What to use for grip?

[Seventh_He4ven]

Hi everyone. Let us talk about grip stuff.

What have people used for grip on their nunchaku?

I have beautiful wooden nunchaku that I've payed over £100 for but would like some extra grip, what can I use that will not cheapen or deface my nunchaku, but that is practical and tasteful.

[theraven39]

A lot of people use electrical tape, but that might fall into the cheapening category.  I make all my own, but I find if you finish them with tung oil, it leaves a slightly tacky, easy to grip surface, plus it brings out the grain of the wood nicely.  Of course, if they're already finished, that probably won't help.  You could always drill a shallow grid of holes on your chucks and then epoxy in some ball bearings.  That would give you 20 or 30 points to grip on each stick depending on how hardcore you got with it, other than that or dremelling grip lines down the whole thing, I don't know.

[Numbnuts]

Let me see if I understand this...

You bought expensive wooden chucks which I assume are beautiful to look upon and that's really why you bought them in the first place. Right?

Now you want maximum functionality and handling performance that comes with added grip surface, yet sacrifices and disguises the natural beauty of the nunchuck.

Make up your mind. Do you want a visually aesthetic chuck or do you want a chuck with good grip.

If you decide on the latter, I recommend you build your own chucks from now on.

May I ask what's wrong with leaving them be?

[psionics]

you can try using a leather+rugby. it works like a shoe, it can heal some scratches by polishing it.

[Yetibutt]

Stick Tape, used for baseball bats and hockey sticks, works well for grip.  It wont do much for the aesthetics though.  It starts out nice and white, but it soaks up dirt, sweat and grease pretty quickly.  It comes off easy, but long term the acidity of the adhesive will probably damage the finish on your nunchaku.

[Matt-Chez]

if you melt candle wax directly onto the wood, rub it in, then remove all of it while its still slightly warm,

it will leave a waxy residue that slightly darkens the wood, but gives it a nice solid shine,,  the benefit of this is that when the wax warms up during practice, the grip of the chucks gets better

[Numbnuts]

Interesting idea Matt. Doesn't that leave wax on your clothes though? That stuff is so hard to wash out.

I'll submit the tennis racket or golf club as an alternate source for grip.

[Matt-Chez]

not unless you actively try and get wax on yourself  just do it over a newspaper.

but if you mean while swinging,, just make sure all the wax is cleaned off, its not really the wax itself that provides the grip, but the residue that it leaves behind, which to my knowledge doesn't leave any marks on clothes or damage the quality of the chucks

[dogfighter]

Wrap chux with two strips of masking tape about 2" apart and three layers thick near gripping area.  Replace it as needed. It improves grip, it's cheap, it comes off easy and does not harm the finish. Don't leave them sitting in the sun for long periods of time or the adhesive may get gummy and soak into the wood if the wood is untreated.  Just change it offten to be safe. It's cheap insurance!

[NinjaCW]

Maybe lacquer?

[CalamityJain24]

Make up your mind. Do you want a visually aesthetic chuck or do you want a chuck with good grip.

If you decide on the latter, I recommend you build your own chucks from now on.

I agree with Numbnuts on this point, I have a number of swords only one of which I would use against someone.  It is a handmade steel reverse edge kodaichi w/ leather wrapped handle and hand-made leather sheath.  It cost about 140 dollars (just the sword).  It, as swords go, is not pretty but the balance is perfect for my sword style and the handle is long again ideal for defense.  I keep the blade clean, oiled, and slightly polished so it is smooth to reduce air resistance and friction against the enemy's blade in a clash.  As for nunchacku, I've never paid more than twenty bucks for a pair because I'm gonna drop, smash, dent, crack, sand, refinish, and eventually break them.  I've broken 3 pair so far.  One pair I made myself, that is my qualm with homemade chucks, every pair I've made have broken (but they were cheap). This is because I not an expert and I know eventually they will break.  My philosophy in summary is thus; if you are paying a lot for your weapons, are you getting what you pay for?
~Calamity~