Knife Fighting

This page is about self preservation / self defense / combatives using an edged weapon. For general knife information, see the knives page.

My Notes

Under construction.

General realities of knife fighting

A real knife fight is something to be avoided; both people will usually end up cut
When an edged weapon is involved, strength and size don't matter as much as in bare-hand combat; distancing, timing, speed, skill, strategy, and intent do.
There is a need for force-on-force training (see this thread for a good analogy)
Simple techniques work best; need to be able to pull them off under stress against an uncooperative attacker with intent to kill/hurt you
When learning new techniques start slow and controlled to get a feel for it; as you get more comfortable increase the resistance and speed until realistic
Don't be afraid to ask questions / experiment
Find out what works by trying it in a controlled environment

Basics

Stance, posture, positioning
- Posture
  - feet parallel; knees always facing same way as feet
  - body 45 degrees to opponent (not completely square)
  - knees bent
  - low centre of gravity
  - back straight
  - have weight quite far forward; most weight on front foot
  - keep your limbs in tight; elbows in, don't have your arms waving about in front of you.
- Compare stance to normal bare-hand stand-up fighting stance
- How to move around
  - never cross your feet
  - move the lead foot first when moving. e.g. if moving left, step with your left foot first, then bring up the right foot. If moving forward and your right foot is in front, step with the right foot first, then bring the left foot up.
- Hold the knife in your strong hand and put that side forward (e.g. right hand and foot forward for most people)
- Knife should be the forward most part of you
- Keep tight, keep knife and alive hand close to you
The two grips
- Fencing grip - versatile, longer range, defensive and offensive
- Ice-pick grip - fast, simple, offensive/aggressive, less defensive, shorter range, suitable for smaller knives only, strong weapon retention
Smaller knives can be used in either grip. Longer knives (e.g. bowie knife) can only be used in fencing grip.
Avoiding telegraphing

Unarmed defenses against knife attacks

Dive and drive for low thrusting attacks… dive in, drive them back, control their arm, take down
Cross block for high attacks
Jamming then controlling the limb, then pushing them off to create space, accessing
Creating distance and accessing your knife
Using a belt/towel/rolled up shirt
Can use knife-style defenses even when you don't have a knife; indirecter and move back, pass and hold your ground, or jam as you come forward.

Ice-pick grip (Floro style)

Basic stance / posture
- Weight really far forward
- Elbows in, hands in close to your body
- Knife always pointing at your opponent
The 3 basic attacks of ice-pick grip
- Basically just a straight punch, the 3 variations come from simply rotating your wrist (thumb 45 deg left, thumb up, or thumb 45 deg right).
Cross-block for high attacks
Using the back of your forearms to defend against attacks when at close range
“Picking up the phone” counter attack against attacks when in icepick grip

Fencing grip

Basic stance / posture
- body 45 deg to attacker, feet parallel
The 9 attacks of fencing grip
Practice moving forward and backwards for all 9 attacks
Defenses
- Indirectors / limb cutting
  - Main thing is to step back to get out of the way of their attack
  - Make sure footwork is correct - step back with back foot first, then spring off front leg, end up in your stance ready to do it again.
  - As you step back, attack their knife arm with a mirror of their attack
  - e.g. if they do a number 1 attack, you do a number 1 as well
- Passing
  - Passing can be done for high & narrow 1 & 2 attacks, or for a low stab (number 5)
  - For 1 and 2 attacks, get close, unbalance them, push them back
  - For a number 5 attack, it's kind of like a clap where you cut with one hand and slap the attacking arm out of the way with the butt of your live hand.
  - You should hold your ground when passing
- Jamming
  - You must come forward as you jam
  - For more horizontal attacks or low stab (number 5)
  - Involves using the arm closest to the side that the attack is coming from to form a kind of “chicken wing” with your elbow facing 45 deg forwards, forearm diagonally up, palm down. Don't catch with your hand, absorb the blow with your wrist. It's a soft movement, you aren't whacking them.
- Shielding
  - Blocking using the knife
  - Can do this best when attack is coming from your knife side (e.g. you have knife in right hand and attack comes from the right).
- Riding
  - For up close / messy attacks
  - Imagine a heart shaped “shield” in front of you; the top of it is a bit in front of your shoulders and the bottom of it just above your opponent's groin.
  - You use the back/side of your forearms; use the opposite arm to where the attack is coming from.
  - No matter where the attack comes from inside the heart, the idea is to push it horizontally outwards to the left or right side of the heart, and then down to the bottom point of the heart.
  - Can only apply pressure in one direction
  - Example: attack comes at your left pec. You use your right forearm to push the attack arm to the left and then down (and always forwards at the same time).
  - Once at the bottom of the heart
  - Requires forward pressure to work

Miscellaneous

Faking - using your shoulders, coming forward, pointing the knife up towards opponent.
Various accessing methods for folding knives - gravity, limb striking, gravity reverse grip, thumb stud, wave on pocket, two hand, etc.

martial_arts/knife.txt · Last modified: 2008/04/08 12:10 (external edit)