Hi guys, for starters Im not a Filipino martial arts practitioner. I practice Mau Rakau and I'm currently looking for a helmet that can withstand blows to head from padded rakau (similar to a bo staff). Here is an example of sparring; Skip to 2:09 [ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gOi-cbQSXyk"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gOi-cbQSXyk[/ame] At the moment I'm having trouble finding anything on Ebay. And I'm not sure what kind of brands I should be looking at. I've tried using a hockey helmet with a metal face shield in the past but the plastic wasn't strong enough to withstand the blows and cracked. I think the helmets used in Filipino martial arts should be strong enough, the other option is Kendo helmets. Ideally I need something that will protect all sides of the head as well as the top.
Have you considered something like this (a Red Dragon fencing mask, in this case, but any brand of HEMA fencing mask will have a reinforced mesh compared to entry-level fencing masks for foil and epee): Obviously you'd need to look at something local, but masks like this are designed to take hits from two-handed steel swords (admittedly dents happen from time to time, but nothing's perfect!) whilst retaining good visibility and airflow. The black overlay you can see may be extra, I've not bought this exact product before. Certainly there's an option to get a full head overlay, though the protection will be lessened somewhat at the back compared with the face.
I would suggest a minimum of level 3 fencing helmets such as those used for saber training.. I know that Nick Padapalous from the bloodsport.com web site supplies them to the dog brothers as he is one of the pack.. I also have several friends who are fma practitioners and they use the fencing helmets
That looks good, at this point I'm looking for anything I can find on Ebay that I can ship to New Zealand. I will look into those helmets. EDIT: The hema shop ships to New Zealand.
Look for the HEMA masks with the added protection for the rear of the head, this company is out of Australia: https://wmashop.com/product-category/head_protection
I concur. HEMA masks are your best bet. If for whatever reason you are unable to to get any then a olympic sabre fencing mask with coach padding overlay will work too, but the crucial problem is that they do not provide enough protection to the back of the head. However looking at the video above its clear that rigid thrusts with those staffs with no bend will ruin the mesh and dent them in short order. The HEMA ones are better designed to meet such rigours as well as providing better all round protection should your opponent get behind you. Personally if it was my head on the line i wouldn't scrimp money on it. I'd get the best version I can afford. Also on a side note If i were you I would invest in a gorget too. http://www.encasedinsteel.co.uk/2014/10/03/the-importance-of-the-gorget/ While the bibs on the HEMA masks are more durable than olympic ones the stiffer the sparring implement the nastier the blow to the neck and windpipe, or should the staff go underneath the bib at an angle.
Just got in touch with the Red Dragon guys, I'm instrested to hear what they have to say. I've been looking at Jogo Do Pau practitioners and they seem to be wearing fencing masks with no problem. So I feel pretty confident that fencing masks are the way to go.
Here's what the Hema Shop had to say; "Many thanks for your enquiry Fencing Masks are designed for sports fencing but are also the standard equipment for Historical Fencing (HEMA), often with extra padding such a throat and rear head protection added. Heavy strikes or thrusts from poles or swords can still cause injury so we cannot specifically recommend a fencing mask or throat protector will provide the protection you desire."
Kali tudo is the play on words (like "vale tudo") used by Marc Denny to talk about the ring use of the the Dog Brothers Martial Arts. There is no helmet use in that portion of the DBMA curriculum. Dog Brothers in general use a standard fencing helmet without the back of head protection. I would not recommend that for this use.
I thought Kali tudo was the term for the full contact armed and unarmed combat they do at 'gathering of the pack'? Do they wear fencing masks for that or something else?
I called one of the guys at the WMAshop in Aussie and he didn't seem that confident about recommending the helmets, at least not for full contact sparring, even with the side and back of the head padding. Our sparring to be honest is pretty light even though we strike up and down the body. I was mainly keen on getting them as extra protection in case a strike slipped through and made contact with the head. Maybe I didn't explain properly enough? He said that they are fine for light to moderate sparring though, which is pretty much what we do.
I frequently spar with a padded staff. In my opinion the head gear is not so important as the staff itself. The staff I use is actually a plastic pipe with foam wrapping. the helmet i use is a full face sparing helmet with a face plate rather than a grill. I found that it was important to have a lightweight staff that would give on impact. Foam wrapped wooden staffs simply had too much power and in my opinion would be likely to break bones regardless of padding or protection.
I was thinking about making pugil sticks out of PVC and foam for sparring. Not sure if it will work but its worth a try.
Nope. Dog Brothers Tribe (the Gathering) and Dog Brothers Martial Arts are two seperate, yet related, entities. The unarmed portions of the DBMA curriculum are DLO (Die Less Often) and Kali Tudo, Anyone from any style/school/system can fight at a Gathering. And I'm not a big fan of using pipe lagging on sticks/staffs. We have a derogatory name for them