble on the string. The only experience I had with a bimetal was throwing a friend’s Edge Beyond, which fell heavy and sluggish to me. Do most bimetals feel that way in comparison to plastic and monos?
Some definitely do. The moonlight feels sluggish and heavy to me compared to the R4. I do think I like the feeling of inner ring bimetals more, with the added idea (whether real on not) that they are more durable because of the rings* less likely to be misaligned.
Might be with you there. I remember also trying my friend’s Turntable 2 and THAT was an experience! The float and control made it feel like a direct extension of my hand. Never felt anything like it or since
I would say that there is no such rule of thumb. Other than price, I think that there is more variety among bi-metals than monometals or plastics.
Ok, so I guess a better question is: what should my first bimetal or hybrid yoyo be with a cap of $100, considering that throws I like include what I’ve already stated, along with the likes of the Turntable 2 and the Terrarian?
I’ve never played a Vulture, but it was #1 on my buy list for several months, so I’ve obsessively watched reviews of it. I can pretty confidently tell you it’s not going to be anywhere as nimble or comfortable as the R4. Since you like how agile and light the Shooting Star feels, I think you’d like it, but I will warn you that it’s probably less powerful and not much more stable (if any).
Short answer - yes. This is why I generally stay away from outer-rim bimetals. Having an extreme amount of rim weight increases MMOI, which leads to this feeling. That said, it’s a general guideline and not a hard rule that outer-rim bimetals will feel that way, and of course there’s a gradient.
I think this is attributable to extreme rim weight, and not bi-metals. Bi-metals may have a lot of rim-weight, and a bi-metal is a good approach to creating a rim weighted design. But, there are plenty of bi-metals that use the concentrated weight to optimize performance on yo-yos that are specifically designed to be light and/or fast.
R4 isn’t a bad pick for you, but I’ll suggest a few more:
My favorite hybrids may not play quick/light enough for your preferences. I haven’t played one, but I think you might like the newer iYoYo iceberg, as it’s a little wider (I.e. will feel less dense) and more floaty. Should play fairly fast and have loads of stability. Maybe some others with more hybrid experience can chime in.
I think we’re both on the same page, but just to clarify, what I meant was not that outer-rim bimetals are actually heavier and/or slower, but that due to their tendency & capacity to be more rim weighted than monos/plastics, they generally feel more sluggish or reluctant get moving.
If you want to hit exactly $100, with a shape kinda sorta close to the Terrarian, I designed this cool one called the Ring-Bearer:
I’ve only gotten good feedback about it from people who’ve bought one. And it’s available right here!
I think my perspective is kind of skewed because my heaviest playing yo-yos are almost exclusively monometals and my lighter playing yo-yos are almost exclusively bi-metals. That just happens to be the distribution for yo-yos that interest me.
In general, it seems like a safe bet that bi-metals are over-represented among rim-weight dominated yo-yos.
Unfortunately it is $10 over your budget, but I think the Hydrogen Crash is worth a look. It’s only slightly more angular than the Terrarian and has bi-metal performance without (IMO) playing heavy. It’s also well established, so there are plenty of reviews/opinions to be found.
