New manatee is responsive

Hi,

Just got a manatee, I love the feel and shape, but it is essentially responsive! I am not at home and dont have any lube with me, so I have not yet tried lubing the bearing. I also noticed the bearing doesn’t spin a long time when I spin it with my finger.

Do you guys think lube will sort out the issue, or is it likely something else? I noticed my Kintosh has a similar issue, but only winds without a bind rarely or with a lot of slack (like when I try a finger grind). My steel, kenshin, shuta, and horizon never behaved like this.

Thoughts?

Thanks

Try lubing the bearing first and if that doesn’t work then try to clean the bearing. If that doesn’t work than either the bearing is messed up or the response pads are too thick making the string wind up

Ummm, excessive lube will slow the bearing down more. New yoyos generally come with a lot of lube in the bearing (it keeps them shiny :slight_smile: ). You can either play through it and break it in or clean it. If you clean it and want to lube it again, lube very lightly. It usually takes a week or so of serious play to break in. YMMV.

How do you clean the bearing? I have only ever used a drop or 2 of thin lube.

Check the learn section here. I think there might be a video for it.

A cornucopia of useful info can be found here:

Useful modification & maintenance guides - Axles,Clean, repair, tune, fix yoyos

Two drops is too much. One very small drop is sufficient.

Agreed, but one drop on an already factory lubed pixel may also be too much. Either play it alot to break in the bearing, or clean it (acetone, 90%+ alchcol, lighter fluid, etc) and leave it dry. Pixels can take a minute to break in, some take a few seconds, other a few days. no worries.

Will rubbing alcohol work to clean a bearing. I ask because it is the only thing i have :slight_smile:

Yes. Just make sure you dry it good and/or (very) lightly lube. The water content in rubbing alcohol can promote rust.

As Dust said 90%+ isopropyl alcohol content. Don’t use the 70%, as the rest is water.

I’ve never used rubbing alcohol to clean a bearing before. Does it work any better or worse? I guess a downside, like mentioned, would be having to dry them. I use compressed air to dry them out anyways so it’s not big deal.

Even with 90% isopropyl thats still leaves 10% water. Not my first pick to put in my bearings, but itll work in a pinch. Acetone is (and always has been) my #1

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Thanks all

I just got a manatee as well and LOVE it but mine is responsive too. Is it better to play through it or clean the bearing? Like which will be better in the long haul? Btw I got the manatee at va states today along with a diplomat that i got signed by beckford himself. Awesome turnout there today. So much fun.

Its advised to play through the initial lube job of the pixel bearings. Some take a few minutes, others take a few days. Others still never break in and need to be cleaned. If you can take it, play it hard for a good couple days. If its not up to par by then, clean it. Ive broken 2 pixels in so far without needing to clean them. Still the quietest and smoothest bearings in my collection. And ive got a different bearing in almost all the throws ive got, (15 or so) only doubles are terripin x ceramic and pixels.

Ok i had been playing it pretty hard like all day so I just decided to clean it before I read your post. Lol. Is that bad? should i put some more lube back in it to make it responsive again? Or does it not really matter?

Cleaning it is fine. Lube it ever so lightly and move on. I usually apply a very small amount of lube then blow it off with compressed air. No compressor, no problem, I use those cans of compressed air they sell to clean computers etc.

My manatee and creep both were the same way. Tried to play through it for a week and a half. Eventually had to clean them. I literally just dipped them in acetone for a second which only lightly cleaned it. They both play amazing now. Super quiet and smooth.

I cleaned mine in rubbing alcohol, then lubed it. It is much better and unresponsive. It is not playing quite as well as the pixel I put into my iyoyo steel, but that may have more to do with the power and stability of the steel as opposed to the bearing.

I definitely like the pixel. Are there any other center trac bearings that are quiet like the pixel?

Thanks