Time to get a bogu

[saki_wooah]

I'm just curious to know when should I buy my own bogu set. It's been 10 months i've practice kendo so far and 6-7 months with bogu people (3 times a week).
I'm still a high school student so I don't have the money for that yet. When did you buy your first bogu set? Do you think it's better after ikkyu grading or shodan grading?
I'm renting a so-so bogu from the club for a pretty good price (20$ a session). I was just reading some posts here about buying your own bogu... I live in Eastern Canada so the only kendo store i know is kind of bad (from what I heard) and buying shinai, dogi and hakama, bogu, kendo accesories is really expensive with the shipping.

[KhawMengLee]

Better to get a Japanese or Korean made bogu. I don't know about Canada but here in Perth(Western Australia) they sell like a 8mm set for 600AUD(300USD) which is a total ripoff. That money can get you a decent 2mm set from kendoshop.

If you are renting bogu now then stick with it. But if you want to get a set just save up cash and pester Mon and Dad for a "present" hehheh(it works for my sister).

PEACE
MENG

[Will]

Whoa!!!! 20 bucks a session to rent your bogu? Uh...that's not a good deal... If you want to buy some cheap but good quality korean bogu, go with www.e-bogu.com . If you want to get all fancy and high quality Japanese stuff, go with www.eguchi.net .

If you get your bogu custom made, it fits like a dream. Once I got my own bogu (about 6-7 months after i started wearing bogu) I had a dramatic improvement in my kendo.

And if you're worrying about costs since you're still in high school, hit up your parents! Haha

[KhawMengLee]

yeah, I didn't read that...20 bucks a pop..eek :eek:

At our dojo its free. 5 bucks per session plus bogu rental for free.

[inner_cent]

MMm.. ouch... 20 bux..... never heard tat ex before.... just practice 30 session with that and you can afford your own alerady.

I bought my own bogou when I was allow to wear them. But think on it, it is an investment. a set can last you 10 years if you maintain them well. And since you are beginner only, you won;t need any fancy one, just get something simple and inexpensive to use till u r sure that you are ready to commit for long term (eg, Life time ?:D), then think about buy something better.

[Ian Russell]

Originally posted by saki_wooah
20$ a sessionIt's quite possible she meant 20$ per semester?

[saki_wooah]

yes, 20$ a semester (i couldn't find the proper word...)
and it's 20$ CAN so...

[Raiza]

I guess I better mention that saki just got her parents to drop $300 ($200 US) on high-quality hakama and gi, so I think it'll be awhile before she can hit up her parents again...(BTW way to go saki!). Saki also forgot to mention that we didn't have to pay the summer semester rental. Or at least I wasn't asked to...uh-oh...

And hey, saki, I think we can get a 20% club discount at ebogu if we go through the dojo. Still, get ready to do lots and lots and lots of dishes... :P

Bah, I'll wait until shodan to get my own machine 3mm set or better (preferably better). Or when I get a real job with a real disposable income, whatever comes first.

Raiza

[inner_cent]

Originally posted by Raiza
I guess I better mention that saki just got her parents to drop $300 ($200 US) on high-quality hakama and gi, so I think it'll be awhile before she can hit up her parents again...(BTW way to go saki!). Saki also forgot to mention that we didn't have to pay the summer semester rental. Or at least I wasn't asked to...uh-oh...

Raiza

Ouch................. Don't tell me the Gi and Hakama you got are thsoe of hand stiched (either 5000/7000/10000 stitches) hakamar ??? ag...... you are going abit too much when you started off as beginner ...... hope it last for awhile for you....

[ben]

I think about three years is a good amount of time to wait, IOW after you get shodan.

b

[saki_wooah]

Ouch................. Don't tell me the Gi and Hakama you got are thsoe of hand stiched (either 5000/7000/10000 stitches) hakamar ??? ag...... you are going abit too much when you started off as beginner ...... hope it last for awhile for you....

i don't know what quality it is, the dojo ordered it. It has our name on on hakama and the dojo's name on the gi. It's pretty expensive. It's dyed in Indigo. It must be high quality...

[Raiza]

Since our sole local supplier was charging at roughly $220 CDN for a butt-ugly bargain basement hakama and gi, getting a decent one from Japan for a bit more didn't seem like too much of a stretch. Because there were only 2 orders this year, it came to $290 each, but bulk orders like the one last year came in at a comparably good $230 apiece for an indigo-dyed custom embroidered and tailored (we had to send a lot more info than just our height) hakama and gi. It's still a lot of money, though, but we don't have a lot of options here. And the prices include taxes and shipping, BTW.

Saki, don't let your parents put it in the dryer!!

Raiza

[Confound]

. . . and don't let them 'hang it out to dry' either. Kendou bogu and undead have one thing in common: they hate sunlight.

c

[Critical_Bill]

Well if you're renting a so-so bogu it might be a good idea to find an affordable alternative.
For me kendo changed when i got my own set.. mainly because the men i was borrowing was rather soft..
so i saw stars, comets and little birds after each practise and i think i was a bit concussed after our sempai tested out the carbon shinai :)
i got basic machine stitched set and i've used that for 5 years, and it still has a lot of time left on it :)

[saki_wooah]

my men himo are always breaking... Now I have a small white knot on my men (no time and himo to repair it)

[Atama]

Damn 20$ a session......I'd save your pennies and get your own bogu especially if your trainning 3 times a week.

My recomendation is go for the korean imperticular Sehyun bogu the quality is out standing and for £160 sterling you can get a good looking set that will provide excellent protection, My boyfriend and I both have bogu from sehyun and we have also ordered kits for beginners at our club. Everyone we train with has commented on the quality and affordable price for my 1.2 bu hand stitch bogu i paid £850 shipped .....hand stitched from japan will set you back at least £2,000.



Lisa Williams (Do Shin Ken yu kai)

[Danny Boy]

K-wa,

I've been in kendo a little over a month and i already own a bogu set. Miht sound like its quick...but you can only go against motodachi for so long.....
i dunno


Dan

[nodachi]

Did your sensei tell you to get some or did you just go and do it?

If I showed up with some bogu before my sensei told me I was ready, they would (in a friendly and instructive manner of course) whoop me till it was more than obvious that I still need more basic training.

[David J]

Originally posted by Danny Boy
...you can only go against motodachi for so long.....

Dan

....like about three years traditionally, I believe. Are you now wearing bogu every session? Might I suggest there is still lots to learn before going into bogu....

Is your footwork perfected? Good fumikomi? All your kihon cuts off to a tee? Unless you are a very unusual individual, I think you may find launching into the deep end early will be detrimental to your Kendo in the long run.

By all means, anyone can buy a bogu when they can afford it - day one even, if you're that sure Kendo is for you. But I think there's a lot of value in leaving wearing it until your basics are good. I for one, after 6 months, have reached a point of being encouraged into wearing my bogu by my sensei and other students, and I'm still not satisfied with my kihon. I am planning to wear it for some sessions, but not others for a while.

There's no rush everyone - a lifetime of Kendo awaits - enjoy each stage as it comes.

<rei>

Dave

[Ares2907]

If you wait until you're satisfied with your kihon to get into bogu, you might as well take up iai. I don't think satisfaction with kihon is one of those things that comes early in a kendoka's career.

[Confound]

Amen, Ares. (Maybe I should switch my title ... I'm agreeing too much lately.)

Not that there's anything wrong with iai, I like it a great deal, but no one who seriously examines their kendou will ever be perfectly happy with every aspect of it. Part of putting on bogu is learning to readjust what you've been doing out of bogu to make it work in the initially bulky world of men, kote and dou (the tare barely counts).

If you wait too long to get into bogu, that adjustment will become more and more severe. I do not advocate jumping into bogu immediately, nor do I advocate a seven year trial period. Nor is it advisable to put someone in bogu then yank them out again for a few weeks, then throw them back into bogu again. Studying kendou is not like the international yoyo championship.

Every student is different. Someone who practices once a week will need more time than someone who trains everyday. It isn't only the frequency of your practice. If you simply hop around and randomly hit things (I will make no discrete reference to those around here who advocate that kind of kendou), then your kendou is probably fit only for shogakkusei and please, wear bogu by all means, early! Elementary school students are horribly inaccurate and you'll need it.

If, on the other hand, you are more circumspect, and your kendou is a pensive, thoughtful journey, rather than one of spastic hip hop seizures... I find myself rambling again. I suspect my point is more than clear.

c

[Danny Boy]

Nodachi :
Yes, i got my bogu after my Sensei instructed me too look for one.

David J :
Perhaps i worded that wrong.
If you go against a motodachi with no armour on, he cannot "show" you the consequences of a badly executed cut, footing that causes you to be off-balance etc. Being in armour does not stop you from training and improving your footwork, cutting etc. Or does it ?


Dan