The Beginners was one of the first yo-yos produced by Russell as part of their classic line-up of advertising yo-yos.
It was manufactured in Hong Kong and released in Australia in 1961. It was one of the only two yo-yo models that were released at this time, the other being the Championship yo-yo.
The Beginners model is made of tin metal, and has the string fixed to the axle. cannot be used for performing the long sleeper.
It came in a shape similar to a Duncan Tournament yo-yo. The yo-yo is made of tin metal, which makes it lightweight. The end of the string is fixed to the axle, which makes it impossible to perform the Long Sleeper. Also, because the yo-yo is lightweight, doing any tricks except the gravity pull is almost impossible, and as such it is only intended for little children.
Despite its lackluster performance, Beginners yo-yos were rare, and highly prized as collector's items.
In 1964, it was changed into a plastic yo-yo, still with the string fixed to the axle. In other countries, this was known as the Beginner yo-yo (without an 's'). The "Beginner" name would eventually be adopted in Australia in 1973.