MadHouse Lucky 7 (Lucky 13 Edition)
Reviewed by Chris Rhoads
April 10, 2011

Introduction

Yes, this review is quite late. When I originally picked up a Lucky 7 I did not write up a review because it was too far after the original release. The yo-yo industry tends to move as quickly as the computer industry. It always feels like everyone is moving on to the latest and greatest thing, never really stopping to enjoy what he or she has. Well the Lucky 7 is too unique not to review. The Lucky 7 is the third yo-yo from MadHouse Yo-Yos. The company founder, Rick, has a very interesting company vision (which he posted in all caps on his site):

“NO RULES! THAT’S WHAT YOYOING IS TO US. SCHOOL, PARENTS, WORK, THE LAW – THEY GIVE YOU ENOUGH OF THEM. THAT’S WHY WE YOYO. LONG HAIR, SHORT HAIR, PUNK ROCK, HIP-HOP, 5A, 2A, MOEBIUS, OFF STRING OR 1A – WHO CARES. THERE ARE NO RULES. AND IF YOU THINK THEIR ARE, THEN BEAT IT AND GO BACK TO THE FOOTBALL FIELD! PLAIN AND SIMPLE THIS IS WHAT MADHOUSE IS ABOUT NOW GET OFF YOUR BUTT AND GO THROW HOW YOU WANT TO THROW!…”

This vision is evident in Rick’s current and former team member line up. Some of the current members have mad 5A skills and a rockabilly look while one former member is responsible for pushing the Moebius style to new heights. And now, over a year after its release, you can finally see if the Lucky 7 is a relevant yo-yo that should still be talked about.

Specs

• Diameter: 54.65 mm
• Width: 38.32 mm
• Gap: 3.52 mm
• Weight: 65.12 grams
• Bearing: C-Size Steel Bearing (Also comes in A-Sized)
• Response: Flowable Silicone

Construction

The first thing that you will notice about the Lucky 7 is that it is unlike anything that MadHouse has come out with. The 5150 and the UnKnown were both made using the classic, rounded butterfly design. The Lucky 7 uses a more modern design ever so slightly reminiscent of SPYY’s Flying V. It has a huge diameter with a very slim width. The looks are unlike anything I have seen previously. The normal edition Lucky 7 comes in a solid color with the logos engraved into the cups. Then MadHouse goes the extra step of polishing the ano out of the cups just enough to give them a raw mirror finish while leaving the stamped logos colored. The rims of the cups have seven evenly spaced holes drilled around the edges, reducing the weight while adding to the bizarre look. Now I did say the normal editions look like this, I am reviewing a Lucky 13 Edition Lucky 7. On these the whole thing is dipped in an acid wash of red and orange, adding even more to make this already striking yo-yo stand out. As you can guess, only 13 of this edition were made. The profile of this yo-yo shows off a set of massive rims in an almost H-Shaped design. I say almost because there is no step into the gap. It is pretty much all rims with a slight rounding to the edge. The cup sports Madhouse’s inverted spike hub in the center, which I have seen a player catch and balance on this thumbnail during a matador trick. Also in the cup is very well implemented IGR that is recessed enough to catch without having to maneuver around obstructions in the cup. The Lucky 7 has a large feel in the hand but not an uncomfortable one. It rests easily on the middle finger while the blast gives it a smooth feel. Overall, I cannot think of another production yo-yo as outright unique as this. It catches the attention of the people around you when you pull it out of your pocket. It may not be everyone’s cup of tea but I am a big fan of the design of the Lucky 7.

Weight

At 65 grams, this full sized yo-yo is a lightweight. It plays fast on the string while still giving insane spin times thanks to the portly rims. It can be played at a slower pace but I can tell that it wants to go faster and faster during combos. There is definitely a float to this yo-yo while on the string as well. The yo-yo does maintain a good amount of stability while zooming along. I am curious how much heavier it would have been if the holes had not been drilled into the rims. Maybe if there is a future release, Rick can shake things up a bit by making a special edition sans holes, call it the Full House Edition for those that prefer a heavier feel.

Response and Bearing

The Lucky 7 comes with expertly applied flowable silicone installed in the response. As always, this is my preferred response because it gives the end user a greater amount of control over the feel of the yo-yo.

The bearing is your standard steel C-Sized bearing. It is competent and spins true. A little on the noisy side but nothing a drop of thin lube can’t fix. The Lucky 7 is unique in the fact that it comes in a C-bearing and an A-bearing configuration. If I can get my hands on the A-Bearing version I will update this review with my opinions of the play. It is always interesting to see how a single spec change, such as a bearing swap, can affect the feel of a yo-yo.

Playability

Floaty, fast, and stable; everything I want in a yo-yo. It did have a tiny bit of vibe but I really could care less, it was less than the much talked about, and way overblown, CLYW vibe. It could only be felt slightly during thumb grinds. The slim width made this yo-yo perfect for learning tricks that had to maneuver around string wraps. During the play test for the Lucky 7 I finally decided to learn the trick Black Hops. The thing that had always messed me up on that trick was the hopping out of the triple or nothing and hopping back into the mock double or nothing at the end. The slimmer design of the Lucky 7 made it easier for me to move around without knocking the edges against any adjacent strings. The outer surface of the Lucky 7 has the same chalkboard bead blast finish that was introduced on the UnKnown. One benefit of the acid wash colorway on the Lucky 13 Edition is that it does not pick up dust and dirt like the solid color UnKnown did. What you do get with this finish is some of the best grinds available on the market today. It is right up there with General-Yo, One Drop Soda Blast, and ILYY Candy Blast in my opinion. All types of grinds were easy to pull off without a single issue thanks to the finish or, in the case of thumb grinds, thanks to the IGR. As far as the play is concerned there really is nothing to knock. You can tell that even though this is an over the top design there was quite a bit of thought put into making sure this was a solid playing yo-yo.

Final Thoughts

This is the second MadHouse yo-yo I have had the privilege of reviewing. With each successive release they seem to get better and better. If you are looking for a pocket friendly full sized yo-yo that plays fast and floaty you really need to check this out. Yes, even though it is a full size, the slim width made for a comfortable fit in my jeans or work khakis. This is one of those yo-yos that everyone should at least try. Hopefully Rick will put out another run of these now that his latest yo-yo, the EPIC, has dropped. If not, keep your eyes peeled in the BST sections, they don’t show up often and when they do they go fast.