Source for training staff wasters

[Tony Dismukes]

We could probably make a special session for you at some point.

Peace favor your sword,
Kirk

Definitely let me know if you're ever available on the weekend.

I'm taking a vacation from grappling until the pandemic is under control, but I've taken up archery and have returned to practicing stick fighting. Staff work would be an ideal addition.

 

[Flying Crane]

This shredding is what I'm referring to. I've never seen wax wood shatter before. In comparison to wax wood vs rattan, the wax wood is going to be more durable of the two.
I've never had a wax wood staff break or crack on me. As long as I keep my staff in good environments, then it'll last.

I've seen Japanese bo staffs shatter, but they aren't made of wax wood. They aren't made of flexible wood, so there's only so there won't be any give upon impact. If you ask which one would I rather get hit with then it's going to be the rattan staff. My first bo staff, I think is 27 years old. I have some thinner sized staffs that are going to last just as long so long as they aren't flawed on the inside.

I still train with wax wood I guess I like the pain? or just the comfort that it's not going to splinter in my hand or snap in half.

I’ve never had a waxwood staff break, but I’ve seen it happen and when it did, pieces flew off.

We used rattan for repetitive contact training, and as the rattan began to break over time, it would shred in the small contact zone. They remain useful for repetitive striking drills for a long time, nothing flies apart, and as long as you strike the same spot and limit the shredding to that area, and aren’t shifting your hands all over the staff, there is no danger to your hands.

 

[Flying Crane]

I'm a fan of shredding. Never worked with waxed wood, but with rattan, I know that if it breaks I'm not getting a splinter in my eye (or half a stick in my neck). Other types of wood have not given that confidence. Plus I can still use it for a while after it starts shredding.

I’m not sure if this was a typo or auto-correct error, but it is not waxed wood. Rather, it is waxwood, a type of wood from China, used a lot in spears and staves and can be quite flexible and whippy if thin enough.

 

[Flying Crane]

I would have thought the shredding would cause problems with the handling of the staff,

I always had a separate rattan staff for use in contact drills which were primarily single-end striking. So all the damage was contained to a single area. I always kept a different staff for other handling drills and for forms.

And when it shreds it is not in sharp blade-like pieces, but rather is like separating fibers. Wouldn’t want to grip it on that spot, but not otherwise terribly hazardous.

 

[Monkey Turned Wolf]

I’m not sure if this was a typo or auto-correct error, but it is not waxed wood. Rather, it is waxwood, a type of wood from China, used a lot in spears and staves and can be quite flexible and whippy if thin enough.

Ah. Thought it was literally a coating of wax that makes wood more durable. I have used a waxwood staff, but not enough to comment on durability, strength, flexibility, or anything else for that matter.

 

[Flying Crane]

Ah. Thought it was literally a coating of wax that makes wood more durable. I have used a waxwood staff, but not enough to comment on durability, strength, flexibility, or anything else for that matter.

I can certainly understand the misunderstanding.

 

[Flying Crane]

Here is a photo of the end of my rattan, showing the gradual shredding.

 

[Monkey Turned Wolf]

I would have thought the shredding would cause problems with the handling of the staff,

So like Kirk said, you can just throw it away once it starts shredding. I'm cheap and grow attached to my weapons, so I don't always. I've used both rattan sticks and staffs, and had both peel (sticks more often because I use them more, and the strikes get more concentrated. But I've got sticks (with no skin) currently peeling that I still like to train with-currently actually grab onto the peeling part as grip if my hand starts getting sweaty.

Attached should be a short clip of the peeling sticks. You can see that the stick is only shredding in the areas with contact, the rest of it is still fine. And not sure how well it comes across in the video, but the shredding is almost 'stringy', not sharp, so there's very little (possibly no) actual danger with it.

 

[JowGaWolf]

I'm not denying that waxwood is durable. I'm saying that 1) rattan is also durable and 2) waxwood does not meet the goals which I stipulated right off the bat.

I wrote "Something with enough flex that students could accidentally bump each other through training armor and not break bones, but heavy and long enough that the won't learn the techniques wrong because their staves are too light." I like waxwood well enough; heck I have a 5' waxwood staff. Waxwood is too dense and too heavy. Trying to pull a strike would lead to Repetitive Stress Injuries and strikes which didn't get pulled/pulled enough would lead to real injuries. Waxwood just is not right for this application.

I understood this. That's why I stated I rather get hit with Rattan. I wasn't disagreeing with your choice.

 

[JowGaWolf]

Here is a photo of the end of my rattan, showing the gradual shredding.

Thanks for the photo.

 

[JowGaWolf]

shifting your hands all over the staff, there is no danger to your hands.

This is the one thing I do a lot of when I train with a staff, but I can see how using a stick wouldn't have that complication.

 

[Flying Crane]

This is the one thing I do a lot of when I train with a staff, but I can see how using a stick wouldn't have that complication.

yeah, I do a whole series of fundamental striking and shifting and moving with the staff, in addition to my forms. I spend the majority of my time, by a long shot, on those fundamentals. They involve a whole lot of shifting and changing the grip. But I use a different staff for that work. I keep one sacrificial rattan staff for the contact staff-on-staff training, so my good staff doesn't get all beat up. I make my own hickory staffs, it takes a few hours of labor and whatnot so I don't want to just beat them up.

 

[Monkey Turned Wolf]

This shredding is what I'm referring to. I've never seen wax wood shatter before. In comparison to wax wood vs rattan, the wax wood is going to be more durable of the two.
I've never had a wax wood staff break or crack on me. As long as I keep my staff in good environments, then it'll last.

I've seen Japanese bo staffs shatter, but they aren't made of wax wood. They aren't made of flexible wood, so there's only so there won't be any give upon impact. If you ask which one would I rather get hit with then it's going to be the rattan staff. My first bo staff, I think is 27 years old. I have some thinner sized staffs that are going to last just as long so long as they aren't flawed on the inside.

I still train with wax wood I guess I like the pain? or just the comfort that it's not going to splinter in my hand or snap in half.

How often do you do contact/staff-on-staff sparring? I can't imagine having a staff, of any material, last that long and still be usable.

 

[lklawson]

I understood this. That's why I stated I rather get hit with Rattan. I wasn't disagreeing with your choice.

Sorry. I must have misunderstood somewhere.

Peace favor your sword,
Kirk

 

[JowGaWolf]

How often do you do contact/staff-on-staff sparring? I can't imagine having a staff, of any material, last that long and still be usable.

When I was training with a school I would get about 1 - 2 months total within a year.