Playing with Beigoma

* Beigoma preparations


First I will introduce the things you need.
If you just have those, you will be able to play.
* Beigoma (2 pieces)
* Strings for Beigoma (2 strings)
* Bey-toko (2 pieces)

I will introduce them one by one below

(*) Beigoma are fighting koma used for contests.
The number of pieces given above are for two players.


* Beigoma

There are many kinds of Beigoma.
Depending on which type some are easy to spin and others rather difficult and beginners will not know which one to choose.


The ones I would like to recommend for beginners are "Taka-o (high king)" and "Kaku-roku (Hexagon)".
Especially Taka-o is very well suited for beginners, I think.


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Basically the low (not tall), heavy and large ones are very strong.

Pecha

The lowest one of the Beigoma.


Atsu-pe

The second lowest Beigoma


Chu-taka

Beigoma is smaller than the Kaku-roku


Kaku-roku

a Maru-roku with a hexagon shape


Maru-roku

The most standard of the the Beigoma


Aku-chu

A little bit thicker than the Maru-roku type


Pe-osama

The lowest of the Osama (king) size Beigoma


Chu-osama (middle osama)

A Beigoma between the Bey-osama and Taka-osama size.


Taka-osama (high osama)

The biggest one of the Beigoma



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* Bey-himo (Bey-string)


The string needed to spin the Beigoma.
The string for the Tetsuwa-goma is too thick, therefore there is a thinner one for the Beigoma.


The specific size is as follows:
* for the Osama-size (king-size) Beigoma >> string >> 3mm 
* for the Maru-roku-size Beigoma >> string 2 mm 


* Kobu - how to make stopper knots

You need to make knots at the end of the string for a stopper which is called Kobu.
These knots are needed to wind the string onto the Beigoma.
There are two methods to make a Kobu and they are called "Otoko-maki (male-winding stopper)" and "Onna-maki (female-winding stopper)". Which one is better? There is almost no difference, both are good.
The female Onna-maki is a bit easier and Otoko-maki a bit more difficult to make.


As this page is meant for beginners, I will explain here how to make the Onna-maki stopper, which is comparatively easier.


2. Make a knot about 6 cm from one end of the string.


2. But instead on only one time put the string 2 times through the loop to make a bigger knot.


3. Make another such double-knot next to the one just made.


Untangle the string from the Kobu to the end to make a tuft.


5. Make another knot at the other end, so that the string doesn’t get untwisted.


6. End


* Bey-toko (Beigoma arena)
Two or more spinning Beigoma will not bump against each other unless they spin in a concave dish.
So it is necessary to make such a dish, which is called Bey-toko and serves as a fighting arena.



There are no special regulations about the size or the materials to use.
But in Japan it is usually made by using a Tsukemono (pickles) barrel, which is cylindrical, and cover it with sailcloth (canvas) as follows:


Tsukemono-barrels can have different sizes and are usually of beige color.
Tsukemono are pickled vegetables used in the Japanese cuisine and a Tsukemone-barrel is used for making them.


A Tsukemone-barrel as used for cooking.


(* if you cannot get such a barrel you can use any similar cylindrical object with the diameter of a bucket.
The diamelter of a Tsukemono-barrel is about 40cm and the height 40cm.)
The piece of sailcloth canvas should be about 60cm x 60cm and have the thickness of strong paper. And the color should be green.
I don’t know why, but Bey-tokos are always green.



1. Put the canvas over the barrel.


2. Adjust the canvas to be a bit loose so that it makes a concave form.
(There are no regulations about the depth of the concave form, if you do it about similar as it is in the picture it will be just right, I think.)


3. After adjusting the concaveness, the canvas must be fixed.
You can do that with a rope, which you wind tight around the barrel.


4. End