Metal Flip Over Top (Tippie Top) by Gyroscope.com

This is a high end top. Understand that it is small and it's coming from the UK so it takes a little extra time to get there, but mine arrived earlier than expected, in about a week. It's polished aluminum, bright silver in color. The picture is a darker grey like a tungsten. It is expensive for a little toy, but these are hard to find and most others out there are made from wood. This is turned from a piece of aluminum and couldn't have been cheap to make. It is very well balanced and will last forever. There was a comment in one of the other reviews about not turning completely over; not sure if that was somehow defective but the one that I received performs exactly as advertised. It does work better on some surfaces than others, the smoother the better. There are videos showing the top being spun too if you search tippe top. I found a company elsewhere on the internet that sells these, not sure if it's the same company or not but it is in UK and they retail for $27. All in all I think it's WELL worth the price and I just ordered another one because my son commandeered mine. I like the educational value in it too. It took me a bit to figure out how it works then I validated on the internet, but there is some good mind-flexing to be had with the younger ones to figure out or explain to them the physics of it. If you just want a little top for the kids to spin then you can get that cheaper and faster with other options, but if you want a very high quality piece that will also provide some educational value then I highly recommend this one.

Top notch little tippy top! Works perfectly. I have to moisten my fingers a bit to get a good grip on the stem, but with a flick, you can set this little gem spinning on its bowl! As predicted, it flips itself and again spins on the stem for quite a while. I had one of these when I was a kid, metal just like this one. The cheaper ones you see nowadays are wood and they dont have a long spin time. This one, being solid metal, has some heft and is perfectly milled and polished to perform well. Very pleased.

An interesting toy that, when given a good spin using the stem, flips over and balances on the stem due to weight distribution and shape. It needs a fair amount of smooth table top until you gain experience in starting it to minimize skating around on the flat surface. The smoother the table top the better. The way it ends up on the narrow end when spun is similar to how a hard boiled egg, when spun fast enough on its side, has the vertical axis move so it stands up on the narrow end while spinning. The one received is silver color rather than black and is high polished machined aluminum so far as I can tell. A quality and smooth machining job. It looks virtually unbreakable unless you step on it with hard soled shoes as it is relatively thick walled metal. BTW it is shipped from England so do not expect extremely fast arrival. Mine took about 8 days via Royal Air Mail.

I got this in the mail and was instantly surprised by its build quality. Its construction is not light by any means, and in the few times I've dropped it against tile or other metal objects, it hasn't been nicked at all. One gripe I have with it, however, is that the knurling (grip) can be a bit sharp and abrasive, but that's somewhat to be expected. It's provided me hours of enjoyment, and, as a physicist, it's provided me something to think about and observe intently. One last thing about it is that the color of it, in reality, is lighter than the picture shown; not necessarily a bad thing, just a side note. 10/10 overall.

This is a precision milled Tippe/Tippie Top. It has a rounded body with a knurled handle. This will only work on a smooth surface such as a hardwood floor, granite surface, glass or smooth table top. It takes a great deal of practice to spin it without the top going out of control and rolling across the floor. I have finally learned how to do controlled spins on a 5" mirror and a 75 mm concave lens. As the top accelerates the stem starts to go spin down towards the floor/spin surface. Then, it does something amazing...It spins upon its handle with a slight wobble for several seconds. The physics of this top, as I have read, have puzzled physicists since its "inception"/creation. The first time that you spin it, you will be amazed by what it does. This type of top has existed since the late 1800s in Europe. This is a well made top. It is perfectly balanced. The picture is not what mine looks like. It is more polished chrome, as opposed to the apparent Gunmetal finish on the seller's representative image. It is one of the most interesting tops in my collection. Two thumbs up. I highly recommend it.

fun little table top toy

I received it in already used condition, and not what was shown in the product images. The one I got didn't have grips on the handle. There were scratches all over the bottom and sides, and the chrome plating was peeling. I still gave it a spin or two and it did not perform as advertised in the video. It would start to spin on its side when the handle hit the surface, probably because the handle doesn't have the grips, it would just slide out and never spin upside down. I contacted the seller to let them know my situation but have yet to receive a reply after 2 days. I would not recommend buying from them. If you're an unlucky one like me and receive a defective item, you might not be able to get a replacement/refund. I'll update this review if they ever reply.

I worried that this might be some kind of gimmick, but it really does work. You just give it a good spin, it wobbles and looks like it is gone to flop - and the voila! It flips upside down and spins around on the thin spindle. It is a pretty neat little gimmick. Also, it is well made, very shiny (although this will eventually get scratched up depending on what you do it on) and it was a big hit with my son for a Christmas stocking stuffer.