china blade - about 70 bucks
FIE blade - about 280 bucks i guess
So everytime you break a blade, you will help to pay the rent.
Blades usually break when:
1. you exert too much force
2. your opponent exert too much force
3. it's an old blade and you can feel the edges being very jagged
micro-cracks can occur and affect the strength of the blade.
yes, im serious, micro-cracks.
to prevent 1 and 2:
a. don't hit too hard
b. don't lunge or fleche too close to your opponent
c. if you know the guy is not able to control his speed and strength, play the distance game so that your blade won't have to bend too much.
to prevent 3.
you cannot really prevent it. no blades last forever. wear and tear will destroy everything eventually. but you can like keep ur blade properly in the bag, pvc pipe or a plastic hose. that way it won't like knock into stuff. it's more safe that way lar. for the blade. and for the people around you.
Fe2O3. more commonly known as rust.
most blades will rust (besides maraging blades). maraging blades have those stuff(chromium nickel and what not) in it to prevent it frrom rusting. however the dots that you see on the metal maraging blades are supposed to be impurities.
your china blade will rust. how to prevent it from rusting? keep it a nice dry cool place. or you could use silica gel i guess. just kope a packet of it from the next bag of "wang wang" you buy.
don't oil it unless you know what you're doing. cos some oil are not suitable and will remain on your blade. then you will have an oily slicky blade. maybe it will turn out to be like the rainbow "oil slick" blade.
This post is dedicated to our beloved comrade daniel who has went on ahead before us.
Yup, have fun in tekong, daniel! =p
we miss you!
- Maurice
