Dowel

[davidm]

I cant seem to find any other doweling in Australia apart from Tasmanian Oak. A number of people I know want some for martial arts and they need to be ~ 1.5m long and 20mm diam. The best wood would be Japanese white oak. Does anybody know of any places in Oz that might supply various types of doweling. Someone mentioned to me that there was a tool like a giant pencil sharpener that could be used to make some but I cant find out anything about it. Any ideas? PS I dont have access to a big eneough wood lathe.
Cheers,
Dave

[Iain]

Ah, Grasshopper....we assume that you are talking Bo Jitsu and the recomendation is that the grain of the timber follows the curve of the weapon, Japanese Oak is perfect for this application. Are you talking a curved stick (Bo) or a straight rod? I do not know who sells the oak in question but would it be cost effective by the time you have bought the timber and turned it to a dowel, a martial arts supplier could be cheaper. I used to practise Aikido and I purchased my weaponry from the dojo, I have no idea what it costs today.
The tool you are refering to, I think, is made by Veritas and is available from Carba Tec who are in Sydney. Give them a call and I am sure they will help as best they can, but beware, Veritas is not cheap. The tool I am refering to is designed for cutting ends of rough branches for rustic (read rough) furniture. Hope this is of some help.

[ubeaut]

Iain, you hit the nail right on the head. Buy them from a martial arts shop or your dojo. To buy the timber and make a good oak bo would cost more than you could buy one from a shop.

Having said that, my sons still have a couple of homemade practise bo's from our Kykushin days. They made them with myrtle dowel which from memory was obtained from a curtain shop. This was fancy curtain rod. These were then covered with black closed cell foam tube. They have over the years had lots of very hard, very rough, workouts and are still going strong. The foam outer probably has a bit to do with this. OOS!

Cheers - Neil http://ubb.ubeaut.com.au/ubb/smile.gif

[Shane Watson]

First thing that came to my mind was to use a broom stick. A couple of my mates that were into martial arts used broom sticks. But i think Neil and Iain are right. Check with your Dojo and go from there.

Cheers



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Shane Watson..

Combine Love & Skill & You Can Expect A Masterpiece!