why take doh is better....(yes, it is)

Alright,

Don't we all truly fancy for a genuine bamboo do?

I allways did and due to the holy and glory times of modern interwebs, the prices for take do dropped from tremendous expensive to at least "affordable".

Except for same do, those thingies still want to be paid with 2000€ and more, wow....

Anyway, after scraping up some leftover cash for a year, I made the order.

What I got really pleased me.

I went for a kiji do (raw hide) with a thin coating of brownish ki-urushi laquer.

The mune is sort of plain with a thin stripe of shark skin (don't blame me, it just looked too nice to me.... And still does).

Here's a picture:

Now the first thing I've read everywhere:

"Bamboo do is way too heavy"

Ok, to be honest, when holding it right next to my old and trustworthy Yamato do, a slightly noticeable difference in weight is there.

But seriously, it's so not worth talking about it, really.

I cannot, I really cannot tell any difference when wearing it. I can't.

Now the really good stuff.

Everyone wrote, that bamboo will absorb the shock of the shinai better then Yamato do.

And hell they were right. 

I honestly didn't expect that much of an better protection.

We just have 1 or 2 guys at the dojo who really hit a hard do uchi.

A painful hard do uchi.

But since the bamboo do is on, it's almost a pleasure to receive do uchi.

It feels nice and it sounds nice, nice indeed.

So, what's the downside??

Of corse the price, but also care and maintenance.

Yes, my Yamato do could just sleep in my bogu bag from keiko to keiko.

There was no problem over the last 10 years with this.

Due to bamboos nature being organic, 

I'll have to take some precautions.

1. Wipe it after keiko, every time.

2. Get it out of the bogu bag and let it air         out, bamboo needs to breathe.

3. Watch the humidity. Too wet, it's gonna mold or deform. 

Too dry, it may crack and deform.

When storing, avoid direct heat or sunlight. 

You might also insert a "spacer" so it won't get smaller or deform.

Conclusion 

If you are willing to spend some extra care, you'll be rewarded with a good looking, well protecting friend for a life time.

One with a soul, not made from dead plastic.

PS: this do has been made by alljapanbudogu (www.alljapanbudogu.com), a review with pictures will follow :)