I bought a premium white Ozora during the Black Friday sales and seems like I got a 'glossy' premium paint setup. Had already owned the newer green and red premiums so was kind of expecting it to be similar to those. Not that it's bad itself, but yeah it seems to have a kind of grip that isn't easy to explain.
The OG White paint was odd in that it doesn't seem sticky to the touch but if you put the tama in one of the cups and rotate it you'll notice that it's definitely tackier than one of the "standard" Ozora paint jobs. We ran one on our demo table for 4+ years and it held up pretty well with the only chipping around the tama hole which is kind of typical.
I totally have read your whole post. I really appreciate this thread and will devour all of it and I respect your perspective as well. As a dancer (ballet, jazz, tap, etc) from the age of 3 and now an instructor, it’s probaly just a part of my nature as a person too, but I love and respect foundation and technique. As a new player who has only the internet to turn to, I would love to have what they have in Japan; a system, a method of learning and becoming consistent as well as the in person instruction. It’s grwat what everyone, from companies to individuals, puts out there to help others learn. But as a teacher in school as well and from first hand experience, there are so many different learning styles and there is no way to cover it and translate clearly to the masses only through online videos. For some, I can see it being great and fine, but for me I find some stuff is just lost in translation and I’m missing something. I am a fairly visual learner too, but I still feel stumped sometimes. I also feel I would love to have consistency as it’s frustrating to hit a trick (simple ones at this point) and not be able to hit it again or very rarely. I want to be able to figure out why. I think this comes down to the person too, as I respect all those who are amazing players and post amazing videos/edits of freestyle play. I would love to be able to flow, but I also am one who is used to being choreographed as well creating the choreography so I’m a mixed bag on that front lol. I do not have any of these Kendamas posted in this thread and do find the newer Kendama styles easier and satisfying when I can land something quicker, but I also respect the challenge and want to be able to do it on a natty or glossy as well. I mean my first Kendama was from the dollar store and it has small everything plus the slipperiest rick hard icy paint. I could never hit more than cups and spikes and things on it, but I rotate through a varying group of sticky, satin, natty and the icy dollar store buy so I can get a mix of challenge an success. I will land a lighthouse on that thing if it’s the last thing I do, but I know I can do it as I have done it on the sticky and the satin (which is fairly slippery as well) even if the natty and the icy ones are still a work in progress. Anyways, now I’m rambling, sorry, I am known to talk too much ha ha. But just wanted to say I love the post and I see all sides to it. I see the same things at our different dance competitions we attend as well. I think everyone just has to do what’s right for them and try both sides from time to time. There will be a meet in the middle at times and some polar differences at others, but it’s still Kendama and someone is needing and appreciating different aspects of it and finding their niche somewhere in the spectrum. Thanks again for the thread and all the amazing information.
My understanding from the JKA is that the TK, in TK16, stands for "Technical Kendama" and the 16 is for the ken height in centimeters. Odd thing is that they had the TK16 Master and TK16 Junior and the Junior is about 30% smaller so obviously not a 16cm ken. Maybe it was just a branding thing since the Junior came out a few years after the TK16 Master.
So maybe a newb question and even though I read this all, it may be redundant. Kendama USA has a TK16 Master, where would this fall in the line? Is it worth a purchase? If I’m looking for a classic.
What do you mean by 'fall in the line'? TK16s are definitely a classic. Grab a red, and learn to do lighthouse flips and lunars on it. Then you'll be honed for any dama!
Ok thanks. I think I was just getting the different ones mixed up. But I am correct that there is only one style (other than colour or natty etc) of the TK16, right? Just was getting a bit overloaded with the info of all the JKA stuff. The different brands seem clear but the different releases or versions is a bit muddled for me and the term “original” being thrown around too. Not sure if the TK16 has been the same throughout its time. If that makes sense.
@Kristina look for the TK16 Master with the JKA nintei seal to get one of the kendama with the "rep" you read about everywhere. The "TK16 Original" from Gloken is not the same thing. If it doesn't sport this seal (and in some cases even if it does, read here for more on that) then it's not a real TK16 Master.
Quick question, would putting a bearing on a JKA kendama make said kendama inelligible for JKA testing?
I'm loving my Keyaki haven't tried the Maple. Running a bit longer string on it and so far like the feel, weight and balance. First trick out of the box was bird over the valley without even so much as a twitch on the landing. Also there's a REShape thread for more info. @Emil Apostol @Cheech_Sander Certain modifications are OK. My understanding is they allow your name written in a specific area, the tip of the ken to be glued, a knot can be put 2-3cm above the tama, and a screw through the sarado to keep everything attached. Wood treatments, non-stock paint or burn lines or anything that might be considered changing the play of the kendama are generally a no-go. I've got a meeting with a JKA board member tomorrow. I can ask about the bearing.
I feel like the answer will be no, since it changes playability, but I'm interested to hear the results.
@Emil Apostol @Cheech_Sander I have been told that bearings are OK for the JKA tests and competitions.
Ah, interesting! I'm surprised, considering that bearings do change playability a little bit. I guess the JKA trick list isn't as affected by the difference in playability? They mostly make high-flip-count sorta tricks easier by preventing tangle. Thanks for the follow up!
I'd guess that the only place they "might" be of benefit in the JKA events/tests would be Time Kyogi (Speed Trick) runs where there is a longer line of tricks back to back. Even in those you'd probably benefit more from a short string (2 fingers) than the bearing since less string means shorter time between tricks generally. (Also FWIW a 2 finger string length is recommended, not required. There seems to be some confusion regarding that aspect I've seen elsewhere.)
Seen some posts in various places about the differences between the JKA certified TK16 Master (green seal) and the Gloken/Tamiwa TK16 "Original" so here is some info on them. There are several things to note: The tama bevel/hole on the Gloken version makes the tama sit pretty much flush across the slipstop where it rocks on the JKA version. The rims of the cups are almost nonexistant on the Gloken but about 2mm on the JKA. Overall the the ken is a bit slimmer on the JKA. The shape of the Gloken is similar to the intermediate "Mutant" TKs mentioned elsewhere. The Kashimaya Meijin Takumi is produced by the same factory that created the JKA TK16 so the Meijin Takumi is physically the closest to the JKA certified TK16 Master though there have been some tweaks. (Natty = JKA certified; Red/White = Gloken version. Too hard to do columns here so it's JPG for the text too.)