Crane Mountain Weapons

My search for a good bo was a long and arduous one. I tried a few of the major vendors but ended up with a variety of bo that just didn’t work for me. They either felt like this…

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Or like this…

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Sure, the kids enjoyed watching the twig bo snap as I performed kata at only moderate pace, but it was becoming an expensive trick. Eventually I decided to give Crane Mountain a try since I heard through the grapevine that they were good at making solid, traditional weapons.

My first stop was their website, located here – http://crane-mountain.com/. I browsed around and was surprised to see a great variety of weapons available, along with many different options for wood. On top of that, they used a rating scale to recommend which woods would be good for each weapon. I was easily distracted by the different accessories and plaques they had available, but ultimately decided to stay focused and work toward getting a good bo.

After picking the woods I liked, I called Crane Mountain headquarters. The experts there helped me narrow down my wood selection even more by explaining which would best suit my body type and what kind of money I would have to part with for more exotic woods. Ultimately I decided to go with Cocobola, an expensive and heavy wood (remember, I was tired of failure and bo snappage). I also asked them to pear it down to 1 1/16 inches, so that I wouldn’t be overwhelmed by the weight.

I had to wait a few weeks for my bo to arrive since all weapons are personally made to each custumer’s specifications. However, when it did arrive, I was not disappointed. The wood was beautiful and the craftsmanship quite evident. Here’s a little taste of it…

If you find yourself in a situation where quality counts, Crane Mountain should definitely be on your list of vendors to consult. You won’t find the same bargains as you would at Century or AWMA, but good luck buying a Bo off of them anyway, let alone rarer items like Nunti Bo or Tinbe/Rochin.