Weapons

KATANA
The Katana ranges from 24 to 30 inches in blade length and was the primary weapon of the Samauri. The Katana was the first blade to be made with 2 strenghts of steel. The harder steel formed the spine or back of the blade, and the soft steel formed the cutting edge to reduce the chance of it breaking when striking other weapons.

SAI
The Sai is a three pronged fork-like weapon with the centre fork being around 20" in length. Its main use was in defence against the sword or Bo, as these could be trapped in the forks, thereby disarming the attacker. It is a single handed weapon but normally used in pairs. To be effective as a weapon, the Sai must be of the right caliber for your body size, and the main prong should protrude just past the elbow when holding the handle.

BO
The Bo is the Japanese equivalent of the wooden staff. This martial arts weapon is normally 6 foot in length and made from a variety of hard woods, the strongest being the Okinawan Iron Wood. The Bo is one of the more popular weapons to learn and quite practical as a broom stick or other similar objects can be used in its place. Depending on the position of the hands the Bo can be used at either short or long range. Training with the Bo is known as Bojutsu.

Nunchaku
The Nunchaku comprises two pieces of hardwood 12 to 14 inches in length joined by a cord (or nowadays more frequently, by a chain and a ball bearing swivel). There are many styles of Nunchaku but most commonly the handles are octagonal or round. The ideal length of the handles should be the same as the distance between your elbow and your wrist. The Nunchaku can be a deadly weapon in the hands of an expert and has been widely popularised by films starring Bruce Lee.

KAMA
Once used to harvest rice, the Kama is a wooden handle with a sharpened metal blade fixed to one end. Like the Sai, it is a single handed weapon but used in pairs. It is one of the traditional Okinawan Karate weapons. Similar to the Sai, at close range the Kama can be used to slash at an attacker or to trap a sword or Bo.

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