Tall Paduak Marudai Kumihimo kit with Tama Start Price USD 99.00 Current Price USD 99.00 Time Left - Bid Count 0 Buy It Now Price USD 110.00 Reserve Price - Start Time Tuesday, September 30, 2008 End Time Tuesday, October 07, 2008 Location Wilmington, North Carolina See more about 'Tall Paduak Marudai Kumihimo kit with Tama' Description This is a hand turned Paduak marudai with a wonderful feel.  It's tall enough at 24 inches to be comfortable braiding in the seated position.  The marudai has a 11 1/2 inch mirror with a nicely pronounced well leading to a 1 1/4 inch opening.  A smooth & deep well is essential to release tension of the fiber just before it's braided. As an added bonus unique to our marudai is the ability to tie your braid in place while it isn't being worked on.  This is done using an elastic or piece of string tied around the mirror & slipped into the grove cut in the edge o the mirror.  This groove cannot catch your fiber while braiding, in no way hinders the final product but adds to the experience. The larger mirror is perfect for 16 or more strand braids.  Smaller mirrrors are good for 8 strands but 16 gets pretty tight & more than 16 is just not very fun.  The mirror is made form one wide board so there are no glue joints to open up as time passes to catch & snag your fiber. We only use woods that are appropriate fpr marudai.  Coarse grained woods like oak will snag fibers.  Unstable softer woods like poplar, pine & aspen don't hold up to the wear & tear, thus wil eventually snag fibers.  The base is matched from the same board as the top. The bottom has felted feet to protect hardwood floors & tabletops. The color is completely natural needing no dyes or stains to get this fantastic purple color.   There are no dyes or stains used on the marudai. The color is all natural.  This wood is harvested in ecologically responsible ways so you can braid with a clear heart. This comes with 8-40 gram tama with storage bag, counterweights, counterweight bag, S-hook & chopstick. Additional tama can be purchased at the same time as the auction for $12 or $15 separately. As a Buy It Now bonus, we will include another 8-40 gram tama and 17 page instruction book showing how to set up & make your own patterns. Place a Bid!