Thoughts on the Patriot

I bought a Patriot today and have played with it quite a bit. Mine’s red. Almost the exact same shade of transparent red as the Renegade that Infinite Illusions had a while back. It looks and feels a lot like the 1st-gen Duncan Freehand, which is a big plus in my mind.

The Patriot uses a big bearing. Both the width and the O.D. have been increased, compared to the normal YoYoJam and Renegade bearings.

This yo-yo is definitely a big improvement over the Dragon Jam, which is the only other YoYoJam butterfly that I like. YoYoJams seem to need a clean bearing to play well. However, if you compare a Dragon Jam and a SpinMaster (both w/clean bearings), you’ll find the SpinMaster to be less responsive cuz of its weight. A lighter yo-yo simply responds better. So you have to lube the rim-weighted YoYoJams to make 'em respond, which makes them play "unsmooth."

That said, the Patriot plays better than most YoYoJams, as far as smoothness vs. response is concerned. It handles backspin and mutations much better than the Spin FaKtor-type yo-yos. The Patriot can go through most any trick without slowing down a lot. Good stuff.

In his review of the Great White, Gabe (Citadel) said the Great White was "a step above the Freehand." In my opinion, the Patriot is a step below the Freehand...but it’s still an excellent yo-yo. *Maybe* even on par with the Renegade...

Further Ramblings

Aight, I used the Patriot some more today. I also threw my Dragon Jam for a few minutes. The Patriot is a vast improvement over the Dragon Jam...congrats to the people at YoYoJam!!! However, the Patriot is still a step below the Freehand, in my opinion. Starbursts simply cannot compare to friction stickers.

Final Thoughts

The Patriot is a tad bit wider than the fat Freehand. I think that, maybe, YoYoJam has reached the point where a yo-yo is too wide. Stuff like Orange Tulips and Superman can be quite tricky with this yo-yo, at first.

This yo-yo also suffers from one other very noticeable problem. When the gap is opened up enough for it to play smoothly, the starbursts don't grab the string as well as I'd like them to. As a result, the Patriot often winds up kind of loosely at the end of tricks. Nevertheless...

Go buy a Patriot: it’s cheap and plays better than all of the previous YoYoJams.