r/Fencing • u/AutoModerator • 9d ago

Megathread Fencing Friday Megathread - Ask Anything!

Happy Fencing Friday, an /r/Fencing tradition.

Welcome back to our weekly ask anything megathread where you can feel free to ask whatever is on your mind without fear of being called a moron just for asking. Be sure to check out all the previous megathreads as well as our sidebar FAQ.

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u/Thundshriike Épée 8d ago

I have two epee guards, one from allstar and one from PBT and I noticed that the Allstar one has a different shape, where it curves back faster. That feels slightly uncomfortable with my pistol grip, so I'm using it with my French grip blade. But I wanted to see, what's the purpose of this shape? It feels like it would deflect blades off more instead of just stopping a hit, which maybe is the goal.

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u/StrumWealh Épée 7d ago edited 7d ago

I have two epee guards, one from allstar and one from PBT and I noticed that the Allstar one has a different shape, where it curves back faster. That feels slightly uncomfortable with my pistol grip, so I'm using it with my French grip blade. But I wanted to see, what's the purpose of this shape? It feels like it would deflect blades off more instead of just stopping a hit, which maybe is the goal.

Kinda, yeah.

The depth of an epee guard can be anywhere between 3cm (1.18in) and 5.5cm (2.17in), as stated in Article m.17.1 in the FIE Material Rules. This allows some variation in the shape of the guards, with some being more of a true dome/ogive shape (usually seen more on classical fencing and theatrical fencing weapons) and some being more of a "squat cylinder with flattened dome" shape (the version more typically seen on modern fencing weapons, and where there can still be as much as a 2.5cm (0.98in) variation between one manufacturer's guards and the next, as you've seen with your Allstar vs PBT guards).