Pembrokeshire Fencing Club

Armoury

The Foil
How it Works

An electrical current is sent from the scoring box to the weapon via the 'B' wire. This wire is then linked to the foil wire by the bodywire socket, the baseplate spring and screw in a bayonet socket. In the rest state this current flows up the foil wire, then in the tip it transfers into the blade. The blade is linked to the 'C' wire (ground) at the socket so the current returns to the box via the C-wire.
When the point is depressed, the circuit from 'B' to 'C' is broken. If the tip is in contact with the opponents lame' then the current will switch to flow through the lame', and back to the box via the opponents 'A' wire which is linked to the lame' but the alligator clip. This new circuit is detected by the box which responds with a coloured light.

However if the tip is not in contact with the lame' (ie: off target) then no circuit is formed. The box detects the broken circuit and responds with a white light. Inappropriate coloured lights will not be caused by the foil.
No lights at all indicates that the circuit is not being broken. This usually means a short-circuit, caused by one of the wires coming into contact with the blade or guard, or a heavy point spring.

A faulty tip can be caused by the point spring failing to hold the tip up (so the tip slides down and breaks the circuit), or by dirt or rust interfering with the circuit.

Diagnosing problems

Problems develop when the circuits described above are interfered with. Logic and an ohmeter can solve most problems. A white light indicates that the rest circuit is broken. Constant or random white lights could be a broken wire, a faulty tip, or a broken connection in the socket. A white light on contact with the opponents lame' is more likely to be a fault with the lame' or bodywire or the opponent.

Repair Guide Rewiring

When a foil wire breaks, there's nothing you can do to save it. Strip the wire out of the blade groove and try to clean out every scrap of glue, rust and dirt. The cleaner it is, the easier rewiring will be. Remove the old cap from the barrel and use this opportunity to clean away any dirt or rust. Unwind the new wire, and thread it through the tip barrel. Screw the barrel onto the blade before you attempt to push the contact into the barrel, otherwise the wire may break.

Some contacts are a tight fit in the barrel, push them down slowly and gently with screwdriver, being careful not to tip the contact sideways. When it is in place, glue a small section of the wire just beneath the barrel into the groove and allow to dry. Use a blade-bender, or handy table ledge to but a slight bend in the blade (bending the wrong way, with the grove innermost). Measure out enough wire to reach the end of the groove and glue a small section down. Your foil wire has some stretch in it, but not much so don't make the wire too short or you'll break it.

When the glued areas are dry, apply glue along the length of the groove (or if using a fast-dry glue you may need to apply it after the wire is in the groove). Slowly straighten the blade, if you've judged the length correctly the wire should spring snugly into the groove with no slack. Now assemble your weapon.

Point Repairs

Your point consists of barrel, tip, spring, contact and screws. If the barrel becomes dented then this may interfere with the movement of the tip. You can try and straighten it while still attached to the foil, but chances are you will have to remove it, which means rewiring the blade. Springs are the main source of problems. They control how “heavy” a tip is. If your foil won't pass the weight test (500g) remove the tip, take out the spring and gently stretch it. Up to a point this will increase the resistance so that the spring can lift more weight. However springs do wear out, eventually they have to be replaced.

A heavy spring can be compressed to make it easier for the tip to break the circuit. A rusty spring may not reliably form the rest circuit.