Yoyo Buying Guide, Types of Yo-yo Shapes and Axles.

Yoyo 101

With all the different types of yo-yos, it is often hard to decide which one is best for you. There are a many shapes, sizes and types of yo-yos on the market, but most yo-yos can be grouped generally into three shape categories. We will discuss the three shapes of the yo-yo, followed by the four axle types. We hope this information will help you find the best yo-yo for your needs.

Common Yo-yo Shapes

Classic Shape:

The Classic Shape has been around the longest. It is also known as imperial and/or traditional shape. This shape yo-yo is characterized by a narrow string gap. It is also a known to be the best looper yo-yo of the three.

Butterfly Shape:

The Butterfly is also known as Wing, GT, and/or Saber) shape. It is essentially the Classic Shape yo-yo reversed. Its shape gives it a very large string gap, making it easy to land on the string. Many advance yo-yo tricks make use of the Butterfly shape and string gap.

Modified Shape:

The modified is also known as the Modern and/or Proyo shape. It is a great combination of both the other two common yo-yo shapes. The rounded rims make for smooth, easy landings for string tricks. It has a slim profile making looping easy as well. The best feature of this shape is its aditional rim weight, with allows it to sleep for long periods of time.

Yo-yo Axle Types

Fixed Axle:

If a yo-yo has a fixed axle, it means the yo-yo's axle does not have moving parts. The axle does not spin independently of the sides. The axle spins in the loop at the bottom of the string. The fixed axles were traditionally made out of wood and generally found on the Classic Shaped yo-yo.

Transaxle:

The transaxle yo-yo has outer and inner parts which move independently from each other. The outer part is transaxle which spins around the inner (fixed) axle. The string then covers the outer part. This configuration gives the yo-yo a good sleep, making tricks possible, which would not be possible with the Fixed Axle.

Ball Bearing:

This yo-yo is similar to the transaxle, but it uses ball bearings between the transaxle and inner axle. This ball bearing configuration makes the yo-yo more responsive and better better at looping tricks, whereas transaxles excel at sleeping/string tricks. It has been found that transaxles sleep longer than fixed axles, and ball bearing sleep longer than transaxles.

Clutch Transaxles:

These yo-yos consist of a transaxle and a clutch mechanism which opens up to allow the yo-yo to sleep when the yo-yo is spinning at high speeds, but as the yo-yo slows the clutch engages, stopping the transaxle from spinning and returning the yo-yo to the hand. The most common clutch transaxle yoyo is the brain, or power brain yoyo. These yo-yos do the work for you!