Sweets Tama Paint Techniques

If you can hone it in perfectly and just jam it hard, cushion can be pretty amazing for every tama trick. However, it still can peel. I have a cush Norx mod, and the paint's starting to peel now even though I haven't jammed it that much. Cushion on natty though...that's a different story for another day...

 

I love cushion. It’s grippy out of the box, but not so grippy that you can’t adjust. My favorite is pro clear, but without question cushion is a great paint choice, in my personal opinion. I’ve never had a peeling problem out of the 20+ cushion tamas I’ve owned, but that may just be me being lucky. It’s definitely one of the most well loved paint types in Kendama.

 

If it's a coop mod with cush, not the sticky clear, I'd go for it. The cush from back then is way different, very sticky. I'd get it also because good luck finding another one

 

After seeing what seemed to be a leaked photo of some Sweets pro models being made with pro clear, I’m wondering how sticky pro clear actually gets. I’ve played a fresh pro clear and I know it’s really glossy out of the box.

Once it breaks in however, how sticky does it get in comparison to other paints like prime, DWI sticky af, LOL clear, etc.? I’ve heard good things but I’m looking for some specific input.

 

Hm...how should I put it?

Compared to the sticky clears I've played(LOL Clear and DWI Sticky AF), I can say that it's a lot grippier and doesn't slip much at all. At a certain point, it's almost like a perfectly broken-in aTack, but with just that little bit of slip that can be a bit difficult to get used to. Just like aTack, it can also "trip" lighthouses" if you try to jerk it with a little too much force from trying to chase a lighty. You can get it to stick to the big cup when it's hanging upside-down, but it falls off after a few seconds.

My main jammer is a pro-cleared 2015 bobber on a maple Bray ken, and it's at that point where you can land leanhouses, lunars, lighthouses, and borders pretty easily without too much effort at all. It has the grip of a fresh DWI Sticky AF and LOL Clear when broken-in, but not as much slip that the last two paints have. You really have to break it in to see what it's like, but that's the best that I can do in terms of describing how it plays for me.

 

It is the best paint once broken in

 

Slippery when fresh, too sticky when destroyed. At the 1/4 to 3/4 point between fresh and destroyed is when it will be your favorite tama of all time. It is the perfect moment to make the most use of it when it is not yet too tacky, but is still definitely not slippery. I will probably use a pro clear tama for MKO this year because it seems perfect for competitive play.

 

Thanks for the input guys! Every tama I’ve played has gotten more slippery for lightys and lunars over time so I want a tama that will do the opposite by getting grippier. I’m definitely gonna have to break one in myself once Sweets releases the pro clear pro mods or the “spaced out” prime.

 

I am definitely copping the spaced out prime. That one looks sick

 

I want to get a sweets pro mod. Should I go for cushion clear or prime sticky clear?

 

You really can't go wrong with either. I find the Prime is better for working on stalls but not by much. If you are looking to lock in and hone stall tricks I would go with the prime.

 

Can't go wrong with either, but I would prefer the Cush. Don't like the Prime clear too much, as I find it wears off quickly compared to other Sticky clears. Can't go wrong with Sweets Lab paint as well, given their track record with Pro Clear and Atack.

One caveat about Cush is that it might be "too sticky." LHs and Lunars out of the box tend to tip cause there's too much grip and one can't adjust, and once that Cush peels off, it'll be slippery as a JKA-painted kendama.

 

I have the chocolate covered Strawberry Tama cushion clear that broke in Sooo nice that when I decided to get my first Sweets pro mod I went with cushion clear again.. haven’t played it at all except for a couple stall tricks and noticed the other day when just looking at it that the cushion clear is peeling(at bevel hole) like others said.. for no reason at all. Maybe the temperature? It has been a pretty warm summer/fall transition so far here in Ky.

 

In defense of Cushion clear, I believe every kind of paint, whether sticky, rubber, or even glossy, wears at the bevel. It has nothing to do with the paint itself, but the everyday wear and tear from missed spikes and stall tricks.

Then again, if it just started peeling with little to no play, then temperature probably has an effect on it. From experience, Cush tends to peel faster in warmer, more humid climates.

 

Yeah when I got my cushion Nick Gallagher mod, the clear coat around the bevel started peeling immediately which was a bummer since that was my first cushion clear dama. Other than that though, the paint plays amazing. It’s way gripper than I expected and is now my new favorite paint despite the peeling.

Also, does anyone know if Sweets just throws a coat of cushion clear on top of the already existing prime paint (on the new cushion pro mods)? Or did they make new tamas for those?

 

Hmm was wondering this too as I could kind of feel the paint underneath the peeling cushion clear and felt a little sticky.. I haven’t played with my “Sweets Pro-mod” yet but may start trying to play it even with the peeling cushion clear