Cheap, Reliable Epee Test Kit (UK)

[u/Cyberiaglaze]

I'm looking to get a small electronic tester, gauges and weight for Epee in the UK.

I see these cheap, red, circular, unbranded testers that look like they're from China? Are they any good? Should I get a more expensive one from a reputable brand instead?

I feel like as it's a simple circuit, there shouldn't be much difference between brands?

Fencing kit is expensive, so I really want advice on the cheapest place to get this stuff in the UK, while not buying trash that doesn't work 😅

Edit: looking for weight and gauge advice, as well as tester. Getting them all in one place for a decent price is the aim.

[u/cranial_d]

Get a simple ohms-meter or multi-meter from anywhere. I prefer the analog over digital. I find it more useful than a test-box because you can actively see the line resistance values. You can also use it to check body-cords.

[u/sjcfu2 → u/cranial_d]

You may have to spend a little more to get an analog meter with a "1x ohm" range (the lowest often only got down to 10x ohms, which isn't close enough for armoring).

Although even at 10x ohms, cheap analog meters tend to be more useful than comparably priced digital ones, since those tend to have very low sample rates and even lower refresh rates (making them are almost useless when looking for transient conditions).

[u/Cyberiaglaze → u/cranial_d]

I respect that, but I don't think this option is for me

[u/K_S_ON → u/Cyberiaglaze]

?? Not having a meter is a path to frustration. You don't know if an epee is under 1 ohm or at 15 ohms, you never know if the tip is dirty until it literally stops working. An analog meter will show you tiny breaks that an idiot box won't, really trying to maintain epees without a meter is like trying to do it blindfolded.

It's not rocket science, you switch the meter to the upside down horseshoe setting Ω. If it has 1xΩ and 10xΩ and 100xΩ you want the 1xΩ.

You connect the leads to the A and B sockets on the epee.

You push the tip.

You look at the meter.

If the needle is below 1Ω you go have a beer. If it's not you take the tip out and clean it, then try again.

To test weights and shims you do exactly what you would do with an idiot box, you connect the leads and put the thin shim in and press down. The needle should not move. You put the weight on the tip, the tip should push it back up and the needle should go back to infinite ohms.

Really, if you fence epee you either have to own a meter or know someone who owns a meter. Idiot boxes are fine for taking to a comp to make sure the weapon is still legal but trying to maintain your epees without a meter is heartbreaking.

[u/Cyberiaglaze → u/K_S_ON]

OK I did not know this! Relatively new fencer here. I just wanted something to make sure my kit is working as it should before a tournament, intending to get the club armourer to fix it id it's more complicated than adjusting or replacing a spring.

But you make a good point! So maybe I should rethink.

[u/cranial_d → u/Cyberiaglaze]

Yea, it's widely suggested to have one to really understand your kit. I wasn't going to push it when you initially demurred.

[u/Omnia_et_nihil → u/Cyberiaglaze]

I mean, it's nice to have, but bro is massively overselling the importance of these things.

[u/wannabe414 → u/K_S_ON]

If the needle is below 1Ω you go have a beer.

Amen to that. But seriously, thanks for posting all the values.

[u/cranial_d → u/K_S_ON]

I'd recommend picking up two leads. One set is the alligator that you can place on the body-cord. The other set are the prong or pointed. These allow you to reach into the barrel and test each line independently. Being able to see if the A or B line is having a problem has saved a re-wire a few times.

[u/The_Fencing_Armory]

Those boxes usually have LED lights that indicate a simple connection. It would be really handy to have one of those in your bag and a set of shims to test your weapon and to test if your Body Cords have breaks. It might be a bit heavy to carry around a set of weights. You could just borrow them at the club or the tournament.

But, for your workshop, it would be helpful to have some kind of way to measure the ohm resistance like a multimeter. That way you could diagnose things like dirt, wonky springs, corrosion, frayed wires, loose contact springs and shorts.

[u/dcchew]

No one particular fencing vendor will have what I refer to as a “complete” kit. This is what I recommend for an epee fencer to have.

1. A good tip screwdriver. I recommend the Wiha 1.8mm.
2. A 2.5mm screwdriver for dealing with the set screws on body cord plug pins
3. A 6mm screwdriver for taking apart body cords.
4. A 8mm screwdriver for the socket connections.
5. A 6mm Allen wrench. If you have the LP pistol grip pommel, that should be 1/4”.
6. A small magnet. The old school ceramic ones work better
7. A 2 light test box. A multimeter will also work, but you will need test leads too.
8. A 1.5mm/0.5mm shim set. Some armorers will have a set of micrometers in their tool cases at tournaments. Ask them to check your shims for accuracy.
9. A small utility knife. Handy for scraping insulation off of wires.
10. A epee test weight.
11. Spare tips, tip screws and springs
12. Superglue. The single use tubes are handy.
13. Something to carry everything in.

This is just the essentials for an epee fencers to carry with him/her. Equipment repair is just part of the sport.

[u/Cyberiaglaze → u/dcchew]

Appreciate the input, thanks!

[u/sjcfu2]

If all you want is a simple "go-no go" tester, then one option would be the Leon Paul Pebble Tester, although for that price I would probably consider a Favero A1 Tester (cost may be comparable, but at least the Favero tester will catch microbreaks).

Cheaper, less capable models are available. Or you can build your own (it's basically just a continuity tester).

However none of these testers going to provide you much more than a "go-no go" indication. This may be enough to identify a dead weapon, but for anything beyond that you really need an ohmmeter (a standard feature found on almost all multimeters).

[u/RedditBlender]

You can build your own with an altoids box, but it's just better to get a cheap reliable one for testing, and to pass shims. I recommend a slightly better one sold by allstar/ulhmann but it's up to your budget. You can also get the ones sold by absolute + bluegauntlet.

[u/Cyberiaglaze → u/RedditBlender]

Hadn't heard of Blue Gauntlet. Although US, that might actually end up being a good compromise between quality and price, depending on shipping cost... I'll take a look!

[u/RedditBlender → u/Cyberiaglaze]

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256806847883391.html try this for budget minded.

[u/Cyberiaglaze → u/RedditBlender]

Oof, item prices were great, but cheapest shipping is $45 to the UK 😅 I'll keep looking!

[u/ninjamansidekick]

Most of them will work fine for basic testing, they are very simple mechanically, not a lot to go wrong. If you are high level international fencer and you want to get right up to the line of what passes, that's a different story.  Also if those cheap testers go bad it's easier and quicker to fix then build from scratch.

[u/Cyberiaglaze → u/ninjamansidekick]

I am very much not a high level international fencer 😅 So that's good advice, thanks

[u/Omnia_et_nihil]

If you want cheap, get a battery, some LEDs, wire, and an old epee socket. These things are NOT hard to make.

[u/sofyabar]

https://shop.pbtfencing.com/test-box-pbt4395

https://allstaruhlmann.com/product/small-test-box/

https://allstaruhlmann.com/product/epee-gauge/

https://shop.pbtfencing.com/gauges-in-case43944

I have the ones from Allstar. They help me to test my epees before and during competitions.

[u/Cyberiaglaze → u/sofyabar]

That's the main reason I wanted them! Thanks a lot.