stick length in FMA

[Rich Parsons]

Rich,

"The stick should be cut from your arm pit to the palm heel or center of your palm." The size of stick you mention is used in Serrada. One advantage of this length is that in close your stick doesn't get caught on your other arm, or the opponent's arms or weapon.

Jarrod,

I should also add that the founder of Tapado, the late GM Mamar, deliberately chose the longer stick (approx. 4 feet) to give him a greater reach advantage as well as a greater margin of safety against other eskrima stylists using the 28 inch long stick.

Darrin,

I disagree.

The Serrada sticks I have seen have been shorter than the 26 to 28 inch sticks I am used to seeing. Also I heard that from my Filipino Balintawak Instructor, when he was smiling and being devious about hiding a stick so people could not see it.

 

[wushuguy]

from what i understand, most styles have sticks of "average" length, whereas a few styles use sticks of unusual length. most are happy as long as it feels good in their hands and never care about what else is out there. rattan is generally accepted as best for partner training, but it depends on what kind of training you do in your school.

But if you have a chance, it is good to practice with or against others of varying stick size and different styles to gain more experience. hopefully you will be more adept at using your stick and understanding your style better. it can be an eye opening experience hopefully you'll find your style, stick material, and length match your needs, however some may upgrade or change their equipment after some comparison.

 

[Darrin Cook]

"The Serrada sticks I have seen have been shorter than the 26 to 28 inch sticks I am used to seeing. Also I heard that from my Filipino Balintawak Instructor, when he was smiling and being devious about hiding a stick so people could not see it."

Rich,

When I trained in Serrada with Jaime Cabiero the length of the stick was from the armpit to the palm. When I measured mine, it came out to about 21 inches (I have a hammer handle that I use for that length of stick.). So you're right that Serrada stylists use shorter sticks than 26-28 inches.

Some Serrada stylists use sticks that are even shorter than the pit-to-palm length mentioned earlier. I once heard the late GM Giron refer to a very short stick as a "chopstick."

GM Estalilla also explained to me that Filipinos would conceal a short stick down the middle of the back to be used in the event of a brawl.