I'm not much on assigning numbers to qualities, but I will give it a try.
My first impressions are kind of a blur now, so it's a good thing I posted them already. I'll include them in the review where applicable.
After playing with it for a week or so, I think I can give a thorough assessment. However, by way of a disclaimer, this has become my favorite yo-yo. Don't expect a sterile lack of bias. I'm still carrying my 888 everywhere I go, but the Groovy Lady gets all my play time at home. I still practice and work on smoothness with a responsive FHZ, but I play with this thing.
I haven't been moved to write a review before, so that probably says something about my attachment to this new beauty.
I went through a bunch of reviews and stole ideas for categories. I will give the most honest opinion I can for each category I chose.
Please pardon the Raymond Chandler/Philip Marlowe shtick. I couldn't help myself!
It was a day like any other day, that is, until she walked in...Packaging: 9/10She came dressed to kill, and yet, she wore tie-dye like a hippy love child. There was something seductive in the way she wore it. I'd have followed her to the ends of the Earth.Right out of the shipping box, it was just different. The overall presentation was unique and really striking.
The "box" this thing comes in is really cool. It feels like it's made of masonite. From the pictures, I thought the printed insert would be cardboard, but it's the same material as the rest of the box. I had to take the top and one of the sides off to keep from having to force the yo-yo out. This is the first yo-yo I bought that came with the packaging I saw pictures of, well except the 888 and G5 which came with the white cardboard box. This display is a really nice touch. I feel for whoever had to assemble them, but thank you!
The only reason I gave it a 9 was that it's not really a box. It doesn't close, and therefore has no real use for me once the yo-yo is out. However, it's beautiful and different and that is what got it a 9 in the first place.
Looks: 10/10There was just something about her that caught my eye. She was groovy. It's just purty. From the first pictures I saw, I was hooked on the look of the grooves and the overall shape. I haven't been attracted to any other bare metal yo-yos, so I was a little surprised that I liked this one. I have no regrets in my choice. She wows me every time I see her.
Weight: 9(??)/10Not too heavy and not too light, she was cantilevered like a Russ Meyer bad girl.It feels really light, lighter than almost 67 grams. Maybe that's an effect of the grooves or of the weight distribution. Everyone who has touched it said it felt really light, even when holding a lighter yo-yo in their other hand. I told them it was heavier than the 888 they were holding, and everyone said it still felt lighter.
Hard to give the weight a rating when it feels like some magic, weight-hiding material.
It plays like a nice heavy yo-yo, though, which I like a lot.
Shape: 11/10I liked her profile. She wasn't skinny and sharp like some of the girls, but she wasn't all chunked out with no gap, either. Just a little fleshy and round... she fit me like a glove. I am trying to compare it to other yo-yo's I have, and I'm not sure I can. The response surface comes straight out from the bearing seat and smoothly arcs out to the rims. It's not as round and bullet-like as an 888. It's smoother on it's way out than an Addict. It's shaped a little like a plump Freehand Zero. That doesn't sound right. Look at the pictures. I absolutely love the way it feels in my hand. I can't say it any more clearly.
Response: 8/10At first she wanted to play rough, and I got my share of slaps, but eventually she was putty in my hands. And she knew how to purr, yeah, just like the Cheshire cat. Actually, the verdict is still out. I haven't really liked the ghost pads I put on any other yo-yos. In this one, they feel different. It's just about dead unresponsive, and the binds are very tight. With the recess, the pads end up just a hair below flush. It feels like a wide, flat silicone job, which is basically what it is. While I'm not really a ghost pad fan, I feel they work in the TFL/88.
Play: 10/10She liked to tease... a little give and take. I could tell right away she was game for anything. She could bump and grind with the best of them, but her actions were smooth, belying a confidence and balance one doesn't expect in a girl so young. This thing rocks! It's very forgiving on a slightly off throw. From the word go it spun like crazy, and on a good throw it just didn't tilt at all. I call that stable. There's no wobble and almost no vibration. I did clean and thin-lube both bearings after the second day. It only started making a sound after a week. I didn't notice the bearing noise causing any additional vibration, just a rattly noise that went away after a few throws. Also, there's no "chunk" near the bottom of the string; it just rolls to the end cleanly. I call that smooth.
I really like the way the string stays centered but not bunched up during tricks. I know, everybody already said this, but it's different once you experience it. I can screw up a trick and end up with six strings going through the gap and it stays put--no snags. I get the feeling this will lead me to experiment more and start trying to make my own tricks.
I don't really grind, but this is the first yo-yo that made me want to try. It spins for several seconds in the palm of my hand without me even knowing what I'm doing. The rim is very deep and would probably be great for thumb grinds if I did them. I can hang the yo-yo from my thumbnail without it even spinning.
Machining/Finish/Maintenance: 9.5/10Her skin was nearly flawless. The flesh of a Michelangelo sculpture. And you could tell she took care of herself. Under all those curves was muscle, hard and active. As I said, I haven't been attracted to bare metal yo-yo's before, but this one just looks wild. And the metal is pretty. Very smooth and mostly polished.
I love the grooves. They feel so different in my hand. It's really soft, even when it comes back fast.
The machining on the yo-yo looks a bit cleaner around the nipple than the pictures I saw. I don't see any dirty cuts or burrs.
The edge of the rim feels polished compared to the concave inner part. There are a couple tiny little scratches, but so what?
I have nicked it a couple of times, and the grooves are very susceptible to damage, but it doesn't effect the play. Even the nicks are still smooth, so they are mostly just visual.
I haven't had to change the ghost pads yet, but that's pretty straight-forward and cleaner than silicone, even if I do love my silicone. The axle floats? I make sure I center it every time I open her up to clear a knot. All in all, she's pretty low-maintenance for such a hot babe.
I had to give it a 9.5, due to no fault of Werrd--from what I hear. There is an imperfection in one of the halves, in the grooves out near the largest diameter point on the yo-yo. It looks like one of the grooves has been left out, so one rise is two rises wide. I am told this is the point where the yo-yo half was turned around on the lathe. It sounds like a near-impossible task to get this consistent. It's a miracle both halves don't have this imperfection.
Overall: She left me breathless. Any night out with this dame requires all your faculties, and all your attention. Va-Voom!I love this yo-yo. I can't say enough about it. When I bought an 888, I thought I understood the pricing of metal yo-yo's. I had felt a new level of awesome. I had my doubts about the TFL/88, but people said some very convincing things. Every last word of it was true. I feel like I got my money's worth, and then some.
I know I made a lot of comparisons to the 888. No offense to YoYoFactory. I love my 888, but it is currently upsot for the position of favorite.
From the feel of the grooves, to the play of the beefcake, I have had nothing but fun with my Groovy Lady.
**Edit** Edited for grammar and voice.
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