Wing chun sparring gear 2022

[Mister_cat]

Hi all

New poster here. I have strated a new thread on this as the other one is quite old.

Anyway, I have been doing wing chun for just over a year and my sifu is suggest I invest in some sparring gear (head guard with face grille, body armour, mits, shin and foot protection) as we will be doing some sparring shortly. His only guidance is don’t go for for the cheap stuff and avoid Thai boxing body armour as it apparently only protects against surface impacts?

Do you guys have any suggestions for decent brands I should opt for? Happy to pay a bit more and won’t go for the cheapest as sifu suggests but don’t want to break the bank either.

Thanks in advance

 

[geezer]

Hi all

New poster here. I have strated a new thread on this as the other one is quite old.

Anyway, I have been doing wing chun for just over a year and my sifu is suggest I invest in some sparring gear (head guard with face grille, body armour, mits, shin and foot protection) as we will be doing some sparring shortly. Do you guys have any suggestions for decent brands I should opt for?.
Thanks in advance

Welcome to the Wing Chun forum here on MartialTalk, Mr. Cat. I think this is a really good question and I will be interested to see what preferences other folks have.

My own opinion is that you should do a little research online or at your local "karate" or martial arts supply store and check out what's available, and what the prices are, then get back to your sifu for more guidance before buying. There are a lot of different approaches to sparring. Find out what your sifu has in mind, and then you can make a better informed decision.

That said, here's what I've used in the past:

1. Light, "UFC style" gloves that allow open hand techniques, grabbing, trapping and protect both your knuckles and your opponent's chest and face (somewhat) depending on how hard you go at it.

Do check that the velcro, etc. on the wrist band is not abrasive and that there are no scratchy labels. In Wing chun there is a LOT of friction and sliding of bridge-arm against bridge-arm and this "minor" detail can be a big problem.

I once got a really nice pair of gloves except that they had a flashy embossed plastic logo sewn and built into the back or the wrist cuff. No biggy for boxing-ish arts that only hit with the front of the fist, but it was a real pain (literally) for Wing Chun sparring where we do a lot of deflections. Then I ended up pretty much ruining the gloves trying to cut away the plastic logo.

2. Headgear that fits comfortably without slipping around, allows good visibility, has good ventilation, and protects against centerline attacks to the face. I'd recommend out with something with a face you are going to bother with headgear at all, you might as well protect your nose and mouth. Personally I prefer an open grate to a plastic shield since I like to breathe ...and to see without the face-shield fogging up ...but that's just me. So maybe something like this:

3. For shin guards, get something like Muay Thai/kickboxing guards that are pretty tough and have some rigidity, not the cheap foam stuff. A hard roundhouse will go right through those things. A guy named Emin did that to me about thirty years ago and it's still a vivid memory! So ask around to find out what offers good protection and is a good buy for a guy just starting out.

Beyond that, I can't be much help since my group is mainly a bunch of old guys (40s to late 60s) and we don't do a lot of hard contact leg kicks. After all, our primary kick is a front stomp to the knee and a shin quard doesn't protect against knee hyper-extension. In our group just about every one of us has already had several knee surgeries, and one guy has two artificial knees!

4. Last, but not least: get a decent "boil and bite" mouthguard and a good fitting cup and you're ready to start training!

OK, now maybe some of the people here who spar a lot more than me can give you some better quality information!

 

[Mister_cat]

Welcome to the Wing Chun forum here on MartialTalk, Mr. Cat. I think this is a really good question and I will be interested to see what preferences other folks have.

My own opinion is that you should do a little research online or at your local "karate" or martial arts supply store and check out what's available, and what the prices are, then get back to your sifu for more guidance before buying. There are a lot of different approaches to sparring. Find out what your sifu has in mind, and then you can make a better informed decision.

That said, here's what I've used in the past:

1. Light, "UFC style" gloves that allow open hand techniques, grabbing, trapping and protect both your knuckles and your opponent's chest and face (somewhat) depending on how hard you go at it.

Do check that the velcro, etc. on the wrist band is not abrasive and that there are no scratchy labels. In Wing chun there is a LOT of friction and sliding of bridge-arm against bridge-arm and this "minor" detail can be a big problem.

I once got a really nice pair of gloves except that they had a flashy embossed plastic logo sewn and built into the back or the wrist cuff. No biggy for boxing-ish arts that only hit with the front of the fist, but it was a real pain (literally) for Wing Chun sparring where we do a lot of deflections. Then I ended up pretty much ruining the gloves trying to cut away the plastic logo.

2. Headgear that fits comfortably without slipping around, allows good visibility, has good ventilation, and protects against centerline attacks to the face. I'd recommend out with something with a face you are going to bother with headgear at all, you might as well protect your nose and mouth. Personally I prefer an open grate to a plastic shield since I like to breathe ...and to see without the face-shield fogging up ...but that's just me. So maybe something like this:


View attachment 28566
3. For shin guards, get something like Muay Thai/kickboxing guards that are pretty tough and have some rigidity, not the cheap foam stuff. A hard roundhouse will go right through those things. A guy named Emin did that to me about thirty years ago and it's still a vivid memory! So ask around to find out what offers good protection and is a good buy for a guy just starting out.

Beyond that, I can't be much help since my group is mainly a bunch of old guys (40s to late 60s) and we don't do a lot of hard contact leg kicks. After all, our primary kick is a front stomp to the knee and a shin quard doesn't protect against knee hyper-extension. In our group just about every one of us has already had several knee surgeries, and one guy has two artificial knees!

4. Last, but not least: get a decent "boil and bite" mouthguard and a good fitting cup and you're ready to start training!

OK, now maybe some of the people here who spar a lot more than me can give you some better quality information!

Thanks for the comprehensive reply geezer.

I’ll certainly do as you suggest and discuss some possible purchases with my sifu before buying. I am completely on the same page as you regarding the face protection, can’t imagine it is good trying to spar with a fogged up Perspex face cover so I will stick to the open style.

Interesting story about your incident with the cheap foam shin guard and the roundhouse. Are we talking about the well known emin?

With regard to the age thing I I’ve just hit 40 myself and basically starting a new(ish) martial art in WC. I suppose age is just a number as they say! My sifu seems really keen on sparring so I’m in for an interesting summer I think!

Thanks again.

 

[drop bear]

I would suggest top king shin guards. Morgan mma sparring gloves. Hyabusa boxing gloves.

And mabye a fairtex boxing helmet.

Fairtex Full Face Protector Headgear HG14

Handmade in Thailand especially for Muay Thai. Ultimate face protection. GENUINE gear at exceptional prices. Buy online with fast shipping & top-notch service.

fightgeardirect.com.au

 

[geezer]

I would suggest top king shin guards. Morgan mma sparring gloves. Hyabusa boxing gloves.

And mabye a Mexican boxing helmet.

Fairtex Full Face Protector Headgear HG14

Handmade in Thailand especially for Muay Thai. Ultimate face protection. GENUINE gear at exceptional prices. Buy online with fast shipping & top-notch service.

fightgeardirect.com.au

Drop Bear, What you recommend is good quality stuff for boxing/MMA sparring but is probably not ideal for the OP's needs in a Wing Chun class. See below for my reasoning.

1. Top-king shin guards:

These look to me like just what he would want.


2. Morgan MMA sparring gloves:

Again, I imagine this is close to what his sifu/coach has in mind.


3. Hyabusa boxing gloves:

Unless he is also training boxing/kickboxing, these are not something he is likely to use in Wing Chun class.


Solid, Mexican boxing helmet:

Again, not ideal for what I imagine he would be training. This gives good protection from boxing shots, but in my experience, most Wing Chun schools train mostly WC vs. WC. (I'm sure you can share what's wrong with that, but that's not the point here!).

Anyway, the style of helmet shown above doesn't offer good protection against fast, straight shots to the nose with a vertical fist. And especially since Wing Chun typically doesn't train boxing style head movement, I think he might want a face guard of some kind, at least starting out!

Regardless, I need to get some new sparring gear and I your advise helpful!

 

[geezer]

...Are we talking about the well known emin?

Boztepe.

 

[geezer]

Hey Drop... When I started responding to your comment, you said "Mexican Boxing Helmet" ..at least that is what I quoted above. Then after I took my time and finally posted my response, I saw you posting about a "Fairtex Boxing Helmet". Did you edit that or did I just momentarily slip into a parallel universe???

Anyway, from what I can see, that Fairtex job is just the ticket. A little pricey for a beginner or casual, but if I were young and serious, that's what I'd want.

 

[drop bear]

Drop Bear, What you recommend is good quality stuff for boxing/MMA sparring but is probably not ideal for the OP's needs in a Wing Chun class. See below for my reasoning.

1. Top-king shin guards:

View attachment 28583
These look to me like just what he would want.


2. Morgan MMA sparring gloves:

View attachment 28582
Again, I imagine this is close to what his sifu/coach has in mind.


3. Hyabusa boxing gloves:

View attachment 28569
Unless he is also training boxing/kickboxing, these are not something he is likely to use in Wing Chun class.


Solid, Mexican boxing helmet:

View attachment 28580
Again, not ideal for what I imagine he would be training. This gives good protection from boxing shots, but in my experience, most Wing Chun schools train mostly WC vs. WC. (I'm sure you can share what's wrong with that, but that's not the point here!).

Anyway, the style of helmet shown above doesn't offer good protection against fast, straight shots to the nose with a vertical fist. And especially since Wing Chun typically doesn't train boxing style head movement, I think he might want a face guard of some kind, at least starting out!

Regardless, I need to get some new sparring gear and I your advise helpful!

I was thinking of the helmet with the bar across the front.

And I was thinking these gloves.

MORGAN B2 BOMBER LEATHER SHOTO MMA SPARRING GLOVES

The Morgan B2 MMA hybrid Shooto sparring gloves will allow you to harness the power you need to stay ahead of your competitors. Engineered to provide lightweight comfort, protection and control for every fight this sparring glove is handcrafted using Italian brushed matt leather that stubbornly...

www.thewodlife.com.au

Because I feel more padding is generally better.

The boxing gloves cover all the bases. So if you want to go with a bit more power it isn’t as punishing on the body.

You get less technical but you understand how fast punches and striking heavy changes the dynamics.

 

[drop bear]

Hey Drop... When I started responding to your comment, you said "Mexican Boxing Helmet" ..at least that is what I quoted above. Then after I took my time and finally posted my response, I saw you posting about a "Fairtex Boxing Helmet". Did you edit that or did I just momentarily slip into a parallel universe???

Anyway, from what I can see, that Fairtex job is just the ticket. A little pricey for a beginner or casual, but if I were young and serious, that's what I'd want.

I for some reason thought that was the style with the full face.. But I don't think it is.

 

[Mister_cat]

I would suggest top king shin guards. Morgan mma sparring gloves. Hyabusa boxing gloves.

And mabye a fairtex boxing helmet.

Fairtex Full Face Protector Headgear HG14

Handmade in Thailand especially for Muay Thai. Ultimate face protection. GENUINE gear at exceptional prices. Buy online with fast shipping & top-notch service.

fightgeardirect.com.au

Thanks for the suggestions.