I have...a lot of dildos. Um, like...A LOT. Really! I'm afraid one day someone is going to find my in front of my toy chest, crushed under an avalanche of dongs. It's that bad. And though I love and use each and every one of these dildos, after trying so many it really takes a lot to truly knock me off my feet. However, the Alumina Flow does exactly that. It absolutely blows me away. In fact, I took my Flow out to keep on the desk for inspiration while I wrote this review... but got a little distracted. I found the mere sight of it so tempting that I decided to enjoy a little quickie before I started writing. Now, freshly rinsed and still emanating the heat of my body (ah! the heat-absorbing properties of metal!) Flow sits in my lap as I sit basking in the afterglow.

Truth be told I only got the Flow to go along with my Revolve. It was actually the Revolve that I fell in love with at first sight. I only chose the Flow as Revolve's companion because the sharp ridges and points of the Motion scared the crap out of me, quite frankly. Metal is not a forgiving material. There is absolutely no give, no squish and no accommodating your whims no matter what kind of kegels of steel you're packing. Flow seemed like an unassuming friend for my bubbly love the Revolve - smooth, swelling into its larger end from the thin, somewhat pointed end with a single, graceful swoop. If nothing else, I figured, the Flow wouldn't bruise my cervix or scratch the hell out of my urethral sponge tissues. But as fate would have it, it's actually the Flow that has become the star of the show and the Revolve that has become the secondary, runner-up dildo.

Each dildo in the Tantus Alumina is comprised of two separate halves that are actually screwed into one another. Yeah, "What?" is right! Now why would Tantus do this? Were the original drafts for these dildos drawn up by Eli Whitney? Was the real jewel in the crown of the interchangeable parts revolution meant to be a series of purple insertable sex toys? Not quite. The reasoning behind the two halves being screwed together (separated by a rubber O-ring that can be removed and reinserted as well) is so that if you have more than one Alumina dildo? You can disassemble and reassemble the parts to make your perfect dildo. That's why I got the Flow - so I could experiment and swap shapes with my Revolve.

The Flow itself... is HUGE. It doesn't look it from the promo shots by my goodness, the thick end of this baby is exactly 1.5" in diameter measured from any one side to the other at its widest point. To give you an idea, the Vixen Leo is just a hair over 1.5" in diameter. Of course the Flow is not made from silicone, but rather 100% non-porous, body safe, solid aeronautical aluminum. It doesn't bend or squish a bit, so you truly feel every millimeter of its girth. Holy heavens. I really anticipated that I would need to angle this bad boy majorly to make it hit my G-spot, but this may be one of the precious few dildos I own that can hit my G-spot without any curvature.

This is the part where I lose my words - where I start to think of how amazing this feels when I thrust headlong with it. The slick, but slightly matte finish of the Flow is different that the mirror-shine gloss of the Revolve, and other reviewers of the Flow have noted this difference as well. For some reason Flow has a smokier, less reflective surface, but with a tiny bit of lube or just natural lubrication this slides in and out effortlessly. Flow is significantly heavier than Revolve, and yet thrusting with it is a breeze. The only issue I had with thrusting the larger end is with the O-ring. Much like the three bulbed end of the Revolve, Flow's larger half glides into the O-ring without narrowing much into a "neck" or a resting place for your inner labia. As a result this dildo tends to slip too far in and allows the O-ring portion to be inserted. Unless I'm careful, thrusting like this really can irritate my labia - not fun for my vagina! Additionally, I wouldn't recommend this larger end for anal play; it simply lacks a large enough flange for it to be safe, though the smaller end (just under an inch in diameter) should be just fine.

The thin end of this thing I could really take or leave, it doesn't do much for me. I adore it as a handle and I'll sometimes swap it in place of the three bulbed end of my Revolve just to use it as such, but as an insertable I find it generally unpleasant. It's too thin for me to really feel when I thrust it straight - and by the by, please be careful when you thrust with metal, it's quite firm and can bruise you quite badly if you're thrusting haphazardly! There's also no curve or bulb at the end of this section that could save it from being dull like the Revolve has. I'm not really able to angle this up toward my G-spot because when I do, the rather pointy end of this side really leaves me sore. Ouch. I do like this end for some light anal stimulation. For a little teasing or warming up this slips in very, very easily with a dollop of lube and feel heavenly.

But Lord have mercy, that large end. It fills. It stretches, and make sure you're prepared for that rock solid 1.5" because you'll really feel it. The size and substance of this end alone just does it for me, plain and simple. It doesn't look like much because it's straight but the way it bulges and presses up against the top of my vaginal canal? Awesome. I swear it's magic. I have no idea how something so completely lacking curvature could hit my G-spot but it does and it does so maybe better than the Pure Wand. Can I even say that? The Pure Wand Police might come after me, but I swear it's true.

Flow is really easy to clean, which is good because the rubber stopper of this toy seems particularly prone to catching fluids - especially because it tends to "slip" inside when I use the large end. You can simple unscrew the halves and set the screw aside (do not drop it down the drain! it's tiny, so put it somewhere safe!) and scrub the O-ring and metal pieces with antibacterial soap and hot water. Tantus recommends placing your Alumina toys in the top rack of your dishwasher without detergent for a more thorough cleaning; I have successfully boiled my Revolve, but do so at your own risk as Tantus doesn't recommend it. But please, no harsh cleaners that contains alcohol or bleach because over time this can certainly corrode the material. Be sure to dry your toy thorough, especially the ends that come flush against one another when screwed together, to avoid rusting.

Aluminum is non-porous so as long as you are diligent with your cleanings between uses, you are more than safe in sharing your Flow. The heavy duty cardboard box that Tantus includes is perfectly suitable for storage, or you can get a nice pouch to keep this fancy schmancy toy in. Any lubricant is safe to use with your Flow, just remember you won't need much or else it will become quite slippery. Above all else? Enjoy this thing. Although really, I'd like to see you try not to!

I have quite a lot of dildos, and it always surprises me when any one dildo stays in regular rotation. There are so many good ones that I'm always itching to dig the the bottom of the box and try something else. The Alumina Flow is, however, by far one of the best dildos that I own. Explain it to me, people. How does this straight, totally unyielding hunk of metal manage to hit my G-spot almost as well as (if not better than) the Pure Wand? Can we talk about this? I just don't understand it. It's a guaranteed, intense G-spot orgasm every time. You can have my Flow when you pry it from my cold, dead vagina! (Sorry for the bizarre and morbid visual, but it's true!)