Freak Accidents

[Mudansha]

Hi all,

I just bought an Aun 39 from Eguchi, and I've used it for 2 practices. I hadn't oiled it but I planned to today. So when I took it apart I realized that there was a monster splinter about 2 inches above the tsuba, leading upward. I pulled it off and took out a good 5 inches! I don't really think its my hitting, because my $20 practice shinais have lasted me almost 6 months now, and the splinter occured on the string side!

Do you think this was my fault, or just a bad quality shinai, or was I just very unlucky?

I think I can still use it after I sanded it down. Its drying in the garage. I am however, very concerned that there will be a gaping 1/6th inch gap between the 2 staves in that area and how the missing chunk will affect the balance.

Anyone else have any "freak accidents" involving shinai?

[Shazzanzzz]

That's why you should always check your new shinai before start using it. Seems like it's most likely that they sent you a bad shinai. I guess you can email E-guchi and see what they would do for you.

[Nishi]

Do you think this was my fault, or just a bad quality shinai, or was I just very unlucky?

Any or all of the above, you'll never know now. But checking your shinai before you use them will tell you if there cracked, thus eliminating you as the problem. You should check them for your partners saftey as well...good kendoka looks after the people around him as well, its a responsibility.

*snip*
Anyone else have any "freak accidents" involving shinai?

Yep, same thing as you, I bought two 'supposed to be great' (expensive) shinai. I checked them over, both had structural faults. Also, on rare occaisions, I have brokken shinai against 'dou' (twice).

See the BUYER BEWARE thread...

[Shazzanzzz]

Also, on rare occaisions, I have brokken shinai against 'dou' (twice).

Haha, i broke my carbon shinai on dou before...

[tapioka]

I'm not really sure, but personally I'd think you'd have to be hitting pretty dang hard to get a huge splinter right above the tsuba! (it would make sense if it was towards the ken-saki) I'd think you were just given an unfortunate shinai...I'm sorry.

[nalogg]

unrelated, but still interesting:
my local club had a BBQ on the weekend and we played a game where you're blindfolded and your friends have to guide you verbally to a watermellon in the middle of a field, and you have to chop it with a bokken


we ended up busting 3 bokken on WATERMELONS!
but, fun game!

[tapioka]

ahh, that game is traditional and classic! I bet you were hitting REAL hard for that one...that, or the watermelon must've been made of concrete.

[Migoto]

They were likely just cheap bokken with wood grain going in bad direction. But it sounds like a fun game. Reminds me of Halloween when I was a kid, just substitute pumpkins for the watermelons.

K

[nalogg]

ahh, that game is traditional and classic! I bet you were hitting REAL hard for that one...that, or the watermelon must've been made of concrete.

yep, the watermelons were not-quite-ripe
but still tasty!

[tapioka]

hehe, maybe try pinatas next time, hm? free candy...AND some bokken lives can be saved, supposedly.

[psywarblade]

just from a physics standpoint in order to get it to splinter like that (assuming it was a good one to begin with) you would have to be swinging awful hard and incorrectly using your right hand to pull. but not in the direction you would think. You would acctually have to catch something swinging up rather then down (or you were holding it string side out) that sounds screwy as all hell.

Bokken against a watermellon and the fruit won, how sad.

Wonder how well it does against corn we got plenty of that.