This is my experimental top Nr. 15.
It is an evolution and an extreme version of my top Nr. 10, which I expose here:
[ Ссылка ]
In that video I explain what I have devised to make that top spin for a long time, and those considerations are still valid for the Nr. 15.

But then there are some more refinements and improvements:
the stem has better shape and proportions, and it is knurled, for a better grip; the long stem permits a better control; thanks to this stem I can start this top at 1200 rpms, practically the same as the Nr. 10, in spite of the fact that the Nr. 15 weighs 186 grams and the Nr. 10 only 160 grams.

But the most important improvement regards the tip of the top:
I have bought better diamond tools, by which, with the help of lenses, I can now shape the tip to make it very sharp, so that the diameter of the contact point of the tip is about 0.01 mm.
This helps to obtain a very low attrition of the tip.
I use high quality carbide for the contact points, (it is the best material I have found for the aim); anyway, the sharp tip wears out a bit while spinning, so the tip needs to be reshaped and centered again after each single spin.

Also the base has to be polished often, or the tip will start digging a microscopic hole in it.
This fact involves much maintenance work, patience and time.
The Nr. 15 is not a recreational top, nor an easy top, it is an extreme top, designed to spin for an extremely long time.
It is delicate, the lead flywheel can be easily scratched or dented, the obeche wood used for its central part is very light but also delicate, the thin mahogany stem too is not strong.
Also the tip, being very sharp, is fragile.
Spinning this top with strenght, wich is needed for a good initial speed of the top, made me nervous; for two times I chipped the sharp part of the tip, because of my impetus spinning it, and I had to reshape it.
After various attempts, I have been able to obtain this 51 minutes spin, and I am happy with this result.

Commercial finger tops never spin for so long, generally they are too light, (for commercial reasons, I guess), they do not have a recessed tip, then they are built relatively robust, easy to use, and maintenance free, and generally these qualities are not suitable for longer spin times.

This top is actually the official holder of the world record for the longest non mechanical top spin:
[ Ссылка ]

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