Hello all you Homies in the house. Our Uni club is now searching for some new break boards and, ideally a board holder! So a few quick questions: 1) Does anyone swear by a certain brand of break boards? And if so, why? The last I saw of traditional ITF schools they were using white (easy), red (medium), and black (hard) boards. Has anyone got opinions on these? 2) For any of you chaps who own a board holder, where did you get it? So far I've found one for sale at Playwell, but its big and incredibly expensive (over £200 - way out of student budget ranges)! At the moment we're thinking of finding a carpenter and asking them to build us one, but does anyone know if there are relative small board holders available from anywhere? Cheers, Alexander
Im not a board breaker myself. But for the holders, why not make them yourself? You're looking at 15mins and under £10 to make a basic holder for both ends of a board.
Alex, be wary of board colours as there are so many about these days and they are not all the same. Technically it should be cream.. red.. black, (originally just cream and black), with the strength going on a similar view.. 1 board, 1.5 boards & 2 boards.. however, the UKTA Red Boards are almost equal to 3 boards. Then you have other colours in the mix. I use to always get mine via Japan Martial Arts, but havnt in years, but they were always consistent in quality. I once brought a white board for a martial arts shop I came across and this was supposed to be a beginners board and it was tougher than the black boards we have.. consequently I have a cream board now thats harder than a new black board and just a little off the (UKTA) red one I mention (we have one of those too). As for holders.. make one yourself.. the shop ones are expensive and usually need fixing to a wall.. a 'chippie' is best, but 'you' is cheaper Stuart
I'd be wary of using any homemade equipment for a club. If anyone hurts themselves with it you are open to a claim. I doubt your insurance would cover homemade equipment regardless of quality.
Well, Ive been using one since I started training and never had issues like that (touch wood).. though I dont see why this would be any different if someone was injured using a manufactured one.. hurt is hurt after all.. that said, you cannot buy the freestanding ones, so making one is the only solution really! Home made doesnt have to mean 'crappy' after all!
I think you'll find that local authorities have banned the use of all homemade equipment due to the amount of deaths and injuries cause by them. This would also include the O/P's university club. If you checked your insurance I have a feeling they would not allow you to continue using your holder regardless of how well made and safe it is. It's just a reflection of the times we live in. Health and safety in this country is now paramount to the point of stupidity. You can buy them http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI....egory=97043&ssPageName=STORE:PROMOBOX:NEWLIST
We've used homemade board holders since I was knee high to a grasshopper (my instructors used to use them as well). Never had a problem with them. There was a very good board company that went out of business a while back. Sort of cream colored boards (brownish). The quality of those are excellent. Hard to break. I max out at about six with a side kick and three with a round kick. And if they are newer then reduce that count by one. I've gotten white boards that I think Stuart is talking about. Absolutely horrible. You glare at them and they break...
A little common sense with board breaking goes a long way. Like you we've used home made board breakers, have done hand held board breaking, etc for years and years and never had a problem. I'd say the risk of board breaking is relatively minor risk compared to other areas. I know of a wrestling coach who is paralyzed from a throw. Sometimes all the precautions can't stop the odd injury from happening.
Might never have a problem with them but if you check I think you'll find I'm right about the insurance and local authorities. This problem has been around for years with football and homemade goalpost killing 9 kids and injuring hundreds. The local authorities just banned homemade sports equipment, not only goalposts. Don't forget it's not just using the equipment correctly, it's carrying it, someone accidently falling on it, kids playing on it etc: All you need is an accident and someone who's prepared to take the matter to court. £300 isn't worth taking a hit like that on the chin, could be thousands.
We've got a few of these: http://www.centurymartialarts.com/Targets_and_Shields/Breaking_Boards/Rebreakable_Boards.aspx The darker colors are a nice challenge - the black is supposed to be like 2-3 boards, and it feels like it (we have to use a rubber mallet to get it back together!).
I have used this style of boards for over ten years and I only have had one damaged in that time and all are still in use. They are well worth the investment. As for board holders, homemade should be fine with the insurance as long as it is to a professional standard, the design has been checked and approved by an engineer and an assessment of the hazards in the use of it has been documented and measures put in place to control these risks. This is a complex set of things for a club to get done, but as you are a uni club you may be able to get the engineering faculty to assist you in this. This is a good project for some young budding engineers to manage.
Hi everyone, thanks a lot for the advice given - I'll have a look through the suppliers you mentionned. At present we use two boards that are my own that I bought from Blitz when I was around fifteen. When I got these I also built myself a board holder (a huge metal monstrosity) though unfortunately I'm not sure where it is now. I think I put it in a safe place. That's a nice idea! Thanks.
Is there a standard hight for a breakstand. Being a shorty it always anoys me that everywhere I have been the hight on the stands means that for the average bloke its a midsection break but for me and the other shorties the boards come roughly in line with my neck/chin. Also it's a good idea to check out all boards with a technique that will not hurt if it doesn't come off. I bought two identical looking cream boards from the same shop the first fell apart with a tap from about 1/2 an inch out. The second board I could not break at all. All in all I tried punching, knifehand, elbows, turning kick, side kick and eventually a Hammer -no not hammerfist an actual hammer from my tool box and it still didn't break.
I realize they are expensive, but we have one of these Century board breaking machines and it is safe , and very well made. You can put up to 5 boards in it. This is also my instructor in the ad. [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GIgsXZHo3Pk"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GIgsXZHo3Pk[/ame]
Here is another idea, we've used it in our school and during tests. It is very well priced and works great: http://www.powerbreaker2000.com/powerbreaker.html
I find it confusing how a lot of rebreakable boards are "rated". What the heck exactly is a "wood strip" we break 3/4" and 1" boards so I don't really have a comparison to what breaking "5 wood strips" for a beginner board would be. Can anyone clear it up? Also Kacey what do you recommend for exercises for conditioning hands/feet for breaking. I want to do a breaking seminar class in 6 months and would like to be as prepared as possible so I will be able to safely attempt more breaks than a palm-heel or side kick -- no desires here to injure anything but the wood.
my school has one and i love it. During a test a while back, I hit a judge in eye with a spinning wheel kick, not on purpose. Ever since then I've always used the machine. Also you have to be careful wit the size of the rebreakable boards. The black ones by some companies don't fit that machine right. The other thing is make sure you have extra padding around because pieces can go flying out and cut up mats. As for use of the rebreakable boards, it can save a lot of money for a dojang. My school was like a $1 a board which doesn't seem like much but adds up quickly. The only issue I have is that you do have to replace them after a lot of use if not then they break when you sneeze.
hey on the topic im on the mindset to make a horse myself to go against a wall or to stand up on its own. Im not at the level to compete yet but dont see why i shouldnt start practicing now and get ahead so when i get to that level i can. Basically i kind of know how it works but would love really a detailed description of the dimensions such height from bottom to top, width and length and ideal wood to make this from. anyone have any ideas?
I am not exactly sure on the type of boards we normally break, but I am sure about holders. At our school, our holders, every test, every competition, is normally a human holder. Believe it or not, but guys can hold boards for people to break. The only exception to this is our final during our black belt test (we set up 5 breaking stations and then have our brick break) in which we use cinder blocks to hold the bricks up.
When in competition or at demos I have to use human holders which is better at times because can make minor adjustments easier. I just feel more comfortable with a machine because you can't hurt the machine. I do hold the boards for the little kids since most aren't big enough to use my school's machine yet.
