non-brand name bodycords

[_fence(1)]

Non-brand name bodycords (sabre) - do they work? Is that true that 2-prong ones are more reliable compared to bayonet ones?

[Purple Fencer]

Originally Posted by _fence(1)

Non-brand name bodycords (sabre) - do they work? Is that true that 2-prong ones are more reliable compared to bayonet ones?

The Bayonet's major failing is that it has moving parts that wear out -- specifically, the spring under the contact plate. The LP version also can be subject to popping out of the plastic retaining nubs on the interior wear out.

This is not a problem with the Italian type bayonet, since the recieving socket is metal....but they still have the risk of the spring breaking.

The Leon Paul version DOES have two big advantages over the 2 pin types...the electrical connection is better because of the use of piercing screws (an item that Uhlmann did NOT include when they copied the LP...good goin' guys...don't use the best part of the design). In addition, I have never seen the kind of wire breaks you see in teh Uhlmann type 2 pins (caused by the hard body), because of the long rubber boot that widens the bend radius of the wire, lessening the fatigue factor.

The big advantage of the various 2 prong systems is there are no moving parts to wear out. The disadvantages tend to vary from brand to brand.

Prieur: no wire breaks at the plug body, but the set screws are exposed and often fall out. Also the plastic retaining clip on the socket bracket almost never fits the way it;s supposed to. The expanding parts of the pins eventually get mashed down and have to be expanded with a jeweler's screwdriver.

Uhlmann/Allstar/Mr. Chen/PBT type 2 pin: Frequently get wire breaks right where the wires emerge for the hard plastic body. The pins have varying types of expanding parts, but all have the same problem as the Prieur pins eventually. The built in retaining clip means yhou can use these with either an Uhlmann or Prieur 2 pin socket....you CAN use a Prieur cord in an Uhlmann socket, but you;ll have to find some other way to secure the plug, since the Uhlmann bracket is too wide for the Prieur clip.

Leon Paul 2 pin: Socket is similar to the Prieur (slightly different shape, but still with the plastic retaining clip...but unlike the Prieur, the Pauls actually FIT) and the plugs have a rubber boot like on the bayonets...for teh same reason. The major differance is Paul uses solid pins that are NOT in line with each other...when the plug is insertedm, the pins straighten out, and that pressure is what maintains contact between the pins and socket...the smooth pins also don't chew up the inside fo the socket.

H.O.M. cord...I'll let you know in January. It'll be a 2 pin, tho.

[yeoldearmourer]

The major problem with the two pin bodycord is one the retined clip which is a moving part which does come off and can be carded for non cofroming equipment two the nuts on the prong socket it's will work loose and the nuts aren't easy to find. Has far as the Italian bayonet goes I have sockets that are 20 years old and still working with out a hitch.

[_fence(1)]

What about "house brands", like Physical Chess, Absolute Fencing etc?

Are they any good?

[larkmaj]

Originally Posted by _fence(1)

What about "house brands", like Physical Chess, Absolute Fencing etc?

Are they any good?

Same as Uhlmann, Allstar, Mr Chen, PBT. Though I believe their bayonets are even worse because the wires don't even fit into the guides.

Why has this discussion not be directed to another thread Which foil/sabre plug/socket do you prefer?

[El Chucko]

I think others may have missed the point of your question.

You basically just want to know if there is a decent body cord out there that doesn't cost too much, yes? One that is reasonably priced, but also is good quality?

When it comes to body cords, sadly, you usually get what you pay for. The VAST majority of off-brand body cords are just terrible. Not only do you see problems with durability as time passes, but some of them don't even work when they're brand new!

For example, my club got a bunch of Blade in-house brand 2-prong foil cords about 6 months ago that were terrible. The wires were often not connected securley to the pins right out-of-the-box. Alot of the wires that had the alligator clips on one end would pull right out of the plug at the other end on the very first use.

The biggest problem with these pieces of junk, though, were that the plugs were often made slightly too big or too small, and they would get stuck in the reel socket. After the bout, we would have to pry them free with a big screwdriver just to unhook the fencer. Also, the pins themselves were often too skinny, and wouldn't maintain a good connection with the foil socket, causing endless phantom off-target lights.

So, if you see one of these Blade brand body cords (brown wire with orange/red plugs), run away.

The GOOD NEWS is that the Absolute brand body cords seem to be OK so far. I bought 2 of their in-house epee cords (w/clear insulation) and 1 foil cord a few months ago, and they have held up fine.

Good luck.

[KD5MDK]

The old Blade bodycords (Physical Chess is a subsidiary of Blade, and is where I got mine) are indeed crap, and mine broke in a few months. On the other hand, I picked up one recently that was very cheap ($6.99 on eBay) that was rather better, until it got stolen. So if you're absolutely broke, they may not be too bad for that price, but you'll be a lot better off with a Favero or Negrini.

[_fence(1)]

Originally Posted by KD5MDK

On the other hand, I picked up one recently that was very cheap ($6.99 on eBay) that was rather better, until it got stolen.

Was it from Blade / Physicall Chess?

[KD5MDK]

Yeah, sorry. Their eBay store goes by yet another name, but it's all the same place.

[_fence(1)]

Originally Posted by KD5MDK

Yeah, sorry. Their eBay store goes by yet another name, but it's all the same place.

This one?

http://stores.ebay.com/AlexandrSport-Store

[KD5MDK]

As a matter of fact, no. While that place does have a suspiscously Russian name and Brooklyn address, I believe someone in here has reported it to not be a Blade front.
Additional evidence:
http://cgi.ebay.com/FOIL-SABRE-Body-...QQcmdZViewItem
The body cord there had blue hardware, while the Physical Chess/Blade/Closeout ones have red.

I bought from here:
http://stores.ebay.com/Closeout-Fencing-Equipment
Which not only sold the telltale red bodycords, but also an identical mask cord to the one I bought before, but most damningly was shipped from the Physical Chess address using a box with their logo tape and billed (according to DHL online tracking) to the Physical Chess account.

[mrbiggs]

Absolute bodycords are reportedly pretty good.


Personally, I don't really have a problem with BG bodycords. They're $12, and once you get them in working order, they last fine. They're easily modified and their parts are easily replaced. You should know, though, that I'm in a small minority in thinking positively about the BG cords.

[foily]

I'm just starting and got a body cord when I got my foil, cos my coach says to get a foil and get an electric one if I can afford it - so I did. The three large plugs are just standard banana plugs, the other side is interesting, a normal size banana plug and this smaller one, but not as small as what's known as a mini-banana, that's been used by Tektronix etc for test applications (and therefore can be obained). And a nasty looking zinc plated alligator clip, sheesh would it kill 'em to at least use stainless steel? If I can find that intermediate-sized banana plug, I'll be well on my way to making body cords myself. At least that kind, that little round connector I've seen on some utterly baffles me.

[Purple Fencer]

Originally Posted by foily

I'm just starting and got a body cord when I got my foil, cos my coach says to get a foil and get an electric one if I can afford it - so I did. The three large plugs are just standard banana plugs, the other side is interesting, a normal size banana plug and this smaller one, but not as small as what's known as a mini-banana, that's been used by Tektronix etc for test applications (and therefore can be obained). And a nasty looking zinc plated alligator clip, sheesh would it kill 'em to at least use stainless steel? If I can find that intermediate-sized banana plug, I'll be well on my way to making body cords myself. At least that kind, that little round connector I've seen on some utterly baffles me.

The three pins at the reel end of the plug are the same as the big pin on the front (4mm)....the smaller one is 3mm.

[HDG]

Originally Posted by KD5MDK

I bought from here:
http://stores.ebay.com/Closeout-Fencing-Equipment
Which not only sold the telltale red bodycords, but also an identical mask cord to the one I bought before, but most damningly was shipped from the Physical Chess address using a box with their logo tape and billed (according to DHL online tracking) to the Physical Chess account.

Aren't these the folks who sold the remaindered Santelli inventory?

[foily]

Originally Posted by Purple Fencer

The three pins at the reel end of the plug are the same as the big pin on the front (4mm)....the smaller one is 3mm.

I'll have to check this out on DigiMouserKey, see if I can order them as a 3mm or a yadda yadda part of an inch plug, it would be cool to be able to make these things, I just got a bunch of supercool silicon wire, like dmm probe wire but smaller, neat stuff. Did I mention the wire on this body cord I got is gross? It looks like it came off of Hank Hill's spare extension cord.

[Purple Fencer]

Originally Posted by foily

I'll have to check this out on DigiMouserKey, see if I can order them as a 3mm or a yadda yadda part of an inch plug, it would be cool to be able to make these things, I just got a bunch of supercool silicon wire, like dmm probe wire but smaller, neat stuff. Did I mention the wire on this body cord I got is gross? It looks like it came off of Hank Hill's spare extension cord.

Eww....post a picture.

Re the pins, I've been told they are commercially made pins in Europe, but the pins in my cords are going to be smooth like the LPs, but have the same location of the set screw as the Prieur or Uhlmann pins...I don't know that THAT design is currently beign made. I'll probably have to have them frabricated...

On the clip you have....is it a Mueller???

[foily]

Originally Posted by Purple Fencer

Eww....post a picture.

Re the pins, I've been told they are commercially made pins in Europe, but the pins in my cords are going to be smooth like the LPs, but have the same location of the set screw as the Prieur or Uhlmann pins...I don't know that THAT design is currently beign made. I'll probably have to have them frabricated...

On the clip you have....is it a Mueller???

I don't know how to post photos on here so you can forget about that, the cord looks like a piece of orange light-duty extension cord hmm, I don't know if you're in the US but in the US we have these flat, 3-conductor extension cords, the wire in them is fairly ugly. I can tell you for a fact that banana plugs are extremely hard to get, and mostly what you find are really crappy ones but at least they're a couple of dollars each! The best bet for plugs in the US is to buy Pomona Electronics ones, they're decent, but the most decent ones I've found are actually sold by Radio Shack, and if you order in quantity they get cheaper than a dollar too. They have a sort of "collar" that makes the contact, very nice.

The clip on this body cord could be a mueller, but I associate Mueller stuff with being stainless steel.

Radio Shack also makes the only really good as in won't fall apart, 9V battery clips too, they have some of the usual junky ones but if you look they have ones that have a solid body instead of that awful air mattress plastic and I've fixed up a ton of things by replacing the fallen apart connector with one of those :-)

[KD5MDK]

California, to many people's discontent, is indeed in the US.

If you can't figure out how to post pictures here, email them to me and I'll do it. My email address is a.abraham (at) gmail.com

[KD5MDK]

Originally Posted by HDG

Aren't these the folks who sold the remaindered Santelli inventory?

According to some old threads I found here when Googling about them, yes, although Santilli was closed by the time I got into buying fencing gear. Again, they're pretty clearly Physical Chess/Blade, as they bill their shipping to the PC account and use their packing materials.