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the making of devotion
I watched nick grow up into the solid, flashy, stylish player he is now. luckily for me, he’s a local, and meeting up with him is not only easy, but frequent and a lot of fun.
nick had the idea of fusing two old designs i had together. we took the nostalgia (flash based) as well as the corruption and made it into a yoyo. in particular, he felt that the nostalgia was a competitive yoyo that could also be used for fun, as it glided on the string. the corruption also was a stable yoyo that wasn’t too heavy.
the devotion is a yoyo that is nothing special on paper, but the throw feeling is indescribable. the yoyo is competition based, but not boring, is angular but not sharp, and flashy but not outrageous. i wish i had more to say about the design, but you have to try it to believe it.
the making of hash
in some ways, this was the easiest yoyo to design. in some ways, this was the hardest. I want to walk you through everything we did to make Tetsuto Kato’s signature yoyo, the hash.
This was the first design. We wanted to create a smaller size D bearing sucction/motif hybrid for his use. this idea was went through 2 prototypes before we scrapped this idea.
This was the third prototype, and second design. We tried to keep the same concept of the capped d bearing yoyo, but with an inner rim that wraps around. It felt like a great idea in concept, but in reality, it was doing too much with too little. We went through 3 of these prototypes.
At the very end, we circled back to an idea that I’ve had. We wanted this yoyo to play like what we remembered old school yoyos to play like. When we remake or remaster a yoyo, we have two options. we could either manufacture the yoyo as is, or we can remaster it, to make it play the way you remembered it to be like. yoyos change, we change, and our equipment must change with it. i hope this yoyo reminds you of when you first picked up a proper bearing yoyo, after being frustrated with whatever plastic transaxle yoyo you were using before. I hope this yoyo makes you realize how many tricks are left to be discovered, just like when you first got your ball bearing yoyo.
the making of nation
Nate Dailey had asked to join the team back in late 2022, early 2023. We were originally hoping to have a yoyo done for him by Nationals that year, and to release in conjunction with his announcement. Instead, we decided to take our time, and to really make something that was perfect for him.
With someone as experienced as Nate, it’s easy to put on paper what he wants. However, his yoyoing is very dynamic. Generally, when I make a yoyo for someone, I try to design something that would aid their style. Nate has an eclectic collection of tricks, so it’s hard to design something that highlights everything he does.
Nate has demanding horizontal tricks. Yoyos that are designed for horizontal tricks generally have low walls. Nate also loves to do regen and moon tricks. Yoyos that are designed for regen and moon tricks have high walls. How do we make a yoyo that can highlight both?
When Nate first joined the team, I sent him a bunch of yoyos for him to get an idea of what he would want in a yoyo. originally, i designed the yoyo to be extremely capable for regens and moons, while still giving the yoyo decent horizontal play. after some stress testing, we decided that the yoyo wasn’t rim weighted enough, and that we put too much emphasis on the regen and moon. it needed to be a yoyo that thrives in horizontal play, and can still do moons, not a yoyo that thrives in moons, but can still do horizontal. we scaled back the higher wall on the yoyo, removed the dome on the cup, and it solved the problem. The cuts on the yoyo are carefully placed to allow the yoyo to still feel organic while giving clearance for the string on horizontals. The rims we decided to make round for maximum comfort, even on high speed binds.
We actually made two versions of this yoyo, one monometal and one bimetal. It was my original thought that the monometal would suit Nate more, but in designing both, we decided that the bimetal was more suitable for his demanding play. We’re really happy to be able to deliver this yoyo at a low cost of 100 USD to you all.
“left, prototype. right, final product.”
UNPRLD in 2024
Why does UNPRLD exist?
The 3 big questions for me, is “why,” “how,” and “what.” Simply put, why does UNPRLD exist, how do I put that into action, and what do I create to justify the why? The what and how is simple enough, I make yoyos, and I sell them. So now, why?
I remember designing my first yoyo in 2013 December. It’s been just over 10 years since I’ve made my first yoyo, and my designs have served different purposes since then. It started off with me not being happy with any of the yoyos I was playing with. I wanted something wider, but not crazy wide, but it wasn’t available. It was never meant to be something I was supposed to mass produce for the general market, I made 75 so I could have a small run and say I did something.
I made 4 different versions of the yoyo to see how different forms of the same shape would change. I had started off with a simple 7075 yoyo, then made an outer rim bimetal, inner rim bimetal (used to shrink fit them with vodka and dry ice) and a titanium one. I remember having to hand machine down the bearing seat on the titanium yoyo because I had messed up the design on that one. That was all so much fun, and the “why” of yoyo making was different back then. I just wanted to make my own yoyo and use my own, cause I liked it.
Somehow, 10 years later, I ended up sponsoring a handful of people that represent the best of what the yoyo community has to offer. These people are not only great at yoyoing, but are some of the kindest and smartest people I could ever meet anywhere. I guess over time, the “why” of why I make yoyos has changed too. I no longer make yoyos for myself, and make yoyos for other people now. I’ve made 14 yoyos as signatures for people. To make a signature, I have to balance what they want out of a yoyo with not only what I see fit as the “UNPRLD” look, but also something that can sell. It seems simple enough, but it’s actually quite tricky.
There are so many people on the team that deserve signature yoyos, and it’s about time we make it happen. I also have a lot of ideas, along with something I want to call the “Atelier Special Series.” To do this, I have worked out some ways to make it possible:
We will make more models, but smaller batches. This is to ensure that everyone that deserves and wants a signature yoyo gets one. I want to make sure that the members that want signatures can get one without having to worry about needing to sell out huge quantities.
Yoyos will be cheaper. I have worked out a contract to produce the yoyos at a cheaper price, without compromising quality. I’ve gone through many factories at this point, including having made some yoyos myself, but I think I’ve finally found a place that can allow me to rest at ease knowing the quality will be good. The current forecasted pricing will be 100 for bimetals, and 45 for monometals, starting with Nate Dailey’s signature. Please note that some yoyos could be more or less expensive because of manufacturing cost, but the goal is to keep the majority of yoyos back at the 100 and 45 dollar benchmark pricing.
We will do some direct sales. Part of why I make yoyos is to make sure that these players can make it out to contests. Obviously, I don’t have complete data as to how much each brand gives to others, but I’d like to think I allocate a good chunk towards player royalties. This helps them to continue going to contests and allow the community to meet them as well. They really are special people and I’m lucky to have met them, anyone who’s met someone on the team can attest to that. To support their royalties, I’m allocating a very small part of the runs to be sold directly. I ask that you still continue to support your favorite retailers, but to also support us as well.
I’m really looking forward to the different models of yoyos we’re going to be releasing this year. I can think of 6 off the top of my head that make me want to get up and yoyo right now. I hope that you’ll join me in evolving the “why” of UNPRLD as well.
The making of Motif
Working with Daniel Kim on his signature yoyo was a very interesting experience. With previous signature yoyos I designed, each player had a very specific attribute that I thought I could help bring out. With Daniel, his trick repertoire is so vast and diverse, that it was difficult to target a singular defining characteristic to focus on. I knew that this was going to be a challenge, but I didn’t really know that it would take over 3 years of R&D, and 2 years of prototyping to come up with a product.
Left to right: Proto 1, Proto 2, Final Version
Left to right: Proto 1, Proto 2, Final Version
We started off with a singular goal: Make a yoyo that makes you want to never stop yoyoing. We’ve had the idea of exploring double rims for a while, but we weren’t absolutely sure if it was practical to do with caps on. Daniel came up with an idea, what if we moved the second rim to a cap? The yoyo, we knew, would be really hard to make for assembly purposes. However, we eventually decided on a cap assembled in the style of an outer rim bimetal.
The yoyo was alright, but it lacked stability for how much heft it had. The concentrated rim weight, while making the yoyo spin longer, did not make the actual play better. It felt “thunky.” This was a scrapped design.
The second yoyo is a simple monometal yoyo with a slight recess in the rim, to create a double rim look. The idea, while good in theory, did not work out that great in reality. The yoyo had good spin time, felt good in the hand, and had decent stability. However, it lacked personality. It was no different than playing any other yoyo in our minds. We however, came up with a slimmer, more comfortable shape, exactly what Daniel wanted. It just wasn’t good enough.
We revisited the cap idea. We had made a capped yoyo before, and we wanted to change the way it was assembled. Instead of a direct connection to the rim, we added a small lip below the rim to further highlight the capped look. The press fit convex cap provides a secure structure to the yoyo, and transforms the otherwise hollow yoyo into a stable, nimble, and personable yoyo. It responded to Daniel’s subtle movements. This was it.
Capped yoyos are nothing new. They’ve been around for longer than I’ve been alive, and they’re still popular today. They aren’t as popular in the high end boutique yoyo scene, but is there a reason for that? Perhaps it’s because it’s so hard to make, or maybe it’s because it becomes the price of a competitive bimetal, without the optimization for competitions.
But that’s okay.
It’s not meant to be a competition yoyo. Could you use it in a freestyle? Sure. But that’s not what it’s meant for. It’s meant for you to have fun with, to hang out and come up with cool tricks, to mess around with. It’s meant to remind you why you yoyo in the first place, before you focused on optimizing your hop combo. That’s why Daniel yoyos. That’s why I yoyo.
I hope that’s why you yoyo too.
UNPRLD Price Changes
Thank you all for being loyal fans of UNPRLD. As a brand, we have been trying to push high quality products for years now. I started off making yoyos in house, buying aluminium rods, and machining them myself. I remember a time when I was using dry ice and vodka to shrink fit bodies to make bimetal yoyos.
In 2016, I released a yoyo called corruption. This was originally a design I had made in collaboration with Landon Balk of 3yo3 back in 2013. I fine tuned the design, going through 2 different axle sizes, different pad sizes, and 5 body configurations. 2 of them even made a full scale production release! It was truly a moment to me, and it showed that the yoyos I made had demand. I started making different yoyos, and different models also sold out as well. I was really happy that people liked my designs.
One reason why the corruption was in demand was because of the low price point. It was priced at 45 dollars retail, and was one of the lowest priced high performance yoyos. It came in 3 colors, gray, green, and a blue purple fade, with the blue purple fade being priced at 55. I was really proud to be able to take this yoyo that I had spent 3 years on, and sell it at a price point that was affordable to everyone. I continued to release yoyos at this low price point. The abduction, recognition, and elevation, all 7075 monometals, were released at this same price point.
We had a bimetal price decrease back in 2018. Yuki Nishisako redesigned the Flash, to create the Flashback, and while we originally set our bimetals at 160, we realized in the middle that we could sell it for 100, without taking a loss. It was truly an honor for me to be able to lower the price. However, I realized that it was unfair to the people who were purchasing the yoyo previously at a higher cost. I felt truly awful.
I write this all to explain to you why I am increasing the prices of yoyos. All yoyos with a previous run will keep their price. This includes: Cog Lite, Nostalgia, Recognition, Elevation, and other previous models we may bring back.
Henceforth, our monometals will be priced at 60 USD inclusive, with all colors being priced the same. Our bimetals will be priced at 125 USD. This includes the upcoming Daniel Kim, In Hyeok Choi, Shuyun Tang, and Junsang Park signatures, and any new model from now on. This does not include our collaboration models, as those will be decided collectively.
The price increase will help us include better peripherals and packaging as well as help us support events in the future. It will also help us keep up with inflation and tariffs, without giving up the royalty rate we provide to our players. We want to deliver an even higher quality product that you all love, so I thank you all for being understanding.
Love,
UNPRLD
Nostalgia
Nostalgia is our newest model, and it is the signature yo-yo of Shuyun Tang. The inspiration behind the name Nostalgia was to emulate the feeling that we all have from prior yo-yo memories - fun times at contests, the grind for freestyles, learning new tricks, and all around just having fun with yo-yo. Compared to the Flashback, which was Shuyun’s competition choice prior, the Nostalgia sports a larger width to increase the ease of landing tricks in different zones, which is something that Shuyun embodies in his yo-yoing frequently. It’s also larger in diameter and slightly heavier, allowing for technical tricks to be executed with confidence. In addition, Nostalgia is our first bimetal with a capped rim design, allowing for an extremely long spin time, and it is also blasted in order to eliminate spin reduction when the yoyo comes in contact with any part of your body. The Nostalgia is potentially our most well-rounded product yet, and it certainly is a staple for any player looking for a yo-yo that will take their tricks to the next level.
Designer’s note:
The Nostalgia was a challenge for me to design as it was a new structural type that I have never seriously made before. The addition of the capped rim means that a new weight distribution (to UNPRLD) would be introduced to the UNPRLD lineup. We are releasing the second prototype. The first prototype we made, was significantly heftier than what the projections had anticipated. It is amazing how much stability the capped rim adds without adding any unnecessary weight.
I hope you enjoy this yoyo as much as I enjoyed designing it.
Artwork on all three colors of the Nostalgia is from team member In Hyeok Choi. The OT edition sports a black on black colorway with Chinese characters for "Nostalgia" in the cup, the Nostalgia text logo on the rim, and UNPRLD X OT slightly below the rim. The "Soup" edition represents a nickname of Shuyun's in the Chinese yo-yo community and features artwork from In Hyeok on the cup. The silver color is In Hyeok's signature colorway for the Nostalgia, and it features a subtle face engraving in the cup with 6 pointed stars to represent how In Hyeok has been playing for 6 years now.
Effective Practicing
Three years ago, I decided to take a trip up to Boston. I had been feeling good about myself. I was in the finals for an audition, one of the largest regional orchestras in the area. I went up with a purpose to meet the great clarinet player/teacher, Michael Wayne (of Boston Symphony, Eastman.)
I played some excerpts for him, as well as Mozart concerto. I felt like I was playing well, but I got a new one tore in me. What happened? I thought I played well, but he could tell I was not practicing effectively.
I had been practicing 5-6 hours a day, every single day. I thought I was doing a good job. Was I lying to myself?
Maybe.
He opened my eyes to a new method of practicing, one that would change the way I practice, and give me a new outlook on life.
Out of respect for his teaching, I will not disclose the way he taught me.
So what exactly was the point of all this that I’m saying?
What you think in your mind, may not be necessarily true. I thought I had a great method of practicing. Maybe getting to finals was a fluke? Maybe, maybe not. What is important, that I noticed, is to find second opinions. We all see things differently, regardless of what we’re looking at.
Take a color. The pantone number would be the same, same physical characteristics from person to person. This is an indisputable fact. However, would the two people see the same thing? We can only describe this color, but we can not experience the same thing.
This is not the case with everything. There are many authentic activities, experiences, that can be described subjectively. Questioning yourself is something that is underrated. People pose themselves as confident to allow others to view them more positively. I consider the person that questions their choices every step of the way, to make sure they are on the right side of life, to be the wiser.
Update, new direction with the blog
Previously, I’ve written about my ideas of things yoyo related. I think a lot of the things I’ve thought about, my musings, that I’ve posted on this were directed towards an audience that only cared about yoyo. I’d like to try to appeal to the humanity behind the person throwing.
I’ve lived a rather interesting life. Having grown up in 4 different countries, with many different hobbies, interests, and ideas, I think maybe it’s time to share some of my thoughts beyond a extrinsic, superficial concept.
Let this be a blog about me, some of my intrinsic feelings, cause there’s depth to one person than just their hobby. A hobby sometimes swallows someone, defining that entire person. There’s more than that to me. My regret is that I’ve never been able to share it, to open up to anyone.
I am a musician, yoyo player, clarinetist, cook, and so much more. I hope to share more of my life with the world.
Fall 2019 Update
FLASHBACK & RECOGNITION RESTOCK COMING SOON
gold recognition
the flashback & recognition are back in all new colors! yuki recently placed 3rd at this year’s world yo-yo contest with flashback, and we felt as though the flashback could use a re-run while we try to figure out something new for yuki. colin has had a quiet year on stage, but has been working behind the scenes with both unprld & scales and he’ll be returning to the competition scene this fall. with that being said, more recognitions were a no-brainer as the first run is nearly sold out online. thank you all for your support on our products, you not only support our team but also motivate us to keep going and to create new things. check out a preview of colin’s favorite recognition color here, and pay attention to our instagram this week to find out when gold recog will be releasing.
ANTIDOTE UPDATE
antidote, our collaboration with top-yo
the antidote is something that we’ve been quietly working on throughout the whole year with top-yo. unprld’s mission has always been to provide high quality product at a low price point, and the opportunity to release a plastic yo-yo really fulfills this goal. blue antidote had a small pre-release at the world yo-yo contest through yoyoexpert and has been sold at rewind, and the full production run with 6 colors is truly coming soon. stay tuned, and click on the photo to read tyler’s full comments on the antidote!
YANBO XU JOINS UNPRLD
our latest addition to the team is yanbo xu. hailing from china, yanbo initially caught the team's eye in 2018 through his consistent posts on instagram showcasing his extremely unique tricks. earlier this summer, team member shuyun began to promote yanbo's tricks through his platform on original throw, and we instantly knew that his presence was needed on the team. check out his video, and be on the lookout for a new usa player announcement coming soon.
NEW VIDEO FROM SHUYUN
shuyun has had a very impressive summer, with some of his accomplishments being winning the jn international open division as well as placing 8th at worlds. he just dropped a new video with a new trickset and you should really check it out! he’s using the flashback, be on the lookout a signature edition for him coming soon.
SITE UPDATES
we took some time over the past few weeks to flesh out our descriptions for our releases over time (almost complete on this, go to products to see what’s been released & to find out details about each yo-yo), update team bios, and also update our ‘examination’ (formerly known as quiz) to reflect our current lineup of yo-yos. if you haven’t tried it out yet, it’s a simple questionnaire that asks you 3 easy questions about your yo-yo preferences and provides you with what yo-yo suits you best. try it out here! also, we’re hoping to get more blog posts going again… feel free to send us ideas by hitting us up through our new contact page, or contacting us on social media!
Why Reduction?
Our next yo-yo releasing is the all new Reduction. This yo-yo is extremely different from the rest of the products that have come out of UNPRLD.
(photo above by Scales Collective)
Read this short description behind the idea of it from designer & owner Tyler Hsieh.
“I took a different approach to making the Reduction. The idea of this yoyo came to me when I was asked to make something less optimized for competition and more optimized for making tricks. This involved a yoyo that was rounder, better for rejections and tech, and also light enough to not be taxing on the body. In creating this, we had decided that a less dense material would be better. Therefore, the first UNPRLD 6061 aluminum was created. Sporting the smallest and roundest UNPRLD shape yet, this yoyo targets the less competitive and more creative player to expand their trick vocabulary, and it’s limit is only capped by the player.”
Reduction drops 2/1 at unprld.com for $45 - will you get one?
Getting up after failure
We are blessed with an activity that does not take a toll on our body in a significant way.
In order to achieve greatness, you have to go through a lot of sweat and tears. You have to take a step back, after failure, and persevere. You have to win the physical aspect, the mental, and the emotional aspect.
Check out this clip of Danny Way.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zsqFjvZ4Mqw
He did this after breaking his neck surfing.
He was told that he would never skateboard again. And he was near suicidal. Not because his career was over, but he loved skateboarding too much to give it up.
Against all odds, he’s back on his feet today, skating.
How does this translate to yoyoing? Luckily for us, we do not go through as much physical stress on our bodies when it comes to yoyoing. However, this makes our failures and successes much more subtle.
For a yoyo player, failure is missing tricks. Every time we miss something, we end up getting annoyed. Success is when we land the trick.
For a skateboarder, failure isn’t bailing. Bailing is an opportunity to learn, and adjust your previous vectors for success. It is a normalized process that directly leads to success. Success is when we land the trick.
What if we adapted this principle for yoyoing? Say your current trick is a 3.0 hook. Instead of mindlessly whipping away, like most do, understanding the motions and breaking them down into executive motor functions, to build this “muscle memory” that people speak of would allow players to have a higher rate of success.
It is easy for us to keep going after failure. Miss a trick: get a knot, restart. However, scaling this to a broader criteria would be harder.
For example, lets take competing at a contest.
It does not take much to go on stage. You give it your all, and you flop. People are secretly making fun of you, even though you tried your best. You want to give up.
Through this embarrassment, shame, and self loathing, you choose to practice again. Your tricks are optimized, and your tricks become part of your executive motor functions. You don’t win your next contest, but you place top 5.
Our pain is not physical, it is mental. Although this may not be taken as seriously, it is just as impactful on our bodies as a physical injury.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_6tZ_A5jeDM
Tsubasa had broken his finger a week before this freestyle, and had to change his tricks to adjust for this.
Where am I going with this?
Our success isn’t determined by how many trophies someone won. Someone who has only won contests hasn’t found true success. True success is only found after the struggle of getting up after failure.