“Janus Titanium (Ti Janus) is the variation of OG Janus.
Why titanium?
We maintaned all the elements from OG Janus to accomplish performance and design. This time, we wanted to use Titanium to take advantage of all the enhancements this material can bring to a throw. Titanium has a particular hardiness that allows reducing the thickness of the walls and bring weight to other areas to improve performance. The walls of the Ti Janus became now thinner but the shape and design we envisioned remains the same.
Another great benefit in using titanium in the Janus is the durabiity it will have at the moment of throwing it into your pocket or even at the moment of hitting a hard surface.
“This project is the result of many hours of work, trials, testing, R&D, and many other stuff that are probably missing in the number of things we explored while developing this project.
When developing this project we had one thing in mind: creating a yoyo with an interchangeable bearing seat to accommodate different bearing sizes and widths. We started playing around with few concepts to more or less understand if this idea could become in a potential project.
Having that feature in mind, we went ahead and prototyped this system with aluminum body material and with few different type of shapes just to have an idea about the possibilities in using this modular system.
By playing around with the design and the different prototypes, the idea of incorporating it into a wooden throw blew our minds as this would be the perfect candidate to also bring another element or functionality to the system: fixed axle.
Having the experience in designing El MiJo, we decided to also bring such versatility to this design and make this wooden throw capable to use fixed axle and ball bearings.
The concept finally started to have a better shape of what we were looking to accomplish originally. The Alebrije then was born.
Alebrijes are surreal creatures from an oneiric (dreaming) world conformed
by physical elements of different fantastical/mythical and real animals. The creatures typically have the four classical elements as part of them: earth, water, air and fire. Around that idea, we wanted a throw to have different elements such as: wood, aluminum, different bearing sizes and types.
One of the characteristics of alebrijes is their multicolour designs and the way we wanted to express that is by adding different colours to the bearing seats and to the outer caps to contrast the beautiful tones of the natural wood.
Due to the nature and characteristics of the wood, the process of making this throw required the utilization of CNC to accommodate the modular bearing seat system as precise as possible.
The effort and resources invested in this throw were out of our original scope but the final result was worth the effort.
We are planning to bring the Alebrije to life for Fixed Axle February. At this point we will be only able to accommodate approximately 50 units. More information about when and how to order will be available at our site, IG or by DM.
Qi embraces all manifestations of energy, from the most material aspects of energy to the most immaterial aspects.
Qi needs to have a balance in order to maintain good flow. If there is an imbalance of qi, energy cannot flow properly.
We started our journey with a remarkable H-shape yoyo because of the amazing properties and performance capabilities this shape can bring when in motion. This time, we wanted to bring another H-shape yoyo into our portfolio with a different style and design.
The Qi contains the typical characteristics of an H-shape yoyo where weight is pushed to the sides and comfortability comes very natural to the hand. For such reasons, we just wanted to enhance such characteristics and have a good weight (energy) distribution.
Let’s begin with the size of the diameter. The Qi could be ambiguously considered either a regular sized or an undersized throw depending on how the players considers it. For us, the Qi is in the maximum limits of what is considered an undersized throw in terms of size, but not in terms of performance.
The Qi plays very powerfully and nimble by properly utilizing the 62 gr. body weight along the thick rims that drive great performance. The centre of gravity of this throw is closer to the rims than the rest of the monometal throws we have designed.
Such factor allows the Qi to compensate the performance factor that a yoyo with a bigger diameter could provide. In a side-by-side comparisson with our Winglet, the Qi is 3 mm smaller in diameter, 2 mm wider and ~3 gr less in weight. The H-shape, altough is more conservative than the Winglet as it can be observed, it has been stylized with several subtle cuts that adds great personality to this throw. The catch zone of the Qi is wide enough to land tricks very easily.
The way the Qi has been machined is absolutely gorgeous. It has a very nice finish and smoothness that your hand will be happy to experience. The cup also has some cuts to aesthetically match the design of the rest of throw. It is also noticeable how we minimized the centre weight and left certain room for finger spinning. Thumb grinding will definitely not be an issue.
The engine and responsive system the Qi comes with are a concave C bearing and pads exclusively formulated for us in order to have a great spinning time and a nice grip. The Qi comes with Alpha line – ZipLine string.
We made this project with the intention to have a performer, handsome and comfortable throw that makes the energy to flow harmoniously.
Wish you a nice Qi entry flow and let nothing hold you down.”
The following story was taken from the Canopy Collection website.
Taking even stronger reference from the Otter than previous Canopy instalments, primarily in its profile design, the Canopy SS is an undersized performer crafted out of stainless steel for added durability and torque. Optimising for characteristics native to the Otter, the Canopy SS has agility and quickness that are surprising for its specs – it’s all about outsized performance packed tight into a compact form.
Specs:
weight 67.5 g
diameter 50 mm
width 45 mm
Material:
Stainless steel
The release of the Canopy SS feels like a full-circle moment – the end of the beginning. We’re at the end of the year, and we’re also nearing the end of 2024’s release slate. The final instalment in Canopy’s design lineup is the Canopy SS, a model that might’ve been the most unlikely from the beginning – but also one that’s eventually evolved into a house favourite.
The four Canopy designs lean into various existing designs for inspiration, depending on their concept and material. The AL felt like a good, balanced blend of the Polaris and Otter form factors, the PC borrowed from the Arctica, and the Ti drew heavily from the Polaris. The fourth Canopy is the spiritual cousin of the Otter – Harrison’s second signature design by Caribou Lodge and Jeffrey Pang of Luftverk – but reimagined and forged in stainless steel.
Stainless steel is a tricky material to work with. It’s nearly twice the density of titanium and is incredibly rigid. That means it lacks the pliability of “friendlier” materials, such as titanium or aluminium, and design decisions have to be precise, since any mistake is significantly more pronounced – you can feel it immediately in play.
The accidental but fortunate implication of its characteristics, however, was that the Canopy SS had to likely be small. An overly large and dense design was a non-starter, given the Canopy ethos of everyday-ness; but a small form factor was an early concept cornerstone that bloomed beautifully into what the Canopy SS eventually became.
Given Harrison’s fondness for yoyos with a smaller physical footprint, we doubled down on creating a stainless steel design that sought to pay homage to the Otter – and that was the start of the design journey behind the Canopy SS.
It feels amiss to tell much of this story without Harrison’s own voice, so… here’s his side of the tale.
Take it away, Harrison.
“
Harrison here, momentarily taking over Reuben’s editorial to share a couple of my thoughts on the Canopy SS.
I try not to choose favorites, but the SS is easily my standout choice from the Canopy introductory lineup.
Let’s take a step back.
At the start of the year, when Reuben and I were brainstorming which yo-yos we’d like to release as part of the collection, it only made sense to lean into the overarching Technical Outdoors theme and use it to guide our yo-yo design philosophy.
Technical outdoor-wear brands often release variants of the same product, each geared toward different use cases and activities. While two products in the same lineup might appear identical on paper, their in-use performance can differ greatly, as they’re optimized for different objectives. For instance, maneuverability and breathability are often prioritized for rock climbers, whereas trail runners or trekkers might have entirely different priorities—even if there’s some overlap.
Yo-yo design has progressed to the point where top competitors can easily pick up almost any yo-yo released in the past few years and perform their full trick set. However, the variety in design lies in the details. Players whose trick sets predominantly feature challenging horizontal tricks will prioritize different design characteristics than those of a tech flow player. This is why so many options exist today—but if you’re reading this editorial, you already know that.
While shape and weight distribution have historically been the primary design levers, experimenting with and prioritizing materials has been relatively uncommon.
So, we decided to create an ambidextrous shape—one that could be optimized for both competition and casual play—drawing inspiration from my signature yo-yo, The Otter, and the Atmos Polaris. The question became: How could we lean into the unique properties of the material a yo-yo is made from to enhance performance for specific use cases while maintaining a consistent shape and overall design?
Aluminum and titanium were easy picks, along with machined polycarbonate, inspired by Atmos’s recent Arctica design. But the thought of exploring stainless steel as a material felt a little riskier. Drawing inspiration from the DINK by Jake Bullock and the Apathy by Empathy, we knew it could be done and result in a yo-yo that played distinctly differently from the rest of the lineup.
I immediately had a feeling the SS would be my favorite after Reuben sent me the specs.
With The Otter, Jeffrey and I aimed to create a yo-yo that matched my fast and technical playstyle: something that could handle multiple string wraps and intricate string maneuvers with ease. We wanted a yo-yo with a long spin, the ability to maintain plane through lengthy combos, and incredible agility—capable of changing direction with little to no resistance. This led us to designing an undersized competition yo-yo.
The SS is, in many ways, a progression of my initial set of requirements for The Otter, adapted for 2024. Its even smaller diameter allows you to use a shorter string for greater control without compromising maneuverability. And using stainless steel as a material allows for a more precise weight distribution impossible with aluminum, making it feel much larger in play than its small form factor suggests.
Backpacking around East Asia this fall, the SS became my go-to pick for daily adventures. It was something that could easily fit in my crossbody bag. The outsized performance of the Canopy SS, led me to choose for my demo at AXEL—here it is in action.
The Canopy SS features design cues native and now recognisable to Canopy – such as the Otter’s half-spike, albeit compressed, and a lot more subtle; it also features the gentle, topological profile lines from the Polaris. However, the profile wall is a lot more curved than is regular for a Canopy – it opens up a wide, friendly chasm for string hits, and also pays homage to its forebear in the original Otter design.
It’s obviously related to the lot, but it bears closer resemblance from one side of the family.
The weight distribution is decidedly even, which means that even at 67.5g, it moves extremely confidently, but it’s sprightly and quick. It’s far from a tiny brick that its mass might suggest. It’s nearly a full gram heavier than the Canopy Ti – but it moves much, much faster.
At 50mm it might be hard to imagine something so stable and powerful, but for its physical profile – its performance is genuinely outsized.
We’re incredibly excited to bring you the Canopy SS – a product of over thirty drafts and multiple prototypes, a real pocket rocket, and perhaps the best way to wrap up an incredible year of new things.
If you’re still here – thank you so much for being a part of the journey. 2024’s been an incredible ride, and we couldn’t have gotten here without you.
The following story was taken from the Canopy Collection website.
The Canopy PC takes on fun in a big way. Drawing inspiration from Atmos Projects’ recent plastic release in the Arctica, this third entry in the Canopy Collection is constructed with precision-machined polycarbonate, and takes a step into the oversized category — all while offering precise, nimble handling.
The Canopy PC is designed for dynamic and rhythmic control, and is an everyday favorite that is larger than life.
If you missed our earlier editorial on the design process that started with the Canopy AL, you can check it out here.
We’ve designed, manufactured, tested, assembled and played with a ton of yoyos over the years – but there’s just something special about a plastic yoyo. It’s not just about nostalgia – no shortage of rabbit holes there, if you wanted to go down one. The truth is, plastic yoyos are just more fun. It’s just science. They make you play differently, and even if you did the same tricks on them that you just performed on your newest, shiniest competition bimetal a minute ago, it makes you feel different. Plastic yoyos are the ones you throw in a backpack or keep around the house and don’t think much about, but they feel right for every spontaneous session when inspiration strikes – and they’re always a satisfying throw.
Specs:
weight 68.2 g
diameter 58.7 mm
width 49.1 mm
Material:
Polycarbonate
Shortly after the Canopy AL and Ti were put into production, we set on a path to develop a couple more designs to round out our first iteration of the Collection. Following the material study we had begun, we eventually settled on making a plastic Canopy – an intriguing proposition for multiple reasons. For one, using plastic as the chosen material meant that we would deviate from certain aspects of the Canopy form factor quite significantly – given the vast difference in material densities and characteristics, we knew right off the bat that an undersized profile, or the dipped angle rim feature, were unlikely to feature in a similar way.
A plastic Canopy would look very different, which was an exciting thought. It also gave us permission to be more liberal with our imagination in terms of the design concept – the AL was built with an everydayness in mind; the Ti is technical and more performant. A plastic Canopy would be built for very different purposes and outcomes.
And so we got into the usual rhythm of late evenings on our CAD programs and a hundred Telegram messages across time zones. The kicker in all of this was – we had just spent the last half year working on the Arctica, Atmos’ first ever polycarbonate model.
The Arctica was an exercise in precision – as a model consisting of 12 independent precision-machined pieces, we learned a ton about material tolerances, designing for fit, and how to apportion mass with a material so light. So much of what we learnt was ready to be exported and mapped over to this new design that was taking form.
We eventually settled on polycarbonate, a material we’ve grown to really love. It’s light and soft to the touch, but structurally rigid enough – it generally lends to much smoother play than other types of plastic, and also produces a wonderfully frosted look after it’s been machined. The one challenge using polycarbonate is that it can sometimes be too light – more on that later.
The prototype we sketched up was 58.7mm in diameter and 49.1mm in width, and about 68.2g in mass. These numbers may look absurd at first glance, but rest assured they’re not as extreme as they seem. The Canopy PC sits fully in the hand at 58.7mm, but it doesn’t feel overly large. The softness of the polycarbonate makes it a full and gentle catch; just like holding a softball in a glove. The 49.1mm in width also feels natural by proportion– it’s hard to miss a trick landing with something that wide. The weight is where some of our learnings from the Arctica came in handy – we knew we needed a disproportionate mass, paired with a large diameter, to compensate for the low material density of polycarbonate. Leaning towards a lighter overall weight – say, in the “normal” ballpark of 64g to 66g – would lead to a thin and hollow playfeel. To that end, we drew up massive beefy rims that take inspiration from previous Canopy iterations – they’re about 12mm thick, and pack a solid punch.
The resultant mass of 68.2g makes the Canopy PC feel full, incredibly stable, and surprisingly nimble. Perhaps the most impressive trait of the Canopy PC is how precise and nimble its handling and control is, particularly for its size – it responds to dynamic and rhythmic manipulations very, very well.
We also integrated the iconic Otter hub into the aluminum spacer assembly. This was a design feature we were unwilling to do without – it gives the yoyo a distinctly Caribou Lodge look. Where there usually is just a simple nub, or a dimple for finger spins, the Otter’s half-spike is carved into a 6061 AL fitment and is embedded into the polycarbonate body, concealing the remainder of the spacer assembly. Beyond its mechanical and symbolic functions, we were also just in love with how the aluminum half-spike looked paired with the frosted polycarbonate hub.
We machined a first run of prototypes and got them just in time for WYYC 2024. These prototypes were quickly sent out to the Canopy team for testing – individually, but also at the largest annual event of the year in the yoyo world, where some of the best players globally were gathered for a few days. Harrison and Coleman were split between organizing the Stargazing Night event (a Herculean task in itself) and getting the Canopy PC in the hands of players we wanted feedback from. Harrison compiled a list of feedback and insight on the Canopy PC that ran 18-lines long – most of them converging around the balance, optimum weight distribution, and solid playfeel. In contrast to the Canopy Ti, which went through four rounds of prototyping, the Canopy PC prototype got pretty close to where we hoped it would be on the first try – something we were incredibly grateful about.
The production version of the Canopy PC has a couple of quality-of-life adjustments that optimize for smoothness and feel; it otherwise remains faithful to the prototype we first made.
For many reasons, the Canopy PC might just be my personal favorite of the lineup so far. It’s sat in my rotation ever since I got my hands on it. It’s the big, bouncing, bubbly younger brother of the family who’s naturally hilarious and just knows how to have fun, and everybody wants to be around. It whips, whizzes and weaves effortlessly, and is everything you need it to be.
