Knife idea

[Neophyte]

Dear All,



While thinking about blade limits I had a bright idea. Maybe this has been suggested before, but I haven't heard of it. In many places there is a three inch limit on blade length. Some guys who carry for self defense are frustrated by the fact that this leaves them carrying a little knife, unsuited to MBC. Maybe not.



Instead of having a normal handle, topped with a small three inch blade, how about a normal handle topped with several inches of comletely unsharpened blade, with only the three inches at the tip sharpened. The unsharpened portion could easily be covered with some sort of handle material. (Cord wrapping would be cheap and easy, but it could be anything.) The guard occurs partway up the handle, just above your hand, and there would be several more inches of "handle" above that. You would still only have three inches for cutting, but you would have much more reach. Thrusts would probably have a three inch limit, but - at least you've still got the extra reach. Any comments?



Regards, Neophyte.

[4 s ter]

Neophyte

Although laws vary greatly, many jurisdictions don't measure "blade length" based only upon the sharpened portion of the blade. Covering the unsharpened portion of the blade ahead of a guard may not change anything when it comes to a legal interpretation of the blade length.

David

"Not all who wander are lost"

[HoB]

I am absolutely without knowledge concerning MBC, but I seem to remember that it was pointed out by Mr. Janich that 3in blade length is perfectly sufficient to deliver a fatal injury. However, he also pointed out that MBC does not aim at inflicting such an injury, but to disable the opponent by strategical (biomechanical) slashes and stabs, which require a sharp edge and a tip with superior penetration power. Unsharp bladelength doesn't seem to gain you much in that department (I am not talking going from 3 in to a sword). I guess a knive with a "controlling" element like a hook or notch which doesn't contribute to bladelength (like a spanish notch does) seems to me far more useful, than extra, dull bladelength, but such a knive would probably be rather cumbersome to wear. And as somebody pointed out, the best tactical knive is worthless if you don't have it with you when you need it.

My two cents, but I am really a total amateur

[Michael Janich]

Dear Neophyte:

4 s ter got it right when he explained that blade length is not measured exclusively by the length of the sharpened edge. When measuring blades, I always recommend that you measure the longest possible distance from the tip of the blade to the handle, just to make sure.

I recently designed a knife for Darrel Ralph and Ryan Wilson of "Combat Elite" called the "Covert Response." Inspired by the Indonesian/Malaysian "rencong" (sometimes called a "toe knife&quot<img src="wink.gif" width=15 height=15 align=middle border=0>, it is a pistol-grip fixed blade designed for carry inthe front pants pocket. My original concept was to extend the handle slabs all the way up the neck of the handle to the ricasso to define the forward edge of the handle and avoid having the neck included in any potential blade measurement. I was ultimately overruled, but I still feel the concept of the extended handle slabs is valid. To get a look at it, check out combatelite.com.

Keep up the creative thought. The best way to avoid being buried in a box is to learn to think outside one.

Stay safe,



mike j

[AllenETreat]

My experience w/ the local cops is
it's really one's behavior that'll
cause problems ; most LE types don't
have time to stop every citizen to look
for a "weapon" & most I met usually go
by the "cutting" ( i.e. sharpened ) edge.

I don't buy that concept of "reach"
however ; I witnessed an in-law take
a stab in his neck with an x-acto knife!
( it did quite a bit of damage, I might
add. <img src="sad.gif" width=15 height=15 align=middle border=0> ) Myself, I'd tell you go for a
Ronin - if you train enough & have preseverance it'll win the day for you
the same as a 6" w/ 3" sharp blade.

A trivia question - what's the depth
( in inches ) of the heart into the chest?

The Ronin's blade length would probably
be enough.

AET

Some things are necessary evils, some things are more evil than necessary. John Le Carre

[zeus]

Mr. Janich,

that Covert Response would have looked great with the scales extended as you had intended. Maybe allowed for more control as well.