u/wisteriamacrostachya

I recently bought some used genuine tezashi kote with natural off-white deerskin reinforcements. I wear white sometimes, so having non-marking kote in the quiver would be nice, and I got a very good price considering the quality.

All the soft parts are in good repair, with the exception of permanent marker on the deerskin, years of grime, and some very small holes in the reinforcement. They could use a careful re-palm as well, the shape is a bit long where my hands are broad. The laces were fine but old and a bit tight so I just cut them as part of cleaning.

I'm in North America, is there anyone specific you'd recommend for an overhaul on some really nice kote? This project is a bit more involved than some bogu-ya accept. I could send them overseas if need be, or carefully do some basic work like cleaning and lacing.

E: They are a pair by Tokyo Ohnoya, maybe 2.5-3bu. I understand that means probably any of the Tokyo tezashi shops could handle it?

I mean in regular speech or writing, how do YOU pluralize the word or refer to a group of instructors? It's one of those little details of Anglophone budo communication I find interesting.

Here are some approaches I've seen:

• Senseigata/先生方 is the literal pluralization in Japanese - I see this used in formal emails sometimes. Doesn't flow very well in English speech I think, comes off very formal in English writing. Good for bilingual audiences or if the formality is intended.
• Senseis - straightforward English plural. It doesn't roll off the tongue I think. Very common. Throw in an apostrophe if you want, capitalize or lowercase, lots of room to maneuver in writing.
• Dodge the word itself; say "instructors" or "everyone" or point and say "you guys". Very common. You can get away with only using "sensei" as a suffix on someone's name or direct address to a teacher.
• My suggestion: senseii. Sticks to the "palette" of Japanese words with a long I, would form a nice distinct accent location from the singular in both typical English and Japanese pronunciation, scans as a plural of a Latin root to an English reader.

If you aren't attached already, let me know how that last one goes on your next important email.

Bonus points...capitalize or no?