One Drop Prescription
Reviewed by Chris Rhoads
December 4, 2016

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Introduction

One Drop has been on a roll as of late. Since March of 2016 they have released a new model each month, with the exception of August. I can’t blame them for not releasing in August, they did release the four yo-yo Benchmark 2016 series in July which more than covers the break. Today I am taking their newest signature for one of their team members out for a spin, Jonathan Best’s signature throw to be exact, the Prescription. Best, also known as Doctor B, is a middle school teacher who has been throwing for over 20 years now and has seen many innovations come and go in the industry. When it came time to design his own throw he went to One Drop with a simple set of ideas. In his words:

“Give me the curves of the Cascade. Give me the weight and hand-feel of the Project 2. Tweak the weight distribution. Make sure the Projection Profile is juuuuust right. Oh, and Side Effects. Gotta have those.”

The P2 and Cascade are two of my favorites from back in the day so I am curious to see how throwing them together worked out.

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Specs

• Diameter: 53.6 mm
• Width: 46.3 mm
• Gap: 4.35 mm
• Weight: 65.3 grams (as shipped with aluminum Ultra Light Side Effects)
• Bearing: One Drop 10 Ball Bearing
• Response: Flow Groove Pads

Construction

Underneath that striking projection profile, it is readily apparent that Prescription and the Cascade are related. Both have that sweeping organic H-Shape profile that starts almost flat at the rims and then flows down to the friction reducing step out at the gap. While similar they are not identical. The step out at the gap is angled slightly more and the catch zone appears to be a tad bit wider. The gap step and the rims are framed by the projection profile giving the yo-yo a unique look. The Prescription cup quite a bit different from the Cascade. The step is set deeper in the cup and is missing the lip at the end, instead coming to a defined edge which happens to be the only sharp cut in the cup. The yo-yo’s finish is the standard Pyramatte finish, which is a decent finish for grinds. Over all the Prescription does have a great feel in the hand thanks to the rounded nature of the design and does have a slight Project 2 feel to it thanks to the projections profile which does a great job mimicking the Project 2’s wider groove design.

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Weight

Even though the Prescription weighs over two grams less than the Project 2, it does have that similar solid feel on the string thanks to the weight placement. The Prescriptions spin times are impressive, giving quite enough time to fiddle about with that new combo you want to try. One thing I really enjoyed about the Prescription is that since it starts with a lighter base weight than the Cascade, you get a much more dramatic change when you swap out relatively light Side Effects. I immediately felt a difference in play when I went from the Ultra Lights to the one gram heavier Energy Domes.

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Response and Bearing

Two areas that have not changed at all from the Cascade and Project Two are the response and bearing. The One Drop 10 Ball has been around since the beginning and the Project Two was the first One Drop to ship only with a Flow Groove pad option. The fact that this setup has lasted so long is a testament to the durability, quality, and longevity of this bearing and pad combo.

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Playability

Fast, stable, and with authority, that is how I would describe the Prescription after the initial throw. While it may be light, it hits the string with a pronounced feel similar to the Project Two. You are aware of its presence. While it can play at the chill and relaxed flow that the Cascade has been praised for, the Prescription can be ramped up easily for some fast paced, more technical combo work. While it is a wider design, I did not find it cumbersome to weave this yo-yo in and out of the strings during some of my more complex tricks. Grinds are improved quite a bit over the Cascade and I will happily attribute that to those projection grooves in the gap. I found that I had quite a bit more control over the yo-yo when it was on my finger or even on my arm which makes sense. Those grooves reduce the amount of skin that the yo-yo comes in contact with.

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Final Thoughts

I know quite a few will look at this as a rehash of the Cascade, and while there are similarities I would say this is a unique throw unto itself. So much so that it would have been wrong for One Drop to just call it the “Cascade 2”. The play characteristics and the feel are quite a bit different and in my opinion better. So much so that if someone were waffling between the Cascade and the Prescription I would have no problems telling them to go with the Prescription and skip its older sibling.