This here is question to all those people what use shinai. What kind of oil do you use on your shinai? I used some boiled linseed oil and let my shinai soak for 5 days its now a soggy and sticky mess. Maybe its becasue I waited three years to oil my shinai.
Here's a nice page on shinai maintenance... http://www.shinai.org/housemef/shinaimaint/shinaimaint.html Sewing machine or gun oil it seems and certainly not a "soaking"
I just use a bit of cooking oil. Soaks in quick. "Years ago" we made up capped tubes from drainpipes and left shinai take in for months. Lots of oils work. As mentioned linseed makes them sticky and the shinai will turn yellow if left in for long periods. I would not say shinai life is significantly prolonged. But sadly this all a waste of time. If you use a shinai correctly and just check the take it should last you for years as all the surfaces you strike with a moving through action are pliable. Though one thing to remember is if you buy a new shinai the inside edges will be squared off. The bogu shops in Japan dissassemble the bamboo and remove this edge before making up a shinai. That way the take do not bind. This must be done if you want it to last. Hope this helps
Gotcha thanks. Linseed oil bad well not too bad I reassembled my shinai after trying my darndest to scrub off the goo that was linseed oil. It looks better still a little sticky and the planks dont slide quite so well, but at least I tried out on a my cheap shinai. I guess I should try gun oil My step dad has some of that floating around.
I don't think gunoil will do the tric, it's kind of corrosive... In Norway you can get wooden-furniture-oil in furniture-departments. That soaks in briliantly.
