Saber Forum

What is some good armor to protect my hands in dueling on a tight budget?

la crosse gloves are about $35-40 at Academy.

they have padded backs and work well.

An added tip from an experienced saberist is to also order fingertip inserts which will protect the ends of your fingers.  They're like caps that go over the tips.

Even in light, slow, careful sparring, hands are the most likely thing to get hit.

Next, head.  a fencing mask can be ordered for about $60.  That aforementioned light, slow, careful sparring will eventually get a knock to the noggin.  A mask will protect the important bits.  If it includes a shield for the throat, even better (a gorget?).

a jock strap would also be wise.  I recall a student I instructed in karate who never seemed to wear his.  You can imagine how we all learned this. He didn't have to imagine.

I have sparred with none of that stuff.  At light, careful and slow speed, it's still a risk, albeit reduced chance of getting hit and lower chance of serious harm. But not zero.

Get that stuff, and if you're looking to spar faster/harder, everybody needs to up the protection further. Remember, both parties need protection.

If your going to engage in any kind of contact safety first, Fencing gear , sports cup and ladies i serious suggest chest protection, minimum is safety glasses with head strap, follow these simple rules: strike ares is above waist and below shoulder, no thrusts / stabs, no intentional hand strikes. if your going to mix in martial arts moves into this same rules apply but remember your facing a light saber so that fancy spinning back kick you love doing no big deal if blocks by a hand but to be blocked by a light saber is a good way to learn all about having a robotic limbs  like luke and others. if your new to sparing and watching you tube vids dont just try to copy, start very very slow, if you have a partner start slow choreograph your moves start with 1 move then add a 2nd, 3rd so on until you reach a nice flow then and only then go free style again slow then speed it up,  you will have fun while remaining healthy and safe

Start here: http://www.saberforum.com/index.php?topic=41697.0 (http://www.saberforum.com/index.php?topic=41697.0)

Then go here and just start following the links: http://www.saberforum.com/index.php?topic=41697.msg734599#msg734599 (http://www.saberforum.com/index.php?topic=41697.msg734599#msg734599)



To expand a bit on the above, at an absolute minimum, for nothing more than light sparring, you will want eye protection (even safety glasses from the hardware store, with some kind of strap to hold them on can work), some kind of padded gloves (lacrosse are always recommended, but you can, in theory, use just rubber padded work gloves, keeping in mind that it's going to hurt every time you get hit where there no rubber protection), and groin protection (ladies that includes you, I've seen more than one cut at the femoral artery be parried/blocked into an unintentional upward thrust, and that's all I'll say about that). The heavier/harder sparring you go, the more/higher quality protection you're going to want.

Oh, and, in my experience, "no intentional hand strikes" means that you'll get hit on the hands a lot accidentally instead of hit on the hands a lot intentionally.

Good advice, sounds like you have experience in this area Sakura No Kaze, and anytime a weapon is involved there always be minor "accidents " ,teaching weapons to students i wish i was wearing for steel body armor 

Bauer goalie helmets.

(https://i.imgur.com/FVQbmPY.jpg)

(https://i.imgur.com/I0CnwGr.jpg)

(https://i.imgur.com/NMxVbiX.jpg)


They are lighter than they look. Do not get hit in the chin!

(https://i.imgur.com/IgMdjB1.jpg)

(https://i.imgur.com/BS8Ej8e.jpg)

You can even wear glasses or sunglasses with these.

A very comfortable fit!

Based solely on the pictures, I would not recommend that helmet as it looks like the spacing in the face guard is large enough to fit a saber blade through. Although if you're going to wear safety glasses under them, that would probably be ok.

And if you think the odds of getting stabbed in the eye by a saber are low, I have literally walked into a shinai end first. My opponent was raising the blade with the intention of bringing it back down on my head, and I stepped forward as it was coming up, and shinai end went into my eye with the full force of my forward momentum. So yes, it can happen much more easily than you might think.


I don't have any experience teaching, but I have many years of learning. Sometimes very painful learning...

I am of a very strong opinion that a fencing helmet certified at 350n  along with throat protection, this gear can be looked up  at sites involved in H.E.M.A. a hockey helmet is great for hand to hand i have a few of those for my TKD student who are into heavy sparring as the gloved hands and feet can not pass thru as i am also a fencing student this gear is reasonable in price even amazon has the basics.

Simply rule the hitting of the metal mask as a FOUL.

any dueling light or heavy should always have a 3rd as a ref / umpire  this will reduce chances of injury . its a standing rule in my classes

Nice dueling armor, Mercury

I feel you missed the part where my opponent didn't hit me, I walked into it.

For that matter, why not just make the striking of the hands a foul? Oh right, because you're going to get hit anyway, just not intentionally.

Its building up of the foundation clean slow techniques, repetition over and over until it becomes natural. this one of my beginners, excellent control  slow move

https://youtu.be/Y4-IJLeJTTU

A rule of thumb is: if something can go wrong -- it will go wrong, no exceptions.

So a minimal set of gear for a full-force sparring in our club are: proper fencing mask with a bib (mandatory), padded gloves or HEMA gloves (almost mandatory) and crotch protection (highly recommended). We can sometimes spar without protection at all but only if both fighters have really good conrol and it's not a competitive fight (no urge to win).

i agree with all and i would add for the ladies that a plastoon be used , while a bib will help, women need a more solid protection of the solar plexus area

When sparring with metal weapons, I ALWAYS wear heavier gloves.

When sparring with wooden weapons or lightsabers, with less skilled/experienced opponents, I also wear heavier gloves.

When sparring with experienced and skilled opponents who I don't know very well yet, I still wear heavier gloves.

When sparring with an opponent who is skilled and experienced AND I'm familiar with them, I'll often wear lighter gloves, which I also wear when doing form work most of the time.

My heavy sparring gloves are a pair of thick gardening gloves, which have proven themselves to be surprisingly protective and were VERY cheap. The light ones are a lightweight pair of fingerless gloves with padding on the outside of them, which are a lot more "free" in terms of movement, but don't offer as much protection. The few times I've been hit while wearing them, though, I haven't had any damage, even so much as bruising, on my hands, so they've clearly shown themselves to be good enough for what I use them for. I paid around NZ$20 (less than US$15) for 2 pairs of gardening gloves (my girlfriend at the time wanted a pair for gardening, ended up using them more often for bo staff practice than in the garden), and around the same amount for the single pair of lighter gloves.

I also work with a hard cap on how inexperienced an opponent I'll fight with wooden weapons or a lightsaber, and anyone who falls short, I'll get out my LARP swords which are foam padded, and for those, you need far less protective gear.

I've occasionally considered getting some more stylish protective gloves which are designed with better flexibility in mind, but it's hard to find something that fits me, is comfortable, and is actually comparable in protection to the heavy gloves I already use.