glue on blade threads?!?!

I just ordered some practice equipment from Blue Gauntlet for my team and this is the first time that I have ordered practice blades from them. When I recieved the foils one of the bellguards was crooked so I tried to take it apart and fix it. Neither myself or any of my friends (some of them rather large and strong men) could get it unscrewed. The grip smells like apoxy glue so I figured that they glued the threads. Why on earth would they do that? Is there anything that I could try to remove the glue without damaging the blade? I am particularly worried that if one of the blades would break I would have to replace the entire thing. (we don't have all that much money to play with, one of the reasons we are ordering from BG)

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"The sword isn't our lives, it just keeps us alive for the really good parts" - Graham Ashe

[Arturo]

did you put the blade in a vise? If you didn't try that it will allow you to put a lot more force on it. If that does not work,
dunk the thing into some solvent, like acetone. But it might melt the plastic


[This message has been edited by Arturo (edited 12-11-2000).]

[Lumberg]

Ask BG if they used glue. If it came with a bent guard, you should have returned it. If they did use glue on the threads, I would suggest that you start using another supplier.
FYI, glue should not be used on threads. Like the other post, put the handle in a vise and try to twist the pommel off in that manner.

I haven't tried a vise yet and the bellguard wasn't bent it was just a bit crooked so I figured that I could just fix it without going through the hassle of sending it back. I was wondering if there was a solvent that wouldn't damage the grip.

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"The sword isn't our lives, it just keeps us alive for the really good parts" - Graham Ashe

[neevel]

I'm kind of surprised that Mr. Chen would use glue on a pommel nut-- perhaps they've got a new guy assembling weapons. You can find gelled acetone 'super glue remover' that you could put on the nut to loosen the glue without spilling acetone over everything. If it's an aluminum grip (i.e., wont melt) you could also try heating the nut with a soldering gun or a mini torch.

The reason for the guard not sitting evenly on the blade is usually that the 'shoulder' of the tang is unevenly shaped or that the front of the grip isn't perfectly even. Once you've got the grip off, check the tang and the grip and file them if needed.

If you do want something to keep nuts, etc, in place you should use _blue_ Loctite (242), which is formulated to be readily breakable by hand tools. I use it all the time on barrel threads when I wire blades and it greatly reduces the incidence of loose barrels. Note that it's important to only use the blue Loctite-- the red formula (262) requires heating to be undone.

-Dave Neevel

[Mergs]

Quick note on removing pommel nuts from french grip foils. You can use a 3/4" sparkplug socket on a 3/8" drive ratchet. You get a bit more leverage and you don't mess up the finish on the nut (not that it affects the performance of the weapon). But be careful! If they did not use some kind of adhesive, it means the threads are galled and possible siezed. If that's the case, if you try too hard you'll shear the tang off. OBTW I've recently seen a practice foil where the tang failed about 1.5" from the guard INSIDE THE HANDLE! Also, we had a BG blade snap about 7" from the tip during a competition and when I went to bend it in half to put it in the trash, it SNAPPED, not bent in the middle of the blade. Caveat Emptor.

Mergs

By the way: I ordered viscounti pistol grips. It seems that everyone thinks I have french grips.

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"The sword isn't our lives, it just keeps us alive for the really good parts" - Graham Ashe

[Mergs]

Sorry, most everyone assumes practice equipment is french. Usually by the time you are using orthopedic grips you are competing and normally one practices with electrics at that point.

Depending on what kind of pommel nut you are using, inside vs outside hex, or even sloted, you might want to use something that will give you a little leverage; 10mm deepwell socket with 1/4" ratchet drive for an outside hex or you can even get a 6? or 8mm hex drive socket for either 1/4 or 3/8" drive ratchets. Again, be careful. Hope this helps.

[eternal109]

Coming from a stand point of automotive work, I would suggest a little bit wd-40 just to see if it just needs something to slick it up a little bit or using some solvent, since the handles are metal it won't hurt them. Most importantly don't try to "strong-arm" the nut off, you'll either strip the threading on the nut/tang or you will break the tang. Be cautious and if the suggestions don't work, send it back.

[Rapier9mm]

Swordsworn-

U like Higlander eh?

Now would I be any kind of fencer if I didn't like Highlander? Of course I love Highlander. :-)

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"The sword isn't our lives, it just keeps us alive for the really good parts" - Graham Ashe

[Lumberg]

Hmmm, I did assume it was a French grip. Oh well, if you can, try and buy a small table vise where you can attach to the edge of a table instead of permanently bolting to the table top. It will make weapon repair (especially for pistol grips) easier in the future.