Red Strings Tied Around New Shinai?

by David Ploss
(Antioch, Illinois, USA)

I noticed that there are red threads tied in two places around the shinai. Are these strings necessary?

I did not see them on the shinai in some of the videos you have here. Did you remove them before you started? If so, did you replace them after? I just want to know if they are necessary or not.

Answer: They are not necessary. Once you buy a new shinai, you can get rid of the red strings. You will never tie the shinai with strings again.