Yes, he much prefers this position and playing from it. I was with him for a week this March and we worked a lot around this guard so as I can take what I can from it. And am pretty happy with the advantages it can give for taking the right time from in the exchange. As far as close distance and grabs - he is really not using them a lot. He can but is definitely not a fan. Even staying for close in Zwerch is not ideal for him. Such were my more successful exchanges with him whenever I’ve fencer him. The big issue of course is ever getting in that distance as he is superb at all distance before that.

Yes, quite possible. But she only just started using it, so it’s quite normal as a start.

My channel is full of videos of my fencing. If someone wants to learn what I would do, it won’t be very hard :)

Ah yeah, that’s quite common when fencing fencer a with big leg reach

@@FedericoMalagutti thank you ☺️

Thank you! Cheers!

It's quite fine if you are in mode to "play" around with them. Thrusts are fine, strikes even to the fingers are fine if the opponent doesn't cut through. I would not recommend them for general practice, but for playing with specific people and scenarios it's quite doable.

@@AngelChernaevHistoricalFencing Cheers

That is quite normal though the devil is in the details. It’s still fencing and in the case using a predominantly two-handed cut and thrust weapon. Targets selection is wider and scoring is more lax compared to kendo. So people are forced to defend more areas and from more types of attacks but can also use such themselves.

Thank you!

Thanks

Hahaha I know right? It’s the one time I have a real photo and not a screenshot - couldn’t resist :)

I am using Sigi King Shorty, Martin is using Sigi Concept Standard.

Still on first impression basses but I am pretty happy with it. Flexes well in thrusts but is solid close or the hilt. A few cm longer guard would have been a bonus. Steel is slightly softer than Sigi and gets chipped a bit but not much of an issue. I like the size as it matches my Sigi light and is right between a standard and a shorty so it’s a better size for me.

Yes, my Sigi King Shorty is with fishtail pommel. It’s a nice addition to the options I have. It can help a bit for proper edge alignment. It’s less obvious with heavy gloves but still noticeable enough. It does however forces the hand a bit more up on the handle so it can feel a bit shorten compared to the other elongated options. This is a non-issue for me but some people do not like it if it cramps their hands in. Depending on specific gloves and way of holding the sword it can be noticeable problem for some people.

@@AngelChernaevHistoricalFencing Thanks! You contributed a lot to my questions on reddit last week - much appreciated.

Glad I could be of help.

Hopefully it will last long enough to deliver its worth.

We have a couple of Aureus swords at the club, and I also really like them. Slightly stiffer than my Ensifer, but otherwise kinda similar. Very enjoyable and they seem indestructible, we have had these swords for years (maybe like 5 years or 6 ? Not sure) and there is no rattle in the guard, no noticeable sets in the blades despite heavy weekly use

I had a couple of old ones from Aureus from about 6 years ago too. Have some sets but otherwise same - perfectly solid. However they were ordered “in a different time” and are extremely stiff - 22 kgs with the same method that this one is at 14 and Sigi at 12,5.

Yes, I got them quickly after they got announced and later got the replacement rivets and have been working sometimes with them in that period while replacing the broken rivets when needed. I like them overall but they are definitely on the "medium" side of gloves. Work well for one-handed weapons and specially if you don't get hit much on the fingers. They absorb hits and even thrusts to the fingers are generally fine with flexible enough swords. I've used them mostly for arming sword and Sigi Light Longsword. They are significantly better than the other RD and similar type gloves but are not comparable to mittens or other plastic covered 5-finger models. I like them more than the Thokk gloves though while being a fraction of the cost. It's hard to give blank recommendation for them as it depends if one is willing to bother with the repair and replacement of parts and to risk the injuries of lighter gloves. If someone would be mostly fine with the other RD model, these are better.

@@AngelChernaevHistoricalFencing You mentioned Thokks, which I actually own and I was pretty happy with them until they felled apart. Protection is comparable between them?

@@xPyrielx Yes, I would say protection is comparable with some advantages and disadvantages to either. For example Thokk's fingertips are better protected but not significantly so. RD has much better protection on the hand though. Having in mind the price difference, I would definitely recommend the RD instead. But again - people have vastly difference tolerance to what is acceptable or not.

@@AngelChernaevHistoricalFencing Thanks for your insights.

Haven’t measured it but Sigi is usually quite consistent with their specs. So it should be 1950-2000 grams at 156 cm overall length

Yep, they are amazing :)

Thank you

Ha, yes, it was a fun one :)

If it goes for too many sweeps and flow there is much bigger chance for the person with the light to void a swing and go in. In one-on-one fencing, doing a lot of swinging is not a particularly good idea. As far as danger goes, it of course increases it but it's still doable. I fenced in Slovakia with montantes with a few people, some of which with a lot of swinging, and it's still mostly OK in full gear. Bit shorter more control strikes and thrusts are significantly better.

@@AngelChernaevHistoricalFencing curious! Hope we will have a chance to have fun before the Crosswords 👋

Yeah it really is

Thank you for your comment. In this video we both are using pike armory rapiers, though I have changed it to Sigi rapier for the last year. I do sidesword and rapier almost exclusively only at competitions, as I train mostly arming sword and Longsword outside of that. I am trying to move more into thrusting game as well, as I am a bit too reliant on cuts and specially in rapier they are not optimal a lot of the time.

I am not quite sure how SCA fencing works nor what has become so in HEMA. I will definitely skip on the tunic and alcohol though.

Yeah I don't get what you mean here. HEMA is still very different from SCA. Edit: I've also never met anyone in HEMA who hates on SCA, online or otherwise. A lot of guys I know do both.

@@TBoneHEMA It's kinda the joke. I go to both and it's all the same people and none of the weird dudes that shit talk online go to either.

@@fencingleprechaun ah, my bad. Flew right over my head lol.

I would say it’s mostly easy to know if you hit with the flat or edge with those swords. Because they are thinner and more flexible, a flat strike is felt differently if your arms than an edge one. As a general rule I accept strikes with the flat against me as valid as it shows I’ve left myself open for an attack. And my flat strikes as invalid as I’ve made a mechanical mistake. There are of course some exceptions.

Thank you for your comment. The pants are Spes Light but are custom made to be ankle length. My locust pants are also made that way. The jacket is my own design and produced with a tailor locally. It’s has 800N fabric between the outer and inner layers. It’s thin but enough for casual fencing - here I am only with gloves and head gear. For more intense work I would add some protectors. I have a full set of Vytis gear ordered and finally coming here. Will check them out soon

Oh, interesting. Curious to see how it turns out with the Vytis gear. (I ended up ordering a custom elastic tunic from Spes for this purpose, but your solution may be more flexible...)

I will put out some video with the vytis stuff at some point for sure 👍

Having in mind it’s originally my ruleset and tournament organisation (here with modifications), I would say I am pretty happy with it :) thrusting safely to the torso is perfectly valid, thrusting with receiving afterblow isn’t. That being said, I have moved for my own work past that with implementing a more complex system and removing the “no AB after head hit” part. Thank you :)

Thank you. I have been working lately on my abilities to start from point forwards positions and this does limit me a bit. But I can still employ enough different technical choices from there to be a bit more interesting.

Thank you. Good luck 🤞

Ha, thank you. Though I can say I am usually a fan of hitting the arms as well. But I am happy I managed to mostly stop the attacks to my hands here.

@@AngelChernaevHistoricalFencing it is a good resource for sure, but some fencers base their entire strategy at this haha

I’ve started fencing LS more during 2022 and until October that year I’ve only used 122-125 cm sword. So that was my standard at a time. I definitely didn’t had a lot of first intention attacks, and specially thrusts (though that’s a result more from other things). Then I fenced for about a year with 135 which definitely increased those types of attacks for me. However it resulted in less control and some fencing I didn’t particularly enjoyed. So in 2024 I went back to shorties. It reduced the first intention attacks but not as much as I would assume. As it’s more convenient length and mass for me a shorty results in overall better fencing experience. It does require getting accustomed and choosing specific fencing style but I think it’s not an absolute “worse”. I’ve been playing with 130 cm swords lately and I think that might be my preferred option going forwards. Do have in mind that tournament success is very far down on my list of priorities and I am willing to sacrifice wins to play in a matter I prefer.

@@AngelChernaevHistoricalFencing hmmm maybe I should try the same at some point. It's good to hear that, I've been wondering if my experiences were universal or if that was a "me problem". Thanks!

It’s definitely noticeable when you are outranged but I don’t think it’s something that can’t be solved. Just requires a bit different toolset. Good luck with working on it :)

Main is a bit complex with me as I use multiple swords depending on purpose. I did use a King Shorty in most of 2022 but since I got the Concept Standard I used it till the end of 23. I still own both and use them occasionally depending on things I or a training partner wants to work on. But for a main practice and events weapon I use the Concept Shorty this year. However I also got a couple of Lights and have been using them a lot for private lessons and teaching. I also visited a sparring camp last month and used them almost exclusively even with other swords. My standard recommendation for my students is the Concept Shorty and if they can afterwards a Light. Hope that helps :)

@@AngelChernaevHistoricalFencing Yeah, that helps man. I was trying to decide if I should get the Shorty or the Standard maestro. I'm a short guy with short arms, so i suffer with reach, thats why I was contemplating a 135cm sword for tournaments. Right now i'm using 125cm swords, but I feel them short, so i dont know how much the handling would changue with that extra cms of sword, and my clubmates dont have any longer swords to let me try.

@@jeinto1234 It's really hard to give specific advise but I can share my experience. The longer sword definitely helped me achieve certain actions better and easier and put me in line with most other people when it comes to distance. However it feels too cumbersome for me and leads to some plays I am not happy with it. It is also outside the standard size for swords in the period I am working with. The shorties are a better fit for all of that and as added bonus, their less mass means less hard hits on my opponents. That being said, it does put me at a distance disadvantage and in purely competitive context - it's not a great strategy.

@@AngelChernaevHistoricalFencing Thanks man, that helps!

Yes, it really was :)

Quite a good one, yea :)

For real.

I would be happy if you do so :)

He is still fencing but not competing. He is supposedly out of the shape he wants to be but from the receiving end of his strikes I cannot see it that way :D I may do individual video with the sparring matches I have with each of them, though they will not be 1/4 hours long :)

Thanks 😆

Yes, it’s still quite common for people to celebrate the success of their opponents in very clean exchanges.

In general on the Balkans we allow unopposed flat hits to the mask to score

Sport epee is cool, just in a different way :)

I’ve had sneak peeks at Sigi workshop when I was visiting Martin. I will be waiting for it to come out and get one.

@@AngelChernaevHistoricalFencing Nice! Please do a presentation video once you get one. No need for one year use before a review and all that. SIGI is a known quantity (steel, manufacturing, etc.) and a quick look would be more valuable at that point. I was playing with the Swordbuilder app on their website, and I made myself a very nice looking feder (around their King blade, twisted pommel, Castillon crossguard with one side-ring, tapered leather grip, shorty configuration to have a smaller grip and a 95cm blade that would match the late German longsword look; as a DIY, I may do a small U curve for the quillons to complete the blunt sword look compare to a feder). Don't look at the resulting price, it ran away from me... but this was/is my excuse to have something that will scream at me to pick it up and learn more German traditions for longsword (I only have a Regenyei's Italian feder with a 104cm long blade and a 35cm grip that's a proxi for a spadone; I love it). But then I understood that sideswords will be on the menu, so now I am waiting. Do I need another sidesword? No! Do I want another sidesword? Yes! 😊

@@FiliiMartis That's what I tried to do with their Rapier when I got it - a series of few short videos where people can see it closer and in motion. I am not a fan of ring-guard longswords, but you do you :)

@@AngelChernaevHistoricalFencing "I am not a fan of ring-guard longswords, but you do you :)" I know, I know. And I get it! But hear me out, I have a good reason for my choice: it looks really cool in the combination I mentioned! 😅 That Swordbuilder app is gold for SIGI. I was actually looking at a maestro blade on a regular feder at half the cost when I did my "German late longsword" configuration. Now, after seeing it, I want it... meaning that I will probably also need a regular feder at some point. And I just want to study longswords as an afterthought (and because more people around me do it than Italian side-sword).

Yea, simple exchanges are better for fencers and judges. They require more tactical play beforehand. All the stalking, moving around and changing positions is kind of cut away in this type of videos. As far as back of the head hit - that’s not ideal, but my opponent was warned several times for exposing it. I even spared him 1-2 strikes there for which I was not awarded points and was told I do have to lightly tap him.

@@AngelChernaevHistoricalFencing I assume your "not ideal" statement refers to safety. Honestly, that was more than fine in my book. It wasn't a hard or unwarranted hit, it was in a tournament setting, and people had proper protection. I have seen people spar without a mask overlay, but honestly, that was light sparring with friends during summer, with clear rules not to go for the back of the head. Such a rule in a tournament would be too much, and I am happy the judges told you that you actually have to tap him. Besides, he tried an all or nothing type aggressive attack (hey, no guts, no glory 👍), it didn't pan out, and he got punished for it. And sometimes, exchanges have that cinematic quality to them. This was one of those times. Dodging the thrust while stepping forwards and hitting the back of the head looks great. If it was a read duel, it would have ended the duel. If it was a movie, it would have made for a good scene. In a HEMA tournament, it makes for a good exchange (because let's face it, all the stalking, moving around and changing positions can be boring to watch in a light collage type video; those have their place in a match analysis video).

Yes, this is what I mean by "not ideal". But fortunately it was a light tap so it was ok. And I agree it does look nice :) I save the more tactical set ups for individual matches videos. They can be appreciated or at least put in context there.

Yes, it’s a good one

@@AngelChernaevHistoricalFencing What weapons do you typically train with? :)

I usually train and teach Arming sword and Longsword with some Arming sword and buckler mixed in. However when I go to tournaments I usually sign up for all competitions (except sabre) as to have more matches and fun.

@@AngelChernaevHistoricalFencing that's interesting :)

Yes he is certainly one of the best fencers out there. I should be able to get a spar with Antoni as well next month and hopefully will film it too.

Yes, it worked quite perfectly. I think it also helps that my opponent was over swinging his sword as he barely missed me.

It’s a Pike Armory sidesword 2. It’s about 5 years old now, but still fine. I don’t particularly like it but I use it only in competitions anyways.

@@AngelChernaevHistoricalFencing thank you!

@@AngelChernaevHistoricalFencing I would like to get one or two rapiers (or a rapier and a threaded pommel sidesword) from Pike Armory and a pommel set and experiment. Plus, since they don't cost a lot, I would be comfortable to play around with customisations; add a wire or leather to the wooden grip, grind edges or file in some decorations here and there on the crossguard, and blacken parts myself. But I'll leave that for the future since I don't want to deal with payment issues and shipping costs (I checked a bit and from what I saw online they got so high that it doubles the cost of an entry rapier at this point). Besides, for sideswords (and more) Black Fencer is still quite affordable, and I can get away with some €30 shipping to my part of Europe. Also, Regenyei is updating their offer, and Martin Fabian was saying in a podcast that SIGI will finally add sideswords to their portfolio around this autumn. So good times for side-sword. Especially when we add VB, Kvetun, Malleus Martialis, or bespoke makers like Balefire Blades, the entire spectrum in price and detail is covered. No excuses not to study sidesword. 😊

I have gotten this one way before. in the last two and a half years it's hard to get them and I am not sure it's really worth it. Regenyei's new offers seem better though I've never really liked any of their swords. I currently recommend them for anyone wanting a sidesword. I have talked with Martin about them and have had some sneak peeks at SIGI so I am waiting for them. When they come out I will get one of theirs and most probably give the Pike to someone else.

@@AngelChernaevHistoricalFencing I wrote a comment about all these brands here, but I think the KZbin bots thought it was spam or something, as it was never shown. 😔 I wanted a Pike Armory rapier, a (threaded) sidesword and a set of pommels to experiment because of their low prices. I wanted to file in my own decorations and wire the grip. Due to the payment and shipment issues (from the net I realised that the entry rapiers are doubled in cost after shipment to my part of Europe), I left that for the future. Black Fencer offers a good inexpensive selection (I love my steel sidesword from them; it feels so much lighter in my hand than the weight would indicate), Regenyei's new line looks good (I recently got a feder from them and I like it much, much more than I was expecting to; my impression of Regenyei shot up), Martin mentioned on a podcast that SIGI will introduce sideswords this autumn (I'm keeping my eyes open). Add in VB, Kvetun (Sidesword 1 should be seen as the standard for the inexpensive pieces; i.e. if you want to introduce a new piece, it should be at least better than this one), Malleus Martialis (I like mine, but it's clear that they cater to the higher end market with more care placed on the finish and all that), and bespoke makers like Balefire Blades (something to get when you know clearly what you want; I'm not there yet). We are spoiled for choice across the spectrum when it comes to sideswords. So there's no excuse not to study sidesword. 😏