Guessed I'm not too late to join in the topic LMAO As I started trying on modding my kendamas (got some cheaps from TaoBao and got a lathe borrowed from my friend), the second thing I did after the Tamas modding was exactly the balance drilled hole. Well I could say the most obvious change about the mod is the lunar balance. As I kept missing the landing or the big cup just slipped away from my tama, but can land lunar consistently after the mod. I've mod 3 of my jammers-Lucifer from DWI, theRex from SuLab, and a modded ken to put together with my Norx mod tama. They all sesh well, and the holes don't affect the playability of other tricks, while they even provide more creativity spaces for some sick tricks(putting your pinkie in the hole for a lighthouse, etc), so in conclusion I can say that the balance hole can be definitely a thing. PS I didn't really do research about how the diameter or the depth affect the plays, but FYI I used 10mm metal drill and drilled about 3/4" depth (just about to fit my first sec of my pinkie)
I'm thinking of drilling a hole in my krom pop's base cup. The rubber paint is really worn down and lunar tricks are way harder than before also the ken goes backwards in like 90% of the time. Is it a good idea to do it? I'm only afraid of the ken getting cracked and I'm not sure how deep the hole should be. Anyone who has done this before?
I drilled a hole in the basecup of my Maple Kaizen. It hasn’t affected durability at all, but Lunars lock in easily now. Start small and work your way to drilling out more. I went about 1/2 inch in with bit that’s no larger than the radius of the base cup.
@Danny Malto We already had a similar thread running so yours has been merged. Have a look at previous posts for ideas.
I just got a bamboo Big Brother from Kendama ISR, do you think that would be safe to drill a basecup hole into? It totally slays for everything except lunars, it just tips back the slightest amount, but enough to make landing flips and tosses to lunar pretty difficult. I don't want to ruin it though so I'll probably practice drilling the basecup hole on a prime first. What do y'all think? I'm worried that the wood will split because its laminated in layers.
i’m thinking of drilling a hole in my kaizen but i don’t have the thing to hold the ken in place... any tips so i don’t mess up?
Probably but I'd suggest wrapping the kendama in something grippy but soft. I use these since they have rubber clamping areas. The main thing is to keep the kendama from moving around and keep your hands out of the path of the drill bit.