Learning to do impressive yoyo tricks may seem like a daunting task. But with a good yoyo, a few good tutorials, and a little patience, anyone can learn to do fun yoyo tricks!
Purchasing the Right Yoyo
The first thing you need to learn to yoyo is... a yoyo! There are a lot of yoyos available, ranging from a $2 Duncan Proyo or Imperial to hundreds of dollars for a top of the line aluminum butterfly yoyo. Also, there are several styles of yoyo play. This tutorial will focus on string tricks and simple single yoyo looping tricks. These are commonly referred to as 1A and 2A; however, 2A is typically performed with two looping yoyos once you are good enough!
I recommend starting with a simple looping yoyo such as the Duncan Proyo ($2) or YoyoJam Sunset Trajectory NXG ($15). My personal preference is for a nice NXG. They have a bearing, so they spin a LONG time, and they have rubber O-Rings, so they return to your hand very easily. If you can afford it, pick up an NXG!
For string tricks, a Duncan Freehand Zero is an awsome first butterfly yoyo. They cost about $20, but they spin a long time, and come with some wider spacers for a larger gap. The only problem with the Freehand Zero is the friction stickers it uses wear out, so make sure you pick up a few with your yoyo! (You can buy these online.) (Don't worry about the counterweights, you can save those for later if you ever want to pursue 5A.)
If you are dedicated and don't want to be hassled by friction stickers, I recommend a Yoyojam Kickside or Lyn Fury, both are about $15-$20, but be aware you will need some thick lube to keep these yoyos returning to your hand, or else you will need to learn to "bind".
If you have a small budget, just get a Proyo! But if you can afford it, I would pick up both a looper and a string trick yoyo: NXG and Kickside with lube or NXG and Freehand Zero with friction stickers. Oh, wherever you bought your yoyos has some string, you will want at least 10 strings. For looping I recommend cotton 8 string, and for string tricks "slick 6". But really it doesn't matter too much at first what type of string you use. My favorite inexpensive string is Highlights which is available at yoyonation.com.
(Note: In the picture above, The left red/yellow is a modified Duncan Freehand2, the two bottom yoyos are stock Duncan Freehand Zeros, The two center green yoyos are NXGs, and the top right yoyo is a Proyo. All of these were painted by John Higby.)
Finding Good Tutorials
My favorite site for learning simple yoyo trick is Ken's World on a String. He gives good pictures of what your fingers and hands should be doing. If you just go down his list of tricks, you will learn classics like Eiffel Tower and Rock the Baby. Further down he has harder, but more impressive, tricks like Boingy Boingy.
But what do the tricks look like? I really like the videos over at Sector Y. Many of the tricks are more advanced there, but Atom Smasher and Barrel Rolls can be tricky to figure out without a video showing the trick being done!
I recommend learning sleeper first. It seems like a pretty simple trick, and at first you might think it is more difficult just getting the yoyo to return. But a good straight and long sleeper is vital to most tricks.
Low End Strings
If you can't find any slick-6, this cotton 8 string will do in a pinch.
 | Yo-yo String (Toy)
5 pieces of white Duncan replacement strings.
Average Customer Rating: 4.0 out of 5 (See the reviews)
List Price: N/A
Lowest New Price: $1.99 (as of 7/4/2008@1:18 PM) |
 | Replacement Yo-Yo String (Toy)
Keep your yoyo running smoothly with official Yomega replacement string! Just the right width and consistency.
Average Customer Rating: 1.0 out of 5 (See the reviews)
List Price: $2.50
Lowest New Price: $1.45 (as of 7/4/2008@1:18 PM) |
Choose TheYoStore.com
If you would like a Freehand2, they have some at KBToys, but you can't select a color. I prefer a Freehand Zero unmodified...
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