Pells & Pell Swords
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| My Pell Swords |
1. Use An Actual Blade
Most importantly by using an actual blade, you are swinging an actual blade. Sounds dumb, but it's obviously the best training. You learn how it feels, how it is balanced, how it pivots in your hand, and how it bounces back after a strike. Most importantly, a real blade forces you to pay attention to your edge placement. If you strike your pell with improper edge alignment, the sword will twist in your hand giving you immediate, sometimes painful, tactile feedback.
Although SCA fighting conventions call for fighters to monitor their edge alignment on blows, many fighters treat their rattan swords like clubs with no edges, and are happy enough to just to be hitting hard. This is especially true of many head/upper torso shots thrown at very close range. Simply put, if you hit your opponent with something other than a weapon's edge, you must inform them so that they can disregard the blow. This is on your honor-- they have no way of knowing if a shot has hit them "flat" or not. Proper edge alignment is developed over time by working on a pell.
Machetes
I have some machetes that I bought from Harbor Freight for $6 that I have been using for years. I rounded over the edges so that they would be a little more gentle on the pell. (See the close up of my current pell in the photo.) Machetes are made of high carbon spring steel, and last forever. The only real drawback to using a machete is its short size-- 22" overall. It's great for working on close range shots.
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| Current State of My Pell's Head |
I have a rebated steel broadsword that is tough as nails. I have used it for the last 15+ years. Practicing with it is the best possible practice for me because I make my swords 37" long, and it is 37" long. I use it when I am working of precise shots, or refining a technique. Due to the thickness of the blade it is a bit on he heavy side-- about 38 ounces. In the photo the sword's blade appears to be curved. That's a trick of the photo-- it's straight. It has the same issue with pell destruction that the machetes do, but is exacerbated by its weight.
Polypropylene Training Sword
Recently I discovered polypropylene training swords on Amazon. I bought a couple to mess around with. I am very impressed with these for their $22 price tag. These swords have all of the advantages for edge alignment that I discussed above. They are 34" overall, but have over-sized handles so the blades are a bit shorter than my preferred length. They have a good weight to them that gives them a nice solid feel. The best thing about them right now is the shape of the edge-- they are a little over a quarter inch thick, and rounded. The leave dents in the pell, but don't damage it nearly as much as the metal blades. If I am just wanting to get some exercise on my pell, this is the best possible sword.
Rattan Swords
I very, very rarely use my rattan swords on my wooden pell. Even if my pell were padded, or made of rubber, the constant pounding is just too damaging to the density of my all-too-rare rattan supply.
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| My One-Year Old Pell |
My pell have always been made from landscaping timbers. They are relatively cheap at Lowes. I set them 24" in the ground, which leaves 72" sticking above ground. The ground where I live has a fair amount of clay, so once set, they sit pretty firmly. When one gets too badly chewed up, and breaks, usually at about the 55" level, I replace them.
I have seen pell made from tires, bowling balls, and many other things. Some folks use a wooden post like mine, but wrap it in rope, or carpet, or some other padding. I like mine simple-- for me.
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