Should Donnie use a metal staff instead of wood?
 

I just had a thought, since he had his stick snapped, burnt and endured other kinds of damages. Wouldn't it be more ideal to have a metal staff instead?

If metal is too heavy, maybe he can use a more lighter metal like material but as durable. Maybe like Titanium for example. Concerned with conduct electricity you say? Easy, just coat it with insulated coating.





And wow I just found that metal and steel are different actually. :o :trazz:

Mikey is the only turtle dude thats gonna be using chains :x

and....IDK.....maybe it's easier for him to make a stick outta wood than it is to make a stick outta titanium....(if it breaks)

but I wouldn't mind either way...

I don't know, but it annoys the heck out of me that the he never uses the naginata blade for anything except comic relief.

I think part of the charm is that even though his weapon keeps breaking he finds a way to be useful in the fight. It would take something away from him if he didn't use his smarts more then his weapon I feel.

Interesting question... and this should probably go in the General forum, not just confined to the Nick one.

I would say yes, unless a martial arts experts has some explanation as to why a wooden staff is better at taking/delivering blows in a fight or whatnot (maybe wood absorbs the shock better, or something?).

I'unno, since it seems like his staff breaking happens disproportionately often in the Nick show compared to anywhere else, I think it's appropriate for the Nick thread.

I swear someone just had this conversation in a thread a few weeks ago. I remember someone in fact did say a metal staff would be less practical but I can't remember why. It is an odd choice for the show to consistently draw attention to how crummy Donnie's weapon is.

I think asthetically a wooden bo just looks better and is more traditional. Metal bos are pretty common, though. I think they are typically aluminum, and not very heavy at all. We have a heavy weighted bo at my dojo, but it is used for training, like a baseball player who swings a heavier bat during batting practice.

I think I'd be sad it Don ever switched to a metal bo, though! As it is, his bo lives by cartoon physics. It breaks/doesn't break only when convenient for the story.

Always wondered this, and kinda hope the series does something like it. Donnies staff constantly breaking is kinda getting old, i think it only shouldve been doen once or twice, when facing something really strong.

It kind of goes against his character that the first time his bo would break, he wouldn't, like, immediately take reasonable steps to ensure it wouldn't break the next time (i.e., upgrades that he would be more than happy to tend to).

I think Donnie's bo staff remains wood because he's the least aggressive fighter of the group, and so having a gentle weapon fits with his gentle and compassionate personality. His weapon is designed mainly to incapacitate an opponent not kill them.

I have noticed they've been using the Donnie's bo staff breaking joke less and less so maybe they will make that an occasional gag

Or maybe Nick Donnie should get a real Bo and not use a broomstick handle.

a Bo don't break easily, it is after all usually made of hard wood and is meant to crush human bone.

i think it's the same mentality when people wrongly depict Sai for being a glorified dagger/stiletto. Lack of knowledge with a hint of stupidity


And we already have a thread for this very topic, its even on the first page when searching for it.
http://forums.thetechnodrome.com/sho...ht=metal+staff
Search function, it's there for a reason.

Master of Search Function has spoken!

With the amount of bos he has broken, I could see him switching to metal but there is actually a good reason for keeping wood. Someone mentioned wood being able to absorb shocks and blows better, this is true. Look up video of people demonstrating the bo, or even a Bruce Lee flick where he uses one, and watch the staff. It bends and has LOTS of give so when it hits you get the added poundage from it's sudden stop and the actual force of the blow. The same for blocking with it, there's technically more there than just your strength. Metal wouldn't have near, if any, of the give wood does but metal would make a devastating blow so it's sort of up in the air. I'm no official but it's something to think about.

As much as I think it would be cool for him to use metal, I think he uses wood for a reason as it's easier to come by if the bo breaks. Notice in "Metalhead" that Splinter was able to give him another bo, something he wouldn't be able to acquire as easily if the bo was metal. I agree that him breaking it does get old, but at the same time, it's all about the comedic aspect, and he often uses other techniques when the bo does break. I just wish he would say the line, "That was my favorite bo."

It could be cool to see him use a metal bo if they go on a stealth mission with new gear/weapons for an episode, but other than that I think he should keep the bo he has.

I think he should dump the bo altogether and manufacture a killer robot, maybe from recycled Kraang tech? That way he wouldn't even have to be part of the battle. He could control it from home. Like a video game!

Donnie's Bo breaks has become sort of a trope one that I find amusing, I do not see it as a weakness either. This highlights that his most deadly weapon is his scientific mind, I like this about his character.

Real Bo staffs are extremely hard to break. They can Break a katana in half.

The cartoons make it look like the Bo is made of Balsa wood sometimes.

This. I knew this already, but I wanted to run a test just to be sure. In The Gauntlet, he breaks his Bo on one of Shredder's blades. So, I took a VERY sharp blade and tried to cut the Bo with it. Didn't work after 10 tries. I tried again, this time thrusting the Bo onto the blade. Didn't work. Real Bos can withstand that stuff. So, yeah, just saying.

Metalhead?

This is just my interpretation as I am not a weapons' expert by any means though I do like to research them on occasion. So, I may be wrong but feel free to correct me if I am.

To my understanding, one, a real bo is quite a bit tougher than those we have seen Donatello using in pretty much all the franchises (OT comes to mind) As others have mentioned, the bo was frequently used against katana with success.

Second, the point of a wood staff is that it is flexible. It bends with pressure instead of snapping. This allows for some of the movements that the bo can be used for that more rigid weapons would not be able to achieve. The bo is one for both offense and defense. Truthfully, Donatello's bo has the most uses as a weapons, both for attacking and maintaining distance and defense between him and his opponent.

Lastly, I would think that a bo made of metal would cause more fatigue on the user. Even a light metal would be heavier than wood and given the types of moves one usually performs with a bo, I don't think it would be too practical over a long battle.

Just my two cents. I like Donatello using a wooden bo personally. I think it's interesting that something seemingly so "primitive" can be quite a dangerous weapon.

Don should stick to the wooden bo as it is more traditional and is just as iconic as the other Turtles' main weapons. There were times I wondered if Don's bo in both OT and 2K12 were made of broom handle wood as they would break easily at times. Use strong wood, Donnie! TNM Don used a metal bo and it looked hideous and was way too short.

Your 100% right. Back in the day a bo could hold up against a katana.

Joke??????