Combat Knife Fighting

With crime rates soaring and the threat of terrorism always looming on the horizon, the need for individuals to learn basic self-defense skills is becoming clear. One of the most popular self-defense weapons to carry around are knives. Knives are easy to conceal, lightweight, and can be used as a survival tool as well as a weapon. In order for a knife to truly be a useful tool for both survival and combat, you will need to learn the skills and techniques to use your knife properly. Follow these steps.

Things You'll Need

  • Combat knife
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Instructions

    • 1

      Choose a knife that best suits your needs. Combat knives come in a variety of shapes, sizes and designs. You will need to choose a knife that meets all the legal classifications for the area that you live in to make sure that you are in full compliance with concealed weapons laws. Combat knives also have different types of blades. Some have single blades, while others have double blades.

    • 2

      Grab the knife by the handle with a tight and firm fist. This is called the hammer grip. It will protect you from having your knife knocked out of your hand by your attacker as well as giving you full use of the knife for slashing and thrusting. With this grip you can also use the butt end of the knife like a hammer to strike your opponent.

    • 3

      Hold your free hand up close to your heart and throat. This is a protective stance that will help defend you against your attacker's weapon striking or puncturing any of your vital organs, such as the heart and throat with his weapon. Your free hand can also be used to punch or strike the opponent to knock him off balance and achieve the upper hand in the fight.

    • 4

      Check your opponent for targets to strike. Visually look over your attacker and notice which points of his body he has left open that you can strike with your knife. This does not mean going for vital organs first, as the attacker will mostly likely have these covered. Drawing your enemy's blood and keeping on the attack will weaken him and ensure you a victory, regardless of where you attack.

    • 5

      Step toward your attacker with your knife raised up and make a downward slashing motion with the blade pointed toward your attackers weapon hand. Strike the weapon that presents the most danger to your safety first. If it is not possible to get your attacker unarmed, aim for a different target.

    • 6

      Get back in the defense position with your hand close to your chest and defend yourself from attack. Prepare to make another pass at a different target on your attacker.