Martial Arts Practice Weapons

Most edged weapons used in practicing martial arts are not sharpened. To some extent, any edged martial arts weapon can be termed a practice weapon. An exception is throwing weapons (such as shuriken), which require points to stick into targets. And yet, foam star shuriken can be found for practice use when learning basic throwing techniques. Many martial arts weapons can be found made of foam, rubber or wood for practice.

  1. Swords

    • Many practice weapons can be found in materials that allow training to take place with greater safety and less risk of injury. Practice swords (bokken) can be found in weighted foam varieties as well as in hardwood varieties. For practicing tai chi, beautiful wooden swords are often used. There is also a lightweight, metal, collapsing sword available, in which the blade telescopes inside the handle, which is convenient for travel.

    Knives

    • Practice tanto knifes (or daggers) are made of hardwood or polypropylene with rounded edges and tips. Rubber knifes and guns are readily available for practice drills. The broadknife, used in tai chi and other kung fu arts, is classified in this martial arts system as a knife because it has a single edge, whereas a sword has two. However, the blade is as long as a short sword. For practice use, the broadknife can be found made of wood or even as a solid piece of metal, without an edge and a rounded point.

    Staves

    • If learning a staff form, most practitioners of martial arts will use an actual wooden staff. For practice, a 6 foot long,1 1/4 inch dowel rod (or curtain rod) will suffice. For contact martial arts, some use an ActionFlex staff for realism in practice. In the Chinese martial arts system, besides traditional staves, there is also a three-section staff. Each part is approximately two feet long, connected together by a short length of chain. For practice, this staff can be found made of foam. Rubber foam bo staves are also easily found at most martial arts supply stores.

    Fans

    • Although a fan may not seem like a weapon, it is in the Chinese martial arts system. Tai chi fans, as a weapon, are made of metal and might have points on the end of the tines. For practice use, tai chi fans are made of either bamboo or a hard rubber and without pointed ends. Most commonly, tai chi fans are decorated with a dragon.

    Other Weapons

    • Even wooden or metal weapons, such as nunchucks, are also manufactured in rubber foam. Sai are normally of metal, and even though they do not have a cutting edge, practice sai can be found made of rubber. The Filipino escrima stick, a simple stick just more than two feet long, was adapted by the Chinese and turned into an effective fighting weapon. For practice, many martial arts supply stores carry a foam escrima.