Equipment Store Reviews

Reviews for Shops in
Hong Kong

The following reviews are independently written by people who have visited or purchased from the shops listed. They are provided for informational and review purposes only and should not be seen as either endorsements for or discouragements against using these vendors by myself or the Lion's Cave Website. If you are interested in purchasing Lion Dance equipment it is your responsibility to check into the details for yourself. I hope you find the following information helpful, but remember that everybody's opinion is different and product quality can vary depending on a number of different factors--so what one person experienced may or may not be true of the store now.

	Comparisons

Kung Fu Supplies Company

Jason Lee, Wed, 26 Apr 2000 23:11:26 -0400
I had emailed them to see if a catalog was available. The guy, I forgot his name, told me all the infomation i need was on the site. Which really isn't. If you look at the site, there are just pictures or the equipment, the lion heads don't have sizes or prices. I also asked the guy if I'm able to get different colors, and if so, can I get pictures of them. He said no, If I wanted a gold one, it'd look like the one on the site, but in gold. He wasn't too helpfull and by his attitude I wasn't gonna go any further. It was alomst as if he didn't want my business.. ??

Albert Le, Thu, 27 Apr 2000 16:23:21 -0700
Well I haven't ordered directly through them,but i do have one of their lions. It's pretty well made. Their tails are nice and the pants are too. When you order them, i think they gave you leg wraps. The lion we bought came with leg wraps. The lion head is nice too, very simliar to the malaysian lions but with its own twist. The structure is pretty sturdy, but not the sturdiest. The stuff inside the head are tied or held down. Nothing moves, not even the the eyeballs so when you dance, you don't that shaky noise you would hear with the generic China lions. It's pretty silent when you jerk it. The art aren't as extravagant as Sifu Siow's lions but they are still pretty good.

Luen Fat Cheung

Corey Chan, Wed, 17 Apr 1996 10:23:20 -0800
I have no experience with Luen Fat Cheung's heads. I've seen pictures. You name it, they make it. And then some. Anybody ever seen a tiger head? They've got that too. Sifu Chan there was very nice to me. Other people around here prefer his lions.
Price for a custom lion with shoes and pants from Hong Kong's probably in the neighborhood of $2000. Nice neighborhood, huh? Like Boardwalk with a hotel. Tip: specify everything you can think of. Then ask someone else and have them think of more stuff that you may have forgotten to specify. Otherwise, you'll get the color du jour.

Sherman Wong, Thu, 05 Dec 1996 22:26:17 -0800
If you ever played a lion from the Lin Fat Cheong (spelling?) factory in Hong Kong, their handles are angled similar to the Hok San handles and it's really easy to shake that head around.

Stephen Chew, Tue, 26 Nov 1996 17:01:19 -0800
He said the art of making lions was dying in hong Kong since most folks get them from China. His shop was very small and he only had the China lions there. He had pictures of the ones he made though. Prices he threw out were $2000 HKD ($260 US) for complete head and tail/pants from China and about the same price for Tails/pants only made in Hong Kong. He wouldn't quote a price for the head since he would custom make those himself. Again the big ticket item was shipping. They ship in 32x32 boxes and you have to pay an export tax. The tax is lower with volume. The China made lions are the ones you see in the tourist shops in SF Chinatown. They cost about $600 (if you're lucky) here for the whole thing but very few places carry pants. The ones that Chan Sifu made are very traditional and look great. The frames are all bamboo and the fur is the more traditional hair like strands.

Eugenia Chau, Mon, 15 May 2000
This is our first time that our school brought lion heads form Luen Fat Cheung. Although there shop was not very big they have about 20 lion heads. (size 2 and 3) Some Unicorns, 6 to 7 drums and lots of pants, tails and shoes in many different colors. So if your are missing a pants or want to replace a tail go there. You should find colors that matchs your lions. They have both Fo Shan & Hok Shan lion heads. They have painted and shiny plated ones. The paints ones are cheaper then the shiny plated ones. Painted ones cost HK$ 3800 and shiny plated ones are HK$ 4800. They includes tail 2 pants, and 2 pairs of shoes. The lion's eyes can be light up too. The lions are very nice they are the very furry the fur were made from sheeps. Both painted and plated heads have the furs form sheeps. The furs also comes in different colors too. The old man who runs the shop was very nice the talks about he own a factory in China and he can custom made lions, dragons and anything. All you have to do is to show them a picture and they will make it for you. You can tell them the colors that you want too. The guy was very helpful, he can answer most of the questions on lion dance.

Pak Wan Sports Co.

Corey Chan, Wed, 17 Apr 1996 10:23:20 -0800
Now before anybody jumps on me, let's just say everybody has their own preference for lions. If you like the way your lion looks, then your lion is the best lion for you. That's it. We've bought lions from Sifu Mok at Pak Wan because the colors are vibrant, the balls are great, and the heads are strong. One feature that is uniquely theirs is that their lions also have some plastic (thick fishing line) hair. Advantage: plastic hair looks the same ten years later (it'll last longer than the lion head itself). Disadvantage: looks like plastic hair (if you don't like plastic hair). If you ask for nice material on the pants and tail, you get it. You'll be PAYING for it, but you get it. We like their stuff.

Ernie Loo, Wed, 26 Apr 2000 21:48:30 -1000 (HST)
From what I understand from my Hong Kong source, Pak Wan Sports Company have been out of business for a couple of years already.

Kin Sze, Wed, 11 Oct 2000 00:59:14 -0400
Just FYI, I went to HK in Nov 1999 and found that Pak Wan Sports Co. is no more in business. The owner has retired. We used a lot of their lion heads....very good quality too. Some lasted more than 10 years.

Sang Woo Loong

Sherman Wong, Thu, 28 Aug 1997 22:46:47 -0700
Our last order with them came in wood crates and their quality was not the greatest. You can look at some of the older heads at KMT and Lung Kong and compare them with the newer ones. The heads were all from Sang Woo Loong but the later ones have much wider spacing in the framing and the bamboo is weaker. They also shipped us some drums and instruments but it was very obvious that they came from China. In fact, the container the drum came in said "made in China". Sang Woo Loong just painted their name on the drum. Word to the wise: If your buying a drum from HK, think again. Most are made in China and could probably be bought at a cheaper price.

Ernie Loo, Wed, 26 Apr 2000 21:45:24 -1000 (HST)
I was in Hong Kong three weeks ago so all the information is accurate. I know him very well, since our club buys from Mr. Leung. His prices are higher but his workmanship is beautiful. His lion heads are well fortified with extra bamboo ribs inside the head. Very sturdy compared with the generic Fat Shan heads from China. Lots of bamboo strips inside the head and very hard to break. The only weak points are the lower mouth. The inside never breaks because there are bamboo crossbeams every one or two inches apart.
They are at least 5 to 10 pounds heavier than the Fat Shan heads that I have carried. Even Master Siou's head is a featherweight compared with Mr. Leung's.

Yue Wah

Stephan Chew
There are alot of Yue Wah stores but this is the only one that carries lions. They had China made lions for about $200US. Looked pretty nice.

Reto Turnell, Mon, 14 May 2001 12:33:35 +0200
The "Yue Wah chinese products store" is located at the corner Nathan Road and Jordan Road. The easiest way to find, take the MTR for the Jordan Station and go out at the gate Yue Wah. The Yue Wah is a big store for chinese goods. Use the stairs and you find in the 4. floor some lions. The quality of the lion is not superior, but for the price very okay. All of the lion looks very nice. The most lions are Foshan (6-8 differnts), one Hokshan and also one Unicorn. The price for a head is 1400 HK$ (~310 CHF/~190 US$) and for the tail 1200 HK$ (~260 CHF/160~US$). You get 10-20 % discount when you buy two or three lions.

If you've been to or purchased equipment from a store in this area and would like to write a review, email it to me and I'll include it here the next time I update the page.

	Kung Fu Supplies Company
Jason Lee, Wed, 26 Apr 2000 23:11:26 -0400 I had emailed them to see if a catalog was available. The guy, I forgot his name, told me all the infomation i need was on the site. Which really isn't. If you look at the site, there are just pictures or the equipment, the lion heads don't have sizes or prices. I also asked the guy if I'm able to get different colors, and if so, can I get pictures of them. He said no, If I wanted a gold one, it'd look like the one on the site, but in gold. He wasn't too helpfull and by his attitude I wasn't gonna go any further. It was alomst as if he didn't want my business.. ??
Albert Le, Thu, 27 Apr 2000 16:23:21 -0700 Well I haven't ordered directly through them,but i do have one of their lions. It's pretty well made. Their tails are nice and the pants are too. When you order them, i think they gave you leg wraps. The lion we bought came with leg wraps. The lion head is nice too, very simliar to the malaysian lions but with its own twist. The structure is pretty sturdy, but not the sturdiest. The stuff inside the head are tied or held down. Nothing moves, not even the the eyeballs so when you dance, you don't that shaky noise you would hear with the generic China lions. It's pretty silent when you jerk it. The art aren't as extravagant as Sifu Siow's lions but they are still pretty good.

	Luen Fat Cheung
Corey Chan, Wed, 17 Apr 1996 10:23:20 -0800 I have no experience with Luen Fat Cheung's heads. I've seen pictures. You name it, they make it. And then some. Anybody ever seen a tiger head? They've got that too. Sifu Chan there was very nice to me. Other people around here prefer his lions. Price for a custom lion with shoes and pants from Hong Kong's probably in the neighborhood of $2000. Nice neighborhood, huh? Like Boardwalk with a hotel. Tip: specify everything you can think of. Then ask someone else and have them think of more stuff that you may have forgotten to specify. Otherwise, you'll get the color du jour.
Sherman Wong, Thu, 05 Dec 1996 22:26:17 -0800 If you ever played a lion from the Lin Fat Cheong (spelling?) factory in Hong Kong, their handles are angled similar to the Hok San handles and it's really easy to shake that head around.
Stephen Chew, Tue, 26 Nov 1996 17:01:19 -0800 He said the art of making lions was dying in hong Kong since most folks get them from China. His shop was very small and he only had the China lions there. He had pictures of the ones he made though. Prices he threw out were $2000 HKD ($260 US) for complete head and tail/pants from China and about the same price for Tails/pants only made in Hong Kong. He wouldn't quote a price for the head since he would custom make those himself. Again the big ticket item was shipping. They ship in 32x32 boxes and you have to pay an export tax. The tax is lower with volume. The China made lions are the ones you see in the tourist shops in SF Chinatown. They cost about $600 (if you're lucky) here for the whole thing but very few places carry pants. The ones that Chan Sifu made are very traditional and look great. The frames are all bamboo and the fur is the more traditional hair like strands.
Eugenia Chau, Mon, 15 May 2000 This is our first time that our school brought lion heads form Luen Fat Cheung. Although there shop was not very big they have about 20 lion heads. (size 2 and 3) Some Unicorns, 6 to 7 drums and lots of pants, tails and shoes in many different colors. So if your are missing a pants or want to replace a tail go there. You should find colors that matchs your lions. They have both Fo Shan & Hok Shan lion heads. They have painted and shiny plated ones. The paints ones are cheaper then the shiny plated ones. Painted ones cost HK$ 3800 and shiny plated ones are HK$ 4800. They includes tail 2 pants, and 2 pairs of shoes. The lion's eyes can be light up too. The lions are very nice they are the very furry the fur were made from sheeps. Both painted and plated heads have the furs form sheeps. The furs also comes in different colors too. The old man who runs the shop was very nice the talks about he own a factory in China and he can custom made lions, dragons and anything. All you have to do is to show them a picture and they will make it for you. You can tell them the colors that you want too. The guy was very helpful, he can answer most of the questions on lion dance.

	Pak Wan Sports Co.
Corey Chan, Wed, 17 Apr 1996 10:23:20 -0800 Now before anybody jumps on me, let's just say everybody has their own preference for lions. If you like the way your lion looks, then your lion is the best lion for you. That's it. We've bought lions from Sifu Mok at Pak Wan because the colors are vibrant, the balls are great, and the heads are strong. One feature that is uniquely theirs is that their lions also have some plastic (thick fishing line) hair. Advantage: plastic hair looks the same ten years later (it'll last longer than the lion head itself). Disadvantage: looks like plastic hair (if you don't like plastic hair). If you ask for nice material on the pants and tail, you get it. You'll be PAYING for it, but you get it. We like their stuff.
Ernie Loo, Wed, 26 Apr 2000 21:48:30 -1000 (HST) From what I understand from my Hong Kong source, Pak Wan Sports Company have been out of business for a couple of years already.
Kin Sze, Wed, 11 Oct 2000 00:59:14 -0400 Just FYI, I went to HK in Nov 1999 and found that Pak Wan Sports Co. is no more in business. The owner has retired. We used a lot of their lion heads....very good quality too. Some lasted more than 10 years.

	Sang Woo Loong
Sherman Wong, Thu, 28 Aug 1997 22:46:47 -0700 Our last order with them came in wood crates and their quality was not the greatest. You can look at some of the older heads at KMT and Lung Kong and compare them with the newer ones. The heads were all from Sang Woo Loong but the later ones have much wider spacing in the framing and the bamboo is weaker. They also shipped us some drums and instruments but it was very obvious that they came from China. In fact, the container the drum came in said "made in China". Sang Woo Loong just painted their name on the drum. Word to the wise: If your buying a drum from HK, think again. Most are made in China and could probably be bought at a cheaper price.
Ernie Loo, Wed, 26 Apr 2000 21:45:24 -1000 (HST) I was in Hong Kong three weeks ago so all the information is accurate. I know him very well, since our club buys from Mr. Leung. His prices are higher but his workmanship is beautiful. His lion heads are well fortified with extra bamboo ribs inside the head. Very sturdy compared with the generic Fat Shan heads from China. Lots of bamboo strips inside the head and very hard to break. The only weak points are the lower mouth. The inside never breaks because there are bamboo crossbeams every one or two inches apart. They are at least 5 to 10 pounds heavier than the Fat Shan heads that I have carried. Even Master Siou's head is a featherweight compared with Mr. Leung's.

	Yue Wah
Stephan Chew There are alot of Yue Wah stores but this is the only one that carries lions. They had China made lions for about $200US. Looked pretty nice.
Reto Turnell, Mon, 14 May 2001 12:33:35 +0200 The "Yue Wah chinese products store" is located at the corner Nathan Road and Jordan Road. The easiest way to find, take the MTR for the Jordan Station and go out at the gate Yue Wah. The Yue Wah is a big store for chinese goods. Use the stairs and you find in the 4. floor some lions. The quality of the lion is not superior, but for the price very okay. All of the lion looks very nice. The most lions are Foshan (6-8 differnts), one Hokshan and also one Unicorn. The price for a head is 1400 HK$ (~310 CHF/~190 US$) and for the tail 1200 HK$ (~260 CHF/160~US$). You get 10-20 % discount when you buy two or three lions.