[karaburatoreror]

I am trying to get some feedback on flooring that would be good for kendo. Most locations available for practice and possibly a Dojo all have concrete floors or tile over concrete. The dojo I train at was built for kendo and has a nice sprung floor (cold as heck on the feet during winter with the 4' unheated crawl space) , yeah were kinda spoiled. What kind of options have you guys come across to help make real hard flooring suitable for kendo practice.

I do Iai here in town and we use borrowed space from a Karate school. The flooring consists of puzzle piece foam practice mats. Usually we are to lazy to pull it up for Iai practice (nice on your knees not the best for good form). That type of floor isn't real condusive to kendo practice however. Ive contemplated using that as an under flooring and putting plywood and wood flooring on top, which might provide adequate cushion and a smooth floor. I have been looking at cork flooring on the internet but I have never seen cork flooring. I have an idea for making a platform supported by coil springs which would be cool, but more permanant and very impractical. There is the possiblity of having to move and it would be cool to make something that could be transported and reused with "minimal"
effort. I have considered using laminate flooring as it snaps together and in the event that a move is nescesary you could dis-assemble the flooring and reuse it.

Those are my thoughts on the matter, I am curious if anyone has some better ideas or thoughts.

Thank you,
Logan

p.s. If there are any sites or previous discussions on similar matters I would be interested in some links, I have personally struck out with my searches.

[nilliraq]

Most dance floor companies have permanent, semi permanent and portable floor options.

I don't endorse any particular one as I have never had to install any, however I have been looking at it for quite awhile now as my current dojo has the puzzle mats from the karate club and you are quite right they suck for kendo and cause many injuries.

This is just one place to review:

http://www.harlequinfloors.com/americanenglish/index.asp?language=4&section=65

Cheers

John

[spaxiaroorbes]

One of our dojos in our federation put down 1 X 3 boards on edge as a frame that would support a 4 X 8 X 3/4" plywood sheet, attaching the plywood to the boards with screws. Then he put another layer of 4 X 8 X 3/4" plywood at right angles to the first layer, attaching it with nails. It's coated with several layers of polyurethane finish to protect the plywood and the feet. All of this was done over a concrete substrate with vinyl tiles on the concrete. It has the advantage of being easier to disassemble if he decides to relocate the dojo.

[TXmjLW9b]

Those jigsaw mats can be dangerous. It's possible to catch a toe.

On the other hand, a hard floor will take a serious toll on your knees over time.

If you search the web for gymnasuim flooring, you'll find a number of flooring systems that are meant to be built over concrete. They begin with a grid of rubber pads that are spaced a foot or so apart. They are available in different spring rates. (A basketball floor calls for something pretty stiff, while an aerobics floor is softer.) Over these pads, you put two layers of 5/8 plywood (some systems vary) at angles to one another so the seams overlap. Then you place an ordinary tongue and groove hardwood floor.

[Cengaeas]

I saw another thread about flooring recently that linked to a judo club's work on building a sprung floor--http://judoinfo.com/tatami.htm. Their method might be a bit soft for kendo, but it's another construction idea.

[AngegepeM]

I went to the judo link very good page. I sent an email to the guy that wrote the page. I asked specifically about how it would be for a kendo suitable flooring option. He said he was very familiar with kendo and he felt that this particular floor would be perfect for kendo.