@Jorah I passed cleanly! Sensei said it was very good, and my latest aikido news is that he says it's about time I buy my own weapons. I've been researching those!

@Wsteria If you have a good budget, I can highly recommend Kingfisher. I started with one of their "project" jo... I had to cut it to length and sand it down.

https://www.kingfisherwoodworks.com

Later I saved up and got a custom Jo made to my height and then a year later got a nice bokken.

@Jorah My sensei recommended them for bokken! I can indulge myself somewhat, so I may well go with them.

@Wsteria We do several two-person kata where the bokken and the jos hit each other, and my bokken has never given me a moment of doubt, and it is gorgeous.

@Wsteria congrats on passing your test. My sensei says he'll never test us until he feels we're ready, but that never removes my nervousness.

My next test is probably not for 2-3 years, which is a relief.