Weight rings and Side effects.

A yoyo weight distribution is considered as one of the major factor to determine whether the yoyo is good or not. Just imagine that you're wielding a sword, if there isn't a proper calibration between the material used and the weight distribution during forging, the sword will be deemed inappropriate for combat as it might break due to the poor forging. This goes the same for a yoyo. If the weight distribution is not proper, the yoyo will wobble during play , otherwise known as vibe. A yoyo with a slight vibe is still playable , but if the vibe is too severe , therefore the yoyo will be deemed as a damage yoyo.

 Yoyo players are constantly complaining and are unsatisfied with some yoyos due to it's weight. Don't get me wrong , they love the yoyo design but certain yoyos are too heavy and some of them are too light for their taste. The design is perfect, it fits nicely in the hand, the catch is good and it plays really well but due to it's weight, players have the tendency of loosing control of the yoyo. 

So what are the steps taken to fine tune a yoyo's weight ?

This is the golden question on every yoyo players as well as yoyo manufacturers too. Hence, there are 2 yoyo company that came up with the solution (as far as I know) which is One Drop and Duncan. 

How they came out with the solution is brilliant. There could only be 2 factor to fine tune a yoyo. Its either to adjust the outer weight rims or to alter the centre weight of the yoyo. In my opinion, an adjustable weight rim should be a common idea , but an adjustable centre weight nubs is pure genius. Anyways, both ideas are great because they manage to focus on the major characteristics of a yoyo which is their weight distribution.

Let's begin dissecting both ideas.

INTERCHANGEABLE WEIGHT RINGS

What are they ?

It is exactly as what you read above. It's a pair of metal weight rings that is installed at both side of the inner part of the yoyo. Duncan produces this metal weight rings with different colour representing different weights. It's officially known as Performance Rings. I manage to find some information in regards of the weight rings and as a side note , this information can be found in Yoyostore Rewind.

Type L (POM):1.5g
Type L (Aluminium):2.6
Type Flat (Aluminium)
Gold, Blue:3.8g
Red, Pink4.7g

Performance Weight Rings

This metal weight rings are ideal for most of the Duncan yoyos but unfortunately, it is only compatible with Duncan yoyos. There are other metal weight rings modification made to a yoyo but it is NOT interchangeable. If you are thinking "hei what about rubber weight rings ?" , yea , those are interchangeable too but there are only one weight for that rubber weight rings. 

Duncan Performance Weight Rings

How it looks like on a yoyo.

What yoyos are compatible with this Performance Weight Rings ?

I'm glad that you asked. Here are the list of yoyos that is compatible with the Performance Weight Rings.

• FH Zero
• Butterfly XT
• Flipside
• Hayabusa
• Hornet
• Echo 
• Echo 2
• Raptor
• Torque / Torqave
• Featherhawk
• Firehawk
• Skyhawk (weight rings comes along with the yoyo)

SIDE EFFECTS

What are they ?

Side effects are this little nubs that is located at the centre part of the yoyo. This unique and definitely a one of a kind axle system that allows you to adjust the inner weight and the overall performance of your own One Drop yoyo by switching different version of the side effects.

It is made out of aluminium and it is originally created to protect the axle. Due to the shape/design and the material used to produced side effects , it can be used to regulate it's weight so that yoyo players can choose their desired weight setting and not to forget , the visual impact that they want. 

Different types of "Side Effects"

Doesn't it looks beautiful ?

For comparison purposes , I have attached the difference "side effect" specs along with this article for your viewing.

Aluminum Ultralight: 2.5g
Aluminum Dome: 3.0g
Aluminum Lego: 2.7g
Aluminum Dietz (comes loaded on the Dietz): 3.0g
Aluminum Spike (comes loaded on the 54): 3.2g
Aluminum Code1: 3.9g
Aluminum Disk: 7.4g
Aluminum Mini Disk: 4.8g
Aluminum Sakura: 2.9g
Brass Dome (comes with the 54): 6.6g
Brass Spike: 7.2g
Brass Ultralight: 5.2g
Brass Code1: 9.5g

There is a particular side effects that is totally unique for me. It is called as Side Effect (LEGO). This means that , for a much unique appearance, you can stick legos onto your yoyo to create an out-of-this world creation. Not too sure bout the practical part but it looks awesome ~ 

This is how it looks like

This is how it's used

My advice is, try and experiment some of the Side Effects and Performance Weight ring to identify your desired weight on your yoyos. If you wanna get your very own Performance Weight rings and "Side Effects" then visit Yoyostorerewind or Yoyoexpert . I wish you good luck !

Till next time,

Wyvern Strings