how to tell armour quality?

[lunaxy]

heya,

i just bought my armour (from my dojo), and I was wondering how I can tell if its a decent quality armour. I can always ask my sensei, but I can't speak Korean and he doesn't speak english too well. E.g. I asked for armour with a black/red belly guard, and he got me gold instead o_O

That aside, I'm just wondering how you tell what metal the men is made of, how the stitching is measure (2.0mm? 3.0mm?) and whether the kote is made of deerskin. These are the attributes that I am aware of in determining the armour's quality, what else are there?


K.

[ben spain]

Surley the best bet is to ask the person who made the Bougu!

You could measure the stiching interval with a ruler, but I don't know how to tell the difference between deer leather and titanium. I know deer leather is more pliable and tougher - and titanium is stronger than aluminium, but without one to compare it to I have no idea how to tell them apart. You could try comparing it to a set of Bougu that you know is titanium and deer skin Kote and see how this set if the Bougu compare - but worn in leather will feel totaly different to new leather!

[hamish]

Its very hard to tell what is inside the armour, and that determines the quality to a large extent. Check out some of the online stores such as http://www.chibabogu.com/ and read about the construction of the bogu.

Hamish

[lunaxy]

i noticed an engraving on the metal face of my men. it's in katakana and it looks something like:

shi(?) yu ra ru mi so.

the first 2 characters are kinda small...and the last character is slightly smudged by paint, so I can't quite tell.

the first character might either be 'shi' or 'tsu'...

i can't read japanese...and I only know the romanji cuz I have a chart printed out :) can anyone tell me what it means? if anything...

[Kingofmyrrh]

Most likely that's meant to say Jyurarumin, or Duraluminum.

[ben spain]

Yes, Aluminium would be far to soft for a men face gaurd - so an alloy is used instead - still dont know how to tell this apart from Titanium though.

Also, before some smart arse ask me, I do know how to tell the difference between deer leather and titanium, but not cow leather from deer leather and titanium (or an alloy of titanium) from a popular alloy of aluminum (such as duraluminium).

[Taek]

Well, I'm sure your sensei would've got you a decent and safe bogu set for you despite he couldn't really got the right colour doh you wanted. It sounds definately like 'duralrumin'. Titanium has shinier still finish whereas duralrumin has duller shine similar to how aluminum looks. Smoked deer skin kote palm usually has a very distinctive smell (someone described as dead animal smell) but many bogushop use smoked cow skin as a cheaper substitute and the smell can be almost same as deer skin. Apart from mengane material and leather part, the quality of bogu can also differ based on what kind of futon material is used. Usually described as #8000 or #9000 and so on. The higher the number, the better quality it is. Also whether the mateiral is indigo dyed or chemical dyed .....just like kendo gi and hakama. Indigo dye has very distintive dark blue colour and the colour becomes even nicer blue colour as it fades. As you keep on practicing kendo and get to see many other bogus in you dojo, I'm sure you will be able to distinguish the difference in bogu quality.

[Hai_hai]

i just bought my armour (from my dojo), and I was wondering how I can tell if its a decent quality armour... ...These are the attributes that I am aware of in determining the armour's quality, what else are there?
There's usually a little tag on the inside of the bogu that says "Total crap" or "Total goodness".

[lunaxy]

Most likely that's meant to say Jyurarumin, or Duraluminum.
yeah... i think it says duraluminium. the last character would be a 'n', not 'so'
"tsu yu ra ru mi n"? :)

as for my kote...i can't quite tell what material the 'leather' bit is. i've read descriptions that its supposed to feel hard. but the brownish material that covers my palm is pretty soft, and feels kinda like suede.

also, is that leather part suppose to cover my whole palm? i'm not too sure if its meant to be like that...or if its a little short/small.

sensei didn't exactly take any measurements when getting the armour for me. i guess he just makes a rough estimate. the gi i got from him seems a little short in the sleeves as well o_O oh well...

[Hai_hai]

also, is that leather part suppose to cover my whole palm? i'm not too sure if its meant to be like that...or if its a little short/small...
No, unlike normal gloves and mittens, the palm material ends before you get to the wrist.

[Taek]

Usually, the right length for kendo gi sleeve slightly overlaps with the end of your kote but I've seen some people prefer kendo gi sleeve a bit shorter.
If you really want to find out the quality of your bogu, I know it is hard to ask but you should ask your sensei where your bogu is from and what model no is.