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Sweets Tama Paint Techniques

Discussion in 'The Sesh' started by Sirwillcode, Sep 18, 2017.

  1. Sirwillcode

    Sirwillcode Slayer

    Joined:
    Jan 21, 2017
    Location:
    Atlanta, GA
    May be a newb question but I don't use a lot of sweets products. Can someone give me a rundown/description of cushion clear, phase 1, pro clear, etc. I think there are a couple more. But idk what exactly they are. So info. Would be appreciated. Thanks.
     
    Sep 18, 2017
    Emil Apostol likes this.
  2. Nick Lectura

    Nick Lectura Moderator Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 12, 2016
    Location:
    Santa Cruz, CA
    Cushion clear: grippy but not sticky. It has a similar feeling to silk, but when you work it in, it gets even grippier than silk does (in my opinion).
    Phase 1: Sweets in house paint. This is a sticky paint, here is a thread about the phase 1 paint and some thoughts on it from other DS members.
    Pro Clear: I would say this is a classic Sweets paint. It starts out glossy and kind of slick, but the more you play it, the stickier it gets. And I mean sticky.
    aTack: Another classic Sweets paint. This starts out pretty chalky but then breaks in to be really sticky once you beat it up. Like sticky enough to stick it to the big cup and hold it upside down.
    Prime: pretty sure this is factory paint. It is similar to LOL clear or DWI Sticky AF paint. Starts out really grippy out of the box and stays pretty consistent in terms of the grip.

    There are some other paints that Sweets uses, but they're factory paint as well. Any rubber paint they use is from a factory as well as any 1st gen F3s you can find.
     
    Sep 18, 2017
  3. Sirwillcode

    Sirwillcode Slayer

    Joined:
    Jan 21, 2017
    Location:
    Atlanta, GA
    Alright thanks man. That helps me out tremendously. I appreciate it.
     
    Sep 18, 2017
    Nick Lectura likes this.
  4. TB Fung

    TB Fung n00b

    Joined:
    May 7, 2017
    Saved for reference! XD
     
    Sep 18, 2017
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  5. Congarranza

    Congarranza DS Legend

    Joined:
    Jan 10, 2017
    Location:
    Camarillo, CA
    I highly recommend cushion cleared tamas. I enjoy them the most clear over natty. You can't really go wrong with any of their in-house paints.
     
    Sep 18, 2017
    Sirwillcode likes this.
  6. Emil Apostol

    Emil Apostol DS Legend

    Joined:
    Jan 4, 2017
    Location:
    Philippines
    Solid question!

    To supplement the discussion, has anyone noticed difference between the Sweets Paints by generation? @goenKendama once told me that the Pro Clear of the F2 generation of Kendamas might be different when compared to the F3 Pro Clear. Anyone have any experience with this?

    Also, let's also discuss other companies' paints! I personally want to inquire about:
    -Ozora Premium Paint
    -Krom Rubber
    -Krom LOL Clear
    -DWI Sticky AF
    -Sourmash Paint
    -KUSA Super Stick

    I've only ever played with Ozora Premium Paint and Super Stick, but here are my thoughts on those 2:

    -Premium Paint: From my experience, the earlier generations play like some would say how Pro Clear performs. It starts out slick with a little bit of grip, but breaks in super well and develops grip quickly. Later Premium Paint kendamas seem to have tack right out of the box, but it wears off eventually.
    -Super Stick: I would say that these are a bit less sticky than, say, Prime Paint, but they still offer a lot of tack. Highly recommended.
     
    Sep 18, 2017
  7. goenKendama

    goenKendama Administrator Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 14, 2016
    Location:
    Metro Manila, Philippines
    @Sirwillcode Sweets aTack paint is still my favorite especially in the Philippines where humidity really can change the way a paint or even natty perform. I understand that when they paint Cushion Clear over a color that color is aTack. Should be a killer combo since even if the Cushion wears down/off there's still aTack under it. I like aTack because the sticky is in the paint not a coating so I've had them last to the wood.

    @Emil Apostol From what I understand pretty much everyone tweaks their paints/coatings over time and weather and the paints themselves can change how well they work and hold up. It can be hit or miss sometimes and we've seen bad paint batches from several major brands. It happens but not often.

    As for rubber coat/paints, most that I've seen cut then peel so I'm not a big fan. Ozora Premium White was a different paint than the current gen Premiums. It didn't feel tacky to the hand but was to the wood. The new ones feel a bit like a "light" version of Prime/SuperStick glossy but tacky paints. I like it because it's gives you a bit of grip but still is easy to adjust. In the humidity here I've had some paints practically seem like glue on the tama and when you shift/adjust the ken just falls. Actually along those lines IIRC one of our players had a full aTack painted setup (ken & tama) and you could crush the tama to one of the cups and it'd stick there.
     
    Sep 18, 2017
    Gasiek, Emil Apostol and Sirwillcode like this.
  8. Emil Apostol

    Emil Apostol DS Legend

    Joined:
    Jan 4, 2017
    Location:
    Philippines
    In connection to the thread topic:

    Local Dama Shop is on Sale. Two old Sweets Kendamas at virtually the same price (difference of less than a dollar). F2 Pro Clear Marble, or F3 Stained Atack? Can only buy one.
     
    Sep 22, 2017
    James Hoang and Gasiek like this.
  9. Gasiek

    Gasiek Slayer

    Joined:
    Jan 20, 2017
    Location:
    Poland Wrocław
    Atack, it is very sticky, but not like other the sticky paints. It is more soft, when other sticky paints are hard, and the soft one is even more sticky in my opinion, but for me it is too sticky and it is not durable.
     
    Sep 22, 2017
    Emil Apostol likes this.
  10. Sirwillcode

    Sirwillcode Slayer

    Joined:
    Jan 21, 2017
    Location:
    Atlanta, GA
    I'd say atack as well. If it's stained a cool color that's just a bonus.
     
    Sep 22, 2017
  11. goenKendama

    goenKendama Administrator Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 14, 2016
    Location:
    Metro Manila, Philippines
    Not sure how hard you play and over what surfaces but most of the aTack painted kendama I've seen last until the wood. The only 2 exceptions I've seen are one that was heavily played over concrete (user error) and one that looks like the primer didn't hold properly and the surface peeled after about 4 months (factory error).

    (posted elsewhere on DS too, same batch Rasta aTacks; left is heavily played but still tacky)
     
    Sep 22, 2017
    James Hoang likes this.
  12. Gasiek

    Gasiek Slayer

    Joined:
    Jan 20, 2017
    Location:
    Poland Wrocław
    IMG_20170922_181914.jpg IMG_20170922_181921.jpg IMG_20170922_181938.jpg
    It was my first kendama, i glued it, and ofc newbie misses spikes a lot, so it probably helped killing this tama ;) but it is unplayable now because it is ultra sticky on paint, and ultra slippery near the hole.
     
    Sep 22, 2017
  13. goenKendama

    goenKendama Administrator Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 14, 2016
    Location:
    Metro Manila, Philippines
    Is it high humidity where you are? That seems to help the aTack here in the Philippines. Paint and paint application are subject to all sorts of variables so you can get a good one followed by a bad one. The Rastas above were part of the same order as the peeling F3 so you'd expect that they'd be the same but weather, chemicals, and human intervention can dramatically change the results. Personally the good ones far exceed the bad ones when dealing with aTack so I keep playing it. If the balance ever swings the other way it may be time to look for something new. YMMV
     
    Sep 22, 2017
  14. Gasiek

    Gasiek Slayer

    Joined:
    Jan 20, 2017
    Location:
    Poland Wrocław
    I live in Poland ;)
     
    Sep 23, 2017
  15. goenKendama

    goenKendama Administrator Staff Member

    Joined:
    Oct 14, 2016
    Location:
    Metro Manila, Philippines
    OK, you got me there. I have no clue what the weather is like in Poland.

    However I did have a third generation Polish-American friend who taught me the only word I know in Polish. I know I'm not spelling it correctly but it sounds like "penpak," which supposedly means "bellybutton" in English. I believe his grandmother was trying or had tried to teach him Polish at one time and I think that was the only word he knew/remembered at the time too. :confused:
     
    Sep 23, 2017
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  16. Emil Apostol

    Emil Apostol DS Legend

    Joined:
    Jan 4, 2017
    Location:
    Philippines
    Hi guys! Question, which would you prefer:

    -Cushion Clear on Beech Ken (Prime Custom),
    -Prime Clear on Beech Ken, or
    -Prime Clear on Maple Ken (Prime Pro Mod)?
     
    Nov 12, 2017
    James Hoang and ttocsic like this.
  17. Andy Dama

    Andy Dama Honed Member

    Joined:
    May 24, 2017
    Location:
    Milwaukee WI
    Prime Promod, good combination of wood, tracking, paint plays well, and maple ken is amazing
     
    Nov 12, 2017
    Jasper B. likes this.
  18. ttocsic

    ttocsic Slayer

    Joined:
    Sep 28, 2017
    Location:
    Atlanta, GA
    bumping @Emil Apostol 's thread because I would like to know what people prefer on this as well. I have a prime custom and have tried beech with sticky, and hope to get a pro mod for christmas. From the two I've tried, I actually prefer beech on prime clear because of the grip to slip ratio.
     
    Dec 16, 2017
  19. xplodit

    xplodit Slayer

    Joined:
    Sep 23, 2017
    Location:
    Memphis
    What’s the difference between these paints? Is pro clear sticky?
     
    Jan 17, 2018
  20. James Hoang

    James Hoang Slayer

    Joined:
    Nov 8, 2016
    Location:
    San Jose, CA and Milpitas, CA
    So cushion clear is like a silk/rubber paint clear that is already grippy out of the box, but it stays pretty grippy until the actual clear fully peels off. (Natties are a different story because you're applying it directly to the wood, so it takes a little more time to wear off. If you're talking about the Rustic HGs, then it might peel off. I'm not sure.)

    Pro clear on the other hand is just straight-up gloss when you first start to play it. I don't know how, but when it starts to break in just a little bit, it gets this little bit of stickiness that just feels amazing. Once you break it in fully, it gets to the point where it could even be considered tackier than aTack (someone correct me if I'm wrong).

    Personally, I do prefer pro clear as I'm not a huge fan of rubber/silk/cushion nowadays, but it's really just your opinion on which one to use/buy.
     
    Jan 17, 2018
    xplodit likes this.