New Year, New Workshop

My shop is currently my garage - a one car, 8’ ceiling type of garage that I use for woodworking, leather working and martial arts training. With all that going on it’s configurable, but not configurable enough. It’s too slow to switch between projects, and sometimes between parts of projects - then there’s clearing the space for martial arts. The wall space isn’t particularly well optimized since I just reconfigured what was there before.

So, right now I’m taking a brief hiatus from making things for you and rebuilding the shop space to improve workflows, make better use of the space, and get my full sized lathe out of the corner of the garage and into a usable place.

My new bench will be built around the lathe - I’m setting up a lift for it so I can store it below the bench and then raise it up as needed. My other tools will clamp onto the bench by having them pre-mounted on 3/4” plywood sheets that I’ll clamp to the bench with some vice grips.

I’m filming as much of the process as I can so I can show you all what I’ve been up to first hand - so hopefully I’ll have a Youtube channel up and running early in the year.

To everyone that has supported my work this far and to the new people coming to take a look, you have my best wishes for the new year.

Reduce, Reuse and stop throwing stuff away!

Ever notice the amount of time we spend on "Recycling Efforts"? Recently the news articles that have come across my screen have shown how much of what we send for recycling can't actually be recycled. Some things they receive have those little recycling looking arrows with a number in them - they only indicate the type of plastic, not that they're actually recyclable. Did not know that before. Dirty things, like leaving left over peanut butter in the jar also can't be recycled - it's recycling contamination. Did not know that either.

Paper products and cardboard are the main source of income for recycling plants - they are the easiest to both recycle and to sell the finished products. They're also the one thing they are getting less and less of - how often do you see a printed newspaper? Packaging uses more and more plastics and less cardboard. Not good for recycling plants.

All of that had me thinking, is "recycling" just a way to feel good about throwing something away? What happened to those first two R words? If we focused on those first two, we would have a much larger impact. If you reduce the amount of stuff you use, there's less stuff to deal with - period. For the stuff you do have, reuse it. Make it last. Use it over and over again. Hand it down to your children and their children. After all of that, there are those things that we will have to dispose of, recycle that. We'll have packaging to deal with for a long time so at least go for paper over plastic when you can.

Training in the martial arts, we have a secret. It's the best defense in the whole world. If you train too, you probably know which one I'm talking about. If you don't train, I'll share it with you. It's simple. It's effective. Anyone can do it. The best defense in the world is "Don't be there". It's our Plan A - if you stay away from trouble, you don't have to deal with it. If you can't avoid trouble though, we do have a Plan B - diffuse the situation. Talk your way out. Distract the other person. Walk away. If those fail we have Plan C - fight.

So what does that have to do with our 3 Rs? Reduce is Plan A. Reuse is Plan B. With Eternum, I focus on those first two. Reduce the amount of stuff you need. In my ideal world a customer doesn't buy the same thing twice - they shouldn't need to. Cherish what you have - it's special. Secondly reuse the stuff you have. It's why I make journal covers instead of leather journals. I want the cover to be used over and over on whichever books you have.

Together we can make Reduce and Reuse great again! (I'm taking those words back)

Wood hardness and weight

A common question when planning wooden weapons like tonfa is what wood should it be made from. Being martial artists, we tend to go in one of two directions when thinking about weapons - strong and heavy or light and quick. 

So, how hard does wood need to be to make a good weapon? If you're going to be making a lot of weapon to weapon contact, people tend to lean towards "as hard as possible". Exotic hardwoods can be very hard and very heavy. For reference it helps to compare to something familiar - the tried and true wooden baseball bat. Something you swing at a hard ball moving at 90 mph and it comes back for more.

Janka Hardness is commonly used to measure how hard a wood is. It is the average amount of force required to embed a 0.444" (11.28mm) steel ball half way into the wood. It is important to note that this is an average - no piece of wood is identical to the next so any individual piece may be harder or softer but averages are great for relative comparison. The chart below shows the hardness of woods commonly used in a trusty baseball bat. Hickory comes in at the hardest at just under 1900 pounds of force.

Janka Hardness (lbf)

Given the above information, anything over a Janka Hardness of 1200 should hold up to light contact training. The typical tonfa you can purchase from a vendor is made of oak. That said, I've broken several of those personally. Anything over 2000 hardness however - nearly twice as hard as the standard mass produced tonfa - should stand up to regular contact. The chart below shows some of the woods I've had the opportunity to work with.

Janka Hardness - Exotic Hardwoods

Redheart compares to Red Oak for hardness. It finishes smoother than Oak and has a good feel to it. I recommend it for competition and kata practice. It can hold up to light contact.

Pau Ferro is comparable to Hickory although it is slightly harder and heavier. It's a good choice for an all round weapon.

Purpleheart is harder and heavier than any of the previous woods, about 20% harder and only a bit heavier than the hardest of the wooden baseball bats. It takes a good beating - I've tested it personally. It's purple colour will change to a darker brown over time and UV light accelerates the color change.

The top end of that scale shows Cocobolo and Verawood. They are hard, heavy and take a beating like nothing else. They are also rare and expensive - the expense is in part due to the wood itself and in part to the abuse they cause on tools and blades. Of course if they wear down the metal tools used to shape them, they should stand up to other woods quite well.

I have a Cocobolo Jo, concrete scratched it once. That is all.

Planning your custom tonfa

Having a custom set of tonfa made is a little different than picking up a pre-made set from your dojo or martial arts supplier. A pre-made set is generally made of "wood" - usually a species of oak, and usually unspecified. The only choice you have with a pre-made set is the length of the body. The handle will usually fit as long as the size of your hand is the average of someone that orders that length of body.

A custom set of tonfa is sized for you - it's length, size of the handle, style of the grip, thickness of the body and the species of wood. The most important thing to consider is the intended purpose of the weapon.

All-Round Use

If this is your only set of tonfa, having a medium weight tonfa that can stand up to regular contact is a good plan. The set should have a comfortable weight for you and also have a look that you can appreciate. Pau Ferro and Purpleheart are good all around choices - they have a moderate weight and stand up to a decent beating - both stronger and heavier than oak, but not too heavy for regular use.

Kata/Tournament Tonfa

If you're looking for a set of tonfa primarily for kata use or tournaments you can open up your options to lighter weight woods that are still durable but easier to move quickly and good for prolonged kata practice. Chakte Kok, also known as Redheart, is a beautiful wood, comparable in strength and weight to Red Oak, but smoother. It can take contact with a rattan bo quite well and light contact against other hardwoods.

Heavy Contact/Strength Training

If you're looking for a heavier tonfa for strength training or frequent, heavy contact, having a strong set of tonfa is a must. Wood choices such as Cocobolo, Verawood, Katalox or various Ebonies become more practical. They are heavy, durable and take contact well.

Whether you know exactly what you'd like or have absolutely no idea, we can help get you a perfect set of tonfa that will serve you well for years to come.