Yo-Yo Setup of the Month: C3yoyodesign Mo-vitation

C3yoyodesign has been unrelenting in keeping their yo-yo releases coming. Last year, they released the Mo-vitation signature yo-yo for their team member Ethan 'Mo Mo' Wong, which players have come to love. This would be no surprise seeing how this yo-yo has everything contest players love in a yo-yo.

Upon release, the Mo-vitation had such good reviews, C3yoyodesign had to constantly produce more Mo-vitations to keep up with the demand from players all around the world. Now, with many colorways to choose from, the Mo-vitation has cemented it's place as one of the very best modern yo-yos out there in the market today.

Thus, it has been chosen to be our yo-yo of the month.

Mo-vitation

The Mo-vitation, named after 'Mo Mo' (that is how it got it's name), is one of the best yo-yos on the market today for Finger-spinning tricks. If you have seen Mo Mo throw, you'll notice that many of his tricks are of combos that featuring finger spins, hopping the yo-yo from finger to finger horizontally, and much more. All these tricks are not easy to pull off, but having the Mo-vitation perform these tricks really helps.

It may be great for Finger-spinning tricks, but that is not all. Players around the world have chosen to use the Mo-vitation on stage for not just 1A, but 3A and 5A as well. Definitely a yo-yo that everyone will come to appreciate and love.

C3yoyodesign has produced many great playing yo-yos over the years, but the Mo-vitation truly shines. Not just because of the way it is able to handle string tricks, or perform exactly how you want it to, but also due to the fact that the Mo-vitation comes at a truly fair and affordable price.

The C3yoyodesign team takes pride in ensuring their yo-yos don't just play great, but look great as well. This version of the Mo-vitation is red-on-red. The body is red, with the laser-engravings in red as well. This gives the yo-yo a cool, stealthy-clean look that makes it stand apart from the rest.

As you can see, the inner ring that is located at the hub area allows the Mo-vitation to finger-spin exceptionally well. It provides the Spinner to hold the finger-spin longer than other yo-yos, making it almost seem like you're cheating on your finger-spins.

The Mo-vitation features sort of a V-shaped profile, with tapers on the rims/edges of the yo-yo halves. This gives the yo-yo better stability and balance, while still allowing it to move quickly through the air for long string trick combos. The Mo-vitation uses a large size-C bearing that is cleaned for long spinning tricks, as well as C3-sized wider silicone pads for tighter binds and better response.

We did not need to change out anything when setting up our Mo-vitations, as it performed great stock. The bearing and the pads are the exact same ones that came with the yo-yo. However, for the string, we chose to use a two-toned Kitty String just to give the yo-yo that extra 'pop'. As the pads are wider, with the regular Kitty String, the more the string wore in, the greater the yo-yo played and performed.

Taking a closer look at the wider C3 silicone pads, you will notice that they are indeed wider than regular silicone pads on most yo-yos. Furthermore, the finish on the red-on-red Mo-vitations are really cool. They are a nice, blasted finish to give the Mo-vitation a nice smooth texture that is great for grind-tricks.

The red-on-red engraving is really cool and if you don't take a closer look, you may think that these Mo-vitations are un-engraved. Now you see it, now you don't!

The Mo-vitation spins long and true, and moves fast through the air.

The C3yoyodesign Mo-vitation is definitely a yo-yo that we highly recommend, and this yo-yo should be in every players collection. We really cannot fully describe why this yo-yo is so great. Go out there, get one, give it a throw and feel for yourself the true power of the Mo-vitation.

These red-on-red Mo-vitations are available in limited quantities, and we have very few left in stock here at Spinworkx. If you are thinking of getting one of these for yourself, hesitate no more lest they are gone forever.

Mo-vitation

1) C3yoyodesign Mo-vitation (Red-on-red)

2) C3yoyodesign Wide Silicone Pads

3) Black/Green Normal Kitty String

4) C3yoyodesign Large size-C Bearing (Similar to a Large Ezo bearing)

That brings us to the end of this month's Yo-Yo Setup of the Month. 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.

Before we go, check out our product / review video for the C3yoyodesign Mo-vitation today!

Till our next installment,

Keep (Finger-) Spinning!!

~

Yo-Yo Setup of the Month: YoYoJoker Exceed (Spinworkx Edition)

YoYoJoker has something cool and unique going with their EX-series of yo-yos. When we first saw them at AP13, we knew that it was something we must have. However, we decided to try and take it one step further and not just get Ex-series yo-yos, we figured to try and make a Spinworkx edition Lock Crest, and the people over at YoYoJoker were nice to oblige.

After a little bit of discussion and planning, the Spinworkx Lock Crests were ready, and we could not be happier with them. After trying them out on the different Ex-series of yo-yos, personally, it was best on the very first YoYoJoker Ex-series yo-yo, the Exceed.

So that is how we fell in love with, and chose our yo-yo of the month for February 2014.

Exceed (Spinworkx Edition)

The Ex-series of yo-yos is a set of yo-yo releases from YoYoJoker that allows the Spinner to completely customise how their yo-yo feels and plays. With different body shapes, Response Units for different bearings and pads, and different Lock Crests for cool and unique designs, there is bound to be a setting that every Spinner will like and be comfortable with. At the moment, there are 4 body shapes released, with more planned to follow.

The first body shape released was the Exceed, and it features something of a H-shaped profile. This version of the Exceed we are featuring is the Black Spinworkx Edition Exceed.

YoYoJoker has set out to create and produce high-quality, unique and excellent performing yo-yos from Japan. The Exceed is one yo-yo that showcases exactly what YoYoJoker is out there to do. Despite having various parts and components, the Exceed still plays incredibly smoothly and spins well.

YoYoJoker owner Daisuke Shimada has over 13 years of experience under his belt, having won the World Yo-Yo Champion title in the past for his 3A. He is familiar with the various shapes and specifications that would allow the yo-yo to perform at its best, and for what style or division of play.

The H-shaped profile on the Exceed allows it to spin long and remain stable during play. Even though the Exceed is not as hefty as other yo-yos that feature the same diameter and width, it still feels incredible to play with.

We love the Black on Black Spinworkx edition Exceed (of course, we are biased), and here we have a photo comparison of how the White version of the Exceed looks like.

As you can seen in the photo, the White Exceed uses Red Response Units instead of the Black ones on the Spinworkx Exceed. Spinners can customise not just the size of bearing for the Response Unit, but also the color. This enables cool color combinations for the Response Unit & yo-yo body.

The only real difference between the White and the Black Spinworkx version of the Exceed is the color. Everything else is essentially the same.

As you can tell from the pictures before, our choice setup for the Exceed is a full black yo-yo. Black body, Black Lock Crests & Black Response Unit. This gives the Exceed a look that makes it seem like a full plastic, or full metal yo-yo. It also gives one the impression that it does not have as many components as it truly has.

The gap profile of the Exceed shows off its curvy H-shape. Despite being H-shaped, the Exceed is surprisingly very comfortable in the hand. Unlike other H-shaped yo-yos that stick out a little in hand, the Exceed is comfy and nice. As seen in the picture above, the Exceed uses a large size C bearing. We have chosen to use a flat YYJ Speed Bearing in our Exceed to guarantee a long and smooth spinning yo-yo. The yo-yo halve is made out of solid delrin to ensure that the Exceed is durable and long-lasting.

The Exceed uses a total of 8 components all together. 2 yo-yo halves, 2 Response Units, 2 Lock Crests, 1 bearing and 1 axle. For a yo-yo with so many components, it plays smoothly without any vibe or wobble. Definitely precision engineering at it's best. For our Exceed setup, we have chosen a YoYoJam Speed Bearing (as mentioned above), Yellow Kitty String and standard YoYoJoker Silicone response pads.

The Black body Exceed usually only comes as an extra / additional / separate purchased Ex-series body. The Spinworkx Lock Crest is also another unique and limited edition item that makes our Exceed a collectible, other than just another great playing yo-yo. The Spinworkx Lock Crest features the Spinworkx logo on one side, and the Spinworkx 'X' on the other.

A closer look at the Response Unit shows the large Size C bearing, and the translucent/transparent YoYoJoker silicone response pads that we have chosen to use in our Exceed for this month.

The Exceed is a great yo-yo that works well for any kind of string trick or combo, and is a superb carry around and practice yo-yo. The customisability of the yo-yo makes it unique and oh-so cool! Definitely a must for every yo-yo player looking to have a cool yo-yo to show off to your friends.

These Spinworkx Edition YoYoJoker Exceeds are available at Spinworkx in limited quantities. So do check in with us if they are still available if you intend to get one, or some.

Exceed (Spinworkx Edition)

1) YoYoJoker Exceed (Black body)

2) YoYoJoker Black Response Unit (Size C)

3) YoYoJoker Black Spinworkx Edition Lock Crests

4) Yellow Normal Kitty String

5) Large YoYoJam Speed Bearing

That brings us to the end of this month's Yo-Yo Setup of the Month. Don't be shy, and 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, 

Keep Spinning round and round!

~

Yo-Yo Setup of the Month: YoYoFactory Shutter (Jason Lee Edition)

Everyone appreciates good playing yo-yos, and everyone loves affordable yo-yos. But when you get a great playing yo-yo that is also incredibly affordable, you know you have got a winner. When YoYoFactory first showcased pictures of the Shutter, everyone knew it would be a good yo-yo, but when the price was released, Spinners just could not believe it.

Well, neither could we!

And here is our Yo-Yo of the Month for November.

Shutter (Jason Lee Edition)

YoYoFactory has been putting out quality yo-yos for a decade now, and the Shutter is just another shining example of how they have grown in terms of quality products and exceptional price points. They always give players the best yo-yos that they could have ever wanted.

The Shutter is the signature model of YoYoFactory Contest Team member Gentry Stein. However, this version that we are featuring is the special edition Jason Lee Shutter, that has the logos and graphics of a digital camera, just like the one Jason brings with him on his travels around the world.

Any Jason Lee model from YoYoFactory looks incredible. The Shutter is no different. It is in a shiny, cutting-edge black that makes it look more stunning and refined.

Taking a look at the face of the Shutter, you can see that it looks just like how the dials on a digital camera looks like. The various settings and option logos to optimize and capture the precise picture that you envision in your head. A very nice and deliberate touch that YYF did was to include and incorporate their logo amongst all the other logos.

The gap profile of the Shutter is a gentle H-shape, giving the Shutter more rim-weight and this translates into longer spin times and greater stability. Despite having a H-shape, the Shutter feels comfortable in hand and even with a hard throw and bind, it does not hurt the hand. The inner walls of the yo-yo has a steeper slope to allow the yo-yo to hold spin-time well when the Spinner is performing horizontal style tricks.

As the Shutter is a Champions Collection model, it comes with YoYoFactory Champions Collection 3-color string. However, for our setup, we preferred the slightly thicker strings that sOMEThING had to offer. The Yellow sOMEThING strings provided the yo-yo with tighter binds and more solid throws, and that was our choice strings to go with the Shutter.

The Pads that were used in the Shutter is the CBC White Silicone pads. These are the original pads that came with the yo-yo, and we felt that it provided us with the exact response we needed.

The regular bearing that comes with the Shutter is fine, but we wanted optimized performance from this Championship winning yo-yo, and we wanted the best. So we chose to use a gold Centre Trac bearing in the Shutter, and after a throw of 2, we knew it was the perfect choice. The gold Centre Trac bearing is unresponsive and requires practically no maintenance due to the gold coating. Long and smooth spins are a breeze for the gold Centre Trac.

Not only does the gold Centre Trac bearing perform incredibly well, it looks great too. Nice and shiny, and definitely something that will capture your attention. If you are looking for a large bearing to throw into your contest or daily throw, do consider getting the gold Centre Trac.

The gold Centre Trac bearing also compliments the black body of the Shutter very well. It definitely makes the entire yo-yo shine (just like gold).

Taking a closer look at the inner face of the Shutter and we can see the signature of Jason Lee, YoYoFactory Team member and probably one of the longest members in YoYoFactory since the start. Jason has a unique, smooth and distinct style of yo-yo play, making him one of the most respected and looked-up-to players in the world.

The opposite face of the Shutter is just like the shutter of a camera.

The Shutter is stable, long-spinning, smooth on the string, and looks and plays great. Furthermore, this Jason Lee edition just makes it that much sweeter. If there is one version of the Shutter that we had to choose, it will definitely be this one!

The Shutter fits comfortably in the hand, and even with a hard throw and an immediate bind, it hits the palm softly and does not hurt like other H-shaped yo-yos do.

The Shutter is a beast of a yo-yo. It handles any type of string trick with ease, and it just keeps the Spinner pushing the limits of what it can achieve. Furthermore, for the price, it is definitely one that you absolutely cannot miss out on.

We cannot say enough good things about the Shutter. Definitely one of our favorite throws, and one yo-yo that we encourage everyone to try, pick up and purchase with confidence.

Shutter

1) YoYoFactory Shutter

2) CBC White Narrow Silicone Pads

3) 100% Polyester sOMEThING String (Yellow)

4) Large Gold Centre Trac Bearing

That brings us to the end of this segment of our Yo-Yo Setup of the Month. But before we head on out, check out what Gentry can do with his Shutter. Not one, but two videos to showcase what the Shutter is able to pull off.

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, 

Spin like a champion!

~

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!

~

Yo-Yo Setup of the Month: blksens Imarc

Over all these months of showcasing our Yo-Yo Setup of the Month, we realised we have yet to feature an Offstring yo-yo, and now is as good a time as any to!

With the blk-ops event in Singapore just over a couple of weeks ago, we got to try out and test the first Offstring yo-yo offering from blksens. The Imarc is a durable, solid, delrin Offstring throw that is more affordable than other delrin Offstring yo-yos on the market today, without compromising on quality. Here is how we set-up our very own Imarc.

Imarc

blksens is a relatively new company hailing from Hong Kong, and has already produced 4 yo-yos (Two 1A yo-yos, One 2A yo-yo and One 4A yo-yo). Run by 5A player Calvin Wong Siu Tung, blksens makes yo-yos from listening to what their team members prefer in their throws, and builds its all from the ground up.

The Imarc Offstring yo-yo is the preferred throw of blksens team member Lam Yan Ting, who is one of the top Offstring players in Hong Kong. The yo-yo is weighty to give each throw a powerful, long spin, allowing the player to pull-off various Offstring combos and regenerations to win titles.

The Imarc Offstring yo-yo is clean, simple and minimal. It does not feature dazzling graphics or designs on the yo-yo, but lets the player do all the 'wow-ing' when it is in play.

The gap of the Imarc, just like any other Offstring yo-yo, is an incredibly wide Butterfly shape that allows the yo-yo to land onto the string with ease whenever the player is performing whips, toss-and-catches, etc. Furthermore, another feature we love about the Imarc is that the gap of the Imarc is adjustable. So players will be able to set how narrow they prefer the gap to be, making it easier for regenerations, or wider, making it easier for longer spins and various whips.

The rounded Butterfly shape allows the yo-yo to sit comfortably in the players hand, and whenever the yo-yo falls off or misses the string, the round rims allow the yo-yo to bounce off the floor up to a safe height to catch it back onto the string.

The Imarc does not require any changes to it but in this instance, we chose to set it up with a few slight modifications. Instead of the stock bearing that comes with the Imarc, we chose to use a YoYoJam Speed Bearing instead for long and clean spin times. The response pads that are used are the stock silicone pads from blksens. They provided us with tight and reliable binds, so we didn't feel the need to change them.

For the string that we chose to use, we wanted something slightly thinner than regular 100% Polyester Strings, and settled on using Candy Wire 100% Poly Strings. These Candy Wire strings are made in the Philippines and are great for Offstring play.

As mentioned earlier, the Imarc features an adjustable gap, and the reason that this is is due to the red rubber o-ring as seen in the photo above. The good thing about having the rubber o-ring is that not only are you able to adjust the bearing gap to your ideal width as and when you like just by a simple twist, it also prevents you from over-tightening and cracking the yo-yo. The rubber o-ring gives the yo-yo a nice and snug feeling when it has been tightened.

On each halve of the blksens Imarc, you will be able to see the hubs have the blksens logo and blksens insignia on it. This gives the yo-yo its own identity, while keeping up with the minimal looks.

While in play, the Imarc spins long and true. Its big, wide size allows the yo-yo to spin slightly longer than smaller sized Offstring yo-yos. Coupled with the weight of the Imarc, the yo-yo is definitely a solid playing Offstring yo-yo that would be great for both practice and for competitions on stage. Due to it being made of Delrin, players can rest assured that if the Imarc repeatedly drops onto the floor, it will not break or crack easily, making it an ideal Offstring yo-yo for any player!

Just to recap on our yo-yo setup of the month for September.

Imarc

1) blksens Imarc

2) blksens Narrow Silicone Pads

3) Candy Wires 100% Polyester String (Yellow)

4) Large YoYoJam Speed Bearing

That brings us to the end of our Yo-Yo Setup of the Month for September. 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, 

Spin hard, Spin true!

~