Nightwing eskrima sheath options

mattwarden

New Member
Hey guys, having a bit of a dilemma of how to carry the escrima. His usual way is obviously on his back, and i can see why - easy to reach, not in the way etc. However, once out of the sheath/holder/thing/whatever, how to get them back in? I mean in a way that is easy that will keep them secure. What kind of design would work?

Other options too, such as a sheathy kinda thing on my waist, but as i use full size escrima, they would just get in the way. Also, that is not as visually appealing.

Any advice/opinions/jokes/awesomeness appreciated! Thanks!
 
Depends on the material used. But if you are looking for quick sheathing/unsheathing of your sticks, it probably won't happen. Obviously, you want the sheaths to be tight on the weapons so that they don't rattle around, but that means having an opening in the material only slightly larger than the width of the weapon (in this case, a narrow stick). So unless you want to spend hours practicing blindly sheathing your sticks on your back, training your muscles to know exactly where that opening is, quick storage is near impossible.

This is one of the more prominent points where comic book/Hollywood physics strongly comes into play. Back sheaths are just impractical. If a character has a long, slender, rigid object (two 26ish inch sticks in this case) sheathed on their back, he/she essentially has a spinal brace. The spine moves and bends, fabric moves and bends with it, but swords and sticks won't. What this means for us cosplayers is that you either have to be ready to have a straight back for much of the day, or you risk ruining your sheaths or your costume by putting extra stress on the material housing them (depending on the material).

Now that the obnoxious, discouraging, boring logic stuff is out of the way...

Magnets- The easiest way I've seen this done was to use high powered magnets, with one part attached to your garment on the back, and the other attached to the stick. Reach back with the stick, hover around the area where the magnet should be and eventually *click*. Pros: Pretty quick storage, still allows you to bend your spine mostly. Cons: The sticks don't always hold a static position, the magnets can fall off the costume or damage the fabric depending on the fabric used.

Pocket sheaths- Picture the breast pocket on a mens dress shirt, and you will get an idea of how these are supposed to look. In this case, the "pockets" are longer and less wide. Pros: Keeps sticks secure by housing most of the stick body, holds position. Cons: harder to sheath without looking, can be uncomfortable.

Sleeve sheaths- Essentially a tube of fabric/material, attached (via sewing or otherwise) to the garment to hold the weapon. Pros: Keeps sticks secure by housing most of the stick body, holds position, lease conspicuous. Cons: Very difficult to sheath without looking, can be uncomfortable.

The one other way I have seen it done is with Velcro. The cosplayer lined part of his sticks in Veclro and then sewed two wide strips on to his back so that he could just throw the sticks back there and they would stay. It was a clever idea for achieving the effect, but not necessarily the most attractive.

Hope that all helps!
 
I have seen both done and its all just really personal preference. The one thing you could do if you want to mount them on your back and keep a low profile would be put a thing on your lower back to keep the end of them in. Then make them go up into Velcro straps within thumb reach so when you reach back to grab them you can un-Velcro it and pull them out. Obviously there is other things you could connect it with other things Velcro is just one. Hope this helps you.
 
Ok, so both of your answers have given me an idea. Thanks!
IMG_00000197.jpgIMG_00000197.jpgThis would work, i think. The opening is big enough to blindly aim escrima, the funnel will guide it into the tube, and the velcro will hold the eskrima still. I am using some motocross armour for the base costume, so if this is small enough i can attach it directly to the shoulders. Failing that, i could rig it up like a backpack.
 
Just realized a dang simple answer. A couple of these cut to sizelg-splined-foam-tubes.jpgwill keep the escrima tight enough, big enough to blindly aim escrima with a little practice. Lightweight too. The only con is that it will not be very low profile - but worth it, in my opinion. A simple backpack harness will work well enough to keep it on my back. Thoughts? I will do a test build, to try it out. I will post results, if anyone is interested.
 
I think any housing on your back is going to be somewhat conspicuous, so these won't be any more obvious than the option you sketched out previously. It's a good idea, though!
 
Back
Top