Yo-Yo Setup of the Month: YoYoJam Surge

We are surging (*just had to do it!) on towards 2014 and we are getting closer. Having said that, this month, we just felt like throwing a straight up, durable, plastic Single A yo-yo and we settled on a nice, comfy one at that.

Furthermore, the yo-yo we chose to be the Yo-Yo of the Month is one that is both suited for beginners and advanced players. Without further ado, let us introduce it to you.

Surge

YoYoJam has been on a mission to revamp their line of yo-yos. After phasing out quite a number of popular yo-yos, they plan to give their line-up a fresh, new look. With that, they have put out yo-yos such as the Classic, Surge, XLR8, Theory, etc, all of these featuring solid, good-looking sidecaps.

The Surge is one of those yo-yos in this new line-up that is different from what YoYoJam has put out in the past. Furthermore, the Surge is one of the most affordable, solid playing, unresponsive yo-yo out on the market right now. With many eye-catching colors, some with a two-toned color mix, there will definitely be a color combination of the Surge that you will love!

Many beginners have come to love the play of the Classic, and the Surge gives them a notch higher in terms of play and performance. One thing that YoYoJam takes pride in is that their entire range of products are 100% made in the USA. This gives them full control of the quality of the products they put out.

The Surge has a wide, rounded Butterfly shape that is incredibly comfortable in the hand. Even when the yo-yo is coming back at you with full force, it hits your hand with a nice cushioning unlike that of wide, H-shaped yo-yos which are more punishing.

Furthermore, looking in the gap of the Surge, we can see that there is a rounded-step close to the bearing that keeps the string away from the walls of each halve as much as possible. With this step, it makes the Surge spinning longer and slightly better for horizontal-style tricks.

Also, the two-toned color (from the halve & the sidecaps), allow players who are new to string tricks aim their yo-yo between the two side cap 'lines' (in this case, it is the Blue 'lines' from the sidecaps), making it a little easier to tackle tricks like Trapeze and Double or Nothing.

The Surge comes with a Cotton String and YoYoJam Speed Bearing. However, that is where we are able to 'customize' our Surge slightly and we will elaborate more on this later on.

The String that we chose to use is regular Green 100% Polyester String. This string is not as thick as 'Fat' strings and it gives the Surge consistant and solid binds without the yo-yo feeling snaggy or un-smooth.

The Response that is used in the Surge is regular Narrow Silicone pads from YoYoJam. These work well, and you do not need to change them out. However, for our set-up, we went with 0.9mm Hard Yoyorecreation Silicone pads. Some may find that the YoYoJam pads are a bit too thick and too grippy, and if that is indeed the case, you may decide to try out other Narrow pads like K-pads, CBC pads, or perhaps Yoyorecreation pads which give you a choice of 0.9mm or 1.1mm thickness. Choosing a thinner 0.9mm pad will make the yo-yo even more unresponsive, making it great for long-spinning combos.

Taking a closer look at the sidecaps of the Surge, we are able to see that the caps are sturdy, thick and solid plastic caps. They are durable and able to withstand much abuse from players. We liked the fact that these caps have a simple and minimal logo that sticks out from the cap, unlike the paper/plastic lens from the older generation of YoYoJam yo-yos.

Now, here is where the slight customizability of the Surge comes in. Without a doubt, the Classic is a great beginner yo-yo. However, the H-shaped profile may not be for everybody. So if beginners are looking for a round and comfortable yo-yo with a solid feel to start learning tricks on, the Surge would be a superb choice. The only thing to transform the Surge into an excellent beginner, responsive yo-yo would be to swap out the Speed bearing for a Thin YoYoJam bearing. This will make the Surge a purely responsive yo-yo that beginners will love!

Unfortunately, the thin bearing does not come together with the Surge and is sold separately. However, with the thin bearing, you have the option of turning the Surge from unresponsive to responsive, great for practicing all your basic, intermediate and advance tricks on.

The Surge is a yo-yo that you can carry around with you and play with anytime, anywhere. Just put it in your pocket, carry it around on a yo-yo holster or shove it in your bag, and start Spinning while waiting for the bus, on the way to school or work or even while in a shopping mall. It is incredibly durable and super fun.

With each throw of the Surge, you can feel the solid-ness of the yo-yo. It spins long and fast, handling each trick you throw at it. Grinds, Suicides, Lacerations, combos and more are not a problem with the Surge. The Surge definitely belongs in anyones collection and performs great, without needing you to burn a hole in your pocket.

Again, let us take a look at our yo-yo setup of the month for October.

Surge

1) YoYoJam Surge

2) Yoyorecreation 0.9mm Hard Silicone Pads

3) 100% Polyester String (Green)

4) Large YoYoJam Speed Bearing / Thin YoYoJam Bearing

That is all for our Yo-Yo Setup of the Month for October. But before we go, we would like to leave you with a short and sweet video of the Surge in action. Check it out!

Don't be shy and do let us know YOUR Yo-Yo Setup of the Month. Drop us a comment below, leave us a message on our Facebook Page with the title - My Yo-Yo Setup of the Month, or tag your setup with a picture on our Instagram Page, with @spinworkxsg #yoyoofthemonth. 

Till next time, 

Surge ahead of the competition!

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