General-Yo Hatrick (USA Edition)
Reviewed by Chris Rhoads
March 16, 2010
Introduction
It was brought to my attention recently that we had not updated the preproduction Hatrick review with our thoughts of the production run, something we promised to do at the end of the review. No more than two days after that was pointed out to me, Ernie Kaiser from General-Yo e-mailed me about a new special edition Hatrick. He wanted to know if I would be interested in reviewing this limited edition run. Normally I don’t review every new colorway to come out for a particular yo-yo. Generally speaking, the colorway really does nothing to effect the play of a yo-yo, in fact nine times out of ten the colors, splashes, laser etches, etc are just there to make the yo-yo look pretty while sitting still. That being said, I decided to give this one a shot. It was a colorway that I had never seen attempted before and it gave us a chance to add our thoughts on the production run. Since Brett reviewed the preproduction run I didn’t feel right updating his review so I am going to do a fresh review of the Hatrick. Lets see if the new colorway offers anything new to the play experience of the Hatrick and lets see if our original “Final Thoughts” still hold up six months after writing our original review.
Specs
- Weight: 64.1 Grams
- Width: 41.5 mm
- Diameter: 50.2 mm
- Gap: 4.34 mm
- Bearing: AIGR C-Sized Bearing
- Response: General Yo Hat Pad and custom Chaz-Pad
Final Laser Engraving. Picture courtesy of Ernie Kaiser.
Construction
The Hatrick comes packaged in General-Yo’s standard, unassuming, small white box with a logo sticker on the front. The only thing letting me know it was the USA Edition was the hand written note saying just that. In the box rests the yo-yo, a custom Perfect Fit String by Jeromy Kasner, a custom Sick String by James Reed, and a note talking about the yo-yo and some tips for proper play. Setting aside all of the extras I began to examine the Hatrick. Justin LoTiempo at Not Fail Anodizing did an incredible job with this limited run. While it looks very reserved, you can tell a lot of effort went into the design of this yo-yo’s look. He had to design a special rig so that after anodizing, the halves would line up perfectly once the yo-yo was screwed together. The colors are extremely rich and vibrant. Overall an extremely nice look, something I have come to expect from Justin.
The Hatrick is definitely a General-Yo product. It has the classic curves that Ernie likes to use in his products. There are no fancy steps, cuts, V-shapes, or H-shapes. What you have is a classic rounded butterfly. About the only major departure in shape are the flat rims and even they seamlessly blend with the curve of the yo-yo. The Hatrick sports a decently recessed cup with a deep cut IRG and a small, but surprisingly usable spike in the center. The finish on the Hatrick is the same silky smooth bead blast that General-Yo used on the second run of the 5-Star.
Weight
When you first look at the Hatrick you might get the impression that it is going to be a heavy brute due to those thick rims. In reality it is a svelte 64-gram lightweight that plays fast and stable on the string. The weight is pushed to those beefy rims, giving it incredible spin times.
Response and Bearing
Ernie took a slightly different approach with the response set up of the USA Edition Hatrick. Instead of shipping it with his thick, smooth Hat-Pads installed on both sides he teamed up with his buddy, Chuck Schluer, for a custom Chaz-Pad installed on top of a thin Hat-Pad in one half of the yo-yo and a stock, thick, smooth Hat-Pad in the other half. This setup gives the same snappy binds that I found in my standard Hatrick with two thick, smooth Hat-Pads installed while giving the USA Edition a little extra visual flair. The only issue I have with the setup is that I would have liked to see those cool looking custom Chaz-Pads installed in both halves.
The bearing is General-Yo’s stock C-Sized AIGR bearing. I feel like a broken record every time I talk about it. The AIGR gives long spin times and last forever; truly one of the best bearings on the market. The only reason it isn’t my overall favorite is because they can get a little loud after extended use. A pinhead sized drop of thin lube solved that problem without dramatically impacting spin time.
Playability
On the first throw you can’t help but smile at the performance that the Hatrick gives. It is fast and quick to respond on the string but not the unwieldy type of fast that you would expect from a 64-gram yo-yo. It is very stable while spinning and recovers quickly from a bad throw. The light weight aids the thrower when popping it into the air. It just seems to hang there for a split second while you move the string into position. The gap is plenty wide enough for multiple string wraps and is easy to hit during whips and hooks.
Grinds are silky smooth on the Hatrick. The blast Ernie uses on his yo-yos makes them feel like they are gliding on a small layer of lubricant when it is pinning in your palm or on your finger. Thumb grinds are easy to hit thanks to a combination of deep cups and a generous groove in the cup that just latches onto your thumb when caught.
Now, at the beginning of the review I asked if the colorway added anything to the play of the yo-yo. The answer is a shocking yes. It doesn’t impact the physical play of the yo-yo but it does impact the visual play. The spinning pictures just do not capture the look of the USA Edition Hatrick; it needs to be seen in person. When spinning, the Hatrick’s stripes blended together for a nice purple, but I began to notice something while putting it through its paces. Whenever the yo-yo would change direction I would see a flash of color. It would be a split second pop of red or blue, almost like the Hatrick was giving off a tiny fireworks display while moving. It is one of the coolest effects I have seen on a spinning yo-yo.
Final Thoughts
Well, I can safely say that 6 months between reviews has not diminished our feelings on the Hatrick. It is still a top-notch yo-yo that feels great in the hand. The bead blast finish takes that awesome preproduction unit and takes it to the next level. If you have not bought a Hatrick yet do yourself a favor and get a USA Edition when it comes out. I am a big fan of any ano job that adds something to a spinning yo-yo and this ano job certainly does. Great job Ernie for creating another spectacular yo-yo and great job Justin for coming up with truly unique ano design.
