How many is enough?

[jspierre]

How many weapons do people pack in their bag when they go to a major tourny? Does 3 sound like enough from your personal experience?

[Purple Fencer]

3 is ok, but more is better. I had a temamate go through 6 blades at a local tourney once!

I've got 4 foils, and there have been times I've been down to my last working one.

[swordsen]

that depends alot on how well you maintain your equipment, your fencing technique (some are harder on blades than others), and of course, how big your bag is.
I hyave generally found that three is ample for me. Usually I will use one for thewhole event. There have of course been times when I have had to borrow/buy more. But it has been very rare.

[Peach]

Last event I went to, I had 6 (and I'm a sabre fencer) but that was just because I had all my weapons in one place for a change. I usually go with three or four sabres and a couple of blades. I only take two weapons to the strip, though.

No good reason to have so many weapons; body cords and machines are the problem in sabre, not weapons; it's just that even though I may go through six months without a broken blade it's just as likely I'll break two in a single weekend, and though blades go in easily enough I'd rather do that when I know I don't have to be on strip in the near future.

[Peach]

. . . as opposed to my daughter, who usually goes to events with one working epee, a bunch of parts, two non-working epees, several partial epees, and all her tools, and she sits down after she gets to the hotel room and fixes weapons until she goes to sleep and then fixes them some more in the morning before she fences.

[SäbelFechter]

Personally, I've got two sabres in my bag (one I got about a year ago & the other was purchased two weeks ago). I've managed to get by without breaking any blades yet. However, I was at an intercollegiate tournament yesterday and saw the men's sabre team from my club (I'm not a student at the university) break two blades in quick succession during one team bout. Luckily, they made it through the rest of the tournament without more losses.

[Mergs]

The number varies, but mostly I have 5-6 foils and 3-4 epees. Up until the last tournament I usually only use one or two throughout. This ast one I used the same epee throughout the pools only to have it, and the other two crap out when I reported to strip for the DE! Most embarrasing for someone who claims to be an Armorer! Bottom line is take what you can afford, or fit in your bag.

[big poppa]

I carry three foils and three wired blades. It seems the more ready I am for a breakdown , the least likly it is to happen.

[escrime chick]

3 is ok, but 4 or more is better, especially for tournaments where you have to fence a lot more bouts... but in order to have 3-4 working weapons, you have to own a bunch more... <sigh> -- I own 4 foils, but usually only 2 are working at any given time...

[Inquartata]

Four to five sabres. I think of it a bit like a bag of golf clubs, different weapons for different situations ( opponents ). Of the three or four people in my club with whom I practice regularly, each has a specific weapon that works best against him, for some reason. And the same weapon against the others just don't work as well. A certain weight, bend, guard configuration or balance seems better suited to a certain type of opponent. Bizarre, but true...

[Methix]

I fence epee and foil and carry 3 weapons + a wired blade of each. It's a little low compared to what a lot of people take, but I make SURE they work before I leave for the competition.

[Sciurus Rex]

Four working epees. When everyone says three, I feel more secure with one more.

... Hmmm.
Now that everyone says four, I'm thinking I probably need five...

[MikeHarm]

My rule of thumb is to start with the minimum and everytime you break enough so that you find yourself down to one weapon or less at a tournament add another weapon to your kit before the next one. I'm up to five now.

[Arturo]

I take as many working blades as I can put in my bag. For some reason I might have angered the foil gods (perhaps when I swiched to Epee, but I came back to the light) no matter how many blades I take, I will have only one left by the end of the tournament.

PS- JS, your name sounds familiar, I think that we might have had dinner in Sacramento with the triplette people. Is that you??

[sallearmourer]

For my family I try to have four working weapons each except for sabre. If you know the family that alot of weapons. Four weapons is normally the right amount. But I know someone went to New York with 6 epees and step out on the strip and was down 4-0 without a touch being fence. He won it 5-4 what a great come from behind win.

Tim Loomis

[andres]

well, i live in mexico and since i dont have someone to fix my foils in my city i have to fix em on my own or go to the tournaments and hope the guy fixes 'em. i usually carry 6 foils, everybody makes fun of me but normally 3 or 4 work the other ones i carry to fix.

[foxwhelp]

The easy answer is that enough is one more than the number you have.

[Chris]

[quote]Originally posted by Peach:
<strong>. . . as opposed to my daughter, who usually goes to events with one working epee, a bunch of parts, two non-working epees, several partial epees, and all her tools, and she sits down after she gets to the hotel room and fixes weapons until she goes to sleep and then fixes them some more in the morning before she fences.</strong><hr></blockquote>


Sounds like part of her pre-event ritual!

Chris

[edew]

I carry seventeen weapons with me. Anything wrong with that?

[veeco]

I carry two epees, and no spare blades. I can't afford buying 2 dozens of blades, so when one breaks, I take the other one, I ask someone to go to the nearest fencing equipment vendor (or I go myself if I'm not fencing) and buy another blade.

I usually fence with one of the weapons in practice and I have another, stiffer one for competitions