The Art of the Grip

Other than blade preferences, perhaps nothing is more subjective for advanced fencers than the feel of a particular grip.  After all, the grip is the link between the blade and the fencer's hand.  It plays a big part in the sensations that are transferred to the fingers as the blade moves and contacts the opponents blade.  The grip plays a part in the fencer's "Sentiment-de-Fer," the sense or feeling for the blade but that is a more complex issue than I can cover here.  More critically, however, the grip affects the weapon's balance, purchase (the ability to hold onto it), weight and maneuverability.  The finest blade with the wrong grip becomes nothing more than a hatchet with a blunted point.

The ten wood grips above are made of Poplar and will be cord wrapped, like the one shown in the middle, so they are slightly undersized from the final dimensions.  They are in semi-completed status and the final shaping and wrapping will be done when the grips are ready to be fitted to blades.  Poplar is a very light, straight-grained wood that absorbs shock well.  I've also made grips with harder woods like mahogany, ash, oak, ebony, teak and maple.  Harder woods are typically heavier and are stained and sealed to show the wood grain.  Wire wrap is sometimes done to aid the purchase of the hand on the weapon but wire is rough on gloves so I only do it at a client's request.  Hardwoods transfer more shock to the hand but, in the hand of an experienced fencer, even the lightest touch of the blade is instantly felt.  

All my grips start as a blocks of wood and are center drilled, cut (based on several time-tested templates), shaped and then sanded.  They are all 6 inches long and will be later sized to the client's hand.  The final shaping will be done when the grip is fitted to the client's blade.  Although the grips above all appear the same,  each is hand made so there are slight differences in dimensions and shape that I use to fit a grip to a particular client's needs.  As I mentioned above, it's a matter of subjective feel.  

The grip in the middle is wrapped with copper-colored nylon and then wrapped on top with black nylon thread.  A small section at the end of the grip is left unwrapped to allow the recessed area of the pommel (or pommel bushing) to overlap and compress directly against the wood.  This prevents splitting.  The blocks in the middle are Mahogany (left) and Poplar (right).  At the back, behind the cords, is Zebra wood that will be part of a future grip project.