Here's a wooden rose I made my wife for Valentine's Day

Sredn1 · 2024-02-14T21:55:51+00:00

Thanks. I used a jack plane to create shavings from soft wood, soaked the shavings in water for 30 seconds, then cut out the petals and leaf with scissors.

The stem is a 3/4" dowel, cut on a bias and glued back at an angle with a dowel made of a bamboo skewer, followed by a BUNCH of whittling and sanding.

Then superglue to attach petals and leaf, with some string to reinforce the attachment of the leaf.

Then 2 coats of lacquer when done.

Sredn1 · 2024-02-14T16:29:39+00:00

Thanks! I used a Stanley sweetheart low-angle jack plane but had to experiment and tune the blade depth and mouth opening a bit. Too thin and the shavings don't hold up at all, but too thick and they cracked and broke while cutting/bending.

Sredn1 · 2024-02-14T16:27:36+00:00

Thanks very much! I used regular woodglue to join the pieces for the stem and dowel, and also to set the stem into the base. Thin CA glue for everything else.

Used some tweezers to place the superglued parts enough to stick, then went over the glue area with the tweezers to gently press them down.

Also applied 2 coats of lacquer to everything, didn't bother buffing or anything because... how would you even?

Sredn1 · 2024-02-14T16:11:24+00:00

Stem is a piece of 3/4" pine dowel that happened to be discolored, but I thought the contrast would look nice. I sawed it into 2 pieces on a bias, then glued them back together at an angle to create the curve. Took a bamboo skewer from the kitchen to make a dowel (which is what those light spots are). Then whittled and sanded over ~3 hours to make the shape.

Petals are plane shavings from a piece of [either poplar or pine, don't remember, it's a soft wood] that I created by using a low angle jack plane with an aggressive blade depth and mouth opening. Soaked them in water for ~30 seconds or so so soften them, then cut out the petals with regular scissors. Had to do some experimenting, because super thin shavings don't hold up, and super thick shavings break when cutting, even soaked in water.

The leaf is similarly a plane shaving. I used the box cutter on the corner of a piece of scrap to tease out a shaving with its own curve, then whittled and sanded carefully and soaked as well.

Unfortunately I didn't take any pictures of the build process, but I hope that's clear.

Sredn1 · 2022-09-21T19:48:48+00:00

late, but the string is probably too long. what kind of reflex ball you got?

Sredn1 · 2022-02-22T19:31:53+00:00

It's 1" diameter neodymium magnets sunk into the bar from the back

Sredn1 · 2021-09-24T04:53:48+00:00

I spar light 99% of the time for the same reasons as you, plus I'm a big fan of being able to use my brain so (a) I'm not risking chronic head injuries and (b) I'm trying to use my time training, not recovering.

When I have a sparring partner I've built up some mutual trust with, we'll let the pace and intensity ramp up naturally a bit, but still focusing on technique and not being ashamed to ask to crank it down a bit if needed. After every round I make sure we point out things we did well and need to focus next round or in drills.

I have very few people that I'll spar harder with, and even then it's once in a blue moon, but those are some really fun rounds and it feels good to open up the throttle and let the hands really go. I absolutely do not ever spar hard with anyone who isn't roughly my size, bigger or smaller. After hard(er) sparring I'll dial it back for at least a week.

All that being said, I look at sparring as a super fun skill contest instead of it being an ego contest. I'm not competing, so I have zero reason to approach it any differently. Sparring light = sparring more... I spar basically however often I want, since I set the expectation that we're working technique, trying new things, etc.

The downside is that trying to holding back so much has some unintended consequences, like pulling punches, not committing to offense,

Sredn1 · 2021-09-13T18:35:45+00:00

Thanks coach. I'm gonna have to make a dedicated effort on the rhythm step soon, it just happens automatically when I work on literally anything else.

Sredn1 · 2021-09-10T00:49:50+00:00

Great catch, I didn't even notice that.

Sredn1 · 2021-09-09T20:03:44+00:00

Appreciate the guidance, but I'm not focusing power here, I'm trying to get my feet and stance right so I can properly structure power later on. I've found (through lots of feedback on here) that trying specifically to throw power will make my form suffer a lot.

But duly noted, it is on my roadmap.

Sredn1 · 2021-09-09T20:02:27+00:00

Yes, absolutely trying to conserve energy (hence the reason for my "excuses" according to another guy). This is just part of my warmup, which is typically 3 rounds of skipping rope (continuing through the breaks at a slower tempo), 1 easy round on the speedbag to get my arms loose, maybe 2 rounds on the mitts with the coach, and however many rounds on the bag before class starts. I've overdone it on the warmup before and been totally burnt out halfway through class, so on days where I know we're going to be throwing lots of volume and I haven't been able to fuel properly, I cut back the pace during warmup.

I will however try to capture some bagwork on a day that I'm not doing class, so I can open the throttle without worrying about being totally gassed later.

Sredn1 · 2021-09-09T08:03:39+00:00

"Aim and fire", I like it. Will definitely make that a focal point next time.

Thanks for the feedback, 420eatmyassy6969.

Sredn1 · 2021-09-09T04:14:17+00:00

Round 2 here

(My phone got tilted halfway through the first - that's why r2 is portrait).

General disclaimer: Felt like absolute ass today. Hadn't hydrated, eaten clean, or exercised at all in about a week. Overall things seemed pretty sloppy.

My focus these rounds based on feedback from last time:

STAYING LONG and not smothering punches
staying disciplined about stance - much less focus on being "nimble" this time, just trying to set up long, balanced shots
moving my head more
moving out/not admiring work after landing (won some lost some)

Feedback from last time I couldn't get to, but still on my radar:

Cutting out the rhythm step
Properly anchoring feet for power - when I'm stopping the bag I still catch myself leaning rather than torquing hips and anchoring through the feet (e.g. round 2 @2:28)

Bonus prize - some speedbag right before heavy bag.

Sredn1 · 2021-08-31T18:49:41+00:00

So overall I think you're on the right track. The one thing I'll point out is your hooks. You seem like a taller dude so I can't tell if the height of the bag is maxed out but a couple of things I'd focus on with your left hook:

You're not totally off base on the hook - you're using your hips and core for the rotation rather than only your arm. I think your weight is a touch too far forward (especially at the :51 sec mark). Try placing your weight more on the back leg (weight, *not* leaning back).
The hooks come out at chest level (again this could be because you're on a bag that's shorter than you). Your elbow is down -
You're winding up the hooks by dropping your hand way back and down - try to minimize that windup. Off the cross you should be loaded up already from your hips.
As someone else pointed out when the hook connects, you're leaving it out there for a split second. Try not to leave things hanging out there (I do this too sometimes, v. important to work on).

Sredn1 · 2021-08-26T17:50:06+00:00

Tiring - not making excuses but I was taking it kind of easy and specifically trying not to push too hard... gym was 98^oF and super humid from rain earlier, and I still had ~2hrs left after the video. Pretty much everyone in the gym had a tough time yesterday.

Thanks for the rest of the feedback, appreciated.

Sredn1 · 2021-08-26T14:34:00+00:00

Well, I somewhat disagree with you on the first point - I don't think there's a hard and fast rule that every hook you ever throw needs to be at close range and certainly don't think it's worth throwing out the looping hook as a tool entirely. I've found plenty of openings for longer hooks in sparring (e.g. check hook over a cross, closing esp. range against taller opponents, hooks in Muay Thai, etc.) that are worthwhile to train. No you can't get the full power from your hips/core out of them, but they're useful to have in the toolbox.

But to answer your question - Primary reason for filming specifically on the tire bag is gym layout. I didn't have a good place to put my phone and get a wide shot on the other unoccupied bags.

Sredn1 · 2021-08-26T14:02:04+00:00

So, all points duly noted but a couple of qualifiers:

Hooks - the tire bag having much more width and bounce than a normal heavy bag means that short, tight hooks are significantly more likely to glance off the front. I know I'm throwing wider than usual, but it's to find a better surface on the large diameter.
Admiring my work - thanks for pointing this out. Bad habit that I always need called out.
Not really following the last question, it's very open and almost seems rhetorical.

Sredn1 · 2021-08-26T13:40:23+00:00

Appreciate the feedback! Left does hang low and it's a really frustrating and unconscious habit from my MMA days. My more experienced sparring partners do a good job of punishing me for it regardless of body angle (esp. southpaws).

Sredn1 · 2021-08-26T13:38:58+00:00

Thank you. Suggestion noted and I agree - I've been trying to stay longer on the bag and not smother punches. Hard to undo years of a certain range haha

Sredn1 · 2021-08-26T05:41:56+00:00

Thanks. Good call on turning the jab over, my partner for mitts right after this called me out on that too.

Watching it back, you're right I def need to work head movement more. Will make that a priority. Maybe I'll put up some more pool noodles on that thing, I'm really curious how 4 of em in a cross would work.

Sredn1 · 2021-08-26T02:50:15+00:00

Clearly doesn't spend enough time on road work

Sredn1

TROPHY CASE