I have both the yaki and maple. Effin’ worth your every cent. Hardwood Oozoras play like any other.. But yaki and maple give a better pop than it’s beech/sakura brethren.
Nice to hear! Glad to see that the Maple and Keyaki Ozoras live up to their name. I'm still curious about the Enjyuki Ozora. I just know that the manufacturers released a limited batch of Enjyus recently, and that the wood is rare. I know nothing about the playability of that kind of wood.
Grab an enjyu off of KUSA because they are BEAUTIFUL and are usually only made once every three years or so. For pure slayage grab a yaki with and put a honed tama on it.
I have the yaki and maple, and my maole one is HONED! You can't go wrong with a hardwood oozie bevause they all have beautiful grain, and slay for dayzzz.
Yaki baby all the way. Probably my favorite natty ken of all time. They take a little while to break in but they are seriously worth the time. If you put kenditioner on them right out of the box they will break in like a dream. Worth every penny even if they were $60
I only have a maple but I like it. It feels more durable than the beech because sometimes beech gets super soft once a ton of moisture gets into it. You can't go wrong with any of the choices to be honest. Even though the modern shape of kendamas are changing, the Ozora is still a classic shape that plays well
This is the Holy Trinity of Kendama. Keyaki Ozora. I've had this the longest. plays like a dream, stalls and balance on point. The more you play the better it gets. But it has a hell of an odd smell. Maple Ozora. Most durable kendama I've owned. Again stalls and balance are great. Ive played this a ton and although its good for lunars etc it s not a gripy as the Keyaki. Enjyu Ozora. Ive had this about a month and what can I say... stalls, balance lunar ability its all good and the look of it, I dont know, I just want to eat the thing! Has more grip than the maple already too so I am expecting big things from this 'dama! They are all that classic ozora shape and maybe Ive been lucky in that they are all well balanced because we all know wood can vary so...
I was talking to TJ one time and he likened it to "cat piss" but on some that I've seen/smelled that might be an insult to cats.
TJ ain’t too far from the truth, it somewhat does smell like cat piss, and then again it does depend on what diet your cat enrolled itself in..
The Keyaki Ozora is my current kendama. As the first Keyaki kendama I've owned, I only have good things to say about it. The wood breaks in very well, and is super durable. I would talk about balance and stuff, but it plays just like other Ozoras.
I think we need someone like a wine connoisseur in here to sniff these keyakis. It has a complex nose with hints of cats piss, musty old museums with after thoughts of gym changing rooms and old socks!
When I got my maple Ozora after they were released, the tama was SUPER slick. Stayed pretty slick after taking a good beating, which surprised me because the other natty maple tamas I've had (KUSA Craft, Sol, etc) were able to grip lighthouses and lunars out of the box pretty easily.
They're awesome! Keyaki ozos are one of my favourites, super crisp feeling. Ozora has made a few other models using different wood species as well. - Keyaki - Maple - Enjyu - Some type of cedar (very light, very soft, kinda orange-ish). Quite rare! - Rosewood (Indian rosewood, I think?) - Ebony (I have one! )
Oh yea! I felt like I was forgetting one. The mahogany, rosewood, and ebony are all fairly new releases (the last year or two). The cedar are older, maybe 5 years?