A Body Cord That Lasts?

[seltzerwater]

Been fencing about a year and have gone through an unusually large amount of body cords! The cord either wears at the plug; or the small plastic connector at the base breaks off. I have been purchasing the inexpensive
($10-12) brand. (blue, white or almost light rust color.)

My question: If I purchase the Negrini (or other) expensive body cord will it last longer? Is it more durable to warrant the $45.00 price tag?

Are there other body cords anyone would recommend?

[DHCJr]

It depends on the type of connector you are talking about. The Italian style (Negrini/Carmamari) has fewer moving parts, so it last longer just for that reason.

The Negrini wire is almost indistructable, which can be a problem. If the connector itself the wire is harder to work with. The wire is wrapped in spring steel which means if you have to adjust the length of a wire, you better have very good cutters.

[HDG]

Take a look at the bodycord reviews here.

[glowstix]

i go for leon pauls first and uhlmanns second. leon pauls are easier to maintain and even though they might feel less durable than the other brands, they hold up pretty well.

[mrbiggs]

I've used a multitude of cheap bodycords and none of them have lasted under a year in terms of actual parts breaking. (As opposed to the wires falling out of the prongs, which is easily fixed).

What brand are you using? Are you storing them unusually?

[Purple Fencer]

At the risk of pushing my own gear (ok....i will) the only complaints I've gotton on the H.O.M. American cord were things that I can attribute to first generation design errors 1) the ABS plastic body shattering (But only once...sorry, Inq...I've still got your info for when the new bodies come out), 2) a loose connection between the pin and socket (on SOME cords...caused by a varience in the angle of the pin holes -- my fault, since they were made at the wrong angle and I had to correct them manually), and 3) the retainng clip shorting across teh receiving socket heads on a couple of cords...again, a modification error by me.

Thse have been corrected i the design phase...I'm now workong on getting a functional model together, but it looks promising.

The rubber boot has also been designed and wull be included on the next run .

Here's the original thread about my own cords
HOM presents: The American body cord..

[brtech]

We see a lot of 20+ year old LP cords presented at NACs. The ones you buy today look an awful lot like the old ones, and I'd expect a new one to last that long.

However, that doesn't mean they don't break, they do. They break less often than the german or french styles, but they break. They are pretty easy to repair, and the repair holds pretty well. The negative for LP cords is that they need maintenance; the screws need to be tightened, preferably before each major tournament. If you maintain them, they will reward you with long service.

Another plus is that they are less likely than german/french styles to have the kinds of problems whose symptom is intermittent connections between the body cord and the reel or the body cord and the weapon.

We see a smaller number of very old Prier cords. The real problem is that the newer Priers don't look like, or last like, the old ones. The newer pin designs are not as good as the old ones.

For whatever reason, we don't see a lot of very old German (Uhlmann/Allstar) cords. I don't really understand this. They are reliable, but not as reliable as the LP or Negrini. They are very repairable. There isn't any reason a 20 year old Ulhmann shouldn't provide good service. All the parts are still available. Maybe the wire just gets too short from the (more) frequent repairs. They tend to break the wire at the exit of the connector, and you lose a couple inches of wire when that happens. After 20 years of that, the cord can get short.

There are cheap copies of the Uhlmann and the LP cords. They break a lot more often than the real thing.

There are some new designs that have not been around long enough to have the same kind of experience that we have with the others. The Favero design seems pretty nice so far. We'll see if the plastic holds up. One think I was worried about at the beginning -- the plastic weapon clip -- has proved to be reasonably durable. It does break. However, it doesn't seem to come apart as often as the Uhlmann, and most fencers manage to lose parts when the clip comes apart. The most common problem I see, probably about the same rate as loose LP screws, is "missing clip".

The Negrini cord is very nice. It is more reliable than nearly every cord. However, it too breaks, and the break is nasty. There is a solder lug between the pin and the wire in the 3 prong reel end. It breaks. You then have to replace it, which means you need the part and you need to solder it, and soldering the steel wire is a pain. It also has far fewer intermittent problems.
At the moment, I think that it probably is the best cord available if you can deal with the failure when it happens. Don't forget that you have to change the socket in your weapons, and the socket is also very costly. Also remember that the Negrini is uncommon, so you won't be able to borrow anyone's weapon without a cord change.

[Phrogger]

I started fencing with the cheapo Russian cords and found myself fixing them constantly. My ten-year old cords have been repaired so often that they are no longer reliable. I just repaired one of them to use as a backup and it became intermittent about a week after I fixed it. I switched to the Uhlmann sockets and the Uhlmann cords about six months ago and am very hopeful. My friends with the Uhlmann cords never seem to have any problems. The nice thing about getting matching sockets/cords is that they fit! Shocking. Based on their reputation, I'm sticking with Uhlmann gear unless I start having problems. I truly do believe that you get what you pay for. I think I'll actually save money in the long run.

I must add that I'm referring to an epee body cord.

[KD5MDK]

brtech - the Negrini cord is available in 2 prong (I know, I have one) and LP Bayonet (I think) versions as well as the Italian Bayonet connector.

[brtech]

Originally Posted by KD5MDK

brtech - the Negrini cord is available in 2 prong (I know, I have one) and LP Bayonet (I think) versions as well as the Italian Bayonet connector.

Yeah, Ive seen the 2 prong version.

It has the same problem as the Italian bayonet version on the 3 prong side. It also would have the same "intermittent" problem you see on the Uhlmann style 2 prong. Negrini now uses the Favero 2 prong. For whatever reason, this type of connector is more prone to have an intermittent connection between the weapon and the cord than the bayonet versions. It would have the virtue of the steel wire being very rugged, and the problem of soldering on the 3 prong (and the clip). It would however be interchangeable with the Uhlmann style on the weapons. I would use FWF connectors on the weapon side. DO NOT use the Prier style. Supposedly interchangeable, they don't seem, to me, to actually be so interchangeable. It seems like it fits, but they are more prone to intermittent connections in my experience.

I've never seen a crushed Negrini 3 prong, which is what I would worry about. I've never seen a 20 year old Negrini cord period, but if there is such a thing, I don't think the 3 prong side would be the same as they use now. The pin is replaceable. I like the design of the Negrini 3 pin a lot if it lasts a long time.

I have no concerns about the Negrini bayonet. It needs to be soldered, which is fine with me. It is very rugged, both sides.

[Inquartata]

I have never had a problem with the 3-prong end of any body cord I've ever owned. I don't think I'd let a flaw in that part deter me from buying a given type of cord. It's the other end, and to a lesser extent the alligator connection to the lamé, which gets the workout and makes trouble...

[Zilverzmurfen]

Originally Posted by seltzerwater

Are there other body cords anyone would recommend?

Any particular weapon..?

[Purple Fencer]

Originally Posted by brtech

We see a lot of 20+ year old LP cords presented at NACs.

Like ones Bill Gelnaw uses??? Those things are older than some of his competitors!! (with the exception of Donald Benge....'cause GOD isn't older than Donald!)

I've never seen anyone get so much use out of his gear than Bill.

[mackillian]

The cord either wears at the plug; or the small plastic connector at the base breaks off.

One thing I've found helpful in making a bodycord last longer is learning how to both maintain and repair it. And when you learn how to repair it, you also gain an understanding of how it works, and then you're able to better troubleshoot what's going wrong with it. Once you've learned to repair it yourself, you'll also save a bit on armouring fees and/or lighten the armourer's repair load. (At least, that's part of why the armourer at my club taught me many aspects of weapon repair and maintenance. It's actually quite cool stuff.)

[seven6ty]

I've never seen anyone get so much use out of his gear than Bill.

Provided he can still fit into it.

[fatfencer]

Originally Posted by Purple Fencer

Like ones Bill Gelnaw uses??? Those things are older than some of his competitors!! (with the exception of Donald Benge....'cause GOD isn't older than Donald!)

I've never seen anyone get so much use out of his gear than Bill.

There's this oold funny country song called 'I'm my own Grandpa'

Donald is old enough to have great-grandpappied himself. Now THAT's OLD!!!

FF

PS: I've only seen him once but I think his grandson is Chuck Beyer!!!

[wahrman]

I've only been using them for a year or so but I love my Leon Paul epee cords.

I've had terrible trouble with my Uhlmann and FWF cords and the creeping death of rotted copper and corroded screws in the pins.

Maybe I could store them better I don't know but the Uhlmann cords rot for me within 6 months but I've had zero trouble with the Leon Paul in a year.

No visible corrosion, always works, etc.

I've got one Negrini but haven't used it enough to really comment.

[Asprin]

I have a second hand Allstar bodycord which is about 15 years old, it uses the German connector and it still working fine.

[wahrman]

yeah, I don't know what I do to those German ones...I transport them home separated from the wet clothes (30 minutes or so) and hang them up when I get home. The screws get so corroded in the pins that they crumble when I
try to take them apart. I trim the rotten wire off a couple of times before the screws are too corroded to use.

I destroyed 5 over the course of a year before I gave up.

I treat the LP exactly the same way except now my drive home from the club
is an hour and all three of them look brand new.

Originally Posted by Asprin

I have a second hand Allstar bodycord which is about 15 years old, it uses the German connector and it still working fine.

[Asprin]

My body cords have sunglasses bags, that they live in.