Share your latest spintop acquisition!!

[ta0]

The smallest top has a diameter of 2 mm. On the tip of the finger it's just a speck and I'm terrified about blowing it away each time I handle it as I will never find it again.



Lots of them fit in a penny (the smallest US coin):



Mr. Fukushima made them with the regular lathe (how it's possible and how he paints them, blows my mind). Although he makes all sizes of tops, he is famous for the miniatures. This is a miniature koma shop he had for sale (I couldn't afford it):

[Jeremy McCreary]

I got these micro tops from Mr. Tamotsu Fukushima:
...
And this top from Ms. Ayako Watanabe (Mr. Ito's apprentice)....

Wonderful! Japan's on my bucket list, with a focus on its wild geology and marvelous spinning tops. Doesn't get much better than that!

[ta0]

Energia Ludica had in its booth at Loon-Plage and at Marines micro tops that were also 2 mm in diameter. The height was 3 mm, what makes them a little easier to spin (they do spin well). They are also made by Alberto on a regular lathe. As I already have the Japanese one I did not get it. The cost is 30 euros what might make it the most expensive top per weight ever. A back of the envelope calculation gives me a weight of about half a milligram, or a price of around $60k per gram, one thousand times more than gold!



What I did get from them were the two finger tops spinning on the right of this photo:



I was testing their tops when Alberto's partner told me that the colored top was for men as it required strong fingers. I was happy when I succeed spinning it, so I bought it. Later Alberto told me that for a pro I should get the nicer one on the right. It comes on a package that says:  "Is getting to the moon an impossible dream? Almost like spinning this top! A real challenge to conquer your own MOON. (Arrivare sulla luna è un sogno impossibile? Quasi come far girare questa trottola! Una vera sfida per conquistare la propia LUNA)" It is in fact two times more difficult to spin and I don't succeed every time. After practicing with these, I remembered a top that I bought many years ago from Philippe Dyon. It comes on a base where it looks like a Christmas tree. I remember that Philippe demonstrated it to me: he could spin it fine but I couldn't. I tried again, and now I can (sometimes) spin it straight for a second or two before it starts to dance. So I'll say it's double as difficult as the moon top.

From a commercial point of view, it's surprising that tops so difficult to spin are available. But they are a good challenge for hard core hobbyists.

[Jeremy McCreary]

From a commercial point of view, it's surprising that tops so difficult to spin are available. But they are a good challenge for hard core hobbyists.

The tall, slender look also has a lot of visual appeal. Like the ones you showed, these tops can be quite elegant. Their very high critical speeds really cut into play value by hand, but online buyers may not realize that, and buyers looking for knickknacks or desk toys may not care.

My best-looking example had a tall hollow body. Critical speed and play value by hand improved considerably when I added internal mass near the tip to lower the CM. The other way to get around the critical speed issue is with a high-speed starter. Then you get both elegance and play value.

Made one of my very best by adding a LEGO stem and tip to my dog's small rubber Kong toy.



Eventually learned to get satisfying spin times out of it by hand, but it really shines with a starter. Details here.

[ta0]

I had forgotten about this one from Armin Kolb. I would rate the difficulty as similar to the moon top.



In addition to being tall, these finger tops are pointy, so they are not self-straightening as tops with more rounded tips.

[ta0]

I didn't expect to buy tops in Mallorca, except for a dyed Sara that I had already reserved. But somehow I ended up with a massive haul:





Chido Trompo was kind enough to give me a blue 3 inch Nylon top (3.1" x 4.2" = 79mm x 107 mm, 218 gr). This is the size Yahir played with in Tokyo. But in Mallorca Yahir played with the new one which is even bigger (~330 gr) and closer to the Sara's size.

The top on the right is a Sara with a one-way bearing tip. It was too tempting to pass. With this top I reached the finals of the body combat. It weighs 254 gr what is surprisingly less than the original fixed-tip at 268 gr.

The wooden top is one of a limited batch of 30 very special tops made by Rocco. The wood is Quebracho which is dear to me because it's native from Uruguay (although this particular one is from bocce balls from Argentina). The name Quebracho is derived from quiebra-hacha, meaning "axe-breaker" and is a very hard wood. The crown rim is made of boxwood. Rocco is very proud of these tops, he made a booklet to go with them, and takes a picture with each buyer. One day he wants to have a meeting of La Trottola Quebracho owners.





I chose #30, which is the one on the booklet photo. It's weighs nominally 400 gr.
It plays great. But I don't understand how Rocco could dare to use his in the suicide contest (but he won!)