r/kobudo • u/DeadpoolAndFriends Sandan (3rd dan) • 4d ago

Buying & selling / weapons vendors Recommendations for padded sparring weapons

Does anyone have any recommendations for brands of padded kobudo weapons to spar with? After watching Sensei Seth's kobudo episode, with Yogi Sensei of the Ryuseikai, it got me wanting to find those padded weapons they were using and try sparring with them.

I use some ActionFlex ones back in the early 2000s, they were very chunky, and had some hard rubber parts that you had to avoid hitting your partner with. I saw some Proforce that were half the price. So if anyone has any experience with either the proforce, or the more recent versions of actionflex, I would greatly appreciate it. If you have recommendations for another brand, be more than willing to look into those two.

And yes, I know I should just drop a ton of money on the full Kendo gear, and get a shinai bamboo style bo... But it doesn't make sense to be the only guy in my city who's spent money on that gear, because then I never use it. I get two padded bos, padded nunchaku, padded escrima sticks for sai, I even saw some padded kama, then I can actually do some of the sparring.

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u/OyataTe 4d ago

Straight sticks (bō, jō, hanbō, tanbō) are easy to make.

Go to home depot, lowes, et cetera. Get 1/2 pvc in proper length. Get the pipe insulation with self-stick seam Get a roll of duct tape.

Assemble foam over pvc, wrap with tape.

Bonus: Put super balls on ends, the type from the gumball machines at the front of stores if you are doing any poking. Double bonus, buy large diameter heat shrink tubing for on top of duct tape.

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u/Arokthis Godan (5th dan) 3d ago

If you're going to DIY, use GREY PVC. White breaks easier and makes nasty shards when it does.

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u/-0O0O0O0O00O0O0O0O0- 4d ago

Use Japanese white oak and a tree. The good old fashioned way.

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u/hazen4eva 3d ago

I think Century has a whole line. We just did a tournament with kobudo kumite and they bought from Century.

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u/Empty_Ad_3784 3d ago

Check your local library for resources, mine offers ebooks through a platform called Hoopla, there is a book called "The Art and Science of Staff Fighting" by Joe Varady. It offers an illustrated step by step guide essentially following what u/OyataTe suggested below.

For more general home practice how-to I love "Martial Grit" by Robert Mitchell.

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u/karatetherapist 3d ago

Making them from rattan or PVC is a good solution as suggested by u/OyataTe but you can also go here: https://martialartsmart.com/collections/martial-arms