I have to say that right now it must be the Sweets HG Fruit Punch w/ cushion. It is my first premium kendama though I have already been playing for a year and a bit. Plays great for balances, great for everything really.
I think it depends on the density. Dense kayaki is REALLY slippery, but slightly softer (yaki is always hard though) breaks in REALLY nicely. P.S. this is based off of my experiences, so correct me if you have a wider knowledge of this amazing wood and its playability.
OG premium white is my jam right now. It will be really nice if i could snag some slaydawgs, including a 43o collab that's exclusive at japan right now... then maybe a #swagdaddynorxmod or #coopmod, then craft paired with a black or b&w kaizen tama. others follow :/
How does Hickory play? What wood would you compare it too? Is it good for stalls, cup flow, or balance tricks etc? I want to try different woods especially on an RWB ken.
Great questions! I feel it plays most like ash because of the grain patterns. So this helps with stalls because the wood has texture to it. It feels like a harder more dense wood than ash. Both of my hickory kens weigh in over 80g, while my ash kens weigh in at the low 60g. As for balance, that's specific to each individual ken. A heavy sarado rips hard for lunar, turntables, stilts, etc. Heavy base cups rock the slingers, ken flips, lighthouses, etc. For cup flow, I like natty, pro clear, and silk tamas. They don't grip as much allowing the tamas to fall into and out of cups. My two cents. RWB kens are made at the highest quality control. I highly recommend the classic. It smells wonderful, too! I have not tried the OG. A few KEN ONLY options are currently available on their site.
Dawgs, dawgs, dawgs! I have four of them (and i never thought i would), and they’ve been nothing but ridiculously good!
I find the Ozora yaki to be very slick but at the same time it is still a great dama and it slays for days. Super awesome kendama
Currently my favorites are the Aynedter mod (Just copped a second one) and the Craft slim PLUS (still fresh, but a SLAYER).
Definitely sweets prime is my best kendama ever, but I have to say, that I started thinking that there can be a better paint type than prime clear but ken is awesome! Also my sarado is 2g heavier than sword
Man, the prime is just so on point, I would like to say my REZ or my Spec HG is my favorite because they are all high dollar and what not, but the Prime just lives up to its name in every way.
KROM Bamboo. Mine is so broken in that it's honed for everthing! Stalls, Balance Tricks, Slingers, Spacewalks: you name it, it can do it. Plus it's a bamboo complete natty, so the crack it makes when you spike it is awesome. <3
Let's be real @azleonhart. We ALL know you are from the "to live and die" KROM fanatics school of thought.
Hahaha you know what? The Legaxis is actually changing my perspective. It's a nimble kendama, and it's a good change as opposed to the slower Slaydawg.
hi azleonhart, would like know if the legaxis are actually similar size to the slaydawgs? or same size as the classic ozoras?