The Pell

[Hayden Lapiska]

What weapons are acceptable and advisable to use on a wooden pell. Would it have adverse effects on either a wooden waster or a blunt steel. Also, what are some good exercises and drills to be preformed on said pell, or does one just go at it with the miesterhau.
Thank you.

[CalebChow]

The video page shows our deputy director go to town on a pell with an Albion steel blunt, so using a sturdy steel blunt is probably the best.
I'd imagine that wood/nylon wasters might get damaged if you swing too hard against a pell without some padding.

When it comes to drills, I'd imagine that just about anything you can think of should be done--and done more and more. Do meisterhau, do floryshes against it, do thrusts, and do them many many times. The pell is a versatile training tool, so I don't think there has to be any specific set of drills to do.

[Vincent Le Chevalier]

The video page shows our deputy director go to town on a pell with an Albion steel blunt, so using a sturdy steel blunt is probably the best.
I'd imagine that wood/nylon wasters might get damaged if you swing too hard against a pell without some padding.

In fact pretty much anything will get damaged if swung very hard against a solid unyielding target. I've heard about people breaking steel blunts on pells as well.

Given this I think a synthetic sword might be the best. It is very solid and meant to take repeated impacts, can have a slightly more realistic mass distribution than wood, and is cheaper than steel. It will also be less dangerous if it breaks I think.

Regards,

[Hayden Lapiska]

Thanks for the input.
Would it be possible to do a sort of hanging pell, besides a punching bag or something that is. I know I've seen those before, but I what if I replaced the bag with a wooden post on a chain.
Would the inertia of the thing disqualify its advantages of not being "solid" or would this be a viable alternative.

[Sal Bertucci]

Hanging pells are good options too - if you have something to hang from.

[Alexander Barnett]

I've been practicing doing light strikes against a punching bag and a very thick piece of dangling rope and I'd imagine a suspended wooden pell would be amazing.

The slight give in a suspended pell would better represents what hitting a person would be like since it has some "give" like a person would.

I'd also imagine that if you got your pell swinging back and forth fast enough you could simulate hitting a moving person. Hitting someone charging at you and then hitting someone pulling back from you quickly.

[Randall Pleasant]

The slight give in a suspended pell would better represents what hitting a person would be like since it has some "give" like a person would.

Just as important, the slight give can greatly reduce the possibility of injury. When I first started in ARMA I was hitting a wooden pole pell very hard and got a nice case of tennis elbow for my effort. Since that time I have always used a bag pell.

[Doug Marnick]

The slight give in a suspended pell would better represents what hitting a person would be like since it has some "give" like a person would.

Just as important, the slight give can greatly reduce the possibility of injury. When I first started in ARMA I was hitting a wooden pole pell very hard and got a nice case of tennis elbow for my effort. Since that time I have always used a bag pell.

I recently discovered how much elbow pain is a huge detriment to HEMA practice. Due to recent issues, I have been advised to avoid weightlifting and martial arts until fully healed. I'm very frustrated by this and advise everyone to take care of those joints as well as staying flexible. This summer I'm focusing on abs, core, footwork, and manuals.

Ran, check PM.

[Stacy Clifford]

Following what Randall said, on a wooden pell I would recommend wrapping it in at least a couple of layers of old thick carpet, foam camping pads or something similar in the areas where you're going to be hitting it the most and hardest (roughly head and shoulders at least, if not everything above your waist). It's dirt cheap and it will reduce wear and tear on both your equipment and your body.

[Steven Ott]

the Body oriented bag (BOB) is great fun and works as a pell if your using wooden trainers and it allows you to aim for specific targets. If you wanted to protect it you could put armor on it.

[nathan featherstone]

this got me to thinking and i adopted a new punch bag and pell i use a heavy duty boat bollard its heavy very sturdy has an eye to hang easyily and unlike wood it gives and springs slightly more like flesh.
thoughts?