Dai's Buugeng (S-Staffs) Impressions

I'm the happy owner of one of Dai's amazing Buugeng:

Where to buy them:
http://www.zaobab.com/buugeng_about.html

Home of Poi lessons:
http://www.homeofpoi.com/lessons_all/teach/Library-Staff-S-Staff-Buugeng-4_48_0

I received the smaller version, which, with shipping to UK, came to about £60. A fantastic birthday present And you get two of them with a really nice bag, so £30 each with bag isn't *so* bad. (I will note here that before buying them with my birthday money I tried to make my own out of plywood ... it was a disaster )

Some people have been asking me about the quality of them, whether it's worth buying them all the way from South Africa. I'll try and give my opinion of them here. I'm not gonna say anything about spinning the damn things, as the technique thread is here:

http://www.homeofpoi.com/ubbthreads/show...5/o/all/fpart/1

First of all, the wood-working quality is excellent, they have an excellent 'heft' to them. The colour is nice and shiny too. I can't describe just how good it feels to spin something that truly feels "crafted" rather than mass-produced, injection moulded, etc. I feel like I'm spinning something with value, rather something that could just be replaced with a quick click on a fire toys website.

A note about the mechanism. From Dai's tutorial videos you can see that they unfold out from a banana-shape. In the folded position, the curves are held in place by strong magnets - they require a strong flick of the wrist to unfold, and the motion is very smooth - the pivot works great, without any creaking. The only trouble I'll mention here is that if you keep 'unfolding' the buugeng in the same direction, you'll gradually unwind the pivot (which is a thread screw with a washer that bores itself into the wood). I guess just a little care will prevent this from becoming a major concern. Even if this pivot does work itself loose, once the buugeng 'snap' into position, the magnets make sure the prop stays steady. When I drop the staff in the 'unfolded' position, the buugeng does not fold up, it stays in its proper shape. These magnets are great - but they're not so strong such that it's difficult to close.

The weighting is a lot lighter than I imagined it would be - there is not any extra weight towards the tips of the S-curves, making keeping in plane extremely difficult (or more fun to learn, depending on how you look at it!).

I hope this has been clear, if you guys want any more info I'll try my best to answer. Though do give Dai a call through his website, that would be a better way of going about it. I even got a beautiful hand-written note with my buugeng. The attention to detail he's put into this props is stunning, and they were well worth the money. I wish everyone here would go out and get some, so we can all start thinking of new tricks to do with them!

Thanks Dai !

I have a red set on order myself, so I'm really happy to read that you're happy with the quality. Thanks for the info about the pivot screw, I'll keep an eye on that. I was concerned about how smooth that action was going to be, but it looks like I need not worry about it.

I can't wait to get my hands on these!

thanks muchly!

I bought a gold set....

Should be waiting for me when I get back to the UK...

mmm they do look really nice. Now, can I afford to split my practice time into yet another toy??

I nearly got the gold set, just so I could shout "bling!" at the top of my voice while I wave them at people

Wow those are loverly.
I love the lessons too that guys is so keen and helpful

I never gave these much thought before, but after watching the videos I think they look amazing!!

As soon as I get some excess money... I'm gonna buy the yellow ones!!

For $89 you get two medium staffs and a carry-bag for it, and then you pay an additional $32 for postage.

That comes to $121 (or £61)


That's really not that bad for two staffs, a bag, and postage.
I think I'll have to save some cash.

Edit:
One thing I'd like to ask...

As visually stunning as it seems, does the Buugeng/S Staff feel limited in what it can actually do? Can it do far less than a normal staff? Or are the shapes and patterns seemingly endless?

At the moment, I'm feeling a tad limited by them, but I think that's entirely myself, rather than the prop. There DOES seem to be a lot less to do than staff or poi (that's documented) but how long have people been spinning staff and poi? More than ten years? That's a long time to invent a lot of new moves, especially with such a large user-base. I'm guessing once more people get these things, and everyone's been using them for a few seasons, things will pick up.

Looking at the video in the second post of the S-staff moves thread, gives you an idea of what's achievable. And of course watching Dai's videos. And even then, there must be more. I can pretty much pull off most double staff spinning moves with these things (having a good grounding in double staff was SUCH a help with these). As with every prop I've tried to learn, it's always getting the individual moves to flow into each other thats the tricky (*and ultimately most rewarding) part.

The ultimate (IMO) good thing about using these staffs is that you can achieve almost contact juggling-like feats of mime to make your audience smile and laugh. The shapes you can make with these things, rather than the moves, seem endless. So once we start merging the moves and the shapes, we'll be well on our way An example of this is spinning a basic 1-beat pattern, then slowing it RIGHT down as the staffs approach each other to see the shapes made in negative space around them form and shift. Dai does this excellently in his vids. Of course putting them under your nose to make a big yellow moustache is equally as fun and therein lies the magic!

*goes off to play with them some more

Yes, I see what you mean with the comedy... the bull-head/horns in Dai's video (when he chased after some innocent bystanders in the park) was hilarious!!

I'm not too good with doubles yet - I can only do one or two basic moves with them.

These Buugeng look so groovy though, that I think I'll buy some as soon as I master all the basics with doubles.

Thanks for the quick response. ^.^

Thanks the the great review aran. On saturday/sunday i'll be trying that moustache thing if that's ok. :P

These videos of Dai sound good. Anyone got a link?

you bringin them to poi in the punt akgraphics? would be cool to have a little play with them

http://www.zaobab.com/buugeng_movie.html
^ 2 videos on his website.

And if you type in 'Buugeng' on youtube, one or two more show up.

His website ones are really interesting.

They'll be making an appearance at Poi in the Punt - I *think* they're waterproof :P

They mesmerise ppl.

I can't decide between red or yellow.

I wanna get some and start thinking up ideas with you guys n' gals!

Edit:
Ordered the yellow ones!!

I'm buying a set

Just have to wait til payday....

Whats the history behind them?

I am quite, quite annoyed at my post office.

The package was delivered, but taken away as they needed a signature. Now the post office doesn't know where it is. It's not officially "lost" yet, so there's nothing to do but wait.

My beautiful, beautiful red Buugeng are SOMEWHERE near me. I just can't get them. I hope they're found. SOON!

I just wanted to share my pain.

PAAAAAIIIIIINNNNNN!!!!