X-Change Mask

[Mr.Piccolo22]

I was wondering if anyone else has notice that on the new X-Change mask from Leon Paul that the material on the back side of the chin strap and the forehead piece seems like it is expanding out side the stiching and ripping apart after a few washings?

It seems like there should be backing to it to keep the material from falling appart.

[CvilleFencer]

I have had mine since last Summer Nationals and have not noticed any problems like this with it at all. How have you been washing it, and how often?

[randomsabreur]

I've had an x-change for a couple of years - hasn't been washed yet, and unlikely to do so. When the lining gets nasty/worn out, it will be replaced...

[Mr.Piccolo22]

I have washed it about once a month or when the smell was pretty bad. I have been using the washer machine on Cold/Cold, and on the Delicate cycle. I have been using the high efficiency liquid detergent. And I let them hang dry.

Side note, I sweat a lot and at a drop of a dime.

[uhl-mann]

I think that even though you are washing your mask on delicate it bumps around. I've heard that you can put a mask in the dishwasher. If you have a regular washing machine you would think that it would be bumped around. So I think that it is getting caught somehow and ripping it.

[CvilleFencer]

I think Uhl-Mann's theory is a good one. I have used the dishwasher on my own and on club masks for years now. Just make sure to turn off the heated drying cycle or you can melt the glues/epoxy used in the mask. Also if you have an older style dish washer with actual exposed heating elements make sure no part of the mask or bib might be to near or come in contact with them.

[jkdjeff]

Originally Posted by CvilleFencer

I think Uhl-Mann's theory is a good one. I have used the dishwasher on my own and on club masks for years now. Just make sure to turn off the heated drying cycle or you can melt the glues/epoxy used in the mask. Also if you have an older style dish washer with actual exposed heating elements make sure no part of the mask or bib might be to near or come in contact with them.

Did you do this with the entire mask (i.e. put the whole mask in the dishwasher)? Seems like a novel way of doing it, so I'm curious as to how well it works.

I was considering one of the X-Change masks myself, but it'd be my first mask and it's a lot to spend. It may be worth it, but it also may be more than I initially need.

[Chuck F.]

Originally Posted by uhl-mann

I think that even though you are washing your mask on delicate it bumps around. I've heard that you can put a mask in the dishwasher. If you have a regular washing machine you would think that it would be bumped around. So I think that it is getting caught somehow and ripping it.

Originally Posted by CvilleFencer

I think Uhl-Mann's theory is a good one. I have used the dishwasher on my own and on club masks for years now. Just make sure to turn off the heated drying cycle or you can melt the glues/epoxy used in the mask. Also if you have an older style dish washer with actual exposed heating elements make sure no part of the mask or bib might be to near or come in contact with them.

He's not talking about washing the entire mask, though. The cool thing about the X-change mask is that you can remove all the padding from the inside and wash it separately, in a washing machine or whatever.

As for the other point, I have washed my (traditional) mask in a dishwasher. It works well, but it takes a long time to dry. Also, use only the TINIEST amount of detergent, or none at all. Trust me.

[FoilyDeath]

Originally Posted by jkdjeff

Did you do this with the entire mask (i.e. put the whole mask in the dishwasher)? Seems like a novel way of doing it, so I'm curious as to how well it works.

I was considering one of the X-Change masks myself, but it'd be my first mask and it's a lot to spend. It may be worth it, but it also may be more than I initially need.

As your first mask, you really, really don't need an x-change mask....Stick with a 350N. I still use my one except when I enter FIE events.

[brtech]

Originally Posted by FoilyDeath

As your first mask, you really, really don't need an x-change mask....Stick with a 350N. I still use my one except when I enter FIE events.

Pay attention to this guy's name: foilyDEATH. That's what you get when you skimp on masks.

It MAY be appropriate to have a non-FIE mask as you first mask if you are not sure you are sticking with fencing. Maybe. I think not, but I see the logic.
However, if you are competing, or you are getting a second mask, get an FIE mask. It doesn't have to be an X-Change, although I like them a lot. If you have an FIE mask, use it, always. Broken blades don't just happen in competitions.

You only get one head. It's yours, take care of it. If you are a parent, this is the one thing most tournament armorers stress, and really, really care about. FIE masks are THE most important safety protection.

[jkdjeff]

I'll probably end up getting a FIE mask at this point; since my prior post, I've done more reading about the different standards, and I definitely want to make sure I have adequate head protection.

[brtech]

Interesting tidbit from the Worlds in St. Petersburg. Apparently, they were anal about certain rules. One of them was they did not allow any significant wear on the INSIDE of a bib. Their reasoning was that the composite bib was tested for puncture resistance with all the layers intact. If you have worn through one or more layers, on the inside or the outside, it may not meet the puncture standard any more.

Of course my favorite story was that they were going to reject all of the LP epees. Apparently, they have never seen one before. The assumed that the U.S. Armorers had fixed broken blades, since the weld for the tang was just too obvious. Ron told them that U.S. Armorers were good, but not THAT good. They had to get a SEMI rep to tell control that the LP blades were made that way, and they were FIE approved.

The second favorite story was that there was a board that showed what areas people were allowed in with specific credentials. The board was made showing technicians (armorers) were allowed into the "ready room" where competitors waited for their bouts to be called. The locals had hand drawn a cross through it and written "RUS and UKR only", meaning only they could get into the room to assist their fencers. Despite repeated protests, upheld by the FIE officials, the discrimination against other armorers persisted.

[lefty_monster]

Originally Posted by jkdjeff

Did you do this with the entire mask (i.e. put the whole mask in the dishwasher)? Seems like a novel way of doing it, so I'm curious as to how well it works.

Originally Posted by Chuck F.

I have washed my (traditional) mask in a dishwasher. It works well, but it takes a long time to dry. Also, use only the TINIEST amount of detergent, or none at all. Trust me.

I do it, too. Not often, only when my mask becomes a biohazard. It works well.

[remise]

Originally Posted by brtech

The second favorite story was that there was a board that showed what areas people were allowed in with specific credentials. The board was made showing technicians (armorers) were allowed into the "ready room" where competitors waited for their bouts to be called. The locals had hand drawn a cross through it and written "RUS and UKR only", meaning only they could get into the room to assist their fencers. Despite repeated protests, upheld by the FIE officials, the discrimination against other armorers persisted.

You should have brought some vodka and a bad hat. They'd have let you in.

[fencerbill]

Originally Posted by Chuck F.

As for the other point, I have washed my (traditional) mask in a dishwasher. It works well, but it takes a long time to dry. Also, use only the TINIEST amount of detergent, or none at all. Trust me.

When I wash a mask I end up by using a full-sized bath towel. Put half inside the bib and keep half outside and squeeze the bib between the two parts of the towel. The bib is usually completely dry by the next morning.

[KD5MDK]

Originally Posted by brtech

Of course my favorite story was that they were going to reject all of the LP epees. Apparently, they have never seen one before. The assumed that the U.S. Armorers had fixed broken blades, since the weld for the tang was just too obvious.

No British fencers had LP blades?

The second favorite story was that there was a board that showed what areas people were allowed in with specific credentials. The board was made showing technicians (armorers) were allowed into the "ready room" where competitors waited for their bouts to be called. The locals had hand drawn a cross through it and written "RUS and UKR only", meaning only they could get into the room to assist their fencers. Despite repeated protests, upheld by the FIE officials, the discrimination against other armorers persisted.

We need to hold a World Championships just for the fun of that.

EDIT: Do you mean the protests were upheld but not enforced? Interesting.

[Chuck F.]

Originally Posted by fencerbill

When I wash a mask I end up by using a full-sized bath towel. Put half inside the bib and keep half outside and squeeze the bib between the two parts of the towel. The bib is usually completely dry by the next morning.

Yeah, I do that too. It is definitely helpful, but it still takes a while to dry. There are some spots near the bib-to-mask junction that are really hard to squeeze. And then there's the chin padding...

[fencerbill]

Originally Posted by KD5MDK

We need to hold a World Championships just for the fun of that.
.

We have. Most recently:

Junior/Cadet, South Bend, 2000

Veterans, Tampa, 2002 and 2005.

Other countries were not discriminated against.

In 2000, the SEMI rep asked me to fix a mask in the ready area, which I did.

[Beloit Fencer of Old]

Originally Posted by brtech

Pay attention to this guy's name: foilyDEATH. That's what you get when you skimp on masks.

It MAY be appropriate to have a non-FIE mask as you first mask if you are not sure you are sticking with fencing. Maybe. I think not, but I see the logic.
However, if you are competing, or you are getting a second mask, get an FIE mask. It doesn't have to be an X-Change, although I like them a lot. If you have an FIE mask, use it, always. Broken blades don't just happen in competitions.

You only get one head. It's yours, take care of it. If you are a parent, this is the one thing most tournament armorers stress, and really, really care about. FIE masks are THE most important safety protection.

Yar. Listen to BRTECH. Sometimes I compete in a non-FIE uniform, but I ALWAYS wear my FIE mask. This past weekend, I was fencing someone whose blade, as I stared down on it, had a pronounced "S" curve. I repeatedly asked the ref to stop the bout and had him fix it, but sometimes you won't catch that. And there is nothing more dangerous in fencing than an "S" curve. Even wearing FIE and having 20 yrs experience, I was STILL nervous fencing against this weapon.

[LeonPaulUSA]

Mr. Piccolo, could you please email me a photo of the problem you are describing?

Thanks,
Bill
sales@leonpaulusa.com