Electric foil blade Paul Etoile

I'll start off with the pros: this is a very light-weight, very easy to control weapon. The first time I used it was at a tournament, and I loved it for my first two bouts.

After that, however, it started to kink, bend, bow, curve, etc. in the most horrible ways. I fenced two events and midway through the DE's in the second event (after I'd fenced around ten 5-touch bouts and maybe four DEs), I had to give it up. The director of the tournament actually came up to me and told me to stop using that weapon, because I was literally spending about a minute after every action trying to get this foil into a legal shape.

Sorry, but this weapon just doesn't hold up. I used it for one day and it's already screwed up. I doubt I'll be buying these weapons again.

I have found this to be a very good blade, especially for the price.  I have two of them that have lasted me over a year with only minor tip problems (cleaning, need new spring).  As others have stated they do tend to become fairly (okay really) flicky after a couple of months.  I am not much of a flicker but I have not found this to be a problem.  Anything stiffer is too heavy (for my taste) and more prone to breaking.  This might also be because I'm too cheap to buy FIE but oh well.  Overall unless stiffness is your first priority I think this is probably the best non FIE blade for the cost. 

Edit:  This was written during the middle of the year before all of my blades began failing or getting close.  It seems like the durability that I noted in my review was due to the fact that I could only get out to my club once a week, now that I'm in college and practice 4x per week these blades do not last nearly long enough.  I don't dislike these blades and they could be the right blade for you depending on your preferences but my next replacement will probably be something FIE.

I like the Leon Paul weapon, while I do agree that it does tend to soften, as most steel will after fencing for a while, what I liked about the weapon was that the electric wiring never seemed to jam up - it was the one weapon that I could bring to the piste and have pass all the time. The fact that it's mallable didn't keep me from using the blade, try keeping several in your bag rather than using one until it breaks - and also try their FIE standards. Thanks Leon Paul - when they put the weight on the blade to test it, I never had to worry.

Very light and flexible which makes for a lighter foil, but too short-lived. I fence 4 days a week and am not a hard hitter and these blades only last about 8 weeks. Always seem to break in the same place - about 6 or 7 inches from the tip. I have a couple left and when they are done for, I will not purchase these again.

I personally love the leon paul blades. They are soft and light and provide a good flick to them. Also they are not much more expensive then any other blade.



The bad news is as the others noted they turn into spagetti. Mine now has an arc in it and will not return to being straight.



The other thing I've noticed is I have a greater tendency to go passe on hits with this blad because it bends so easily.



Despite this I still go for these blades and would recommend them.

A nice flicky blade when you start fencing, but it tends to kink and bend quite a bit. However, unlike most blades when it kinks, it doesn't break! The blade just slowly turns into what me and my leon paul wielding friends call "spaghetti".

I've only been fencing with this blade for a few weeks now, but it's looking to be worthwhile investment. First of all, this blade is very light. It basically looks like a much heavier blade has been sanded down to make it very light and flexible. However, with this comes the question of durability. I'm not sure yet how the blade will hold up as it acquires kinks. What is nice about the smooth surface of the blade is that it seems to do a nice job of resisting nicks and burrs, which should help to extend the life of the blade. Probably the most annoying thing about this blade, as you can see in the picture, is the narrow groove at the base of the blade. This leaves little room for spaghetti between the guard and the base of the blade, leaving me nervous about the guard cutting through the spaghetti into the wire.



As a fencer relatively new fencer (1 year) I often find myself up against opponents who can wield the heaviest FIE blade as if it were a toothpick. This blade at least reminds me that my opponents aren't faster because of a ligter weapon. At the price I paid ($24+shipping for the bare blade), I would recommend this to anyone looking for a light, flexible, well-made blade that won't break the bank.



Edit: Keeping this up to date, I put my first big bend in the blade today. It bent back pretty well with no kinks whatsoever.



Edit (pt 2): the blade is starting to get pretty soft these days after about 4 weeks of fencing, twice a week.



Well, I'll never buy one of these blades again. These things get way too soft. The blade bent at the tip, right underneath the barrel. And when I say it bent, I mean sideways. This thing is not even worth trying to salvage.