overlapping each other. This design provided greater hand mass, and defensive guard, but resulted in larger weapons, not easily concealed, and more difficult to learn. The improved horseshoe tekko featured the two horseshoes welded together. However, the popularity of the horseshoe tekko faded, as attention turned to the smaller, more concealable horse stirrup. The horse stirrup ("abumi") version consists of a semicircle, with two ends connected by a bar. Some think of this as solely a fist-loaded weapon: primarily a form of knuckleduster (brass knuckles). However, stirrup of Okinawan lineage does not have dividers to separate the fingers. Furthermore, the traditional stirrup tekko consists of light metal and wood, whereas modern day manufacturers of the knucklebuster version tend to focus on heavy metals such as brass, although modern models made out of such diverse materials as aluminium, wood, steel, iron, and even plastic do exist. Construction Artisans crafted the traditional stirrup upon which the modern design evolved from either wood or metal and were often made from a piece of flat bar, bent into a horseshoe shape and held together by a bolt, to form a "D" shape. For weapons application, would-be combatants sometimes enhanced the design by embedding additional bolts into the horseshoe shape, to inflict greater injury. Other styles of tekko exhibit sharp protrusions at either end and three spikes representative of the position of the knuckles. As the most recent incarnation, the stirrup version remains the favorite of a predominance of kobudo practitioners. Controversy surrounds the stirrup tekko. because many kobudo practitioners liken them to "brass knuckles", the possession of which the jurisdiction of many states prohibit as concealed weapons. Owning, and carrying this brass knuckles, often has legal ramifications. However, "brass knuckles" have finger dividers; stirrup tekko do not. Although many kobudo practitioners claim that brass knuckles evolved from the tekko, brass knuckles more closely resembles the handle of the Western "trench knife". One cannot always distinguish between the appearance of the tekko and that of the knives. Westerners came in contact with Okinawan martial art in the 1940s. The trench knife, and Western brass knuckles, date back to World War I (with pictures of the "brass knuckle handle" trench knife dating back to 1917). Another controversy surrounds the desire of some kobudo practitioners to revive the horseshoe tekko. Differing schools advocate for the stirrup or horseshoe. Although advocates for the stirrup tekko emphasize near consensus,