Thread: One Drop 54: A High Speed YoYo Review

I have always been interested in the innovations and new ideas that come about in the hobbies that I follow. It stems from my upbringing as a science geek who loves seeing what is around the corner. While innovation is easy to spot for my first hobby, computers, it isn’t something that most people think of when you mention the yo-yo. For most, the yo-yo is still just two plastic or wooden concave shells held together by an axle with a string wrapped around it. It goes up and down and is something that kids outgrow when they are eight or so. Few know of the innovations made in the industry such as aircraft grade aluminum bodies, bearings used to extend spin times, automotive silicones used to decrease the yoyo’s ability to return with a tug, and the list keeps on growing from there. Every industry has its leaders of innovation; the yo-yo world is no exception. In my opinion, one of the bigger innovators in the field is One Drop Yo-Yos out of Eugene, Oregon. This quiet and unassuming Pacific Northwest based company has done some truly amazing things with their yo-yo designs over the years. They gave us the hex nut, and later brass nut, replaceable axle system used to strengthen the yo-yo and prevent stripping of the soft aluminum threads found in other manufactures’ designs. They gave us the Projection Profile, a series of small grooves cut into the body of the yoyo that reduces contact with the skin and extend grind times. Finally, they gave us the Soda Blast Finish that gives a unique look and feel to the yo-yo. Today I am tackling One Drop’s newest yo-yo, the 54. It is One Drop’s first entry in the full sized yo-yo category and it introduces the world to a brand new piece of yo-yo tech, Side Effects. I guess it is now time to see if the 54 and its innovations will take flight like the Wright Bros. or if it is going to leave an Oppenheimer sized crater in the yo-yo industry.

Click the link to continue reading the review:
http://www.highspeedyoyo.com/reviews...os/one-drop-54

Excellent review. And I'm with on this one - the OD boys have put out something special with this yoyo.

Not just a player, it's purdy too.

Indeed. I opted for the purple - not only is this shade particularly manly, but it's also a perfect match for my complexion, given where it falls on the color wheel. Seriously though - I'm very impressed with the finish on this thing, which is like silk, and the utter smoothness of it.

This review is full of some seriously real talk. I have trouble putting my 54 down. The only time I do is when I know I'll be playing over solid surfaces. (then I take my gnarwhal... cause I'm a bit less worried about it getting banged up than my 54... probably cause it's already got some love marks on it... but seriously...)

The only critisism I have with it.. is that the more I play it... it DOES seem like the anodizing gets worse... Admittedly it is an NQP version, but it's fairly noticeable to me. I'm really serious about my aesthetics, though so I notice this more than some others might. That said: I love the damned thing and just don't care.

My anodization problems are likely to have no other affect on me but to try and pick up another some at some point. (And heaven help me if I can get a raw one... I'd love this monster in pink, for serious.)

Originally Posted by saintrobyn

Every industry has its leaders of innovation; the yo-yo world is no exception.
...
They gave us the hex nut, and later brass nut, replaceable axle system used to strengthen the yo-yo and prevent stripping of the soft aluminum threads found in other manufactures’ designs.

n00bz...

Hey, how about those magnets? Aren't they freaking amazing?

Originally Posted by Etienne

n00bz...

You can insult me, ridicule me,
but can you prove me wrong.

Switchable nuts, bolts and axles have been around for a while.
I like OD yoyos I tried, they're well designed, but was their guts design innovative ? not so much.

Have you ever stripped the threads on a yoyo ?

Originally Posted by Etienne

You can insult me, ridicule me,
but can you prove me wrong.

Switchable nuts, bolts and axles have been around for a while.
I like OD yoyos I tried, they're well designed, but was their guts design innovative ? not so much.

Have you ever stripped the threads on a yoyo ?

Actually I have. I picked up a YYF Skyline in a trade where the previous own lost the original axle and replaced it with one he had laying around. The replacement was not quite the correct diameter, it was off a hair or so. When I closed up the yo-yo after opening it for inspection I tightened it and the axle stripped the first three or four rows of threads. Luckily I had a spare YYF axle laying around that was long enough to catch the lower threads or else the Skyline would have been toast.

Now your turn, instead of posting useless comments calling people a noob, name a yo-yo from another company that uses a replaceable hex nut axle.

A replacement for duncan's nut and bolt can be found in any hardware store.

And hum, your skyline fail story is the reason why I posted a mice and men ref.

Originally Posted by Etienne

A replacement for duncan's nut and bolt can be found in any hardware store.

And hum, your skyline fail story is the reason why I posted a mice and men ref.

Yeah I got the Steinbeck reference. Again, you are just being a troll, and I stand by my previous "Haterz gonna hate" post. The YYF story has nothing to to do with me power tightening the yo-yo like I would imagine Lennie would do if he had encountered a yo-yo. It has more to do with the previous owner not using the parts that came with the yo-yo and the damage that resulted.

I still stand by my innovative comment about the guts. One Drop came up with an elegant way to stem the parts explosion issue that usually happens in such a design by using the rubber spacers to hold the nuts in place. If you want to be taken seriously you really should have lead with the Duncan argument instead of just posting "Noobz". My third grade students can articulate a better response than what you decided to post.

My noobz comment was dedicated to knowledgeable yoyo players who can read through hype.

The ad hominem against you was a simple byproduct.

i have to agree w/ etienne on this one. though a lil' more tact could've been helpful, not that i exercise tact on every post - his comment is correct, imho.

one drop did not give us the hex nut/replaceable axle system. they may have improved/expounded on it - but they did not originally come up w/ the idea/design.

the first aluminum yo yo i noticed the hex nux/axle system on was the underdog by matt schmidt, which came out around '05ish. i don't think one drop was even an entity 5 years ago.

nonetheless, i like how the 54 is constructed - and its' play seems to be right up there. i look forward to yo yoin' w/ one.

mgodinez

foggy...

Ok, I will admit, I may have made a mistake on the hex nut. I have not played the Underdog, and I forgot about the FHZ. I still consider the One Drop version of the hex nut system with their nut capture design to be elegant and innovative. Here is a little about myself, I didn't get back into throwing until around 2008. So I am going on my third year of modern play. While I am not a noob, I do not have the experience with the older yoyos. Thank you mgodinez for pointing out the Underdog. I appreciate the candor and tact used in your post.