Ono-Ha Itto Ryu Shoto - White Oak Made in Japan (Kyushu) Rounded Spine | Flat Butt | Short Kissaki White Oak available This Shoto is made from a single piece of white oak and carved on the southern islands of Kyushu (Japan). As the short version of the Ono-Ha Itto Ryu Bokken, this Shoto is significantly thicker and heavier than a standard Shoto, but is identical in length. It is mainly for Ono-Ha Itto Ryu practitioners, but also makes an excellent heavy Shoto for Kenjutsu and Kendo practice. Choice of wood species: White oak. Available finish: Standard Finish or Seido Special Finish Manufacturing workshop: Aramaki for all models. This product is also available in the Ono-Ha Itto Ryu Bokken & Shoto [Daisho Set] with a 1000 YEN rebate in comparison to separate purchases. We also offer separately the standard length Bokken version of this model, the Ono-Ha Itto Ryu Bokken. Finish options: In 2021, with concerns for the workers, all workshops greatly reduced the number of urethane varnished weapons and replaced the finish by a "Candle Wax". Seido is now transitioning to a new finish offer for the majority of its weapons. Standard Finish: At Seido, we complete the workshop finish with Camelia oil treatment by default. This is the standard Seido finish. We do not apply any additional polishing for this finish, so some weapons might have a slightly rough surface. For maintenance, we recommend that you oil your weapons about once a month with a vegetal based oil. Seido Special Finish: For this special Finish, we first apply a Camelia oil polish (oiling and sanding the weapons with oiled sand paper), then we finish the weapon with high quality beeswax. This finish makes the wood as smooth as it can be and guarantee an excellent protection for several months. For maintenance, we recommend at least to oil your weapons every month or so. You can also apply wax a few hours after oiling your weapons (if some oil remains on the wood, remove it with a piece of cloth or tissue). Ono-Ha Itto Ryu Shoto Specifications Wood Shirakashi (White Oak) Weight ~ 340 g Full length 51.5 cm Blade length 40.5 cm Tsuka length 12 cm Tsuka diameter 36 x 27 mm Mine Marumine (round spine) Tsuka shape Taira (flat butt) Kissaki Short Kissaki *Due to the hand-made manufacturing, color and weight may vary from one weapon to another. About Ono-Ha Itto Ryu School: The original Itto Ryu, founded by Ito Ittosai Kagehisa in the later 16th century, has today disappeared but its techniques and legacy are still alive in many styles such as the Ono-Ha Itto Ryu, Mizoguchi Ha Itto Ryu, Hokushin Itto Ryu and many more. The Ono-Ha Itto Ryu is the oldest of those schools and was founded by Ono Jiroemon Tadaaki right after he succeeded Ittosai. More duel oriented, Ono was known to be an amazing swordsman but a very difficult person, and although he shared the role of instructor of the Shogun with Yagyu Munenori (Yagyu Shinkage Ryu), his character played against him in favor of Yagyu. Ono Ha Itto Ryu focuses on unarmored fighting and is famous for its training with "Onigote", an enormous protective glove that can stand direct strikes of a Bokken. Although the transmission quickly left the Ono familly, it has an uninterrupted lineage which guarantees the historical accuracy and efficiency of its techniques. It is interesting to note that Ono-Ha Itto Ryu is fully integrated into Takeda Sokaku's Daito Ryu school. Since Takeda was the main teacher of Morihei Ueshiba, founder of Aikido, it is often said that Ono-Ha had a significant influence on Aikido. It is however, neither officially confirmed nor denied that Ueshiba did learn Ono-Ha Itto Ryu from Takeda Sokaku. Besides, Ueshiba never taught Ono-Ha Itto Ryu and studied various other Kenjutsu styles, which makes the true influence of the Ono-Ha Itto Ryu on Aikido difficult to evaluate.
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