The Book of War wrote:1.2. Marking - Weapons must be marked with the appropriate color(s) of tape to denote their classifications. This marking tape must be placed in a manner so that Combatants and Marshals may easily see it.
---
1.2.1. Class 1 Weapons are marked with blue tape on either the pommel or handle.
1.2.2. Class 2 Weapons are marked with red tape on either the pommel or handle.
1.2.3. Class 3 Weapons are marked with green tape on either the pommel or handle.
Am I right to assume that the reason the BoW specifies tape (which I've always read as "distinct, pre-colored tape like electric tape or duct tape) lies in weapons checking and that it is removable should the weapon fail? Do people peel the tape off of failing weapons or just toss them in the fail pile? If that's going on, couldn't you just wrap another layer of black grip tape over the pommel to hide the colors?
Also, the way the rules read, grip tape painted red = red tape, thus it's legal. So is there any reason I can't (or shouldn't) paint on my pommel colors?
Forgive me if this seems like a stupid question, but I like the looks of the paint better than duct tape, and I have a bunch of fabric paint on hand already.
Edit: Thanks for another quick reply, Cyric. I know the BoW clearly states colored tape must be used, but painted cloth tape = colored tape, right? However, I do agree that the implication of the rules is "easily removable colored tape of a markedly different type than the cloth tape that probably covers your pommel." Mostly I was wondering if weapon checkers and other veterans felt strongly about this.