by

For reference, the Tekko is a traditional martial arts weapon from Okinawa. A lot of them look like they may have been derived from horse stirrups. The type you see in this post hasn’t, obviously, but these also involved the least amount of cutting work. As the title of the post suggests, I have no woodworking skills, so this seemed like a good idea for a starting point when I decided to make my own, especially if I wanted to keep all of my fingers.

On to the actual post.

• Analyze that picture.
• Measure what you need to (including your hand in this case) every way you can.
• Draft a paper template

• Turn it into a cardboard template (I used a cereal box)

• Cut the template out.

• Find some random wood in the garage.
• Trace the template onto that wood. Twice.
• Cut them out.

• Sand it until you can comfortably hold it.

1. Consider oiling it to preserve your masterpiece. (I haven’t done this yet.)
2. Figure out how you could have done it better and start over again at Step 1. (Coming soon.)

I said it about something else involving wood-based skills recently, but things aren’t always as hard as you think they’re going to be, especially if you take the time to figure stuff out in advance. But they’re often a lot harder to do well. It’s probably going to take more repetitions than I want to put into things, and more money than I have available to spend on tools, for me to produce a good set of Tekko.

But these work for practice, and I like them. They’re special because they’re my first.

There will be at least one more set, and those will be better.

Stay safe and be well, everyone.

And try something new if you can.

by