TRAINING EQUIPMENT FOR THE ENTHUSIAST

www.cheungswingchun.co.uk 張氏詠春

There are four pieces of training equipment that all Wing Chun enthusiast needs to know. The four pieces of equipment consists of three that are prerequisites to Wing Chun Form while the remaining fourth is a tool to produce better Wing Chun. The list is as follows:

  • The Butterfly Knives
  • The Wooden Dummy
  • The Pole
  • the rattan/metal ring

The Butterfly Knives

Bak Cham Dao

Use to perform the Fifth Form of Wing Chun known as Butterfly knives (蝴蝶刀) or Bak Cham Dao(八斬刀), these training knives can range from relatively cheap to very expensive. They can range from 10 inches to 18 inches in blade length. So when buying these knives, there are three major points to look out for: its length, its weight and its quality of construction. For guidance in length, the distance of your forearm from the tip of the middle finger to the elbow should represent the length of the weapon from the tip of the blade to the pommel (bottom part of the handle).

For guidance on weight, the knives themselves should not be too heavy or too light. The former may disrupt the Wing Chun Fifth Form while the later may not be sufficiently heavy to exercise the arm muscle group. To determine the correct weight, as a guide line, aim to have each knife to weight approximately 0.5kg.

For guidance on construction, your aim is to not to have wobbly blades when performing the Form. As such, you should try before you buy or rely on your Sifu’s stamp of approval. The ‘loose’ blade phenomenon comes from a mixture of the knives construct, the workmanship and material used and in the user frequency of repetitive use and is something that serious practitioner will try to avoid.

The Wooden Dummy

The traditional wooden dummy is a wall mounted frame on to a well solid wall. It is advisable the wall is solid as hitting the dummy will cause a lot of vibrations that may affect your neighbour. Further, make sure there is sufficient space for you to complete the footwork of this Form and is adjusted to your height before mounting the frame.Use to perform the Fourth Form of Wing Chun (木人樁), it is the most expensive Wing Chun training equipment to have. There are various makes but all can be categorised into three; the traditional, the tripod and modern.

Wooden dummy usually is hung to a frame and fixed to a solid wall.

The tripod wooden dummy is ideal for those who is lack of space. However, most do not come with height adjustment so be wary. A visit to your supplier is best to get your measure. Your aim is to have the same height of your Tan Sau in Yee-Chee-Kim-Yeung Ma (二字箝羊馬) be the same as the height of the lower wooden arm.

The modern category we have considered are those using material other than wood, are of difference size and configurations and may or may not have reactive mechanism such as when hitting the arm, the arm of the dummy springs back.

Any physical variation from the traditional wooden dummy will drastically affect the Wing Chun Form and advised against such purchase. As to the dummy made of material other than wood such as harden plastic, this is a personal choice.

The Pole (六点半棍)

Although not the most expensive equipment for the Wing Chun enthusiast to have, it is by far the most cumbersome. It is typically 8 feet long (around 2.5m) with a bore diameter of 1.5 inch (38mm) and is usually made from hardwood. So before you buy, consider your transportation costs (which may be the equivalent or more than the cost of pole itself), whether you have the space to practice or the Sifu has the knowledge of the whole form. The latter is unsurprising, as not many practice this form as substantial space is required.

The Wing Chun Ring

Rattan ring/metal ring

This training aid comes in various diameter and weight (typically 12 inches (305mm) and 0.25 kg, respectively).

The purpose of this ring is to force the practitioner to roll and twists their forearms and thus to improve on their fluidity of each hand technique. These rings come in various sizes to allow the student to focus on their centre line towards imaginary opponents. For further information and a demonstration see Wing Chun Ring.

Wing Chun Ring 鐵環/竹環

https://web.archive.org/web/20160809213125if_/https://videopress.com/embed/Q5S629g7?hd=0&loop=0&autoPlay=0&permalink=1

= Wing Chun ring demonstration  84 seconds

There are a number of exercises associated with the Wing Chun Ring. The clip opposite shows at least nine. There are:

  • The Gum Sau with Wu Sau
  • The Jeep Sau(摺手) routine
  • The classic Bong Sau( 膀手)
  • WuSau(護手) – guarding hand.
  • The traditional Wu Sau and Munn Sau exchange
  • The horizontal chopping hand
  • Inner and outer rotation of the arms, a prelude to Chi Sau (skicky hand routine)

Rolling punch 掛錘

  • Alternative Gann Sau
  • Rolling punch with double opening hand.

https://videopress.com/embed/P2SqlrqM?hd=0&loop=0&autoPlay=0&permalink=1https://web.archive.org/web/20160809213125if_/https://videopress.com/embed/erIKjtf0?hd=0&loop=0&autoPlay=0&permalink=1

= Bong Sau膀手

[wpvideojOgenemW]         = chopping hand 斬手https://web.archive.org/web/20160809213125if_/https://videopress.com/embed/bH0qjQE7?hd=0&loop=0&autoPlay=0&permalink=1

= rolling punch 掛錘

[wpvideoraIRhaBo]               = Wu Sau護手

[wpvideogKusIdLR]                  = Sticky hands 黐手