Wooden Handles

[Thomas MacFinn]

1.3.8. All handles of wood Weapons must be taped, including bamboo and rattan.

How much leeway is there on this rule when, for example, the handle is just a covering for a fiberglass core?

[Thomas MacFinn]

If this thing snaps, it won't be wood that breaks.

[Derian]

It should be fine. The rule states that handles of wood weapons must be taped, not that wooden handles must be taped.

[Bortas]

Yeah... kind of silly, imo... the point of doing a wooden only handle is looks and comfort - tape just ruins that. I wouldn't think whether or not the handle is taped would havfe any safety bearing at all... I'd be more worreid about other parts not being taped.

-bort

[Big King Jimmy]

The idea was to prevent damaging your hands if the weapon broke and splintered.

[Bortas]

I get it... but I think it's the same arguement as many others on this board. When the issue is only teh safety of oneself, why do we mandate it?
Barefoot vs boots
Safety glasses vs none

See where I'm going? We don't mandate boots, although it is clearly safer to wear something vs barefoot (although, we do argue about it). And while I think everyone would agree safety glasses is safer and we risk our eyes by not wearing them... we still aren't going to see much for safety glasses. Or kneepads. Or MMA gloves and on and on. If it is seen as a 'stupid' thing to do, where the only harm is yourself, why mandate it?

I like the look of a wooden handle, and I always wear gloves - why should I tape it if I'm the only one at risk? (to play devil's advocate).

-bort

[Derian]

I think Big J might be a bit confused. The rule has nothing to do with wooden handles. It has to do with weapons that have a wood core.

Thomas's weapon isn't required to conform to this rule, because it's not a wooden weapon -- it's a fiberglass weapon.

To my knowledge, the rule required that handles of wooden weapons be taped is because if a wood core snaps in the blade, the foam likely isn't going to immediately rip off & turn it into a spear, while that's very possible if the weapon breaks on the handle.

[Big King Jimmy]

No, I knew, I meant with wooden cored weapons.

[Satanaka]

Derian- should you have already moved this to "rules"?

[Thomas MacFinn]

Derian- should you have already moved this to "rules"?

I started the thread under "rules discussion". Nobody has moved it anywhere.

[Derian]

Probably. It was a rules question, but sort of evolved into a bit of discussion.