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| Duncan World Class (1990) |
| Exhibit #2162 |
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| Type | Production |
| Shape | H Shape |
| Axle | Fixed |
| Packaging | Boxed |
| Construction | Composite |
| Response | Starburst |
| Gap | Fixed |
| Condition | Mint |
| Date | 1990 |
| Owner | Rick Brough |
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The unusual Duncan World Class yo-yo was released first in 1979 and made until 1982. (Duncan's Spring 1983 product line catalog no longer pictured the yo-yo.) The version in this exhibit was supposedly reproduced in 1990 using the same injection molds. However, it is much more likely that Duncan simply used leftover new, old stock from the early eighties that they wanted to sell off. (It seems unlikely that Duncan would go to all the trouble of recreating this yo-yo for a very limited time, ten years later, including adding the inertia ring and making the Reslon-coated axle, only to sell it in a non-branded, clear plastic box as seen in this exhibit.)
The yo-yo was a significant design departure from the traditional line of plastic yo-yos that had Duncan made and sold for more than 20 years (at that time in 1979). The profile, combined with the use of separate, metal rim-weighting "inertia rings", was quite unique and about 20 years ahead of its time. Even the axle profile was shaped to keep the string centered on the axle while the yo-yo was spinning. A string-centering axle reduced string drag on the inner walls of the yo-yo, thereby increasing spin times.
The metal axle on this model is Reslon-coated. Some people refer to this coating as Teflon, but that is incorrect. Reslon was Duncan's own thermal bonded fluorocarbon resin (read: plastic) coating applied to metal axles. The coating reduced friction between the axle and string, and allowed up to 20% longer spin times. Reslon axles were used on Duncan's entire product line of yo-yos from 1979 to 1982, excluding the Junior model. The Reslon trademark, owned by Flambeau at the time, was cancelled December 15, 2000.
The 1979 version of this yo-yo came beautifully boxed, and included a 48-page Duncan Yo-Yolympics trick book. It also came with a personal "World Class" ID number printed on two stickers. One sticker was to register the number by mail with both Duncan Toys and Duncan's "Yo-Yo Players International" group; the other sticker you could affix to your yo-yo. It's unknown how registering the yo-yo benefited you. The 1990s version seen in this exhibit came in a simple, clear plastic box with no branding or anything else.
See the original, packaged World Class - 1979 version.
This same model of yo-yo was used by professional Duncan demonstrator George Humphreys on the cover of The Amazing Yo-Yo by Ross R. Olney from 1980.
Charles A. Lanius of Wisconsin, who also holds numerous invention patents and who worked for Flambeau Corporation, was the designer behind the Duncan "World-Class" yo-yo. The yo-yo, however, did not receive any patents.
Original retail price: $15 US. | |
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