The French foil specifications here are from fencing master’s books from the 19th and 20th centuries. The following excerpts relate only to the physical details of the French foil. The excerpts reflect only the quoted master’s system of fencing and their ideal tool. The aggregated excerpts do not set a final and definitive standard for the French school. We present these excerpts here for both scholarly research, and for reference to the similarities found in our products.
French Foil Specifications – Blade
1818, La Boëssière: The blade should be at least 31 inches (pouces) long.
“La lame sera au moins de 31 pouces, et ne prendra son cercle que depuis la pointe jusqu’aux trois quarts de la longueur; quand elle ne ploie que du milieu, elle est mal faite. La bonne lame est forte do talon, et diminue depuis cet endroit jusqu’à la pointe, alors elle décrit parfaitement son cercle. Celle qui ne ploie que du milieu a trop de fer à son foible; ce défaut la rend lourde, et la fait fouetter; il n’y a pas à s’y tromper, quand use lame n’est pas bien effilée, le cercle en est mauvais.”
1845, Possillier Gomard: 32 to 35 inches for a student, and no longer than 32 inches for the master giving a lesson.
“La longueur de la lame peut varier de 81 à 89 centimètres. Le fleuret du maître, à la leçon, ne doit guère excéder 81 centimètres.”
1861, George Chapman: 34 inches long from shoulder to point.
“The best foil blades are manufactured at Solingen, and those numbered 5 are mostly made use of. [Footnote: The blade from shoulder to point should not exceed in length 34 inches, at most.]”
1882, Ramon Castellote: 34 inches long for adults, 31 inches for children.
“The foil ought to be a truely quadrangular blade, a form which admits of a pliancy that better adapts it for practice than any other. It should for a full-grown man measure thirty-four inches from point to hilt, but another size is made more likely to suit the height of the young pupil; this is thirty one inches in length.”
1898, Claude la Marche: 86 centimeters long, or approximately 34 inches.
“La lame de l’epee a, comme la lame du fleuret no. 5, 86 centimetres de longueur.”
1933, Julio Castello: 34 or 35 inches long.
“The blade is long, slim, and flexible. It is quadrilateral. Its length is 34 or 35 inches. We speak of three parts of the blade: the weak, the middle, and the strong, which the later is nearest the guard.”
French Foil Specifications – Guard
1861, George Chapman: Open guards of iron bent slightly towards the point.
“Open guards of iron, slightly bent upwards, or towards the point, for the better protection of the thumb, are generally used in fencing, and are more convenient than close ones.”
1882, Ramon Castellote: Very similar to Chapman with ring guards of iron, bent slightly forward towards the point.
“Select such foils as have guards of iron, double ringed, faced with leather and slightly bent towards the point; these afford a better protection from injury for the thumb and fingers, and are besides more convenient than close ones.”
1933, Castello: 3 to 4 inch diameter cup guard, or a flat figure 8.
“The guard of the foil is either a convex metal disc of 3 or 4 inches in diameter (bell guard) or a flat figure eight. The purpose of the guard, of course, is to protect the hand. Inside the bell guard we usually find a leather cushion to prevent injury of the fingers when the guards are forced together.”
French Foil Specifications – Grip
1818, La Boëssière: The grip should be 4.75 inches long. This is an approximation due to the conversion from the ancient pouces and lignes measurements. Boëssière describes how round cross-sectioned grips can fatigue the hand. Cross-sectioned grips provide better purchase on the foil.
“Une poignée de bonne longueur doit avoir 4 pouces 9 lignes. On évitera de les prendre rondes, elles tournent alors dans la main et obligent à serrer, cela fatigue et nuit à l’exécution; choisissez-la donc bien carrée; si les angles sont fortement prononcés, vous la tiendrez avec facilité, sans qu’il soit nécessaire de serrer, et les doigts auront alors tout leur jeu. Prenez-la aussi grosse du haut que du bas. Souvent les fourbisseurs font les poignées plus minces du pas, dans ce cas elles ne remplissent pas assez le petit doigt et l’annulaire, et on doit malgré soi serrer, et, je le répète, l’exécution en souffre. Ces détails qui paroissent vétilleux sont néanmoins utiles, et c’est en s’en pénétrant bien qu’on parviendra à acquérir ce bel ensemble qui fait la grace et la force des armes.”
1845, Gomard: The grip should be 14 centimeters long, or approximately 5.5 inches.
“La poignée doit avoir quatorze centimètres de longueur, moins d’épaisseur que de largeur, être un peu courbe, et plus mince par le bout qui touche le pommeau.”
1861, George Chapman: Cord covered grip of various sizes and square in cross-section.
“Twisted twine is the best covering for the handles, which are made of different sizes, slightly curved and more or less squared or flattened. The handle should in no case be rounded, nor should it be too much tapered towards the pummel; it should be of nearly uniform size throughout.”
1882, Ramon Castellote: Similar to Chapman’s specifications.
“See that the handle, or grip-as it is termed in fencing-is slightly rounded. The thumb must be placed on the convex side, and the fingers underneath on the concave side; it is best of an uniform size throughout, nearly square, and in length about, but not less than, seven inches. The handle, or grip, is covered with twisted twine of two sizes, and should be in circumference from two to three inches to suit the size of the fencer’s hand.”
French Foil Specifications – Pommel
1861, George Chapman: Heavy enough to balance the foil between two and three inches from the guard.
“Lastly, the pummel should not be over large, and only sufficiently weighty to balance the blade when placed on the forefinger, between two and three inches from the guard.”
1882, Ramon Castellote: Similar to Chapman’s specifications with the pommel heavy enough to balance the foil two to three inches from the guard.
“The pommel – generally of brass – which acts as a rivet for the handle end of the foil, should be oblong rather than globular, and should be of such weight that the foil should balance fairly when placed in the forefinger, two or three inches from the guard.”