I think this probably belongs here, as we've discussed wands and wand spinning several times here.

As I write this, I'm probably closer to creating MY ideal wand than ever. There's been a lot of experimenting and buying of various wands to get to this point and I thought some of you might find something of interest.

Likes:
1. I like the traction provided by the, now deceased, Golden Rod and the Ammar wand
2. I like the heft of the Golden Rod
3. I like the looks of the Tabman Black Walnut
4. I like the spinning momentum you get from a "tipped" wand

Dislikes:
1. I like the look of natural oiled wood, but not the slickness
2. I don't like ends pinned with metal - tend to be weak in my experience
3. I don't care for the heat shrink look or the propensity to loosen with weather

My current wand is a standard Tabman 14" walnut wand with these modifications:
1. I sink a 1 1/4" x 1/4# steel dowel in EXACTLY the center point of each end, using a good glue. I sink the dowel slightly below surface and fill.
2. I find a rubbing matte polyurethane gives a reasonably good tactile feel and grip
3. I use a simple black acrylic paint for the ends and just because I like a brushed look, I dulled the brass ferules

I have some things I want to try and will keep experimenting, but I thought some of you may find some ideas here.

Of course, I'm always open to suggestions.

sam

You know, there was a japanese weapon. I can't recall what it was. I met a guy that practiced a lesser known japanese style, I remember it started with an 'R', something like Ryokukan or something like that. Anyway, he had a weapon it was a pair of long steel bars, about the size of a magic wand. Attached to the middle was a ring coming out at right angles. The ring would spin. The idea is that you put the ring over your middle finger and the bar in your palm and give it a spin. The weapon part is that the spinning enhanced the force of the blow. The ring could be a brass knuckle and the tips of the stick could be used for jabbing.

I liked it because they were chromed and when you spun them it looked like you had wheels of fire in each hand.

Wish I could remember the name of the weapon.

Rik,

Does this look familiar? I think the word you were looking for was Ryukyu which is named after the islands of the same name. The SUNTETSU is the closest thing I can find that matches your description. They are commonly sold in pairs. A Google search for SUNTETSU should tell you more.

That was one of them. He gave a pair to me and they look a whole lot like your example but they were a lot plainer. It appears in your example that one end is larger than the other. This wasn't the case in the ones that he gave me. It was smooth up and down. I had several months of fun with them. I had to learn to time my spin and open the hand flat and bend back the fingers but it was really fun to learn. It made a satisfying ringing sound when I spun it.

He had a set that was about 12 inches long though and thinner with what resembled arrow heads on the either end. Without the arrow heads they might make a nice wand for spinning.

Then again, probably not. You couldn't do anything else with that hand while the wand was on.

Or could you? Hmmmm

Presley Guitar used to make a takedown wand that was stainless steel, centerless ground, with ebonite tips and brass tube washers between the steel and the tips. It's made for the wand spin.

Now THAT has to be another ultimate magician's toy. "For the magician that already has everything"

I googled Presley Guitar and couldn't find it.

Go to the wand page of the cups and balls museum.

You probably won't find much Presley Guitar material on the net. He dropped out of magic before the Internet existed. He was the developer of the C/S/B and possibly the Cig through Quarter.

You can get a fair number of hits on "Pressley Guitar". I remember there's always confusion on the spelling, but I never recall which is correct.

sam

That's probably it. I thought the spelling with 1 L was correct. It isn't. I'll have to change that on my wand page. Pressley guitar is correct. I just checked his MS on the sensuous string.