Saber Blades

[JayhawkPawn]

Well, I am joining the darkside, and going to begin fencing Saber soon. To all of those who actually have knowledge of the makers and quality of the stuff out there, can I have suggestions on weapons? I'm good for all the other gear, but the weapons themselves are slightly foreign to me. I'm most likely going to go with one of the Leon Paul blades, simpy because I can justify spending $31 on a really nice saber blade, as opposed to $150 on a really nice epee blade, but the guards, grips, and pommels are new to me, as I'm going to be the only person in my club who fences saber, and our club stuff is Santelli, and ancient. One of them actually has a capteur on it.

Leon Paul blades, probably the france or the Podz Black, I've been looking at both Negrini and Uhlmann/Allstar guards, and I am stuck with Leon Paul bayonets, because thos're the only ones that don't expode from heavy use.

Damn you, Alex, for making a product I like. Damn you.

[keropie]

Are you looking to go with a light saber (as in not heavy, not one of those crazy Jedi things), a guard oriented saber (ligher point feel), or have no idea? Generally speaking, unless you have experience with how they feel and how you fence, you should probably just pick good quality stuff (Uhlmann/Allstar, LP, whatever) and go with that, and grab both a heavy and a light pommel (easiest thing to play with to change balance at first). Though I (and many other saber fencers, which I'm kinda one of) would tell you not to spend 30 or 40 or whatever on a special LP blade for saber, cause it doesn't make that much difference, and they break anyhow. Generally speaking, I'd probably actually get a random dinamo (or other cheap russian/chinese) saber blade, a fairly heavy guard, a rubber coated (but not solid rubber/plastic) grip, socket, pad (I like heavy felt), the little sleeve for the bottom (or tape it if you'd rather), and the light and heavy pommels to play with (and hell, I'd honestly probably end up getting it all from triplette, cause they're close to me, and it'd be just fine). After you fence a bit, you may decide you want a lighter weapon or whatever, and then you can look into lighter blades (I'd wait til you can play with some at an event), ultralight tin-foil guards, or whatever, but to start with, stay cheap. And for blades, just stay cheap.

[prototoast]

Honestly, I have never liked the feel of the leon paul sabre blades, and I would not consider it to be extra money well spent. Most sabre fencers I know use either stm blades or blue gauntlet/absolute blades. They're the cheapest, and they feel as good as any other blade out there.

Also, don't go with negrini guards. The blade chews through the top of them too easily. Allstar/Uhlmann guards are a nice choice. As are many of the cheaper guards (I like the cheap guards fencing post sells). Uhlmann/Allstar grips and pommels are a solid choice. I don't like the leon paul pommels (though I haven't tried their new heavier one), because they're too small--I hold my sabre low, and like the feel of the pommel on the bottom of my hand.

[Inquartata]

Originally Posted by keropie

grab both a heavy and a light pommel (easiest thing to play with to change balance at first).

Meh, why bother when simply canting that tang can confer any particular shade of balance he might want? It's the miracle fix, you know.



NB Jayhawk, just in case you were unaware of my skepticism about the value of bending tangs on blades, the above is sarcasm. By all means try different pommels. And I agree with the bulk of what Keropie and Prototoast have said. I use S+M blades and for the most part Allstar guards ( all of which are on the order of 15 years old and still useable ). Triplette carries a heavy pommel I like. It's chrome-plated brass, globe-shaped and uninsulated, so you'd have to tape it, or coat it in Shoe Goo or PlastiDip or the like...

[slowgraffiti515]

the ulhmann or all star guards will last you a rly long time...theyre worth the extra cost too. i use stm blades and theyre pretty spiffy.

[yomi]

i agree with toast and graffiti, use an stm blade....works wonders (at least for me) with the leon paul heavy pommel if you are looking for a less point heavy blade....really cheap too, also try the leon paul lightweight guards, i love them

[telkanuru]

Just an FYI, in the opinion of all sabreurs I've asked, the make of the blade matters not at all. Spending more than $25-30 on a sabre blade is wasting your money. It's how you cant the blade and the grip/guards you use that matters.

[Peach]

Get an Uhlmann guard, the nice blue rubber grip, and a cheap, light S2000 blade. Get a couple of extra blades. Expensive blades break just as often as the inexpensive ones, that is to say either once every ten years or once every two weeks, and the make really doesn't matter. The bend in the tang makes a substantial difference in how it feels (sorry, Inq), but so does the basic balance of the blade itself; I prefer to try out a bunch of blades before I ask the vendor to assemble a weapon, but if you're doing mail order it's a shot in the dark.

Sabres take about five minutes to fix, BTW.

I prefer the two-prong plug but the bayonet is fine too.

Oh, yeah, and after it is all put together shiny and new, wrap ugly old electrical or other insulating tape around any exposed metal or possible exposed metal around the pommel nut area, so you don't get touches scored against you when someone hits your blade. And do not tape the edge of your bell guard unless you can keep the tape from extending to the outside of the guard, because then the machine won't detect whipovers.

[erik_blank]

With all of the latest saber purchases I've made (not that many) I have only seen the classic "Y" cross section. Yet i remember way back when, that many of my friends were comming up with a "I" cross section blade.. Not that I REALLY want to get these, but are they still available? Anyone feel nostalgic for these?

[Jay Kominek]

Originally Posted by erik_blank

With all of the latest saber purchases I've made (not that many) I have only seen the classic "Y" cross section. Yet i remember way back when, that many of my friends were comming up with a "I" cross section blade.. Not that I REALLY want to get these, but are they still available? Anyone feel nostalgic for these?

Leon Paul's "Paul Etoile"

[fatjoehatesme]

No sabre blade has a guarantee. Eventually it will break, how long it last depends on you. If you clean it weakly and take it out of your sweaty bag after practice it should last you a while. Since you are a beginner I would say it would be best to buy a cheap blade. That way if you don’t stick with sabre you wouldn’t have wasted a lot of money. The more pricey ones look better and weigh less in most cases. But a cheap blade should suit your needs.