Tako, Komodo, or Pun?

So, usually I collect yoyos on the quirky side - things that play floaty or fun, with fast not something I concern myself with too much. I’m not a competitive thrower. However, that puts me with a sort of gap in my collection. I have a shutter that I think is far too heavy and clunky, but am interested in getting another entry competition throw because I don’t want to judge them all based on it. My favorite throws are the manatee, the warthog, and the mantis. Which of the listed am I least likely to hate? I want something stable, but still comfortable and fun.

You’ve heard it before, and you’ll hear it again: it all comes down to preference.

Any of those yoyos will play great. Choose the one you think looks coolest. Or the one with the coolest name. Or the one whose company has the coolest team. Or flip a coin. A three-sided coin. That’d be pretty cool.

For the record, though, this is the one sitting on my desk right now:

I guess I was hoping for some insight into how they might play differently from each other?

Tako is competition. Pun is more for making tricks, but it could be used for competition; it is fast if you push it and it is stable. No experience with the Komodo

I guess I’ll probably go with the Pun or the Komodo, then. I’m not looking to compete, but I want something I little faster and stable for learning new tricks. Just something slightly more aggressive than my current throws.

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Tako is superrrr stable I used it for learning and making tricks it’s super good

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Have you considered getting an atlas? Jake Eliot used it to win 1 place in 5a in 2015. If you like the manatee, the atlas takes many of its characteristics even farther.

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Yes but I think that the atlas is also quirky. IMO. It’s a really good yoyo but I don’t think it’s that good for learning tricks. It lacks stability and spin time compared to other throws that are good for learning tricks. If you were looking at Komodo maybe you should check into the diplomat. It’s the first yoyo I grab when I want to learn a new trick. It’s stupidly stable and spins for ages.

But plus one on it being similar to the manatee. They feel very different from each other but the weight distribution is very similar. In my experience the atlas plays faster and lighter than the manatee. But I ended up trading the manatee and keeping the atlas for some reason the manatee just never felt right to me. But it was a very high quality yoyo and probably the smoothest yoyo I’ve ever played.

I haven’t tried the Tako or the Komodo, but if you’re looking for something that feels lighter and more nimble than a Shutter, the Pun might not be right for you. It doesn’t have much float to it and it does feel a little heavy on the string in my opinion due to the shape and weight placement. If you’re looking for other suggestions, you should take a look at the Gauntlet. It has the wide width of the Manatee, with a more comfortable shape. It’s quite unique compared to other yoyos in that price range.

What he said. Lol. Gauntlet is really awesome too.

That’s your opinion, and I respect that, but would have to disagree. Jake Eliot actually commented specifically about having problems with lower spin times. His fix: throw harder. The atlas does have less rim weight then your average yo-yo, but I think the width compensates for that. It is also exceptionally easy to land on the string, a great asset for learning super showy, even nageo style stuff or horizontal tricks. The question is, do you want a super weighted, average dimension, “competition” type throw which is comfy to hold, or something totally unique, yet still capable of easy competitive play?

Get a Horizon maybe? It is great for learning tricks as long as you don’t mind a larger diameter, otherwise the shape is comfortable to hold and great for grinds, horizontal, and fingerspins.

I’m super biased, but based on what you want I would honestly recommend the Tako. It was designed first and foremost to be comfortable, fun, and a little on the lighter zippy side. From those starting points I then built it out to also be a really good performer. As others have said, though, it’s really down to preference, Komodo is a great yoyo too, and though I’ve never tried a Pun I’ve never heard anything bad about it.

If you want floaty and fun go with a a-rt grail or sparrow
The grail is 53g it is the yoyo I use to learn tricks it’s awesome

Then definitely Pun.

If you want true competition, go with a draupnir. I have 0 experience with those listed yoyos but I thought I would just place this thought here :wink: