The tapered bo is a traditional staff associated with Okinawan kobudō. Like other legendary Okinawan weapons which arose from everyday farming and travel tools (and therefore hidden in plain sight) the Bo staff originated from the tenbin (a shoulder yoke used to carry baskets). It measures two shaku (six feet) in length.
Like all of our products, this is made in our Vermont workshop with methods developed from over 40 years in the business of making wooden weapons for martial artists. We use our flagship air dried Appalachian hickory, grade L7, an indigenous American hardwood, unsurpassed in shock strength and durability. The tapers are cut on a custom double sided lathe to extreme accuracy, giving the Bo practitioner a feeling of superb balance and maneuverability—this combined with substantial but not unmanageable weight. And like our other wooden weapons, the finish is not a sticky lacquer, but a combination of penetrating oils designed to maximize the slip/grip characteristics needed for control and fast hand positioning.
Hi Brad I received the bokken and OH MY GOD, it is beautiful I almost don't want to use it, it looks so good. The jo and tanto are awesome too. One question on the bamboo tsuba, when I try to fit it, it got to 3/4 of the length of where it's supposed to be at the beginning of the tsuka. I didn't want to jam it in there forcefully, so is there a proper technique to install the tsuba? I'm assuming that I put an o-ring on each side of the tsuba. Makers response-Thanks so much! Tsuba are custom fit to individual bokken. They are intended to be a little snug at first however, they will seat into the transition ramp after a bit of use.
Hello, I'm mailing you to let you know i received the 42" aikiken i ordered near the beginning of the month. it is of the best quality i've ever seen. awesome, awesome sword, thank you! the grain on the chisel top is wild, changing color from light to dark with movement and the patterns within the wood make me feel like i'm handling a much more expensive piece of art. i hope to take care of it well enough to hand it down to my children! i can't wait to order another one of your wooden weapons. hopefully soon! - Andrew