CLYWxLuftverk Alpine

From Luftverk:

Looking back at our two previous collaboration yoyos there were very clear intentions with each design. The Tundra shared a lot of elements from the Octavia which made the entire yoyo feel extremely Luftverk like. I felt like since I was such a new brand, i had a level of insecurities of making a statement instead of just making a CLYW clone. The lines on the Tundra were very hard and even the outside defining profile groove that CLYW is known for was stylized in a Luftverk way.

Our second collaboration, the Peak, was the one I felt like had a level of novelty. The play of that yoyo was heavily lacking compared to a modern throw. We spent a lot of time making it feel nostalgic, and while collectors loved that yoyo – I didn’t think it was the best yoyo from a technical performance standpoint. It didn’t matter though, as the nostalgia factor was enough to forgive its dated feel. It was the yoyo I knew I could never top – it was a titanium OG peak after all.

And now the Alpine.

The name Alpine was also indicative of its DNA shared with the Tundra, perhaps a “Tundra 2” even. The Alpine shares a lot of similar lines but in these photos you can see what I mean when I describe the Tundra as having more “Luftverk” like features. The lines are more sharp on the Tundra whereas on the Alpine, the lines feel much more “CLYW”. These changes also translate over to play style. The Alpine definitely feels more floaty and full, with its wider width and weight distribution. But the original inspiration for the design actually didn’t directly reference the Tundra, since when you hold them in your hand they feel very different.

The final inspiration was heavily mixed with CLYW yoyos. The outside area that your palm hits, as well as the entire dimensions was initially taken off of the Chief. This set the tone and feel for the entire yoyo. The double lip was taken from the Scout but as we made prototypes it slowly got smaller because it needed more rim weight. The faint ghost line near the catch area was taken from the Borealis and of course a reference to the Tundra, a nice homage since it is a continuation of the titanium line. And finally the hub was lifted from recent classic Luftverk yoyos, but with a more rounded nipple. I tried to use the sharp edge version but it felt wrong since the entire yoyo only had softer CLYW style lines. With all this inspiration, the hardest part was to make it feel right.