I suggest you try something heavier than the LED ones you are using. Sock poi are perfect for learning! Just take a balloon, fill it with rice and put that into a long, colorful sock!
They actually aren't weighted too bad. My friend has a pair of the crystal kind with weights and mine feel decently close compared to my roommates similar pair of led balls that are ridiculously light. i want something with better strings though, things that involve bringing your hands together are much easier with the thin strings because they don't connect as much. I know it'll be a pain when i get something proper. Also they have finger wraps instead of knobs on the end so i can't "juggle" them. or whatever it's called when you flip them in the air then catch them. The weights not too bad though, I've been getting anti spins down pretty nice with them which has been fun. I have an almost clean looking 4 petal flower. They leave so much to be desired though! I definitely need to upgrade to something more comparable to actual fire poi.
This sounds good man! You wouldn't need anything with grips until you got the basics and you want to try throws. Sometimes its good to have a grip that is heavier though, specially when it come to isolations (fuck, those are still hard for me!). But some pom grips from lanternsmith are always good ;)
Roommates monkey fist finally came in and I got to mess with them for an hour or so today! You totally called it though, massive different on weight, my memory deceived me. Might make some sock poi or just use that as my one frivolous purchase with my tax refund.
Fire monkey-fists are so nice to play with. I like their stable round flame when on fire :) Going to upgrade my pod-poi with some grips soon. And also ordering some monkey fist fire poi. My current fire poi are not really nice to spin and are waaaay too light