5.2 Series Review

by Crazy Ivan


Finally, enough time has elapsed for me to offer an honest and meaningful review of the 5.2 series.  I always try to offer some quick commentary on the sacks (the stuff you read when you click on them on the website) based on my first impressions, but as any Myachi Maniac knows, your first impressions of a Myachi can be deceiving.  I wasn't too impressed with the Calvin the first time I jammed with it and now it's my favorite.

So I usually reserve judgment until I've met all the following criteria:

• I've jammed with every sack in the series extensively,
• I've jammed with them new and broken in,
• I've jammed with more than one of each sack and
• I've talked with others who have jammed with each one.

Having finally met all these prerequisites, I now offer my thoughts on all the sacks available in 5.2:

 #1) Page Six 

This one was an early favorite for me.  I loved the look of it and while we've done a ton of plaid patterns in the past, we've never done one that looked like this.  Like all the sacks in the series, it's a corduroy, but there are some serious variations within the cords.  This one doesn't seem to widen as easily as some of the others, so if you like a wide-boarder, this might not be the sack for you.

That being said, they do tend to yummy up pretty quickly.  They stay thin and tight, but the fabric offers great grip right away and they start to get that broken in bend pretty soon after you start jamming with them.  They look great in action and they're good contrast sacks for 2 Myachi work since they'll stand out from pretty much anything you pair them with.

 #2) Comic Camo 

This was the House of Skills consensus pick to be the best seller in the series, though early indications might be that we underestimated the Red Dragon and the Hot Lava Yellow.  That being said, camouflage Myachis have always proven to be huge sellers and this one is no exception.

The addition of the little comic lettering has been a boon for this one, though it has caused some distress for our online customers.  Because some cuts of the fabric don't have as cool a sampling of the lettering (or sometimes none at all), the one they get might not be as cool as they expected.  This isn't a problem for the majority of our customers, of course, since they see them as they're buying them at the store and know exactly what it will look like.

As for the technicals, the jammability on this sack is definitely up to par.  It's a solid jammer than breaks in quickly, though the darker hues on the cammo can make it tough to shred with in low light.

 #3) Smarty Pants 

Sistering up nicely with the Lottie Dottie and a few other polka-dotted favorites in the past, this one offers the multi colored dots over a solid black background and gives it a Lottie-Dottie meets Dippin' Dot kind of a feel.     This gives it great visuals as you get into spin tricks and grinds.

It doesn't break in as quickly as some of the other sacks in the series (in my limited experience), but once you get it there it is very worth the wait.  It has the feel of a sack that will go under-appreciated until after it is retired, but it's too early to say with any certainty.

 #4) Red Dragon 

The long awaited reprisal of the Dragon line comes in a way that nobody expected.  As much as we'd all love to see a red and black version of the original Blue Dragon fabric, no such fabric exists and even if it did, it would make for a pretty rough jammer... the kind of thing you wouldn't want to spring on an unsuspecting jammer.  So we finally found a solid jam-fabric with a design that would earn the name.

So obviously it looks really cool.  Not only do you have the whole dragon thing going on, but it's a really eye catching red color so it looks great in a jam, even from a distance.  Add to that the fact that it breaks in quickly and jams really well right away and you have what might be the hands down best sack of the series.

 #5) Aztec Blue 

This is the closest thing you have to a repeat in the 5.2 series and even it isn't an exact repeat.  The Aztec Blue was first offered in an exclusive POP release of the 5B series.  It was never offered in a blister pack at all and you could only get it in a chain of stores called "Five Below" that (a) is only in a couple of states and (b) doesn't sell online.  So it was a really hard sack to get.  Even those of us in the company had trouble getting a hold of those ones.

But we've flipped the pattern for the re-release so now instead of running horizontally across the sack, the stripe pattern now runs vertically.  It makes a significant difference on the look of the sack and it brings it more into line with it's sister sack, the Aztec Red.  This long time favorite among collectors was offered in multiple series in both a horizontal and vertical form.

This sack seems to vary quite a bit when it comes to break in time.  I've seen some that break in super fast and others that take their time, but it is a very jam worthy sack once you get it broken in.  Visually it just reminds us all why the Aztec line was so popular to begin with.

 #6) Tight Rope 

This is a pretty understated sack in a series that contains such outstanding patterns as the Gr8ful Shreds, the Comic Camo and the Red Dragon, but this is sack has a really classy look to it and a solid grip to match.  I've probably had the least experience jamming with this one, but from what I've seen (and felt) it looks like it will be one of the best pure jammers in the series.

The pattern isn't flashy, but it's a very effective way to get a dark sack that is still visible enough for every occasion jamming so it's definitely one that will appeal more to the players than the collectors, but it's upscale enough to hold it's own in a collectors box as well.

 #7) Bag Pipe Green 

I'll be the first to admit that this sack came back to us a bit darker than I expected.  The idea of a green and blue plaid really excited me and when I saw it, it was so dark and understated that I was a bit disappointed.  From a distance it almost looks black and that has led it to go almost unnoticed amid such a striking series.

It's definitely a descent enough jammer.  Some of the Bag Pipe's I've jammed with have been a bit tight and I've yet to see one wideboard at all, but they break in quick.  I wouldn't recommend it as much for a beginner just because of the dark color and overall break in time, but it'll compliment any other plaid sack nicely in a two Myachi shred.

 #8) Green Spectrum 

Alright, so it's not as flashy as it's sister sack, the Blue Spectrum, but how could we not be excited about this one?  The Blue Spectrum was the best jammer in its series so odds were good on this one.  We had pretty high expectations for the Green Spectrum, which makes it all the more impressive that it lived up to them.  

Very likely the best jammer in the series and if it's not, it's only because something else proves to be ridiculously awesome, not through any fault of the Green Spectrum.  It has a pretty dull look, but the contrast is great for such a dark colored sack making it ideal for a jammer who wants the focus on the skills, not the sack.

 #9) Hot Lava Yellow 

I'm ready to say that this is the most underestimated sack in the series.  We thought it would be a slower seller and it is selling in the top 3 everywhere we offer it.  We thought it would be a humdrum jammer and it's turning out to jam like a champ.  We thought it would be a boring pattern but the yellow just leaps off the sack and adds flair to every trick in the lexicon.

So yeah, I give this one a pretty ringing endorsement.  We don't make yellow Myachis very often because, honestly, they don't usually sell very well.  But this one is making us rethink things a bit.  The contrast of the yellow on purple makes this a perfect sack for fast-hands shredding and foot work and at the same time it's making your shreds look cooler, it's also making your tough tricks easier by being so eye-catching.

The one drawback, of course, is that bright colors like yellows and whites get dirty easily and dull up pretty quick if you shred outdoors or drop a lot (there's no shame in it!  You're not learning unless you're dropping!).  If you make this one your primary jammer, expect to wash it regularly.  And as a word of warning, if you get one of these, you will be very tempted to make it your primary jammer.

 #10) The Guatemalan Blue 

The Guatemalan Black was an extraordinarily cool Myachi, there's no question about that.  It was a good jammer that broke in quickly and looked cool.  If there was any mark on the Guatemalan Black's record, it was that it wasn't super-visible.  It had good contrasts, but no bright colors.

So enter the Guatemalan Blue.  Everything you loved about the Guatemalan Black except now it's tinted with fluorescent blue stripes and markings so it becomes way easier to see.  The fabric is even reoriented to make the new contrast all the more striking.  Already proving itself as a really popular sack just based on it's look, it won't disappoint you when it comes to jamming either.

 #11) Gr8ful Shred Black 

This crazy family of psychedelic fractal patterns is long overdue.  As soon as we saw the selections come in, we knew we had to have them.  Normally we're a bit hesitant about bringing in completely new patterns and we do so one at a time so that we can gauge their popularity.  But once in a while you see something that's so cool you just know people will embrace it.

The Gr8ful Shred Black is admittedly getting outshined a bit by it's sister sacks (keep in mind that the 5.3X series is selling along side it).  As cool as it is and as much as it would stand out in virtually any other series, it's kind of getting lost in the shuffle.  It's a solid, middle-of-the-road jammer but the pattern does kind of get lost once the sack is in motion.  This is definitely not a problem its sister sacks are prone to.

 #12) Gr8ful Shred Red 

An extraordinarily cool sack that manages to look every bit as cool in motion as it does standing still, the Red Shred (okay, so there's already a sack with that nickname, sue me) is proving to be an early favorite among the Myachi Masters.  It's one of the few that I've seen everyone jamming with at this point.

It's a solid jammer and I've already seen a few of them wideboard, but even the ones that don't seem to yummy up like they're in a hurry to be your favorite.  Add to that the groovy pattern and you've got a Myachi that is a must whether your a jammer, a collector or more of a paddle/sport player.

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