Kendo Armor: The men and bogu

The kendo armor that kendoists wear in order to protect themselves from hits by the shinai. It is made up of 4 main parts:

1. The men or head and throat protector

2. The kote or gauntlets that protect the forearms and hands

3. The do or the torso protector

4. The tare or the lower body protector

The men back then were also much heavier. The men-gane (the grill that protects the face) used to be made of steel. Today, it is made out of a lighter weight titanium alloy. Countries, like Korea, are also experimenting with an electronic version of the bogu which has electronic sensors that set off alarms when the kendoist has been scored on!

A bogu’s quality can be measured in the millimeter stitching it was put together in. The smaller the stitching, often times, the higher the quality. That system of measurement is voided, though, when dealing with bogu made out of high quality materials such as sharkskin leather, which can run upwards of $5000.

As with the hakama and gi, there are specific ritualized ways in which the bogu and men must be donned. There is also a specific way of putting the gear away. Putting the gear away, however, often has different methods pending on the kendo school. Our photo-guide goes through only one of these methods.

Be sure to visit the Caring for your kendo armor section in the equipment care page for information on the upkeep and storage of your armor!