What top games are played with spinning tops?

There has long been a rumor that in the United States in the 1930's and 1940's our grandfathers played with spinning tops. A game that was played used a spinning top to break or split another top lying on the ground. Although it has been argued whether this game was actually played, there is evidence that this game was not only played in the United States, but also in China, Mexico, Taiwan and South America. The spinning top can be considered a game in itself. There are many tricks that have been invented to entertain and challenge the top spinner. Each is fascinating to learn and interesting to watch. In the next few pages, we will look at some of these tricks.

In the 1960's, the Duncan Toy Company described several tricks that can be done with spinning tops. Here we demonstrate the basic tricks that enable beginning top spinners to play, and a few others to challenge more experienced top spinners to excellence. More advanced topics are covered in another volume.

Top Information
International Top Spinners Association
Watts' Tops