Dictionary Definition
waster
Noun
1 someone who dissipates resources
self-indulgently [syn: wastrel]
2 a person who destroys or ruins or lays waste
to; "a destroyer of the environment"; "jealousy was his undoer";
"uprooters of gravestones" [syn: destroyer, ruiner, undoer, uprooter]
User Contributed Dictionary
English
Pronunciation
- Rhymes with: -eɪstə(r)
Noun
Derived terms
Extensive Definition
A waster () is a wooden practice weapon, usually
a sword. In some period
texts, the word waster is sometimes printed waſter (see long s). The use
of wood instead of metal
provides an economic and safe option for initial weapons
training and sparring, at some loss of genuine experience. A
weighted waster may be used for a sort of strength training, making
the movements of using an actual sword comparatively easier and
quicker. Wasters as wooden practice weapons have been found in a
variety of cultures over a number of centuries, including ancient
Ireland,
Scotland,
Rome,
Egypt,
medieval
and renaissance
Europe, Japan, and into the
modern era in Europe and the United States. Over the course of
time, wasters took a variety of forms not necessarily influenced by
chronological succession, ranging from simple sticks to clip-point
dowels with leather basket hilts
to careful replicas of
real swords.
Used commonly in the modern
Historical martial arts reconstruction community, the term
refers to wasters fashioned to resemble western European weapons
like the longsword or arming sword. The increasingly popular
Historical martial arts reconstruction groups, as well as the
role-playing
and renaissance
festival groups, have provided an ample market for commercial
waster retailers. As the martial art has grown and academic
interest has risen in weapons other than the longsword and arming
sword, other types of wasters have been produced
commercially.
The concept of wooden practice weapons is not
limited to the Western
Martial Arts. Some Japanese
martial arts involving swordsmanship like kenjutsu and iaido use bokken or shinai as practice weapons.
Eskrima, a
martial art from the Philippines,
also uses a type of rattan stick as a practice weapon in place of a
blade. The martial art of single stick
is more or less entirely derived from the use of wasters as
practice weapons in place of broadswords.
Use
Historically, students and soldiers used wasters as inexpensive and expendable training tools. The cost of high quality steel weapons, especially swords, would have made them a poor choice for practice weapons. Constant training would fatigue the blade, rendering it far less effective and reliable as a weapon. To prevent the destruction of an expensive weapon and to permit the necessary training and sparring intrinsic to any martial art, wooden practice weapons were created with the intent of eventually being “wasted", hence the term waster.Today, especially in the reconstruction of
Historical European martial arts, wasters have experienced
renewed interest. Wasters provide a number of benefits to the
modern practitioner, many of which would have applied to historic
trainees as well. The wood construction coupled with unsharpened
edges and blunted tip, crossguard, and pommel of
wooden swords provides a safer alternative to practicing with a
sharpened or unsharpened steel weapon. Wasters do not cut flesh,
but provide a decidedly blunt impact. The lower cost of ownership
in comparison to a steel weapon of the same variety makes the
waster a much more affordable and expendable tool. Many modern
wasters are fashioned to replicate the original weapon with
accuracy, including functional integral sword parts. This
functionality allows the wooden weapon to be handled more like its
steel counterpart.
Wasters are not without their faults. The all
wooden construction usually makes wasters somewhat lighter and less
balanced than steel weapons. The difference of material properties
between wood and steel creates a difference in performance when
training and sparring. The wood wasters tend to recoil from strong
contact with other wasters as may occur in a strong parry or
absetzen, a phenomenon colloquially referred to as "waster bounce".
Steel weapons do not display this attribute to the same extent,
usually binding and sliding with minimal rebound instead. The use
of wood with rounded edges makes wasters considerably safer for
practice than a steel weapon, but does not make them totally safe.
Strong cuts or thrusts to vulnerable body parts during sparring may
lead to significant injury to the individual. Wasters provide a
safer training experience than steel weapons at the cost of
authenticity.
Modern
historical martial arts reconstruction organizations, including
the
Association for Renaissance Martial Arts and the Chicago
Swordplay Guild use wasters as the primary training tool of new
practitioners. Wasters are used to learn, practice, and later spar
with a variety of techniques including cuts, slices, thrusts and
wards.
During flourishes, a
waster may be substituted for a blunt sword, especially if a lack
of experience is a concern. Participants may also use wasters
against a pell, a training pole roughly simulating a human target.
As the individual becomes more skilled, they will begin to use
blunt steel weapons which offer a more realistic set of properties
in comparison with a sharpened metal blade.
Construction
Modern commercial producers use primarily Hickory, a hard and resilient wood, in the construction of their wasters. Some producers allow individuals to accent the waster with wood of other types including Brazilian Cherrywood (Jatoba) and Purpleheart. Manufacturers usually apply a coating of linseed oil or other protective liquid and instruct users to regularly apply it. This prevents splintering and works to create a stronger, more enduring tool. Different specimens of wood, even of the same variety, are not necessarily identical in performance, and may display different characteristics during use.The form of modern wasters follows from their use
as replica training swords. Blades on wasters have a lenticular
(lens shaped) or diamond cross-section and defined edges. This
shape continues into the hilt, which features a grip with an
oval-shaped cross section oriented in the same plane as the blade.
An integral part of historical swords, this oval shape permits the
wielder to know the swords rotational blade alignment by feeling
for the position of the oblong grip in their hand. The pommel acts
as suitable counterweight for the blade and a stable gripping
surface, providing the swords intrinsic balance and allowing the
user a weighted leverage point for more powerful manipulation of
the weapon. A functional cross acts as it does on a steel sword,
protecting the hands and assisting in a number of guards and
parries. During half-swording,
the cross and pommel may also function as a striking portions of
the weapon, used directly to cause injury as in the mordhau.
History
Wooden practice swords have been in use since the Late Bronze Age, with an original sword from Grotsetter, Scotland still in existence at the National Museum of Edinburgh. A similar find in Ireland adds historical backing to the Irish myth, the Tain, in which the use of a wooden training sword is mentioned. Egyptian soldiers practiced a sort of sport fencing using blunt sticks as a sort of primitive waster. The Romans used a form of wooden sword, the rudis, for combat training. Translations of Roman poets Horace and Juvenal provide evidence of this training weapon in use. One translation of Juvenal's poetry by B. Holyday in 1661 makes note that the Roman trainees learned to fight with the wooden wasters before moving on to the use of sharpened steel, much in the way modern reconstruction groups progress. In fact, it is also found that Roman gladiators trained with a heavy wooden sword against a straw man or a wooden pole known as a palus (an early relative of the later wooden pell). Wasters are mentioned in period works, including The Book of the Courtier. A number of Fechtbücher also mention the use of wasters or depict them in use by models showing proper technique.During the 16th century, the Dussack came into
use in German fencing schools. A true waster, the dussack was made
almost entirely of wood (in all but one known case) and acted as
safe and cheap training weapon. The weapon's unique shape did not
lend well to the replication of traditional cruciform-hilted swords
like the arming sword or longsword. Instead, the dussack resembled
the großes
Messer or "great knife", a weapon found more often amongst the
common people than longswords, the cost of which allowed only
relatively wealthy individuals to purchase them.
Types
Modern wasters take a variety of forms and emulate a number of weapons. As form follows function, not all types of wasters provide the same elemental design features.Swords
Longsword wasters
are generally between forty-two and fifty inches long and are also
known colloquially as Hand-and-a-Half swords, allowing the use of
both hands on the hilt while using them. These weapons incorporate
a ridge or fuller,
defined edges, and other sword components commonly found on steel
swords. Longsword wasters are the most common type of waster today
, largely because many of the fundamentals taught by Johannes
Lichtenauer and his students Sigmund
Ringeck and Hans
Talhoffer frequently involve the longsword. The modern
Historical martial arts reconstruction community also focuses
heavily on the longsword, providing a demand for the specific
tool.
Arming sword
wasters span the broad gap of thirty-two to forty-two inches in
length and, like their historical counterparts, have a shorter hilt
than a longsword, allowing only one full hand to hold the grip.
These wasters also commonly feature defined edges, pommels, and
other typical sword elements. Arming swords are featured heavily in
the combat of Manuscript I.33, the oldest
manuscript on sword-and-buckler fighting, dating
approximately to the turn of 14th Century.
The ceremonial rudius, a wooden gladius given ceremonially to
gladiators when they
won enough battles to become free men, is produced by some current
day vendors and is twenty-eight to thirty inches long. The
producers warn that the rudii are for ceremonial purposes, however,
and should not be used in mock combat. In this sense, the waster
supersedes its place as a tool for combat and becomes primarily a
work of art.
Dussacks and
falchion, two-handed
sword, cut
and thrust sword, gladius, Viking sword and rapier wasters are not widely
available from commercial vendors, but may be special ordered or
hand-crafted.
Daggers
Rondel dagger wasters, like the daggers themselves, are generally about eighteen inches in length, with a twelve inch blade and six inch hilt. These weapons may forgo defined edges altogether and take on a more cylindrical shape as the rondel dagger acted historically as a thrusting and stabbing weapon. Hilted dagger wasters are also available, featuring functional crosses and defined edges, often found in lengths of about 18 inches.See also
- Bokken a form of waster used in Budo
- Dussack a specific form of German waster
- Eskrima uses a rattan stick to represent the sword
- Federschwert a steel practice sword
- Singlestick a type of combat using a short dowel
References
These works have been used for multiple large
portions of this article and as collective citations of
characteristics of modern wasters. They have not been cited
individually as references to prevent an unwieldy list of footnotes
from a few sources.
- Clements, John. Get Thee a Waster! - Used within Use & History sections.
- Little Raven. Frequently Asked Questions - Used within Use, Construction & Types sections.
- New Stirling Arms. About Our Wasters - Used within Use, Construction & Types sections.
- Purpleheart Armoury. Frequently Asked Questions - Used within Use, Construction & Types sections.