Recommended Equipment Suppliers:

American Fencing Supply: Solid company with overall good quality and service. Sells both top of the line stuff and its own good house brand.

Escrime USA: A new company with good sizes for taller fencers. A good step up from less expensive Chinese-made equipment.

Fencing.net: Reseller of several brands, including Leon Paul and FWF, the German company that manufactured Uhlmann equipment before Uhlmann went to China. Also has own house brand.

The Fencing Post: 20% discount off of all internet orders. Generally has the best (U.S.) prices on top of the line Uhlmann equipment. Good place to buy well-constructed electric blades.

Leon Paul USA: British firm with wide range of innovative equipment. Very high quality.

Triplette Competition Arms: Solid quality, wide variety and decent prices. Sturdy stuff. Runs large.

Other Suppliers:

Absolute Fencing Gear: Own house brand plus a reseller for a variety of brand names, including Negrini. House brand is inexpensive but generally solid. House brand equipment will break or wear out more easily than higher quality equipment.

Blade Fencing: A reseller of a wide variety of brands. House brand is inexpensive and generally solid. House brand equipment will break or wear out more easily than higher quality equipment.

Blue-Gauntlet: Reseller of a wide variety of equipment. House brand is inexpensive but generally solid. House brand equipment will break or wear out more easily than higher quality equipment.

Fence PBT: Hungarian firm with high quality at lower prices than other top of the line stuff.

Fechtsport-Langenkamp: German company that sells Uhlmann and Allstar equipment at very good prices. Make sure you know exactly what size you need before ordering. Returning equipment overseas is a hassle.

Sword-Masters: Reseller of very good Estoc brand. Good prices on Favero scoring equipment.

Zivkovik Modern Fencing: Want see-though masks and funky grips? Go no further!

Important Links:

United States Fencing Association: Membership required for all USFA competitions.

Western Pennsylvania Division: Schedules, clubs and info for fencing in Pittsburgh and Western PA.

Northern Ohio Division: Schedules, clubs and info for fencing in Cleveland and Northern Ohio.

Fencing.net: Excellent resource for all things related to fencing.

Fencing Instruction Links:

David Littell's Webpage: Coach at Haverford has both text and video instruction.

Allen Nevins' Coaching Compendium: Excellent source of information for coaches.

Coaching Manual of the Canadian Fencing Federation: Systematic approach to coaching all three weapons.

www.fencingchannel.tv: Video Clips of international level fencing.

Want a good book that clearly explains fencing motions for beginning and intermediate fencers? We recommend Elaine Cheris' Fencing: Steps to Success.

There are lots of fencing videos on youtube. Please be aware that many of the instructional videos are made by amateurs with little training.