Armoury

A summary of all Three Fencing Weapons

What equipment will you need:

Generally, to start fencing, you will need: a jacket, a glove, a mask, and a sous plastron. Cut changes between manufactures. Some are maybe more comfortable then others or of better quality materials. You buy what you pay for, so shop around. What you should know about weapons: there are only six foundries in the world. That means regardless of who sells the blade, they all came from one of the six places. The big differences between the blades are in the wiring and how they are balanced. Some suppliers are better than others, but those are all personal preferences. All blades are designed to break (it's a safety thing). Cheaper blades have wider tolerances, which means they break more often than expensive blades. Nonetheless, how a blade breaks is all dependant on how one fences. You can break an expensive blade in one tournament and have a cheap blade last you the whole season. It's all in the way you fence and where a particular blade's tolerance is bound to be. The biggest question is how much you can afford and or willing to spend.

Buying Equipment

First thing to know is that there are four vendors in southern Ontario:
How does the equipment compare.
Allstar equipment is generally considered a top of the line brand, resulting in a slightly higher price.
The York fencing club has had a long relationship with Fleche Fencing Supplies at http://www.fleche.ca/index.html. Most of the equipment the club uses was supplied by this company. Fleche Fencing Supplies also carry a higher end line Negrini line, which is similar to Allstar. For your first set of equipment or if you are a recreational fencer, Fleche is the way to go. If you want to be highly competitive, provincially and nationally, you’ll want to spend the extra money for FIE marked equipment, such as Negrini or Allstar.
Duellist Canada is a line carried by one of the York fencing club alumni. The prices are similar to that of Fleche. The cut is maybe a little nicer, but Duellist is a new company and there are not many reviews of their products. This company is also a good start for first time buyers. http://www.duellistcanada.com/
Fencers Network is another supplies seller, they are a new company based in Newmarket. http://www.fencersnetwork.com
For product reviews and other great fencing info have a look at: http://fencing.net/

What is in an Armoury Tool Box?


First Aid Kit for Weapons (the most often used tools)
Precision screwdrivers, Needle nose vice grip ,Multi head screw driver, 6mm hex/Allen key, Pliers, Flat magnet, Box cutter, Lighter.
Tool Box
More precision screwdrivers, More magnets, Multi meter, Soldering iron, Black 400 girt metal sand paper, Metal file, Point set, Favero Tester, Gap tester, Bigger box cutter, Duck tape, Electrical tape, Fabric tapes (medical, hockey and something else) Aluminium tape, Rubbing alcohol, Q-tips/ cotton swabs, String, Various spare parts (Washers, tips, foil wires), Super glue.
What is left in the Closet
Various lengths of wires (body cords, old floor cord), 3 1/2 feet of metal gas pipe, sealed at one end, Acetone, Spare parts from 6 years of armoury work, Glues.

General Care of your equipment:

Keep your sword in a dry place.
To prevent rust, rub some oil over the blade.
To prolong the life of a blade or attempt to bend and/or reshape the sword, one must warm the metal up. To do so, use an old towel and rub vigorously. If this method is one correctly, one can take a blade that had become bent to a 45 degree angle, to a straight blade once again. Using this process can save the sword for a few extra months.
Imagine being on the strip in the final match of the tournament and suddenly, your weapon is not working. What do you do? The best thing for a fencer to do is to learn how to diagnose the problem.
Check all the connections
Now look forward from your weapon hand.

Armoury Web:


http://www.leonpaul.com/armoury/armoury_home.htm
http://www.leonpaulusa.com/fencing/armoury/armoury.htm