RELEASE INFORMATION

30 DECEMBER 2021

479.99 USD

OUTER RING BIMETAL DESIGN, RAW TITANIUM BODY WITH STAINLESS STEEL RINGS

55 MADE

Diameter 57mm, Width 44mm, Gap 4.4mm

64G WITH ONE DROP ENERGY DOME SIDE EFFECTS

YOYORECREATION NSK PLATINUM DOUBLE STRAIGHT C bearing

19MM TYPE 40 LANDING PADS RESPONSE

ANOTHER WORLD’S FIRST

Doombot established several firsts for RSO. It combined titanium and brass in a bimetal construction and, at 58mm, pushed the practical limits of machining a large titanium body. The difficulty of producing it nearly ended my interest in titanium bimetals.

Then came the opportunity to create the first titanium bimetal yo-yo built around One Drop Side Effects. The challenge proved impossible to ignore. Droid combines a titanium body, stainless-steel outer rings and a fully interchangeable Side Effects axle system in a single competition-oriented design.

It is one of the most technically ambitious RSO releases.

OUTER RING TITANIUM BIMETAL DESIGN

Droid departs from the organic, old-school profiles associated with many earlier RSO designs. Players had repeatedly requested a more competition-focused yo-yo. To deliver the required power and stability while retaining Side Effects, an outer-ring bimetal structure was selected.

The distinction between inner and outer rings is especially important in titanium. Doombot’s inner-ring construction requires its titanium body to span the full 58mm diameter. Machining such a broad titanium shell increases the possibility of warping. Droid’s titanium body measures a more manageable 54mm before the rings are installed. Its stainless-steel rings then extend the complete diameter to 57mm. The smaller titanium body improves machining consistency while the outer rings place substantial mass at the perimeter.

Droid ranks among the largest titanium bimetals produced. Stainless steel was selected for the rings because they form the yo-yo’s outermost contact surface. It provides the required density and durability without the tendency to discolour through repeated handling associated with brass.

POWER, SQUARED

Droid draws primarily from two influential yo-yos: the One Drop CiTizen and Turning Point Diaspora. Its overall proportions are related to the CiTizen, one of my favourite yo-yos, but Droid is slightly larger and wider. The addition of stainless-steel rings creates considerably greater rim weight and torque without producing the severe kickback that might be expected from such an aggressive distribution. The outer-ring profile is closely related to that of the Diaspora, the signature yo-yo of world champion Shinji Saito.

A low-walled V-shaped catch zone opens towards the rims, giving Droid the accessibility and stability expected from a competition-oriented design. Its Side Effects hub introduces an RSO-specific detail. A circumferential groove transitions into a rising arc towards the centre, producing a smoother and more sculpted profile than the conventional angular Side Effects hub.

FOURTY PERCENT POWER

Each production stainless-steel ring weighs approximately 13g. Together, the rings account for roughly 40 per cent of Droid’s complete mass. This concentration gives the yo-yo its formidable spin power and stability while allowing the titanium centre to remain comparatively light.

The result feels powerful without becoming unmanageable. Droid carries authority through long combinations, resists unwanted changes in plane and maintains presence at the end of the string.

PRECISION ENGINEERED

Droid required a manufacturing partner capable of contributing directly to both engineering and production. That partner was Fenghuida Precision Machining (FPM), the company behind Yoyofriends.

RSO’s relationship with FPM began with the titanium Bowl and Bowl 7068. In December 2018, I travelled to Songgang, Shenzhen, to meet the team and finalize the Bowl 7068 design. The journey from Hong Kong took approximately ninety minutes. Jacky collected us from the station, and the FPM team welcomed us at their headquarters with flowers. The company has evolved and relocated since then, but Jacky remains at its helm. His role in RSO’s manufacturing history made him an essential part of Droid’s artwork.

My wife and I (center) at the FPM old headquarters. FPM has since relocated. Jacky, its owner, is on the extreme left.

Droid’s prototyping process differed from that of previous RSO titanium releases. FPM recommended machining the initial prototype in aluminium. This reduced both material cost and machine time while allowing the Side Effects fit and the overall concentricity of the design to be evaluated. The thinnest section of the body measured approximately 0.65mm. Despite that demanding geometry, the aluminium prototypes emerged smooth with the Side Effects installed. Titanium prototypes followed once the construction had been validated.

Titanium prototype half on the left, and aluminum prototype half on the right.

Aluminium Droid prototype before assembly.

Aluminium Droid prototype after assembly.

Only one significant revision was required: the circumferential groove around the Side Effects hub was enlarged. The production geometry was otherwise confirmed. FPM then handled machining, ring installation, final assembly and order fulfilment.

RESHAPING THE SE HUB

One Drop introduced Side Effects with the 54 in 2010. Early Side Effects yo-yos used a compact angular hub designed to minimize centre mass.

Standard SE hub on the One Drop Benchmark 2016. Photo by Spingear.

The Anti-Yo YWET became the first Side Effects model released by another company in late 2011, retaining the same basic hub language. Later designs demonstrated that the hub could take other forms. The One Drop Yelets carried more material around its centre, while Atmos Projects’ Noah used a shorter and visually different configuration. Titanium expanded those possibilities further.

The RSO x Sonny Patrick YWETi MK I adopted the conventional hub for what became the first production titanium Side Effects yo-yo. Experience gained from that project led to thinner hubs on the YWETi MK II, Mecha-Bapezilla Side Effects Edition and Gravity. Droid pushes the idea further.

New York YoYo Club yo-yo prototypes, V1 in the center and V2s at the sides. Photo by Will Chavez.

The most weight saving SE hub design. Picture from Mark Diehr of MK1 Yoyos.

The objective was to remove centre mass without creating an excessively long or visually awkward nipple. An arc rises towards the Side Effects opening, making the hub appear shorter than its functional height. Material was also removed from the bearing side and redistributed towards the rims. The resulting hub balances three competing requirements: machinability, weight distribution and appearance. It saves mass where it matters while remaining unmistakably part of the design.

Comparison between the SE hub on the Droid (white) versus the “standard” ones seen on a majority of SE yo-yos today (red). The arc (green arrow) which forms the SE hub gives the illusion that the hub is actually shorter than what it really is. The weight which was removed from the bearing side of the yo-yo (blue arrow) was added to the rim.

PERFECT SYNERGY

Droid uses original One Drop Side Effects and a Yoyorecreation NSK Platinum Double Straight C bearing. The production schedule was delayed when the wrong Side Effects were initially manufactured. Regular Domes arrived instead of the intended blue Energy Domes.

Rather than postpone the release indefinitely, the yo-yos were assembled with silver Flat Cap Side Effects. The blue Energy Domes arrived later and were included as an additional set in every package. The supplied configurations allow Droid’s centre mass and appearance to be changed while preserving the extreme rim-weighted character created by its stainless-steel rings.

Droid is presented in a CNC-machined black Delrin canister manufactured by FPM. Its lid echoes the shape of the Energy Dome Side Effects, carrying the central profile of the yo-yo into the package itself. ATILA’s wraparound artwork depicts Jacky and me as droids, commemorating the partnership behind the release. The remaining accessories continue the mechanical theme, from the circuit-board protective cloth to the remote-control certificate of authenticity.