Posted: 12/13/2009 4:40:13 AM EDT
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I'm relatively new to ARFCOM and find it a wealth of information so I'm wondering if I can ask you for some help. I would like to buy a knife that I can carry daily for self defense. Someone, months ago, suggested a plastic thing (looks like a cat) to put on a key chain but my fear is that the bad guy would laugh at it. Instead, a knife might deter something from occurring just by seeing it, so that is why I'm interested. I would also be interested in classes on how to properly defend myself with it. Any suggestions? What do some of you other women carry? Guns are not an option where I live.
Thanks, in advance, for your help. |
I carry a Benchmade Griptilian. It's pink as I wasn't the one picked it out, but my SO knows I like to support companies that donate part of the cash to breast cancer charities, and Benchmade put this one towards Oregon's breast cancer awareness charity. It's a great knife. |
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Hoping that the bad guy will see it and change his mind isn't really the greatest plan. If he sees it and is planning shooting people, you will probably be the first to go. I recommend getting some training to go along with carrying your knife and try to conceal it as much as you can. I just clip mine in the front pocket of my jeans, so it's not completely concealed, but it works, ya know. My cousin sells knives. I could maybe ask him for some recommendations. Are there any specific features you are looking for? You might want to look into the laws in your area, first, and find out what blade length is legal and what types are outlawed. i.e. butterfly, switchblades, etc. Also go into some gun or knife stores (not the cheap, souvenir mall type ones) and hold some, feel how they fit in your hand, decide it looks mean anything to you or if you want it to be purely functional. |
Welcome aboard GunFriday 
Heres a couple links you may find interesting, this man knows his stuff, my 02. http://www.nononsenseselfdefense.com/deescalation.htm http://www.nononsenseselfdefense.com/seminarMA.htm#knifefighting Blackops_1. |
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I was given one of the cat looking things that you referred to. It may not look like much, but it hurts a lot. I tested it out on my leg and... I will never do that again.  The point of anything like these options is to stop someone enough so that you can get away. Chances are that you aren't going to make a man pee himself and run away just because you have a knife. The catchain will cause pain, and is very easy to hold on to and maintain, without as high a risk of hurting yourself when trying to hurt him. |
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Gun people are often very prone to seeing all problems as nails and their weapon of choice as the hammer.
Nothing could be further from the truth, especially when it comes to personal defense. Violence often comes so suddenly that if you have only a 1 second warning, you are blessed....because if you have no warning, if you are not aware, it will be several seconds before you even figure out what is happening to you and then there is the feeling of shock, disbelief and often an overwhelming sense of being dominated to the point of despair. So, a 1 second 'warning' actually equates to several seconds, if not longer. The point is situational awareness. Practice. Relearn to trust your intuition. So, when it happens, it is necessary to have already trained to respond back with profound violence. Most any direct attack will happen so close and fast that drawing a firearm may be initially or completely precluded. And women have to be aware of something men, pretty much, do not. I speak of either abduction, rape or both. Considering there is often a disparity of force, I advocate an equalizer of sorts. The first equalizer is mindset: I say prepare yourself to fight back with all you have. This is your life, take responsibility for it, take charge of it now, before it happens to you. The second is skillset: seek out and get instruction you trust, instruction that will put the stress upon you in force on force scenarios, instruction that emphasizes pure, raw survival with effective, realistic combative techniques that include transition from empty hand, to knife/stick, to firearm. The third is toolset: with a knife if you have only considered carry options and have overlooked DEPLOYMENT, then you have failed. Something in a purse or handbag that is not deployable in 1-1.5 seconds is a fail. Expect to be struck, multiple times, and taken to the ground, or forcibly moved. A knife that can be quickly deployed from supine, prone, seated, kneeling, lying on your side, may be your only chance. Choose well. Buy a drone/trainer (knife in same shape and function as the one you carry, but it is not sharp) and train. Then train some more. Take a look at the Hideaway knife. Designed by a woman for self defense purposes. Hideaway Knife Others I suggest looking at are the Emerson La Griffe, CRKT Bearclaw and Ka Bar's TDI LE knife. I sincerely hope this helps. |
| Thank you. I'm currently carrying a small KA-BAR, the hideaway knife actually looks more effective / ergonomic / concealable so I will look into that. The KA-Bar can easily be seen if I'm not careful. I always carry it. I'm definitely interested in a class around my area, I just don't see anything around. Any suggestions on that? |
| The Hide Away Knife is an excellent choice for the reason stated above-it is always ready. Violent confrontations happen quickly and trying to fight off an attacker and deploy a folder could be problematic. A small fixed blade like the HAK is quicker and easier. I am by no means an expert, but from training and the observation of experts, I have picked up that stabs are not the preferred method for knife attacks anyway. Slashes to the major muscle groups that can impair function and draw the most amount of blood is the goal. The HAK, having a small blade without much stabbing potential is not necessarily at a disadvantage to a larger folder. As has been stated, try to get training if possible. For some ideas, go to Youtube and search for videos by Michael Janich. He is one of the leading knife trainers and I'm sure that he has a bunch of informative videos on there. Hope this helps. |