Forums > Technical Discussion > leather handle/grip construction

Posted: 16th Jun 2005
I have a little finger loop tutorial.



https://home.carolina.rr.com/dhmtb/poi/index.html



That's the way I like to make 'em. There are plenty of other designs out there so experiment and find the one you like best.



Edit: those finger nooses look like some type of crazy sex toy

"My skin is singed but it heals my heart and with glowing pride I'll wear my scars." -Davey Havok

Posted: 16th Jun 2005
yeah they do look like sex toys.

thanks for posting the link. any tips on how to get the style that I posted above? I've been studying the closeup pictures that are available on the site, but it's difficult to figure out the construction.

..·´¯`·.¸¸.·´¯`·.·´¯`·.¸¸.·´¯`·.¸ ><((((º>

These are the roots of rhythm
And the roots of rhythm remain

Posted: 16th Jun 2005
Here is the recipe for making the ones I use, which are similar to the ones Adam Rice makes (the link you posted). First, start with a rectangle of suede from a craft store or some leather. Find the exact center of that, and cut a small slit through it lengthwise. Now, take both the ends of you piece of material and stuff them through the slit. To make this part a little easier, I usually trim some suede from the ends of my rectangle so it no longer looks rectangular. Now, lay both of the ends together (once they have been through the slit) and put some sort of metal grommit through them. This is where I put a quick link through to attach to my poi. The part on the other side of the grommit becomes the finger loops.



Make sense?



To make things snugger on your fingers, make the middle slit as small as possible. Also, make sure your ends are larger than the grommet you plan on using.

Posted: 16th Jun 2005
It's an interesting design, Ill have to try it out. looks like they cinch down when you add the weighted chain\poi.

[image]https://fire-gear.com/prodpix/noose1.jpeg[/image]

Is it just me or are they holding them all upside down in the pics. I couldn't imagine spinning like that.

My guess:
cut out two 1"x6" strips.
cut out one 1.5"x1" strip and cut a hole in the middle (1"x1/4" or so)
thread the two long strips through the hole and fold them in half, then tuck the ends back through the hole again.
Rivet the two open ends and you should have 1 noose finger loop.

You can pretty much make out the design by looking at the one on the left.

"My skin is singed but it heals my heart and with glowing pride I'll wear my scars." -Davey Havok

Posted: 16th Jun 2005
I found that leather thick enough to avoid stretching was generaly too stiff to spin comfortably, and that supple leather either lost its shape or wasn't strong enough. I wrapped some garment suede around a kevlar core, and hand stitched to a ring. I absolutely adore them.

Yellow and blue make green.

Posted: 16th Jun 2005
mtbeer, re: the holding of the grips, various people hold their poi in various ways. The wrist addition on those particular grips allows the poi to be held in a different fashion than spinning without the wrist brace. It also allows one to open up their hands more while spinning.



How to go about creating the wrist brace, though, I do not know. I have just seen them in use, and know people that prefer the wrist braces to just the finger nooses.



Adam Rice's nooses also come in what he calls a "laminated" variety, but I have no idea how to create those either.

Posted: 16th Jun 2005
I highly recommend staying far away from finger noose type of handles. Two of my friends got badly burned using them recently, both within a month of each other. Both times, what happened was their chains/handles accidentally got dropped into fuel by someone and they didnt know... When they lit their poi and went to spin, the flame traveled up the chain, to the handles and they were unable to let go due to the noose effect. One of these incidents happed at Spring PDF and the guy had to be taken to the emergency room and was then transferred to another hospital in another state. Noose handles are very dangerous and really should not be used IMO. You need the ability to drop your poi if something happens.



Personally, I go with a ball grip which doesnt attach to me in any way. If I get tangled/mixed up/panic I just let go and they fall to the ground. Havent had a serious burn to this day. However, I know ball grips really arent for everyone. They're sort of an acquired taste.

Let's turn those old bridges we crossed into ashes.
We'll blaze a new trail,
and torch the rough patches.

-Me

Posted: 16th Jun 2005
I agree with what Icon says. However, if my handles ever get dunked into the fuel bucket, I don't use them for the rest of the evening. It's usually pretty easy to tell that your handles have gotten a bit wet. It simply involves feeling them AND smelling them (i.e. doing a safety check) before putting them on which I know some would consider an inconvenience.

Posted: 16th Jun 2005
icon, that's really frightening. it also scares me that some idiot would drop someone's poi & handles in fuel and not say anything. that's friggin terrible.

this is definitely food for thought. thanks.

..·´¯`·.¸¸.·´¯`·.·´¯`·.¸¸.·´¯`·.¸ ><((((º>

These are the roots of rhythm
And the roots of rhythm remain

Posted: 16th Jun 2005
Dunking of handles in a fuel bucket is actually a common occurance. I'm sure it wasn't done on spite, and around here, if someone sees a handle in the fuel, they usually just pull it out and if they don't know who it belongs to (if you spin with more than 5 people, this frequently happens) they don't mention anything.

No spite was meant by it, and the handle usually winds up in the fuel when someone pulls out their own wicks and doesn't realize another pair went "thunk!".

Posted: 16th Jun 2005
well yeah, I'm sure that there was no malice involved... honestly though, I've never had my handles dunked and would think it was a big deal if I did it to someone else! that's also the reason I tend to keep my poi under watchful eye at all times.

..·´¯`·.¸¸.·´¯`·.·´¯`·.¸¸.·´¯`·.¸ ><((((º>

These are the roots of rhythm
And the roots of rhythm remain