What to look for in a good pair of Kote?

[Phorest]

The set of free bogu that I got is GREAT. The only thing that is a bit lacking are the pair of Kote that came with it. Daisuke (the guy who gave me the set) admitted this to me and told me that it might be wise to look for a different pair. These have 3-4 holes in each palm, the bottom is open (theres no material on the bottom side of the arm/wrist) and the stitching is a bit...sketchy. They look about like these http://www.eguchi.net/K6_kote.jpg , but in bad shape.

So...what should I look for in an upgrade? The best prices I've found on them are at http://www.bogubag.com . How important is an upgrade? And if I should upgrade, by how much...for a beginner?

[nodachi]

If you only have to buy kote (because you are a lucky bastard ) then go ahead and spend a little extra for something good. It'll still be cheaper than buying all the gear would set you back, and you could get better quality that will last longer.

At least that is what I would do.

[ufkenshi]

Hey Phorest,
Well, speaking from a similar experience, hopefully I can aid a bit in your decision. Buying really expensive kote (by expensive I mean more than the $100 range) might seem like a nice idea, but the palm leather on the cheaper kote is the same leather that is on the really expensive kote. Thus, it will wear out just as fast regardless on how much you paid for them. And unless you know someone who can do it cheap, replacing the palm leather will cost you close to or more than $100 per pair.

You can find 2.0mm kote from Kendo Shop for only $114, just go to this link:

http://www.kendoshop.com/english/?ca...oductsTypeList

The only draw back there is the S&H...but its not too horrible, or you can get some ppl to go in on a shippment with you to cut costs.

Anyways, hope this helped abit.

[ufkenshi]

Oops, sorry bout the link, forgot how they had they're page setup. Just go to http://www.kendoshop.com and go to bogu then to kote. ^_^

[Phorest]

So...what is the difference between having material on the bottom and not having any? I notice that Bogubag's Kote have material right below the strings:

http://www.bogubag.com/Bogu/Machine_3mm/G23_L.jpg

Whereas even Kendoshop's higher end ones don't.

http://www.kendoshop.com/photo/KH20-03.jpg

[Neil Gendzwill]

That's not material below the strings on the Koei kote. I think there's just some extra material stuffed in there for the photo, don't know why. All kote are "open" like that.

As far as more expensive kote having the same palm material as cheaper ones - that is absolutely not true. Cheap kote have thin cowhide palms. They stiffen up with dried sweat and wear easily. Good kote have thick, soft deerskin palms. The deerskin stays flexible and wears much better. I have a pair of Koei's top-line machine-stitched kote (06-220, the ones that come with set S-22). I got them 5 years ago, at the same time some students of mine got the mid-range 4 mm ones (from the G20 set I think). Mine look almost new from the top, and I have one small hole on one palm. Theirs have been repaired many times and they are thinking about replacing them.

Furthermore, better kote have stiffer futon (the part over the wrist) and more stuffing over the knuckles. Nobody ever regrets spending extra money on better kote.

[Phorest]

Based on that...I'm thinking that the 06-140 6mm "White Deerskin Palms, Sorbothane Pad" for $120 would be a good choice.

Or is stitching more important that the palm material and a special "impact absorbing" pad?

[stevemcgee99]

How about Clarino palms? Would anybody consider washable kote worth it?

[ufkenshi]

Doh, heheh sorry about the mis-statement Neil. I completely forgot about that, duh. Thx for the correction ^_^

[Confound]

There are washable kote? i'm shocked. Sign me up!

Seriously, what is clarino? It sounds like an anti-hystamine medication.

c

[Steve]

the more expensive the kote, the better. However I've been told that getting bogu better than 2.0mm isn't really worth the huge amount in price difference.

Hand stitched is better than machine as well. I replaced my 5.0mm kote from my first bogu with 2.5mm hand stitched kote from Tozando. They are excellent!

Tozando has machine washable kote, but i don't know how good they are.

Long story short, spend as much as you can afford on your kote. you won't regret it.

[Neil Gendzwill]

Clarino is synthetic leather. It's often used for trim on inexpensive bogu, or for the letters on zekken.

As for 6 mm kote - I wouldn't recommend anything less than 4mm stitching. If you're planning on dealing with bogu-bag, just e-mail Stroud-sensei with your questions. You'll find him very helpful. His email is in the "contact" section of the website.

[inner_cent]

I bought a 1.8Bu hand-stitched Kote 2-3 years ago directly from one of the bogu shop ion Japan (ordered through E-mail actually), the palm is of deer skin. Before you all saying "Rich bastard !!", I got this on sale price, it costs me AUS$300 + postage (think that mean USD$150 + postage). The quality is excellent and feels very comfortable in it. Where as my previous pair from Kendoshop, the palm broke down within 3 months after I purchased, and having been putting stitches on them.

Sometime it is worth while to spend a little bit more and you will find alot benefit out of it.
So the moral of the story is, Depends on yoru budget, and if you do have the chance, go for something abit more better.

[stevemcgee99]

I'm starting to think that "washable" is an advertising euphamism for synthetically non-absorbant or something. Nobody has said anything good about this stuff (clarino), and I assume the cheap kote all have it, according to all websites and catalogs I've read, and most people who mention cheap kote say it's worn out in "three months".

If you have worn out your kote quickly, do you have synthetic palms? Would you be able to recognize it? Clarino isn't always light grey and suede-like. Did your bogu cost less than $500?