Ok, so I just picked up a yomega wooden kendama, and so far I’m loving it! But I have a few questions:
How do you change the string? I can’t figure it out, the string somehow goes through the kendama, but it seems to me that it would be very hard to thread it through (i can provide pictures of the kendama for now)
Is it a good idea to finish the ken? It’s raw right now, but I’m thinking of putting a light finish of oil on it.
Thanks!
Replacement strings seem to come with a stiffer end. I think you thread this first through the hole in the ken, then knot the other end, then thread it through the tama(ball) through the small hole the string comes out from, then put the bead on and tie a knot so it doesn’t come back through. Strings last varying lengths of time, just like yoyo string.
Do you want to finish the ken? It depends. I find the raw gives a bit more grip. However, put some superglue on the tip of the spike to toughen it up a bit.
Here’s a pretty good tutorial on how to re-string a kendama:
This should be the way to re-string most kendamas, except for KenUSA Tribute Kendamas, or any kendama using a KenUSA Tribute ken (because the ken doesn’t come apart on these models, it is all one solid piece).
And yeah keep it raw, with a bit of play it should become tackier (meaning it will have more grip on the tama (ball)). 