Using fencing mask for escrima stick fighting

[mike1234]

Hi I was wondering if any of you could advice me on 3W mask and where can I buy one. Actually I would be using it for stick fighting (rattan stick) and would like to get something for a reasonable price, don't mind if it's slightly used. So far Ebay didn't return any good results. Any help would be appreciated
Thanks

[HDG]

If you're not using it for fencing per se, why does it need to be a 3 weapon mask? Why not just a foil & epee mask? On the other hand, maybe you'd be better off with one of the old school sabre masks if somebody is going to be hitting you on the head with rattan…

[MyrddinsPrecint]

futhermore, are there actually 3 weapon masks???????????

[erooMynohtnA]

futhermore, are there actually 3 weapon masks???????????

You're thinking electric. A 3-weapon mask generally refers to a practice mask with a band of rubber around it to help pad saber hits.

Mike, you could look at fencing.net for reasonably priced non-FIE masks. I'd really recommend going with Leon Paul. They cost twice as much, but they're more than twice as good (comfortable, durable, non-rusting).

And if you're interested, I have two fencing masks that I have no use for. I have an old size small FIE Blue Gauntlet mask I used for about a year and I have a large 350N three weapon never used before. Both pass the punch test.

[fatfencer]

I trained in Visayan Corto Cadena and several other stick styles.

Fencing masks will dent instantly under the duress of a good stick player using witik or lobtik. And FORGET about players who use kamagong or close node sticks.

There are certified WEKAF fighting masks on at most martial supply houses on the internet.

Forget fencing masks period. Not safe for this. Period. Nowhere NEAR enough padding.

Stay safe, train hard.

FF

[erooMynohtnA]

I trained in Visayan Corto Cadena and several other stick styles.

Fencing masks will dent instantly under the duress of a good stick player using witik or lobtik. And FORGET about players who use kamagong or close node sticks.

There are certified WEKAF fighting masks on at most martial supply houses on the internet.

Forget fencing masks period. Not safe for this. Period. Nowhere NEAR enough padding.

Stay safe, train hard.

FF

Just don't get hit, duh.

[CvilleFencer]

There are some decent quality kendo masks to be had out there for about the same or less than a good fencing mask. A lot more resistant to impact than a fencing mask and a little work with some Velcro, glue and foam will give you one that is almost as easy and much better padded than a fencing mask.

However, best and safest bet is to follow FF's suggestion (god did I just say that... ) and go with one made for the sport. Gungfu.com has some decent prices and a lot of Kendo/Kali/Arnis/Escrima gear. Something like this is what you should be looking for.

[Allen Evans]

I'll second these opinions. I did a little bit of martial arts stick fighting when I was younger, as well. Fencing masks (even an FIE mask) are not capable of protecting you. You are not running the risk of getting hurt if you stick fight using a fencing mask -- YOU WILL GET HURT. It's only a matter of how badly you will get hurt.

AE

[crquack]

I have used a Leon Paul 350N 3-weapon mask for stick fighting for about 10 years. I still have it and now use it for fencing. Yes, it gets dented, but that is easily repaired.

It all depends how serious you are. The really serious stick fighters such as the Dog Brothers use as little protection as possible. Some use what they term a "first-generation mask" which is little more than a bug screen. On that principle any mask will do you. The concept is that it is your ability with the stick that should protect you, not the equipment.

[Rick Shellhouse]

I trained in Visayan Corto Cadena and several other stick styles.

Fencing masks will dent instantly under the duress of a good stick player using witik or lobtik. And FORGET about players who use kamagong or close node sticks.

There are certified WEKAF fighting masks on at most martial supply houses on the internet.

Forget fencing masks period. Not safe for this. Period. Nowhere NEAR enough padding.

Stay safe, train hard.

FF

You got masks?????

Damn .....i learned you never had time to ask the person attacking you could you put on your protective gear...

R

[CvilleFencer]

You got masks?????

Damn .....i learned you never had time to ask the person attacking you could you put on your protective gear...

R

Be nice now Rick. The protective gear is helpful for surviving the LEARNING of how to stick fight. However, in a similar line of thought to yours, I learned that you rarely have time to go to your car or dojo (and don't get on that old tear about potential escrima weapons are all around you) and get your sticks. Hence my preference for blade and open hand styles. Assuming of course I don't have cause to just double tap the ten ring...

[Rick Shellhouse]

Be nice now Rick. The protective gear is helpful for surviving the LEARNING of how to stick fight. However, in a similar line of thought to yours, I learned that you rarely have time to go to your car or dojo (and don't get on that old tear about potential escrima weapons are all around you) and get your sticks. Hence my preference for blade and open hand styles. Assuming of course I don't have cause to just double tap the ten ring...

Cville...

lol...mine believed in learning thru bruises....

I much prefer bladed (kerambits) or open hand myself....but was also taught that anything with the right mindset and knowledge can work...


course double taps are soooo outta vogue...its still two to center of mass...one to head....*s*

R

[fatfencer]

Stick and blade is always the way to go.

I've always loved watching Uncle Bill and his brothers train. Uncle Bill is sick with blades. Anyone who willingly spars with macaques is someone to learn from.

There was another silat player whose specialty was the kerambit who died in a Autobahn car crash a few years back.

Still, those who know and can do numerado well are the ones who survive.

I'll bring my gear if anyone wants to play. I don't fence until Monday.

FF

PS: as for double taps, etc. Please have your gun drawn and aimed before the 12 foot rule gets applied to you. Youtube has some great footage as to what happens when a gun user violates this rule. You could be in Bethesda Naval ICU when it happens and it would be too late.

PPS: EVERY serious eskrima player especially the visayas styles have a stick on them. At least the ones I knew in Stockton, CA did. or blade, or both. Hell, sayoc players are all blade all the time.

[fatfencer]

However, best and safest bet is to follow FF's suggestion (god did I just say that... ) and go with one made for the sport. .

Cville, why delay the inevitable? Just start agreeing with me now. Disagreeing with me just makes you in error constantly. Why go that way? Why put yourself thru that? Being wrong and in a constant state of rebellion from what is correct cannot make you feel good inside.

Even if what I say is beyond you on a given topic, just agree and PM me later. I'll gladly tell ya what's up.

Fatfencer

[CvilleFencer]

I much prefer bladed (kerambits) or open hand myself....but was also taught that anything with the right mindset and knowledge can work...

I am with you 100% there. There are no dangerous martial arts, just dangerous people who happen to know them.

I have never played much with the Kerambits, although I understand they are increasingly popular. I have just never found one that fits my hand right, so I would be interested in knowing where you got yours Rick. I have never spared with a really proficient kali/salit guy using a Kerambit but I have not really seen the benefit from the guys I have worked with in the past. Course I am more into practical Dieter style "marshal" than the "art" aspect so that may color my perceptions a bit.

The cool thing is that we are getting a bit of a list of talking points built up if we are ever at the same event!

course double taps are soooo outta vogue...its still two to center of mass...one to head....*s*

R

Ah, the classic Mozambique pattern. I have a funny story about that if we are ever out for beers after an event sometime...

[CvilleFencer]

Cville, why delay the inevitable? Just start agreeing with me now. Disagreeing with me just makes you in error constantly. Why go that way? Why put yourself thru that? Being wrong and in a constant state of rebellion from what is correct cannot make you feel good inside.

Even if what I say is beyond you on a given topic, just agree and PM me later. I'll gladly tell ya what's up.

Fatfencer

Uh, right. So just for the record, this kind of brain damage is a good example of what can result from not using the right kind of equipment while doing stick fighting or other contact martial arts.

FF, thanks for sharing your personal tragedy with us. I only hope your example can help prevent others from also suffering to many blows to the head and sharing a similar, tragic fate. After all, being firmly convinced that Prieur parts and Sport 7 points are the state of the art in modern fencing is certainly a fate some would consider worse than death...

[CvilleFencer]

PS: as for double taps, etc. Please have your gun drawn and aimed before the 12 foot rule gets applied to you. Youtube has some great footage as to what happens when a gun user violates this rule. You could be in Bethesda Naval ICU when it happens and it would be too late.

A valid point, although I personally hold to a 7 foot rule. It has always amazed me that so many law enforcement agencies teach a modern, effective shooting position (an optimal conditions position) but spend so little time on weapons retention, close body/bent elbow defensive shooting, strike and shoot, shooting while moving and the practical things that go along with a first responder situation when it goes from boring to very bad. I have rarely had a problem with someone when I had backup present and a drawn weapon. Things tend to go sideways when you don't have weapons already pointed at them...

Fortunately this is starting to change in the LE community, at least in the larger departments. Sadly a lot of people still have to go looking for it, often on their own dime to places like Gunsite or the Sig Academy. I think it should not only be mandatory training for all LE but to a lesser degree for anyone with a CCP. Just makes sense to know the limits of your weapon and how to deploy that weapon under less than ideal circumstances...

[fatfencer]

Uh, right. So just for the record, this kind of brain damage is a good example of what can result from not using the right kind of equipment while doing stick fighting or other contact martial arts.

FF, thanks for sharing your personal tragedy with us. I only hope your example can help prevent others from also suffering to many blows to the head and sharing a similar, tragic fate. After all, being firmly convinced that Prieur parts and Sport 7 points are the state of the art in modern fencing is certainly a fate some would consider worse than death...

State of the art...no...essentially bulletproof and idiot proof....yes.

After all, I use them lol!!! Cville, you are now torn aren't ya!!

Self-effacement is the better part of valor.

FF

PS: I was and am a very good eskrimador. We didn't use masks though, we blocked stick to stick. I actually gave up eskrima for fencing because the parries and body positioning for those parries were messing up my fencing.

PPS:Resistance is futile, you will be assimilated.

[fatfencer]

CvilleFencer;547436]A valid point, although I personally hold to a 7 foot rule.

Really depends on how the firearm is holstered and what holster is being used Also if the gun holder is also an eskrimador chances are they have already figgered out how to holster the weapon in such a way to minimize the distance. For many in eskrima, their gun is a tool to express their eskrima just like their knife is. All I know is that a typical PD ISN"T teaching quick draw mechanics... and everyone even REMOTELY considering the privilege of a CCW had better be an expert at it if he or she thinks they will successfully use it in adefense situation.



Things tend to go sideways when you don't have weapons already pointed at them...

How true....

FF

[CvilleFencer]

State of the art...no...essentially bulletproof and idiot proof....yes.

After all, I use them lol!!! Cville, you are now torn aren't ya!!

Dooh! I would seem to have a bit of a catch 22 there wouldn't I... Attack is parried, riposte arrives. Touch FF. Well played.