Apologies if this writeup seems short. it has been an insane month of work, accumulating multiple 70 hour work weeks back to back. More than half of that work is comprised of plastic projects I have in the pipeline for 2023. So although it has been non-stop, it is work I have been enjoying quite a lot. Im trying to get stuff buttoned up before I leave Canada, so things have been all over the place. Back in December when the Fulvia hit the stores, this Triple zero was already in development. In fact - this was supposed to be the first yoyo released until I changed my mind in mid 2022.
I had files for a plastic Triple Zero going all the way back 4 years ago to 2019. My main inspiration was a bit unusual - I was fascinated by the Yoyojam Kickside which was actually my first yoyo(shout out to Rick Wyatt) . As a kid I got a yellow one from Hong Kong and it was what got me hooked on yoyos. The floaty unapologetically large organic shape made it such a fun yoyo to learn on. I must have spent hundreds of hours playing with that thing. When I developed the titanium Triple Zero, it also sparked an idea of a plastic one, with elements of that first yoyo experience I had. At that at the time I was way too scared to pursue it though. But this was the start of the Plastic Triple Zero.
During Covid, I spent so much time at home with not much else to do. It was then I started 3D printing various projects. Inspired by the titanium Triple Zero from the year prior, I printed this exact yoyo - using the Fluid Print Dynamics spacer kit. I expected it to suck. But that was far from the truth. It was incredible - It felt so floaty and fun. It encouraged a bouncy fast play style. It kind of captured what that Yoyojam Kickside felt like, but felt more modern. That was actually the exact moment this whole plastic Injection Machining idea started from. Without this viby 3D printed yoyo, I am unsure if any of the Luftverk plastics would even exist.
I spent a lot of time getting the play right with the Plastic Fulvia. After all, the Fulvia was originally this insane titanium competition yoyo - difficult to achieve with plastic. But with the Triple Zero, the titanium version already aimed to feel fun and floaty which are characteristics that plastics already generally have. I usually go through 3 or more rounds of prototyping these days but sometimes you just get lucky. I remember receiving the original prototype of the Triple Zero and saying to myself "Wow. This is it." I got some local friends to try it too and they agreed. Somehow even though its less stable than the Plastic Fulvia they liked the Triple Zero more. I knew I was on to something special.
Production went full steam, but not without hurdles. One of the absolute defining features i wanted to do was to print white ink logos on the edge of the yoyo - but no one told me this was rarely done due to massive complications in the jig that has to hold the yoyo during the printing process. I emailed back and fourth with the manufacture - they insisted on doing grey laser engraving commonly used on other plastics on the market. I had this vision in my head where the white logo of the yoyo had to match the white pads. They agreed to machine complicated custom fixtures to hold the yoyo during this printing process and the result is what you see here - something that no one will notice or care about but I guess thats on me haha.
The colors of course were inspired by the original Skyva but with different tones. The blueish green is a more subtle tone. The grey is the same one used in the Fulvia, but I feel like this model displays my obsessive white logo / white pad kerfuffle the best. And lastly the white body was created to be the whitest white possible. Having a white this matte and pure kind of messes with your sense when it sits on a desk. It always looks computer rendered every time I look at it - an effect I didn't realize until I got the color samples. If you buy one, take a photo of it and you'll see how weirdly out of place it looks.
The packaging remains similar to the Plastic Fulvia - returning in a minimalist white. I reorganized a few things, and added some social media links hidden on the flap. Other than that, I switched to the lighter theme to compliment the yoyo colors. Like before, a line work version of the yoyo is proudly displayed on the back along with a simple mission statement.
All in all, Id say this project was slightly less stressful than the Plastic Fulvia just because there are less manufacturing unknowns. Theres no arguing the Luftverk Injection Machining method works well with how smooth these came out. But with that said this is like my second album - Its always hard to follow up after a big hit like the Plastic Fulvia. But I guess this is my attempt.
It has been nearly 4 months since Ive been in Japan, and 5 months since I left Toronto. Writing that out makes it feel short but in reality it feels like forever ago. The last launch of the Plastic Peak was an overwhelming experience. I felt so grateful to work with CLYW, a company I grew up with. When the World Yoyo Contest hit I didn't know what to expect, but I had started noticing a feeling of burn out after grinding out so many yoyo related projects and in a weird introverted way I was a bit reluctant to go.
CLYW is a Canadian brand that started in 2006. I was 14 at the time when I watched this new brand unfold on the Yoyonation forums. They released their first yoyo named the "Peak" with 50 pieces retailing for $85. Today, that yoyo has used asking prices north of $2500 making it one of the most insanely rare and expensive yoyos to date. This "OG Painted Peak" featured a custom painted surface by a Canadian airbrush artist named Levi. Overtime as the Peak was impacted or dinged, the paint would chip off meaning there are only a handful of units in the world that survived in mint unused condition. Later versions would be released in more durable anodized finishes, but these first 50 "OG Painted Peaks"cemented CLYW into yoyoing history.
This one will interesting - since mine and Augie's relationship go a far distance back. Its also kind of a weird story of how like minded free sprits will seemingly eventually cross roads no matter how unlikely that is.
Growing up in what I like to call the golden area of competitive yoyoing I was blessed to be inspired by yoyoers with so much unique style. These players helped me stay hooked in yoyoing and I often wonder if I would have even stuck with it without them. Players like Yuuki Spenser, John Ando, Eric Koloski, Paul Han, Shinji Saito and of course Augie Fash were some of my favourites. Before there was a yoyo "meta" all these yoyoers had their own 1A style which is why I think fondly of this era.
Jeffrey Pang
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