modern era Clubs/cudgel, Kom-fag thailand..

[kronckew]

just noticed this thread, last year i bought a filipino club that looks a lot like those in the first post, it's made of gijo wood (?), a type of iron wood. 26" long

[ausjulius]

hey thanks interesting Philippine club have you more pictures? what is the philipino name?
how is the shaft shaped? is it sharp like a blade or squared off??

i have never seen such a Filipino club before

on a side not there is some speculation in thailand about the khom-fag clubs origin if it was introduced by chinese or where it comes from because
firstly, it originats only in central thailand..
and second it is a carpenters product. never a police tool , never a weapon of war..

and thridly, chinese had an edged cudgel in the past of iron or of wood something like a wooden sword..
such a weapon might have been introduced in the 19th centuar with mass immigration from china to thailand and developed into the more simple form of the thai khom-fag found today...
although im not sure, chinese cudgel is very different in function more like a short heavy wooden sword .. with a handle , even some have a handle wrapping of silk

[kronckew]

Originally Posted by ausjulius

hey thanks interesting Philippine club have you more pictures? what is the philipino name?
how is the shaft shaped? is it sharp like a blade or squared off??

i have never seen such a Filipino club before
...

it's from a company called 'traditional filipino weapons' - he refers to it just as a gijo stick. i guess it's for their martial stick fighting art arnis. the shaft is octagonal, 3 x 4 cm. the 'edges' are 1.5 cm flats of the octagon. grip is 14 cm.,pommel is 4 cm. and has an off set sharp point. the business end is squared off. weight is 580 grams. 'blade is 51 cm. long.

[ausjulius]

hmm interesting , i dont think it is a traditional weapon , quality of the stuff looks good though athough many dont look very traditional patterns.
guiho wood is found in thailand malaysia, kambodia ect as well, cant recall the thai name of the top of my head. but its good for things like runners for hand rails, draws and wooden sliding surfaces as its oily like teak but much harder.

the thai octagonal baton in my first picture its coming probably from indian or malay weapons of this style.
not that common as the khom-fag just has much more power and is faster and more lethal to use.

ps i notices on several forums you are a fan of all manner of clubs and cudgels it iis good to meet a fellow bludgeon enthusiasts ! i have 100s i particularly like other peoples old home made ones

[ausjulius]

on second thoughts that is a particularly odd shape your baton . having a oval cross section like that, i wounder if it is based on some sory of traditional weapon..

[kronckew]

most of TFW's 'traditional' weapons are not very. the proprietor is trying to have his filipino smith make them more so. they are all L6 alloy steel, the grips are simplifications of traditional ones as are the scabbards.

the blades on some are fanciful. some downright odd. their main claim to fame is they are rock solid, and sharp as razors and well balanced. they are not meant as decorations, they are meant to be serious combat weapons.

his barongs are fairly traditional, chisel ground. and his newest kris model has a seperate ganga, two bakabaka, a traditional thread wound horses hoof grip. again sharp as a razor, convex grind. his earlier kris models i never considered. one was even ugly.

i odered the stick last year along with the aformentioned kris. i also ordered a chinese dao from his new new range of non-filipino weaponry. i had a visayan barong from him earlier as a trial.

the UK customs intercepted the order and held it for about a month before informing me that they were about to confiscate the whole order because the sabre was a curved sword over 50 cm., which is forbidden for import, unless i could prove it was an antique - pre 1950 - or traditionally hand forged. oddly, straight swords of any length are OK.

anyhow, after much correspondence the vendor and i managed to convince the customs that they were indeed 'traditionally hand forged' & two months late, my swords (and stick) arrived.

barong, kris, and chinese dao: a picture is worth a thousand words. the dao especially feels like it was made for me. right length, right balance, handles like a dream. sharp as all heck and a proper thick tho distal tapered blade. i managed to find a proper chinese bronze belt (sash) clip to complete the harness.