At wits end trying to find PVC for Jong

[dewmz]

I've tried just about everywhere. Is over $100 common for the required size of PVC? Surely the cheap dummy has to be.. cheaper..

 

[geezer]

I've tried just about everywhere. Is over $100 common for the required size of PVC? Surely the cheap dummy has to be.. cheaper..

Why PVC? Thats plastic! If you can't have a wooden dummy, at least go for an iron one.

I once made a dummy out of a 5-foot length of steel tubing I bought at a scrap yard. It was probably about 10 inches in diameter and fairly thin-walled, maybe 1/8 in. thick or so. I had access to welding gear in those days, but most of the work didn't require anything special in the way of tools. I cut out square holes for the arms and leg. I then inserted square steel tubing to line the sockets and welded them in place. Not having a lathe, I made the arms out of the tapered shafts of old wooden baseball bats I bought at a thrift store. Nowadays, you can buy the arms ready made. For weight, I threw a couple of sandbags inside.

Honestly, I didn't do that great a job designing it, and got rid of it after getting a real teak dummy a couple of years later, but if done right, an iron dummy with wooden arms could be quite decent.

Hey, here's an idea... if wood is too expensive, how about a cast concrete dummy? Use a cardboard "sono-tube" as a form for the body. As before, I'd probably use square steel tubing piercing the cardboard form to make sockets for the arms that wouldn't chip at the edges. If it seems too heavy, you could give it a hollow core. Stained right it would be a freakin' stone dummy! How awesome is that?

 

[punisher73]

Another option is to go to your local fix-it-up store (Lowe's, Menards, Home Depot etc) that sells lumber. Go back and you can order 8 inch posts in various lengths for not too much. Then order the arms seperately.

Also, if you want to go the PVC route. Find the stuff online, you can get the stuff alot thicker and cheaper than in store.

 

[Xue Sheng]

A friend of mine, who is a Wing Chun guy got a gift from his wife a while back, a PVC mook jong and he, being smart, thanked her profusely for it. He later told me it was pretty much useless, it was not strong enough or heavy enough. It sits in his basement collecting dust and he is now looking for a wooden mook jong

 

[celestial_dragon]

I am thinking about making one out of wood, from home depot, with all the stuff that I need it will cost about $150, not bad compared to the $800-$2000 for one.

 

[Takai]

I would agree with Xue Sheng's comments. You will probably not be happy with a PVC dummy.

 

[mook jong man]

One of the aims of training on the Wing Chun wooden dummy is to learn to correctly transfer your body mass , through your arms and into the dummy.
There needs to be a bit of resistance to the thing.
Having a dummy that bounces all over the place at the slightest touch will not do anything to develop your stance.

 

[djsHowatt]

I made my Mook out PVC and it works great. I got the pipe at an industrial pipe yard but you can call all of the plumbing supply shops for a chunk of 8" pvc. I had the arms milled at a local wood shop and I made the leg myself. I got some padding from a local gymnastics gym for free. Sure it would be nice to have a wooden one but pvc does the trick for me. Good luck.

Dave

 

[jeff_hasbrouck]

Dewmz,

Hey man, I can see the how it looks to create your own dummy; But if your serious about Wing Tsun (or WC, whatever) it is better to find a good dummy and shop around online, or find someone to make a wooden one for you.

There are many things that can be practiced on a dummy, and other systems (Such as Hung-Gar) have their own specific type of dummies, that do different things. However in WT, the dummy isn't just to train our techniques, it is to train EVERYTHING. From our stance and positioning of body and limbs. Old Jong's were actually placed in the ground, having a spear like tip at the bottom that you buried. You want this resistance, because the dummy doesn't lie. If you attack the dummy too hard and without the proper positioning, it will throw you back, but if you attack a pvc dummy, there is a greater chance that you will succeed when in reality it is not teaching you the correct things. The dummy is self-correcting. I mean if you screw up the dummy will not give up and if you are clever enough it will teach you how to be soft, and where you can be hard.

I made my own dummy out of plywood, and I had a helluva time trying to get it to sit still. It didn't really help me at all, and when I moved, I left it there because in all actuality, it didn't help me in the slightest.

The reason to practice on a dummy is when you don't have a training partner, if you have one, and you haven't already learned biu-tze, I would say that you have time to wait on the dummy. Take your time with your art. It isn't a race to see how fast you learn the techniques. The principles and theories are if not more, just as important as the actual techniques. Because I don't care how technically proficient you are, if you don't understand the concepts and theories, you will never be successfull in wing tsun.

Footwork is one of the most neglected things in WT. If you can't keep your feet, do you honestly think your techniques will ever succeed? The answer is no.

I hope I've givin you some things to think about and again, no I wouldn't even bother with a PVC dummy. It may work for some people, and yes you can make it work, but you aren't using the right tool for the right job. You can do better for yourself, and when it comes to WT, I would expect someone with passion about it to do what is right.

All the best in your training!

Jeff

 

[Thunder Foot]

There is nothing wrong with a PVC dummy, granted INDUSTRIAL PVC is used (8mil or 10mil thickness). depending on the thickness, they can actually be stronger than wood and require less maintenence, and are essentially weatherproof. Techs on such a dummy are just as educational. I've worked on both wood and industrial PVC for extended periods of time... placed on a proper wallmount or stand, and they respond the exact same. A construction store will be your best option.

oh, and over $100 is well expected for industrial PVC. Look to spend 150-200.

 

[Argus]

I don't know your level of experience in woodworking, but you might consider making a laminated wooden dummy:

 

[prairiemantis]

Pvc worked great for me. I wrappend it with rope to strike....put garage door springs on one set of arms,used conduit connectors to attached arms and legs.Its heavy, durable, and can be taken apart. I spent maybe 175 total. For the stand i used a heavy duty christmas tree stand(found in a dumpster). Im spm practitioner so its not used much, but i can bet you wouldnt break it if you tried....everything bought local.
With that said i am making another out of a walnu tree i dropped.

Pvc is good imo.