Yoga Mats

[Jevins]

I have heard several people mentioning yoga mats being used as stabbing foam. In fact, Sun Child [as well as others, I'm sure] used a mace constructed entirely of yoga mat foam.

My question is in regards to the brand or type of yoga mat foam. What's the best brand to use, and at what stores [online or not] can I locate these mats?

[Isk]

The gold's gym brand yoga mat from Walmart seems to work well for many people. I wouldn't make a whole weapon from yoga mat, personally, but as a stabby foam or a layer on a red it works well.

[Liam_McClung]

The gold's gym brand yoga mat from Walmart seems to work well for many people. I wouldn't make a whole weapon from yoga mat, personally, but as a stabby foam or a layer on a red it works well.

This. Usually two layers will make a pretty good passing stab. On reds, use 3 for posterity.

[Sir Thurat]

Gotta second not using it for blade layers. Had a guy make a red with the last layer constructed from the Gold's mat; hit like a brick. In an attempt to see how it acted as a box layer, we also found that it made the weapon hit like a brick. Great stabbies though.

[The Great Gigsby]

Yoga mat on the blade will hit like a brick ****, but I don't think it's a dangerous tech. I probably would never use it up here in the northwest or in colder climates because cold and damp can turn yoga mat real mean.

On reds, use 3 for posterity.

You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.

[Aimish]

You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.

Great movie.

On topic, I've been hit with a red that had a last layer of yoga mat, hit fine to me, maybe even a little light. With that said, I wouldn't trust it in cold weather, but thats thats not much different with most foams.

[Solusar]

Using one layer of yoga mat as the final blade layer of a red makes it hit a little nicer. It's becoming a common practice.

[Sir Thurat]

Using one layer of yoga mat as the final blade layer of a red makes it hit a little nicer. It's becoming a common practice.

We didn't have this experience. How many layers of blue underneath?

[Solusar]

Using one layer of yoga mat as the final blade layer of a red makes it hit a little nicer. It's becoming a common practice.

We didn't have this experience. How many layers of blue underneath?

My current mini-glaive is double box of blue foam, two outer layers of blue and a final layer of yoga mat.

[Sir Thurat]

Perhaps he just didn't use enough blue underneath. Have to give it another go.

[Tiberius Claudius]

You can use yoga mat as part of the blade all day long.

I've made a 6' red and an 8.5' glaive with the following progressive foam densities on bandshoppe core:

• Box: gray puzzle floor mat
• Blade: blue camp pad, yoga mat, blue camp pad
• Stab tip: two more pieces of yoga mat at the top (over a piece of armor grade leather to prevent core through, à la Arrakis' tut

It's solid, but is in no way painful; hits beautifully.

My reasoning behind sandwiching the yoga mat is because I neither wanted it to get compressed against the ultra dense floor mat (designed to deaden the impact of core) nor wanted it to be exposed to sheering/point compression forces as an outer layer. It's working quite well for almost 7 months on my red and 2 months on my glaive.

[Jevins]

Well, I appreciate the tips. I bought a roll of Gold's Gym Yoga mat, and I have successfully constructed multiple stabbing tips. My only issue is that they feel as though they hit a little hard...

As far as Gold's Gym goes, I agree; I wouldn't use the yoga mat to construct an entire blade. However, I still think that the mace I saw at Chaos (completely constructed of yoga mat foam) hit the most beautifully of all the weapons I've handled.
I don't get it.

[Rasheab]

My only issue is that they feel as though they hit a little hard...

It's definitely possible. However, there is this quote from Arrakis (regarding his low profile marine foam stabbing tips):

This seems to hit equally hard at everything from a soft Medium to a crazy hard Hard. It's really quite fascinating.

[Sir Par]

Using one layer of yoga mat as the final blade layer of a red makes it hit a little nicer. It's becoming a common practice.

We didn't have this experience. How many layers of blue underneath?

My current mini-glaive is double box of blue foam, two outer layers of blue and a final layer of yoga mat.

My glaive I had a Chaos was the last layer gold's two layers blue. It only has three layers of foam between core and person on the blade and hits hard on everything from soft medium on up. Its fun