How to care for your kendo mask

This is the sixth in a series of interviews with Mr. Tsuyuki Mikiya, president of Musashibo "Kensen," a cleaning service specializing in kendo armor.

Last time, we asked about how to care for kendo gloves, and this time we continued to learn how to care for men.

How do you wash your face?

Tsuyuki: " Is hand-sewn okay?"

──Ah, it's so soft.

Tsuyuki : " It's soft, right?"

──It looks easy to hold.

Tsuyuki : " It's easy to grip. This one is still stiff because I haven't touched it at all, but you'll notice when you shake it."

──Ah, that's right.

Tsuyuki : " But this one is. I was messing around with it while we were talking earlier."

──It's completely different.

Tsuyuki : " It's completely different."

Tsuyuki : " I applied a little bit of paint here, so it might smell like cashews."

──Did you also dye it ?

Tsuyuki : " That's right. I dye it.

The dirty part of the face mask is usually the chin. The part that bothers me is the chin.

──Yes, the jaw and...

Tsuyuki : " The chin and inside. The forehead isn't too dirty.

Just like before, spritz it with mild soap, spritz the inside as well, and leave it for about a minute. This time, dip it in a slightly larger area.

──Is a bathtub okay?

Tsuyuki : " You can use the bathtub or something. But don't use leftover bath water. It's the same as sweating while doing kendo."

--So you add new water.

Tsuyuki : "That's right. Temperature is also important. It's the same with the gloves, but if it's too hot it will damage the leather. Around 30 to 35 degrees. Basically, as long as it's around body temperature it's the same situation so I think it's acceptable. 34 or 35 degrees. If you're washing it at home, 34 or 35 degrees. If you let it soak, bubbles will rise to the surface. Air.

If possible, I'd like to prevent water from getting on the edge of the wall. It's not a problem if it gets on a little."

──Is it better not to put on face money or anything like that?

Tsuyuki: " The mask itself is fine, but the edge of the mask..."

──Around here?

Tsuyuki : " That's right. When the vermilion and black paint on this part starts to peel off, the bare leather is exposed and it absorbs water like crazy. This causes the leather to become too soft, which can really damage it."

──I see.

Tsuyuki : " If it's nicely painted, it's okay if it's slightly covered, but I think it's best not to get this edge wet when washing it at home."

──Is it up to just before this seam?

Tsuyuki : " That's right."

-- I see. It's difficult to go that far.

Tsuyuki : " That's it. But it's fine because it's only for a short time. When making a mask, you wet the leather thoroughly with water until it becomes soft, and then you can quickly define the shape. If you wear it for too long, you'll end up doing the opposite, and it will open up."

Can you soak it for about a minute?

Tsuyuki : " About 5 minutes. Once the bubbles stop, the water will have penetrated to the inside."

--So that took about five minutes?

Tsuyuki : " About five minutes. After about five minutes, when the bubbling stops, lather it up with a soft sponge in the same way as before, stroking lightly on the outside and scrubbing the inside thoroughly. You can also use a scrubbing brush on areas around the ears where oils have gotten in, but it might be fine to clean the inside."

──Oh, I see.

Tsuyuki : " I scrub it thoroughly with a scrubbing brush or sponge. I think it gets pretty clean. Once that's done, it's time to rinse it. Rinse thoroughly. I rinse thoroughly on the outside as well, but the areas that get the most sweat are my cheeks and chin, so I rinse those areas thoroughly as well."

──How do you rinse it?

Tsuyuki : " It just feels like it's happening."

──Are you taking a shower?

Tsuyuki : " A shower would be good. I'll rinse it off in the shower."

──From the inside?

Tsuyuki: " It flows from the inside."

──In those cases, is it okay if the rim gets wet?

Tsuyuki : " It's okay. It's not submerged."

──So it's okay for things that flow. It's just a matter of degree, right?

Tsuyuki : " That's right. I'm afraid of soaking the edges in water for a long time. It makes them very soft. It's fine if it's painted, but the peeling areas get really soft, so I'm worried about damage. If it gets a little wet, it's not a problem, but leaving it soaked is a problem."

──Is soaking in it too much a problem?

Tsuyuki : " Yes, that's true for the rim. Rinse thoroughly, and if possible, rinse the inside as well. You have to rinse the inside thoroughly too. If you only rinse from the top, the residue won't wash away and will accumulate on the inside. So if you rinse the inside thoroughly, you can get rid of the smell quite well."

Tsuyuki : " When you sweat, the dirt accumulates the most in this area from the chin onwards. This is where the sweat soaks in the most."

──Just like with kote, do you not need to rinse your men?

Tsuyuki : " Oh, I think it's okay to do that. It moisturizes the leather. The damage to this part of the leather will also be softened by moisturizing it."

Dehydration and drying of the surface Precautions

Tsuyuki: " Shall we dehydrate him?"

Tsuyuki: " It's best to dehydrate the face as well."

──Are you referring to the spin cycle of the washing machine?

Tsuyuki : " Just spin the washing machine. But if you're using a washing machine that doesn't fit face coverings, you'll have to hang it out like this, so it will probably take about two and a half days to dry."

──Is it best to just dry it in front of a fan?

Tsuyuki : " That's right. For spin-drying, you can't do that with a drum-type washing machine, but if you have a vertical washing machine, run it for about a minute. Wrap it in a towel, and if there are any gaps in the washing machine, stuff them all in with towels or sponges like this, so that the surface doesn't move and the shape doesn't change, and spin-dry for one minute.

Tsuyuki : " Sometimes when I see videos on YouTube of the mask rattling around in the washing machine, I think, 'Wow, is this okay?'"

──So you stuffed bath towels and stuffed them around it?

Tsuyuki : " That's right. Pack it in and fix it. Then fix it into the mask shape you like. If you drain it for less than a minute, it will dry pretty quickly, just like a kote. For a mask, it will take about a day and a half."

-- I still can't imagine spinning it for a minute in the washing machine, but do I just wrap it in a bath towel? Should I put it inside?

Tsuyuki : " Wrap it up. Yes. It's better to put it inside too."

--So, you stuff a bath towel inside and then wrap it around the outside?

Tsuyuki : "I'll wrap it in a bath towel ."

──So, about two or three bath towels?

Tsuyuki : " That's right. I also put a lot of space in the gaps. It's to balance things out and to stop them from spreading out unnecessarily."

──Does it make a difference of about a day whether you spin-dry your washing machine or not?

Tsuyuki : " Yes, it is. It dries a day faster. However, because the salt, sweat, and sebum are washed away, it dries faster than after practice, even if it's soaked."

──Oh, I see.

Tsuyuki : " That's right. What I have experience with is when you're at a training camp and you have to hang out your clothes soaking wet. And then they're still wet when the next practice session starts."

──It's wet, it's wet.

Tsuyuki : " But when I wash it, it's surprisingly dry by the time of the next practice."

──I see.

Tsuyuki : " That's because of the salt content."

──Sebum, etc. Does that mean it's harder to dry?

Tsuyuki : " That's right. Salt wants to hold onto moisture, so it doesn't evaporate. If you remove that and there's only water, it will evaporate quickly, but the salt gets in the way and tries to hold onto the moisture, so it doesn't dry well."

──I see.

Tsuyuki: " So, it's better to wash it, spin it, and hang it out to dry. It dries faster. Like practice clothes."

──Is there any particular way to direct the wind?

Tsuyuki : " Yeah. As expected. I'll give you a hit."

──Is it directed inward?

Tsuyuki : "Yes. Point it inwards. Especially towards your chin, as this will help the air flow."

Tsuyuki: " The cotton is thickest on the chin and forehead, so if you just place it there, the air will flow through and dry it."

Tsuyuki: " The best way to hang it is with an S-shaped hook."

--It looks like it's hanging over there.

Tsuyuki : " That's right. I'll hang him like that."

──When washing, should I remove these things?

Tsuyuki : " We'll wash them together. There's no problem with doing it together."

──And the mask strings too?

Tsuyuki : " The mask strings are pretty soaked with sweat, so I thought it might be okay to wash them together."

──Do you generally use the same approach when washing your men-himo?

Tsuyuki : " It's the same. It's not that dirty, so I just rinse it with water. I think that's the best way to keep the color from coming off, rather than scrubbing it.

As I said before, this is the area where dirt tends to accumulate the most from the back.

There is a latch on the front side, and this is the part that gets damaged the most, as it absorbs sweat."

──I've heard that some people get cut off.

Tsuyuki : " It does tear quite easily. Right now, when pollen comes out, is the driest time of the year, and it gets soaked and dried over and over again, becoming very dry and brittle, so it gets quite damaged. When it suddenly absorbs water, it expands and naturally tears apart.

So, if I start practicing and sweat a lot, this latch might snap in the middle of the practice."

──Wow.

The experiment was conducted on the son's old side.

Tsuyuki : " You've been doing this for a while, haven't you?"

--Oh, the latch on this one has broken.

Tsuyuki: " Yes. It's broken. The latch is coming from a little bit above, so it might be a good idea to have an armor shop fasten it."

──How long ago was this? It was by Shobu Do.

Tsuyuki : This belongs to my son, so it's from 14 or 15 years ago.

--You've been hit pretty hard. You were using it for practice, weren't you?

Tsuyuki : " I've been using it for practice for a long time.

This is for experimental purposes. I mean, it could be used if I could get the armor shop to fasten the latches."

──How about around here?

Tsuyuki : " This area is dangerous."

--Are you going to reassemble this again?

Tsuyuki : " Well, if you want to use it again, there are armor shops that will repair just the leather on top of it.

This is for testing purposes. But it doesn't lose its shape very much."

──It's a nice shape.

Tsuyuki : " It has a nice shape. It looks like something middle school students would like."

Surface care is surprisingly easy

This time, we will be explaining how to care for your face.

Click here for the explanatory video → https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4HwKDj6B-g

I wondered how to wash surfaces with metal or leather, and whether I could wash them myself, but I found that it was surprisingly easy to clean, as long as I was careful not to submerge the edges of the surface in water for long periods of time. I was also surprised to find that I could spin-dry them in the washing machine by wrapping them in a towel.

In the next issue, we will continue to explain how to repair the edges. Please look forward to it!