I tried placing an order with the Vulpis guy, and he blatantly told me it was impossible without any explanation or attempts at communicating with me for clarity on why I couldn't have eku beyond length. Then, a month later, he was making things the length he said wasn't possible. He just makes excuses and is arrogant. I just made my own instead of accepting that treatment.
being half maori, i got the patu so i could keep part of my heritage with me edit: the technique my father taught me for this is a bit different from what ive seen online, i was taught to use the pommel for your strikes and the paddle for blocking and parrying, its practical once you get the hang of pommel striking
Hard for even me to believe but my Kore tactical belt is 8 yrs old!! Thats awesome and it still works great. Before that I went thru belts every 2-3 years max.