best foil blade

[la rah]

1. After breaking too many SM blades I'm ready to purchase an FIE blade. I'm hoping someone can offer advice on what the difference is between these 2 blades [besides pricing from Blue Gauntlet]. Or maybe there are better options than these?

-- Vinity Maraging FIE @ 75.00
-- BF Blue FIE @ 120.00

2. Is the German tip truly better than the French? And is it worth the extra money to get the V2a style?

3. Is Blue Gauntlet the best deal for blades?

Thanks!

[mifencer]

I would get the Vniti with a German V2A pt from Blue Gauntlet.

[la rah]

Is Vinity Blue Guantlet's version if Vniti?

[CvilleFencer]

I have used both and while I love the Vniti, if you like a lighter blade, go for the BF FIE. It is more buoyant and less heavy than my Vniti. On the plus side I have never ever managed to break a Vniti and I can't say that for most other blades.

The BF is nice, and I am moving on to those as my regular tourney blades, but I will always keep a Vniti around as I think they are the AK-47 of fencing blades. Heavy, ugly, and not very elegant, but they work every time you pull the trigger and work well at that.

I would recommend the German tip very strongly. They are smother and more consistent, and seem to require less maintenance. I have not used the V2A tips yet but have heard good things. I am getting V2A on my new BF weapons.

Vinity is just BG's bad spelling. It is still a Vniti blade. If you do not yet have a preference in weight, and the differance is fairly negligible, I would go with the Vniti. More bang for the buck and it will last you a while.

[NJP3]

tripplette sells the BF blades for cheaper than Blue Gauntlet I think. I am also considering getting one, are they flexible at all?

[JEC]

Yes, but blades are hand made. A given quality lot is sold to Uhlmann/Allstar, and I been told by two nationally recognized coaches that the "lesser" quality BFs are sent to Triplette.

[CvilleFencer]

Originally posted by NJP3
tripplette sells the BF blades for cheaper than Blue Gauntlet I think. I am also considering getting one, are they flexible at all?

They do have them for a bit cheaper but by the time you add the V2a tips and German furniture they work out to be similar. Also I have found that the finish on the TCA stuff to not be up to par with that of Uhlmann/All-star. I have even heard that there is a different set of QC standards for the two companies, but I have not direct confirmation of that.

In addition, the complete weapons that come from TCA that I have had in the past came with French and Chinese furniture and I prefer the German stuff. Besides that the last time I talked to Walter Triplette he was still insisting that the MTS bright blue coating did not exist on BF blades and that I was thinking of the STM Rainbow. Which I am not. I like the shiny blueness of the Uhlmann MTS. :-)

I am not bashing the TCA stuff, I am just saying that I think the Uhlmann/All-star gear is better. All depends on what you want I guess.

As to the flex, all FIE blades are going to be stiffer than non-FIE blades until you break them in, at least in my experience. The BF blades are stiffer than some of the Leon Paul stuff, but they last longer and are more buoyant than the LP or the StM in my opinion.

Of course no matter who you order through if you request certain stiffness or lack thereof they should accommodate you.

[NJP3]

I saw those shiny blue MTS blades on the BG site, they looked pretty cool, but I was windering if you know any other places that carry them, and why they are so much cheaper than the BF blue blades that blue guantlet has.

Are there any diffs b/w the two aside from color

[scarphe]

Dear NJP3:
The blueing of the steel of the blade is done so apparently to prevent rust, much like the steel of guns are blued. after using blue blades and a white blades for about 3 years there does not seem to be a difference in performance, if one maintains the weapons and cleans thems. Both also seem to loose the intial stiffness after a while which is why I sell them and get new blades, so I can not say anuthing about in the long haul.

i hope this helps.

scarphe

[CvilleFencer]

Originally posted by NJP3
I saw those shiny blue MTS blades on the BG site, they looked pretty cool, but I was windering if you know any other places that carry them, and why they are so much cheaper than the BF blue blades that blue guantlet has.

Are there any diffs b/w the two aside from color

The cheaper part is easy. They are on sale. They are cheaper because everyone in the states knows about the old style blue blades and most fencers think the blue blades are the best because that is what many of the top fencers use. So to introduce them, BG made them a bit cheaper.

As to anyone else selling them, look at some of the German sites. They have them, and I think a few other houses do, but I am not sure. I think it would be cool if they started making the same range of blade colors as they do in lames, and make colored bell guards at that! Actually that is a little too much matching color even for me, I just wanted to make Inquartata cringe!

Is there any real difference in the temper for the colored blades? I have heard different things. Some insist that it indicates a second tempering process to harden the steel, and some say it is cosmetic. I have never noticed a difference between white and colored blades, but that certainly doe not mean there is not one!

I say go with the colored blades. Rust will decrease the life of your blade and if your blade looks good and keeps rust off you are coming out ahead!

[neevel]

So far as rust is concerned, maraging steel is intrinsically rust-resistant (high nickel content), so there's really not going to be any significant difference due to the finish color. I've got BF white, BF blue, Vniti, and STM blue maraging blades (this is what happens when you're an armorer who still fences-- you tend to get a variety of makes just to see what they're like ), and I've noticed no difference in their rust-resistance-- and this includes spares that are stored in my none-too-arid basement workroom.
Of the two BF, two STM, and one Vniti that are down there, they're all in rust free.

FWIW from all these blades, I personally like the BF the best so far in terms of feel. I prefer a fairly stiff, but not extremely so, blade. The BF blues have softened up a bit more with use than the BF whites, and so I tend to prefer them. I use the Vnitis a good deal in practice bouting, both for the durability and to train with a somewhat heavier blade. I haven't built a foil with one of the STMs yet, so I can't comment on them-- they're a bit lighter than the BF, and I selected a couple that were on the stiff side, but judging from other STMs I've seen they'll probably soften up a fair amount after use.

-Dave

[C.J.]

Leon Paul's Flick Master
Hands down.
The most durable blades I have ever used. 3+ years and still alive and flicking.

[graphixaddict]

flick masters are sexy, i want one.
Graphix

[C.J.]

Yes, the Flick Master is very slick looking.

But @ 97 British pounds per stick, you probably wouldn't expect anything less.