The most common type of stick used in FMA is rattan. Traditionally it was used because it grows naturally and plentifully in the Philippines so it was cheap and readily available. Walk into the jungle, cut yourself a stick for five, and start training.
Here in America, some people still use them for the sake of tradition. But most people (that I know anyway) still prefer them to other woods because they tend not to break. They tend, over time, to fray and unravel. This means that, during training, there aren't usually real sharp ends suddenly popping onto the scene and the worst you're likely to get is a splinter. Though I have seen a few rattan sticks break off cleanly, it's rare.
Finding rattan here in the states - easiest place to get hold of rattan is from suppliers for rattan furniture makers.
The "Eskrima Sticks" you find in catalogs and such have usually had the skin removed and have been burnt with patterns. These look pretty and are great for demos but, personally, for training, I prefer to have the skin still on the stick. They seem to last longer for me. Without the skin, they seem to fray faster - the burning, actually, isn't just for decoration. It causes the fibers of the stick to compress and makes the stick more dense. But if overdone, the stick becomes brittle. It takes someone who really knows what they're doing to burn a stick well. But even still, as far as "beater sticks" for everyday training, I've had better luck with raw rattan - skin intact and unburnt.
There are a couple of places that sell composite sticks (I think the #1 guy for this is Jeff "Stickman" Finder - he makes high quality sticks). These are nice because they're virtually indestructable. Unfortunately, they're also pretty expensive and tend to transmit more vibration into your arm than rattan sticks do - though not as much as hardwoods like bahi or kamagong usually do. But my biggest problem with the composite sticks is that not everyone uses them and they tend to tear up rattan sticks pretty quick.
Mike
I just sat in my truck until they told me I could leave.
