Saturday, October 9, 2010
Shinai Maintenance
By Wei Lun
"On the 18th September oh Alfred gave to meGi, hakama and brand-new shinai
Only the red carrier was free..."
On the 18th September 2010, the NUS Kendo Club had our Shinai Maintenance Day outside MPSH 6. For the juniors, it was the day they were going to get their new shinai, gi and hakama, as well as learn how to take care of them.
After the juniors collected their equipments, the seniors taught the juniors how to wear their gi and hakama, followed by the preparation of their first shinai. Many thanks to Wenhao and Zehao!
Zehao:" This is the sakigawa..."
The juniors dismantling their shinai to maintain it
Look at their happy faces
The seniors maintaining their shinai in a more relaxed manner
"World champion bibimbap Downpour Park" Jing Yang.
Seniors helping the juniors out with problematic areas
For the club, Shinai Maintenance Day isn't a one-off event for maintaining our own shinai.
You should maintain your shinai as frequently as you use them.
It is also a day for the club as a whole to take care of the equipment we use--the club shinais, which is why it is very important that we do it competently.
After all, we may need to borrow a shinai due to one reason or another, and we wouldn't like to use it only to find it has splinters, would we? Furthermore, the club shinais are traditionally used by the juniors during the Beginner's Course before they make their own purchases.
Of course, Shinai Maintenance Day is much more than just carrying out simple maintenance.
It is also a bonding session! There is nothing like a little chit chat to take one's mind off the tedium of sanding, and it is also the time for us to consult our seniors in certain aspects of shinai maintenace that we are unsure of. Amidst our busy timetables and heavy workloads, it is also a brief respite from project deadlines and other worries.
Additional tips when maintaining shinai:
- Please use sandpaper fully. Most of us (seniors included) throw away sandpaper which has only been partially utilised. This is very wasteful, please make sure you have thoroughly exhausted that piece of sandpaper. It should be totally smooth with sawdust.
- Do not use all your strength pushing the sandpaper into the shinai. There is no need to sand very hard: you will use up the sandpaper faster, and will not be able to achieve a smooth finish.
- Keep your area clean after you have maintained your shinai, especially if you were conducting maintenance on campus! Be responsible for your own area.
- If you have some problems with the shinai which you do not know how to handle, do not hesitate in approaching the QM or the seniors.
- For additional information and help, visit the following website (Courtesy of Shannon).
- Practice makes perfect! =)
