YoYo Related News From Around The World
We’ve got the full results from the 2016 Bay Area Classic…congratulations to YoYoFactory’s Paolo Bueno on winning the highly coveted 1A division!!
Check our full scoring breakdowns for all divisions below…video coming soon!
Great news from Masanobu Iwata and the 44FESTA crew! There’s now an official event report in English for all you duck-lovers by Shintaro Noda!
Check the report right here!
The official reports brings a ton of great photos from the event, as well as first-hand experience from the crew itself.
Read all about the “yo-yo wrestling” mini-contest from the latest event, where the legendary Master Nakamura emerged victorious, as well as the freestyle contest, where Hajime Miura got 3rd… by doing 2A!
Freestyle winner Tomoyuki Kaneno and sOMEThING boss Mickey!
Many thanks to the 44FESTA crew for another great event and for bringing the rest of us a taste of this fantastic edition!
Our favorite event returns on June 19th, followed by the 3rd anniversary edition on August 6th!
The results are in for the 2016 Japan Nationals, arguably one of the biggest and toughest national yoyo contests in the world. 1A was an upset, with Takeshi Matsuura being favored to win and instead taking second place to a killer routine from Yusuke Otsuka. Takuma Yamamoto clinched another 2A title easily enough, while 3A player Tomoya Kurita took a commanding win over current World Champion Hajime Miura! In the 4A division, Rei Iwakura proves he is still absolutely untouchable, and Takeshi Matsuura easily took home top honors in the 5A Division. Check out all of the winning freestyles below, along with full scoring breakdowns.
Jeffrey Pang’s company, Luftverk, has built quite a name for themselves with creative design, beautifully executed packaging, and some pretty fantastic yoyos. So, of course, they’re trying to completely outdo themselves with their latest release, the Fulvia.
Two versions of the Fulvia will be release on May 31st: the Fulvia BTM-R and the Fulvia-R. The R is the standard version, an all-titanium yoyo with a new body shape and weight distribution. The Fulvia BTM-R is something else entirely; a titanium/steel bi-metal yoyo with weight distribution that is absolutely insane.
You can visit the Luftverk website for the full story (and I highly recommend that you do), but I’ve been talking to Jeffrey through this whole process and it’s more than a little amazing to talk to him every morning and get a progress update as he works with the machine shop, day in and day out, figuring out how to make this project happen. The last time I talked to him he’d figured out that he was going to have to hand-attach the steel rims to the titanium bodies himself, because the process was too delicate and his machinists didn’t want to touch it for fear of ruining the parts. Crazy.
The Luftverk Fulvia-R will retail for $290, and the Fulvia BTM-R will retail for $510. Quantities for both of these are extremely limited, and pre-orders will open Tuesday, May 31st at 9:00 pm EST, only at Luftverk.com.
Check out the latest peek into the Japan scene from Ryosuke Kawamura, featuring Arata Imai! Arata is a solid 1A and 2A player (something we don’t see a whole lot of these days) and he’s got some really clean tricks. Thanks, Ryosuke!
Yoyos used are the One Drop Rebirth and sOMEThING LP.
Riccardo Riccardo Riccardo Riccardo Riccardo.
Enjoy.
Right, so Japan Technology went from being an offstring-only yoyo company with one token 1A yoyo that was basically only produced for the benefit of their team members, to dropping a whole line up of contest-killer 1A yoyos right before 2016 Japan Nationals.
Well done, Atsushi!
The Shaqshine is the latest announced release from Japan Technology, following the POM Wolty, Adel, and Ribira. But while the other models are complete and will be released at Japan Nationals, it looks like the Shaqshine isn’t quite ready just yet. Apparently the design they want to use has picked up some unavoidable vibe based on the design. They’ve figured out a different profile that eliminates the vibe (which is pretty minimal to begin with), but they don’t think the revised shape is a true representation of Japan Technology’s design aesthetic. You can read the full commentary from Japan Technology below, and even vote for what you think they should do.
So check out the specs, and then scroll down for a statement from Japan Technology and a poll where you can vote on how they should release the Shaqshine!
From the Japan Technology Facebook page:
What JAPAN TECHNOLOGY pursued in SHAQSHINE was “JAPAN TECHNOLOGY-style”. When you touch SHAQSHINE while spinning, you can feel its vibration. You cannot see the vibration and there are no problems when using it, but it may be typically considered as Grade B.
It can actually be fixed just by slightly changing the shape. We have already established the shape. However, if we fix the shape, there will be no meaning in releasing the new bimetal Yo-Yo from JAPAN TECHNOLOGY because it will be just like other bimetal Yo-Yos. The current shape and weight is the important part of this Yo-Yo. The factory suggested us to mass-produce models without vibration. We understand that.
However, JAPAN TECHNOLOGY asked to produce the model as it is because we are truly confident in SHAQSHINE. We made SHAQSHINE with a stainless rim. Only 0.4mm of the base body will touch the stainless rim. We made it possible to keep the spinning force strong by making the stainless part thick. Please notice the rim’s width, form, and positioning as well. When all of those get together, it brings “JAPAN TECHNOLOGY-style” usability and operability.
This is a message from JAPAN TECHNOLOGY to all of you. Which do you want JAPAN TECHNOLOGY to do? JAPAN TECHNOLOGY should produce real “JAPAN TECHNOLOGY-style” bimetal Yo-Yos. Or any bimetal Yo-Yos with a stainless rim from JAPAN TECHNOLOGY are ok.
If you choose the second one, we will stop developing bimetal models. If you demand ” JAPAN TECHNOLOGY-style”, we will keep trying to do what only JAPAN TECHNOLOGY can do. We made a decision to sell “the best bimetal model” that JAPAN TECHNOLOGY can currently make, but it’s limited in quantity. We will have samples ready at the JAPAN TECHNOLOGY booth at the Japan National Yo-Yo Contest. Please try them and tell us what you think. Based on the suggestions, we will recreate “JAPAN TECHNOLOGY-style” bimetal Yo-Yos with both high performance ability and accuracy. We will officially release “SHAQSHINE” when it is completed. Thank you for your understanding and support.
※SHAQSHINE is the black one in the picture. It is the silver model without the vibration.
CLYW has officially released photos and specs for the new Riccardo Fraolini signature yoyo, the Manatee! There will be a small pre-release this weekend at the 2016 Bay Area Classic, and the full release will happen in early June at retailers worldwide. Riccardo was the 2015 Trick Innovator of the Year, and has been the undisputed king of the #trickcircle on Instagram pretty much since the concept started.
Designed collaboratively by Riccardo Fraolini and Chris Mikulin, the Manatee is the first model they’ve released that’s this wide, and also the first full-sized yoyo in a budget price range. With an expected retail price of $80-$90, the Manatee is nearly the price of the short-lived Campfire pocket yoyo they released a few years back.
The CLYW Manatee will be available early June at CLYW retailers worldwide in solid and splash colors.
Thrower Worldwide just released a new video featuring Ryszard Rozanski, and it’s fantastic. There are some quality tricks in here, shot and edited really well. And the trick that starts at 2:35 is just stupidly awesome, and I love it!
Yoyo used is the CLYW Big Dipper.
The King Yo Star PAX is the latest release from the Canadian-based company. Designed by owner Jeremy McKay, this organic, casual throw is a great addition to any collection.
The King Yo Star PAX plays light and floaty and fast, and has a great, late-90s throwback feel. The larger, organic shape has just a slight taper towards the gap, nodding at modern design while still giving us that fat, round, almost Coke-can profile. The King Yo Star PAX is a zippy yoyo, and the large bell-shaped halves produce a pleasant ringing sound while playing that adds to the overall “laid back” feel. PAX, of course, means “peace” in Latin, and this yoyo is definitely appropriately named. The inner cup features a dimpled area that helps with fingerspins but let’s be honest here…you’re gonna be working on goofy kickflip tricks, not trying to suss out the latest horizontal combos. It’s great for kickflips, by the way.
Available in various splash colors, the anodizing is expectedly well-done. The colors are bright and vibrant and the finish quality is great. The King Yo Star PAX logo is engraved on the rim of both halves, leaving the large cup area blank so that you can truly enjoy the anodizing. The overall design is really very simple, which is always welcome.
The King Yo Star PAX retails for only $65. It’s a casual price for a great casual throw, and if you like something organic-shaped and fun, the PAX is a great option.
The King Yo Star PAX is available through YoYoExpert.com.
Atsushi Yamada’s company, Japan Technology, is really on a roll right now with announcing new releases. A new budget offstring yoyo, a new 1A model, and now…a new titanium yoyo that manages to avoid a “Ti” pun in its name? Highest of fives, Atsushi.
The Ribira looks to be pretty much the same profile as their new 1A release, the Adel, but with changes made to wall thickness and weight distribution to specifically take advantage of the material. check out full specs and their press release below.
There are 4 kinds of Titanium Yo-Yos:
- Titanium Yo-Yos made for display, which has luxuriousness and satisfaction
- Titanium Yo-Yos whose shape and weights were simply adjusted to be like contest models
- Real Titanium Yo-Yos for competing, which was designed to improve its quality and possibilities for performance
- Imitation Titanium Yo-Yos are able to perform similar to the real one, but can never exceed it in performance
JAPAN TECHNOLOGY proposes “The Real Titanium Yo-Yo”. It took about two years to create “RIBIRA”. It raises the possibility of Titanium Yo-Yos. Which Titanium out of a variety of choices is the best for Yo-Yos? What cutting method and equipment meet the ideal way to shave Titanium to make Yo-Yos? The design could only be created because of Titanium. A lot of technique was effectively used, and as a result, “RIBIRA” was born with both high quality and luxuriousness.
Check out video of the Top Three finishers from the recent Something World contest in Singapore. Something World contests are mini-events hosting by YoYoAddict/Something owner and 4x World YoYo Champion Hiroyuki Suzuki. The yoyo scene in Singapore has been going strong for years now…not surprising at all to see so much talent!
Harrison Lee brings us another great contest recap video, this one for the 2016 Canadian Nationals. Thanks, Harrison!
CLYW brings us another Cabin Tutorial, this one for the modern classic trick “Brent Stole”. Created by Alex Berenguel and then stolen by Brent Dellinger (hence the name), this trick has become a go-to for modern yoyo players and a foundational move for a lot of crazy stuff. It’s also one of Chris Mikulin’s favorites, so he filmed a tutorial for it to help new players get a grip on this building block.
Yoyo used is the CLYW Scout.