h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Hmm.
I thought almost all knives where held 'backwards' - with the blade pointing downwards from the hand. The exception being long knives which where almost miniature swords.

On a sidenote, quarterstaffs rock!

Most knives could be used both ways, but gripping the hilt with the blade projecting upwards (from the thumb side) is best for stabbing.

While John Wayne always struck downwards with the knife reversed (along with all the other coyboys and indians), this brings the knife in to strike the sternum, and it will usually glance off to a greater or lesser extent, rattling down the ribcage and inflicting a nasty, painful, bloody but quite shallow gash. Only if it succeeds in piercing the sternum cleanly will such a blow cause immediately lethal damage to the heart or lungs.

Stabbing upwards however, with the knife held forwards, brings the blade up, under the ribcage, piercing upwards into the heart/lung area with relative ease.

The way to a man's heart is truly through his stomach.

The other advantage of the... oh, let's call it forehand grip is that it gives you a slightly longer reach.

In modern knife-fighting, such as that taught to soldier and demonstrated by the lies of Steven Seagal, the blade is often reversed and held along the arm, this supposedly being more effective in defence. The blade is then 'flipped' into a forehand grip to attack.

The Prophet

I was thinking of 'Scream' to be honest...

the backhand grip is better for defence because the striking position is the same as the defensive one - arms raised. With forehand, if you want to strike you have to lower your arm, whith then puts you at a disadvantage.

The rules do change if you're an indestructible psycho

Michael Myers was able to drive a kitchen knife (a really big one mind) clean through a human body with enough force to pin it to a wall. what I want to know is why the report of the break-in at the hardware store didn't mention that the knives the supposed kids had stolen were eighteen inches long and razor sharp.

But that's a different subject.

I guess the real distinction is between the way to hold a knife in a knife fight, and the way to hold a knife if you're just stabbing someone to death. On the other hand, that holding it above your shoulder like in the westerns is more intimidating than effective really.

Also, when talking about fighting with knives I guess I think more of the scramaseax than anything else (being essentially a medievalist), which was a definite slashing weapon.

And of course, when discussing notable knives of the world, one shouldn't forget such oddities as the bali-song, or butterfly knife, which seems to be designed primarily to let people show off, and the hunga-munga, a scary-looking throwing knife from Africa, with blades sticking out at all angles. Not really a hand-to-hand weapon though.

The Prophet

The only experience I have of butterfly knives is watching somebody show off with it and accidentally cut their hand and pour blood everywhere...

I can't remember what was special about it, though, so it can't have been that impressive.

Well, the bali-song has the split-hinged handle with a loop at one end, that folds closed around the blade, so you can spin it around your fingers and look all cool.

Or cut yourself open like a fish; whichever comes naturally.

This not of course to be confused with the butterfly sword (aka butterfly knife), a short, broad, two-edged slashing weapon used in some martial arts.

The Prophet

anybody know a good way to learn how to throw a knife? also, in Gorden Dixon's WOLF AND IRON there is a good
description on how to fight with a knife

The purpose of butterfly knives was to dismember. Each blade is short, wide and thick therefore very heavy. Wiht a relatively small sword it was easy to remove arms and legs with one blow...

Sean