How to keep your lame....

[poskat]

hey all!

i just recently got my first lame, and was wondering:
what is the best way of keeping it in my fencing bag?
rolling it up, folding it, hanging it....
what ruins it most?

or what do you guys do with your lames in your bag?
im just afraid of breakin some of the threads (eventho its a new one, i just want to keep it as long as possible...)

any hints and tips would be greatly appreachiated


Katha

[Morion]

I try to lay mine flat on top of the rest of my kit while avoiding anything that might abraid it. Depending upon how much I use it I hand wash it with a little woolite in the sink and air dry it about once a month or so.

[Purple Fencer]

Don;t fold it...you'll eventuallu break the threads.

Keep it as flat as possible, dry, and away from wet clothing and rusty blades.

For cleaning, go to my website (see my sig block) and go down the front page...there's a link to washing instructions.

Morion....how about that skunkgirl??? Poor Jason!

[Morion]

Morion....how about that skunkgirl??? Poor Jason!

As I said on the proper forum: "Oddly disturbing."

We now return this thread to its original topic.

[_fence(1)]

How do you put it in your fencing bag, if you can't fold it or roll it?

[Morion]

How do you put it in your fencing bag, if you can't fold it or roll it?

It is folded somewhat, I just to keep it as loose as possible. Imagine holding it by the neck and lying it down gently. No sharp creases.

[Craig]

How do you put it in your fencing bag, if you can't fold it or roll it?

You don't. You wear it on top of your street clothes and tell people it's all the rage in europe.



Seriously - I put mine in the "dry" compartment with my weapons and mask. Either lay it out or roll it up in the mask and then when I get home hang it up. Never had a problem with cheap or expensive lames wearing out from this treatment.

Craig

[Purple Fencer]

You don't. You wear it on top of your street clothes and tell people it's all the rage in europe.

Heh...when I was fairly new to vending, some industry folks came to SwordPlay to talk about some stage combat work. One of the guys saw me inventorying my gear and took a liking to an Uhlmann sabre lame (ooooo....shiny!). He was thinking about buying it to wear out...seriously.

The guy was the absolutel stereotype of a flamingly gay male...he was almost incandescent!

[Inquartata]

I hang mine on a wooden hanger except when travelling. Then I put it inside my warm-up jacket ( sleeves inside sleeves, etc. ), zip the jacket closed, and fold the whole to fit into my carry-on bag.

I suppose that I could carry it onto the plane on a hanger in a suit bag, but that would mean one less carry-on bag for my other stuff, eg mask, shoes, etc. And in any case it's an Infinity, which is a bit hardier than stainless steel lamés as far as rough handling is concerned.

You could also try rolling it up in a towel or something. Travel experts recommend rolling over folding to prevent wrinkling in packed clothing, or folding in complicated ways so that parts of one garment lies between others. What works to minimize wrinkling ought to help keep lamé threads from bending sharply as well.

[fencerbill]

Worst thing is to turn the sleeves inside out. You can hang the Lame on a hanger inside out but just let the sleeves hang down inside. The sleeves don't get as wet as the body anyway.

[poskat]

thanks for all the answers guys!
ill make sure to keep it proper!

[Chafunkta]

Good instincts, poskat.

I never put my lame in my bag. Granted the only travel I do with it is in the car where I can lay it down on a seat or hang it up, but I suggest you do your best to avoid keeping it in your bag. Don't ever fold it, like Purple said, those threads can break. Make sure you keep it away from all your sweaty uniform parts or else it'll turn green (if it's a copper lame) pretty soon.

I keep mine on a hanger at all times (except when fencing, of course). This has proved to be a pretty good way to do it. Take it from me, I've had the experience of ruining a lame from keeping it with my sweaty uniform.

For washing, I'll just take it into the shower with me after fencing, wash it down, and then let it dry on the shower rod (just make sure you don't get the shower too steamy). You can wash it with woolite every month or so, as Morion suggested.

Follow all this and I believe you'll have a reletively long-lasting lame.

[Mergs]

How do you put it in your fencing bag, if you can't fold it or roll it?

Actually, you can roll it. Use a bath towel. Lay the lame` on top of the towel and then roll it up. The towel helps to cushion the threads and absorb the moisture. If you can, though, the best way is to carry it on a wooden or plastic hanger.

[Dev]

I hang mine on a wooden hanger except when travelling. Then I put it inside my warm-up jacket ( sleeves inside sleeves, etc. ), zip the jacket closed, and fold the whole to fit into my carry-on bag.

Sleeves? Sleeves? What kind of crazy lame has sleeves? That's just sick.

[fencerbill]

Sleeves? Sleeves? What kind of crazy lame has sleeves? That's just sick.

No, no, no, no, no, no, no (quote from Vicar of Dibley). What is really sick is a crazy Lame that would encourage someone to hit their opponent in the genital area!

[Dev]

Admittedly, that's a downside.

[Inquartata]

Sleeves? Sleeves? What kind of crazy lame has sleeves?

A complete one.

[DesertFencer]

A trick that I've found is to save the little dessicant bags that come with new computers, shoes and just about everything these days. It's the one labelled "do not eat". Throw a few of them in your gear bag to help keep the moisture down.

[ThatReallyHurt]

I sweat an awful lot when fencing, especially at tournaments, and I've taken to gently rinsing the sweat-stained area with clean, cold water and hanging it upside down to dry immediately after getting home from a tournament.

I hang it on a wood hanger or two fat plastic ones when it's not being used, and after competing, I'll take it out to the car and lay it flat. I try not to put my mask or lame into the bag after I fence if I can help it.

[JasminaJ]

Yes, Desert Fencer, I use the dessicant bags in my hanging garment bag. I use wood or plastic hangars. It seems to be working.