Fencing.Net - Your Guide to Fencing & Fencing Equipment

prototoast · 07-06-2005, 09:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Duellist USA

Nope we dont currently have clear... We do have

Pink
Black
Green
Purple
Red
Red/Black/Red
Red/White/Blue
Red/Yellow/Black
Black/Orange/Black
Red/Yellow/Black

Theres another new one...I just can't remember which it is...but we also make most colors on special requests.

Rick Shellhouse

Might I suggest offering clear?

Duellist USA · 07-06-2005, 11:09 AM

Clear....only problem I could see with that is the ends....clear ones might be tough to find...but we may be able to offer clear with some sort of color end.

I will check into it. We manufacture them here in the states so will be easy enough to see about getting the wire made...

Rick Shellhouse

prototoast · 07-06-2005, 11:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Duellist USA

Clear....only problem I could see with that is the ends....clear ones might be tough to find...but we may be able to offer clear with some sort of color end.

I will check into it. We manufacture them here in the states so will be easy enough to see about getting the wire made...

Rick Shellhouse

Why would clear be difficult on the ends? LP, Uhlmann/Allstar offer clear wire, and it can be quite useful for finding breaks. While colors may look pretty from time to time, ease of repair is my personal priority.

Point_Left · 07-06-2005, 01:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by prototoast

Why would clear be difficult on the ends?

I think he means "plugs." Not the colour of the wire coating at the ends.

All of my body cords are cursed. Every single time I have bought a body cord, the end is pre-corroded. Of couse, by the time I have checked this the vendor in question has already left (or I have left). If I have the vendor do a resistance test by the time I have gotten home the end has already corroded. I don't use them very often (just competition because we usually don't fence electric at my club). I don't live in a wet climate. I don't leave them in my fencing bag with my wet gear. In conclusion: there should be an option for all body cords are cursed.

El Chucko · 07-08-2005, 02:59 AM

I have officially sworn off of bargain body cords, or "German" (style) body cords, and will now officially buy only Uhlmann brand.

At my club, we have had a severe epidemic very recently of so-called "German" body cords and sockets that are made to look like Uhlmann, but made by some half-asses that do not make their products to consistent specifications.

The biggest problem that we have been having is that some plugs have pins that are just SLIGHTLY too far apart or SLIGHTLY too close together, or sockets with comparable issues. Similarly, some pins are too narrow, and some sockets are too wide. The result? Inconsistent connections which lead to intermittent circuits.

With foil, this means phantom off-target lights in mid-air. With epee, this mean occasionally hitting your opponent like a champ, but getting no light at all.

Has anyone else experienced these problems? DHC, the armory guru that he is, has had some advice for the narrow pins in another thread. For the other issues, I think I am just resigned to shelling out the extra dough for Uhlmann.

Nusy · 07-08-2005, 07:35 AM

I voted for Uhlmann, as PBT is actually the same as Uhlmann in some items (gloves, cords, grips).
I use a PBT one and lots of others, made by our armorer - those ones don't last too long. My PBT didn't break in about a year, and for me that's a really long period...

KD5MDK · 07-09-2005, 06:19 AM

Are Negrinis not worth the money? They're certainly spendy to get over here.

CvilleFencer · 07-09-2005, 06:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KD5MDK

Are Negrinis not worth the money? They're certainly spendy to get over here.

I think that the Negrinni cords and the Leon Paul cords are the two best on the market, but for slightly different reasons. The Negrinni cords last a very very long time, are fairly sturdy and are well made. The catch is that the contacts are soldered onto eyelets that are then bolted onto the prongs that go into the weapon and reel. This is very sturdy and the copper stranded steel cored wire they are made with is very robust. The catch of course is that when it breaks, for the average fencer with an average traveling toolkit there is no way to get it working again. It is broken until you have a fair amount of time and access to a soldering gun/wand and some time to play with it.

The LP cords use very thin wire that has lots and lots of strands to carry the stress and the wire is pretty high quality to begin with so they last longer than any except the Negrinni in my experience. The way they connect to the socket is with self piercing screws so that when the wire does need to be repaired you just loosen the screws, pull it through and tighten it back down. You don’t even have to clip off the excess technically speaking on most repairs so it is safe to say that all you need is a small screwdriver to repair the cord and it is very quick and easy to do. So while they might not last quite as long as the Negrinni before needing a repair they still outlast all others I have tried, function very well in a variety of reels/sockets due to the offset pins and are a fair bit cheaper than the Negrinni while being much easier to repair in the field.

The clencher for me is the weight. The LP cords weigh next to nothing and have a very low profile while in the weapon socket. They are also the only cords I have used where I am not aware of the cord in my weapon and running down my arm. For me they are the best cords, but I would not say they are better than the Negrinni, just better in different ways. Of course with LP USA they cost a fair bit less so that is yet another consideration. I will say that I think both the LP and the Negrinni are better cords than any of the others on the market that I have ever tried. And short of the Japanese and Camimari cords I think I have tried them all...

KD5MDK · 07-09-2005, 07:14 PM

Well, I use 2prong, although I see LP supports that. However, one worry is my current cheap cords have retaining devices, which don't work at all. I'd like to be able to verify they'd clip onto my weapons effectively. Oh well.

JTR714 · 07-11-2005, 09:13 PM

We only use the Favero epee and foil body cords at our club and have been extremely happy with them. After 7 months of newbies pulling on them we have yet to have a wire break! The only down side is that the screws holding in the wires in the 2 prong end have had a tnedency to come loose. On the up side, it's about a 60 second repair and can be prevented with a touch of lock-tite glue. We have found that they are also more comfortable when fencing.

I know that many fencers like the Uhlmann cords, but I'm sick of repairing the broken wires!

AllisonT · 07-14-2005, 10:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Duellist USA

I happen to love my solid black Duellist body cords

I love my PINK Duelist USA body cords! I love them because I always know which cord is mine, they are incredibly sturdy and don't have an extra 4 feet of cord for me to trip over when I'm hooking up/out. So far so good.

I'm strickly a 2-prong girl. I agree that all the bad cords I've seen at my club are bayonettes that become white light generators.

AllisonT · 07-14-2005, 11:04 AM

Some day. Equipment suppliers will build an integrated body cord for 2 weapon fencers.... How many tourneys have you seen people with 2 cord "tails" walking around and figuring out which one to hook up with when they go on strip?

Untapped market here.

DHCJr · 07-14-2005, 11:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AllisonT

Some day. Equipment suppliers will build an integrated body cord for 2 weapon fencers.... How many tourneys have you seen people with 2 cord "tails" walking around and figuring out which one to hook up with when they go on strip?

Untapped market here.

It wouldn't take much to do it yourself and it is a lot easier than you think. Take an Epee bodycord and attach a wire with a legal clip to the A line. You have a combined bodycord. Use a Epee connector in your Foil and connect the wire from the blade to the center post.

This conforms to all rules.

KD5MDK · 07-14-2005, 02:25 PM

Just use the epee clip on the weapon end?

fencinman89 · 07-14-2005, 02:51 PM

Yes thats all you do, put an epee socket on your foils and attach the wires to the B pin, the middle one. Ive done it before. Its funny to mess with the Newbies that way.

Duellist USA · 07-14-2005, 08:44 PM

We are glad you like the pink body cord...if you have any problems with it...let me know...

Rick Shellhouse

AntonioDelMonte · 07-17-2005, 10:26 PM

Uhlmann Connectors
speaker wire
aligator clips from radio shack
that's about it

Sumo_Sniper · 07-18-2005, 11:45 AM

I use a relatively cheap PBT two pin, but it is modified. Mainly, I open it up, clean up the wires and tighten the screws a little better, then put some shrink tube over the end to stiffen it and stop the breaks-right-at-the-edge-of-the-plug that we all know and love. Not that they aren't easy to fix at the expense of a couple of centimeters of bodywire, mind you.

Sword Mistress · 07-28-2005, 07:13 PM

If i was just going to straight up buy a body wire, i would probably look for price and functionality, which would mean i'd go for the mid-range Favero cords. they are affordable and still pretty durable. and when they do break (when not if, and that goes for ANY body cord. it WILL break eventually), they are alot easier to take apart and put together than the clamshell designs that are so popular. blegh.

now if i'm looking for something to buy and not repair for a LONG time, i'd go with Negrini. the poster that mentioned the fact that they are not field repairable is right. but, how often is that going to happen with a Negrini body wire??

Uhlmann's are okay, but really they go on brand name dependability now. They screw up alot more than people think these days and get away with it because their name is so trusted. i still think if you take them apart and re-do all the soldering and put a GOOD strain relief (whether tape or shrink tubing, etc) before you ever use them, it might make them a little more trusty, but if i'm going to spend around $30+ for a body wire, why not just throw in another $10 or more and get a Negrini?

and i hate bayonets.

JAySE SUiCiDE · 08-01-2005, 10:25 PM

I made my own b.c., and it has lasted just as long as any other one i have. all of mine last a long time-i think the thing here is how you treat your body cords. what they're made out of will make a difference, but how you treat them will be almost as important. so treat them right-don't pull on them too hard when tightening slack, don't throw them around, step on them etc, don't clip the alligator clip right onto the wires, etc. I do all that and mine work nearly forever.

but the b.c. i made myself is plain copper speaker wire from radio shack (has clear coating, they have different kinds of wire there) and one of the lines has a red stripe so you don't get them confused. then i just add a cheap alligator clip and connectors, usually from allstar 'cause they're cheapest.