What if you cant have guns?

Hi Fernando, I have been reading your blog for over a year, and just
bought your book. I really loved it!
You strongly promote gun ownership in your book and blog, and
unfortunately that doesn’t work for me… I live in a first world
country where gun ownership is restricted to begin with. And, I live
in a small and isolated community of about 2000 people that has a
strict bylaw stating no one is allowed to have a gun in the community
of any sort, period. People have had their guns confiscated and never
got them back. If I had $100k, I might be able to launch a
constitutional challenge, but I don’t. And, there hasn’t been a gun
crime here in 30+ years at least, so most people here strongly support
the rule. It’s a small island with no animal predators, so there is no
issue with wolves or bears or anything.
Anyways, long story short, in absence of guns, do you recommend any
other range weapons such as a bow or crossbow for home defense
(obviously not EDC)? Or just sticking to some good knives?
Would appreciate your feedback. Thanks!
Craig

Hi Craig, your question is the reason why I wrote so much about using a knife for defense in my book, “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse”. Everyone has a 10” “Chef” knife in their kitchen and its legal everywhere.
Now, before I answer your question: ANY gun is better than no gun at all. Double barrel shotgun? Legal nearly everywhere and heck, until very recent times it was favored by police officers as the go gun for entry before going to their sidearms. Of course, today you have better options, but still, any gun, a 12ga shotgun, a 22LR carbine, anything is better than no firearm at all, and the case where no gun is available is very rare. Remember there’s a world of a difference between banned and “restricted”. Restricted means there’s hope, it shouldn’t stop you. Join a hunting club, shoot skeet for a year, if there’s ways of doing it that should be your goal. If guns are simply out of the question then a crossbow would be better than a bow. It requires less skill to use and has the more simple point/shoot user interface.

80 Lbs Self Cocking Crossbow Pistol Cross Bow 15 Arrows

Barnett Jackal Crossbow Package (Quiver , 3 – 20-Inch Arrows and Premium Red Dot Sight)

The problem here is that they cant be left loaded so you’ll need time to get a bolt set, they tend to be bulky (at least the powerful ones are) and you only have one shot that will be of limited efficiency compared to say, a shotgun. I would complement the crossbow with edged weapons. A Cold Steel spear would give you great range, they are used for boar hunting and would mess up a home intruder nicely. Finally machetes and other big knives are pretty effective as well, but you have to get very close to use them.

Cold Steel Boar Spear, Ash Wood Handle 95BOA
I try to be careful about these questions because too often people get the wrong idea, and they start talking about bows, knives, swords and ninja stars when firearms are perfectly legal to buy.
This lady that called during a certain radio interview I did, she said she was practicing with her crossbow for defense because it was more silent and the bolts could be used again… Lady, you’re not a 17^th century ninja . And why do you need stealth for self defense? The louder the better when someone breaks into you property and you want everyone and their uncle to know about it so that they call the cops or come in your aid. She sounded as if she lived in Louisiana, get a freaking gun for crying out loud!
Having to get by without firearms is bad, but while you always have some option for defense, don’t forget that “hard to get” is a world of a difference from “impossible to get”.
Finally, I leave you with this thought. You mention people getting their guns confiscated and never getting them back. You have to ask yourself this question and make up your mind about this. Is that all you’re risking? If my choices are being armed and risking losing a 500 USD gun if I ever have to use it, to me that’s 500 USD well spent. Even if it means a fine, 10.000 bucks worth of fine if I ever end up using it, my life is worth that and much more. You mentioned 30 years without a crime. That’s great, hopefully you have it and never have to use it and no one will ever now. Most important, you never TELL anyone about it unless they end up knowing because you use it to save your live. If a gated community has policies like that, I’d just risk it none the less. My life and the life of my family is worth much more even if chances of needing it are unlikely. That being said if that’s not the case and you really cant have a firearm the above applies.
Good luck!!
FerFAL

Impact Weapons

Stephen said...

What are your thoughts on impact weapons? While a always carry my concealed sidearm, when I am walking in a more urban area, I also carry a Cold Steel City Stick (pistol grip model). While an edged weapon certainly has its own advantages, the fact that my walking stick is already in my hand ready to go in an instant, gives me much comfort. Split seconds count for everything at such close ranges, and short of walking around with a large knife in your hand (not a good idea), I see a sturdy walking stick as the best alternative for my situation. Potential predators, unless they have no other targets to choose from, may also decide to find easier prey when seeing a walking stick. A concealed knife has no such advantage. Another factor is that carrying a concealed knife has legal implications that a walking stick does not have. I can also carry my walking stick with me right through any security checkpoint and not worry about it at all. I am not trying to "sell" anyone on my choice, but rather am looking for honest comments either pro or con. Thanks!

April 9, 2010 12:31 PM

Hi Stephen,
I don’t favor impact weapons much.

I do have a few batons, broke a couple and know that they have their uses but I much prefer a blade.

As a defensive weapon, the knife combined with some training means you control your immediate space, and it does that better than any other weapon ever created. 3 guys will have a hard time pinning a strong adult armed with a knife without getting cut. A gun places shots on one point, a club sweeps in arcs but you need a) Enough space and distance to gain momentum 2) You need to deliver a blow per person. The knife can be used to cut arcs and sweeps all around you, you don’t need much space and you can cut several body parts/persons if they are bunched together.

If you’re going for a walking stick, go for the strongest one you can get, one with good weight and preferably a steel or metal head, and ornamented silver piece would look fancy and work well too.

Unlike edged weapons, you need powerful strikes, you need to strike hard enough to break bones in order to stop someone, otherwise you’ll just leave a bruise. You don’t notice bruises in a fight, you see them later but they don’t stop you in a fight.

Cold Steel’s City stick is a very good choice. I like the Irish Blackthorn walking stick too.

It is true that a good walking stick, cane or baton is already at hand is immediately available. With enough awareness that’s a big advantage.

FerFAL

Other self defense tools: Kubotan as a daily protection‏

Hi Ferfal,

I'm in Australia - a very socialist type of country with strong laws against self-defence. About 10 years ago, all guns in the country were seized and tightly licenced after a mass murder of over 30 people by a maniac. This of course means that only criminals have guns for serious crime, and knives are the chosen offensive weapon (we also have large population segments which have a cultural preference for edged weapons. Hunting weapons and martial arts weapons are tightly controlled and knives and machetes are the weapon of choice for the small number of violent street gangs.

Australia has always had youth gangs fighting each other to prove their testosterone levels, but over the last few years 'road rage' and knife attacks seem on the increase (small but significant). We are a very self satisfied and affluent society so your reality seems like science fiction to almost everyone here, but still I like to be prepared in case civilised behaviour slips.

Such is our 'protection' against bad guys that we are left to wooden clubs and running shoes for our defenses. Even the humble Kubotan is classified as an offensive weapon and if you have one on your key ring it can mean arrest and fines.
( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kubotan )

I used to carry one before the law changed (enough skills with it for an emergency, but I'd never stand and fight if flight was available). It is an immediately handy and useful flail to attack a knife holding hand and could, in a pinch be used to distract an attacker or if lucky maim him if he tried grappling. ( we're allowed carry a pen knife, but a bad guy is going to have the edged M16 to match your edged airgun).

With the ban on this device, I've taken to using a medium size maglite on my keychain (not ideal for use as a kubotan style weapon but at least I won't be arrested for it). The advantage is that it is always handy for use, especially since entering or exiting house or car seems the most likely point you'll run into attackers.

So can I ask if you're familiar with kubotan, or what other 'in your pocket' defense strategies you suggest where carrying 'weapons' is illegal.

William


Hi, yes so sad what’s happening in Australia with gunrights.
Back when I was in highschool kids from Australia came to Argentina to play Rugby, stayed in our homes, very nice folks.
I’m familiar with the kubotan, saw a couple ways of using it during a class, but can’t say I put much trust into it. Of course its better than nothing but I have much greater trust in a knife instead.
The kubotan MAY hurt if used properly, while a sharp blade WILL cut when it makes contact.
Worst case scenario, the knife can be used to its full lethal extent.
I would recommend knowing your local laws to their full extent. After some research this is what I use in Spain (has a pocket clip):

Unlike a Kubotan, the Leatherman Wave is a tool, not a weapon. I use it on daily basis for a number of small chores, I use the blade for cutting boxes, making a croissant sandwich while site seeing. Not a weapon and legal to carry here.
The multitool can be used as an impact tool with the handles closed, and with the handles extended but with the pliers folded, it has a greater length, a bit more than most keyring kubotans.
If there’s trouble, I have my Wave. I can use it as a impact tool/pressure point/weighted fist, or if the situation requires it, the blade is there too.
For the car, I bought a small bat in a gas station. Nope, not a weapon, its for checking the car’s tires.
Check your laws, and carry the best blade you can legally carry.
In most cases, go for something more utilitarian and not something that screams “weapon”. If you know what to look for, you can get a very effective defensive tool that won’t be considered a weapon until you absolutely need it to defend your life.
Victorinox also makes some very “politically correct” looking blades with a hole somewhat similar to Spyderco’s that are easy to open. The locking system isn’t very practical but at least you have a blade that can be opened fast single handedly.
Hope that helped some, take care!

FerFAL

How much ammo capacity do I need?

Dedicated to some number crunchers out there counting on only shooting 2 or 3 rounds in a gunfight:
Robbery attempt in nearby Lanus yesterday night, southern suburbs of Buenos Aires.
As a cop was entering his house some bad guys try to force themselves inside along with him (typical modus operandi).
Cop starts shooting, kills one, wounds another.
Rounds fired?: Over 30 shots fired.
I tried to find a link but seems the news is too recent, since I just saw it on TV this morning. Interestingly enough, I came by another shooting in Lanus, also a cop fighting five bad guys during a robbery: 40 rounds fired. Cops was wounded and survived, a bad guy was supposedly wounded as well.
http://www.24con.com/conurbano/nota/24340-Lan%C3%BAs-Intenso-tiroteo-entre-delincuentes-y-polic%C3%ADa/

Of course these cops here are amateurs, maybe have a couple dozen gunfights on them, unlike so many legendary armchair commando warriors that never miss a shot and have thousands of battles to their credit.

FerFAL

Reply: Job, prison security job and criminal codes.

Mr. F,

I appreciate your time, and thank you for your input. I am a Corrections Officer in a mental health maximum security prison, I am also an emergency medical technician. My wife is a Paramedic (she can give drugs as a medic I as an emt can not) allow though we both see the horrors that man can and does inflict upon his fellow man, she does not believe guns are a necessity. She however is a saint and allows me to own firearms, she just let me order an AR-15 in 5.56 from stag arms, which is here in Connecticut. We live in a blue collar neighborhood in a wealthy town in the rural section of the state. I am 15 minutes from 2 major cities, and have the State police as the responding law enforcement. About a 12 minute response in an emergency if they are in the area.
My questions are many but will limit them to a few. Hope you have some time. First, public safety, when I first started working for a commercial ambulance system in the states capital, there was a drug war going on. Gang bangers were killing each other fairly regularly. There was however an unwritten rule that you do not shoot at the ambulances, and you don't start trouble in the Emergency Room. Since the collapse how is you ambulance services looked at, how are they treated by the masses, do the get assaulted, are they robbed for there narcs. Are they one of the safe marketable jobs that pay well in Argentina.

Sounds like you have things pretty well planned.
Let me tell you first that one thing I can assure you, there’s going to be a greater demand for security professionals of all kinds, and one of the few buildings the gov. will afford to spend more on is building more prisons.
They are going to be in high demand in the not so distant future.

Things got so bad here, with prison population in excess of 400% of it’s real capacity in some cases, that they ended up using metal containers to build portable cells in a hurry.
“Criminal in a can” :)

One of the things that changed a lot from the old days is exactly that, the loss of the criminal code.

There’s no code anymore. They don’t just steal your wallet, maybe they pop a round into you after you give it up just because they are so full of hatred towards those that have something.

A hatred that is fueled from the government. The government promotes the idea that poverty in this country has been caused by people that have money, no matter how hard they worked to make it. I guess it’s better than to blame themselves, and admit to be corrupt thieves.

You mention the ER. I can tell you of situations here where hosptial workers, including nurses and doctors, went on strike and refused to work anymore until someone did something about security inside the establishments.

They were being mugged, murdered and raped by the same people they were saving.
As I was telling you there no code anymore.

You get shot in a bad part of town, expect to bleed to death unless you can stop the hemorrhage yourself.

It is standard procedure in some parts of town for the ambulance to wait until a police vehicle is available to go along with them. They will not go in there alone. The vehicle, the crew, the equipment the ambulance carries, everything gets stolen, not to mention the risk to their lives.
This happens in places such as Fuerte Apache, La Salada, Villa 31, Villa Tranquila, parts of Lomas de Zamora, Lanus, Avellaneda, San Martin, just to mention a few.

Living in a nice part of town makes a difference when you are bleeding to death on the pavement. In Buenos Aires this means most of the capital district and parts of the northern suburbs. Very few other exceptions other than that.

Ambulances and police, sometimes they simply don’t show up at all.
Your family can file a complain once you are dead, if you they want to waste some time.

I know of just one case where I was surprised by the criminal code.
An armed robber returning the money to it’s victim after she told him her husband was in prison. Other than that, criminal codes are part of the past.

Second. Do you have a Department of Corrections ? I know you said that the cops are either corrupt or scared to do there jobs for fear of being targeted. How do your prisons run. What about healthcare. I work for the State of Connecticut and have PHENOMENAL health benefits. Ridiculously phenomenal and at a price that I would not leave my job, unless I was killed. When my twins were born they were 8 weeks early and had to stay in the intensive care unit for three weeks. They are fine now almost 3 years later but, the bill was 178,000.00 of which my insurance picked up ALL of it. Are medical providers treated well, or at least have job security. I mean mostly ambulance drivers.

We have a justice system, prisons etc. The problem is that they don’t do any good.
Sentences for almost any crime are way to low, the system itself is a joke.
Many dangerous predators are sent home with a bracelet, and warned to not leave home.

Not long ago a man that testified against a criminal was assassinated by this scumbag. He tortured him and his wife, raped her, killed them both. Their two little children disappeared two.
Man, did I pray for those kids, how I wished they were alive. They were little, 6 or 7 years old.

I was crushed a few days later when they found the slaughtered corpses.

And entire family of four brutally murdered by this piece of trash.
The bracelet didn’t work I guess.

I think your line of work is pretty safe. You’ll have lots of opportunities and your job will be in high demand as things get worse.

My post in the firearms section of your blog, stated that I was looking to consolidate calibers. I currently own a ruger 357 magnum and a XD 45. I am thinking that with the AR, if I were to sell of both pistols and get Glock 9mm one 17 for myself as I am 6'3 295 and my wife 5/9 160 a Glock 19. Then I would only need to worry about two calibers. I think that the 9mm is effective, and control able for my wife yet still has some stopping power. Also I would like to get her a Keltec sub 2000 in Glock 17 set up so she has an effective carbine out to 100 meters, without having to buy another caliber. I would truly like your opinion as I do worry about what will happen with the current economic predicament and the future lawlessness. My wife does not have a ccw but will get one if I whine hard enough. She is not afraid to shoot the weapons we own. She just doesn't regularly. She is however a very good shot. I hope I have not bombarded you with two much please feel free to post anything I have said if you think it will help the masses. I appreciate you giving me your email. I think you are an educated man, and value your opinion. I tell all of my friends who share my sense of paranoia to read your site, I hope that you and your family stay safe and well. My warmest regards to them.

Peter.

PS. If you ever come to the states and stop in Connecticut please drop me a line I would be honored to have you in my home, for dinner or even just coffee. Thank you again.

I think you are doing well. Glocks are pretty much the best thing around in terms of handguns. Just make sure you have several boxes of premium defensive ammo. FMJ kills as well, but good 124 gr JHP 9mm has better stopping power. I’d go for Gold Dot +P+ 9mm if I were you.
The keltec is also a good idea, since you take advantage of the 9mm ammo you already need for your handguns.
That's one of the reasons why I like pistol caliber subguns. Not a rifle but still better than just a handgun.

I’d also get a couple of AKs and concealed body armor vests. The price is still very low and if personal liberties keep going the same way in USA, you’ll deeply regret you didn’t get them when you had the chance.
You’d cry if you knew how much I paid for my USED body armor vest.

The AKs are just common sense ( 10 mags for each and ammo), buy two and you’ll never regret it. You can sell them for a nice profit a few years later if need the money that bad.

If things turn out the way I want and I end up traveling a bit in USA I’ll take you up on that offer. ;)

Take care, and thanks for the nice words.

FerFAL

Real use of guns

Recently mi blog somehow made it to Reddit, and was exposed to a lot of people that obviously aren’t into survival and preparedness, they are just the average folk exposed to what I write here.

Other than a couple insults in the comment section (something you can come to expect given the average high amount of stupidity) , one thing that makes me particular sick is the brainwashing and stupidity regarding firearms.

A couple persons were very… what’s the word I’m needing here?, girly?( no offense intended to the women out there that have more guts than many of these coward fools) … hysterical?
They didn’t have enough control of themselves to make a mature statement and ended up using too many insults, which is the only reason why I rejected their comments.

But it got me thinking, do people really get it when we talk about guns? When I constantly mention how important it is to be armed?

Other than law enforcement and military service, apparently many people out there don’t understand it and it may well be because things haven’t reached that point yet in USA. Or maybe it did in many places, but they just go into denial. I don’t know.

So if you are one of these clueless persons that thinks a normal guy arms himself because he has insecurities about his manhood, because he’s aggressive or violent, or is sick in the head and secretly fantasizes about hurting others, here are a few pointers for you.
Hopefully it will remove a bit of brainwashing induced by the media and spread by the governments that only want unarmed citizens simply because they are easier to control:

1) If you have sexual issues, visit your Doctor, ok?. I don’t know, use Viagra. A 500 S&W revolver wont make your penis any bigger.
2) Those of us that prefer big bullets with proven high rates of stopping power, choose so because, again, they have proven high rates of stopping power. No other reason.
If a small 22LR pistol was more effective I’d carry that instead, and greatly appreciate the lighter weight and lower ammo cost. There’s no other emotional insecurity behind it, just looking for the most effective round, ok?
3) Being armed does not mean you want to unnecessarily hurt anyone.
The weapon only makes you more effective, it does not change the fact that you’d do everything in your power to stop that attacker, whatever it take.
Sticking a ballpoint pen into someone’s eye would be pretty effective given the amount of damage, and nerves you’d be compromising, but I find a 357SIG JHP round to be much more civilized if things get to that point.

Now, for some facts about life and the real use the armed citizen has for firearms:

The NRA says that statistically speaking, 9 out of 10 times, the MERE PRESENCE of a gun in hands of the intended victim, is enough to DEFUSE the situation.
Please read that again: 9 out of 10.
I find this to be absolutely true and in my experience, more than likely this is just what happens. The guy or guys make their move, they close in or whatever, you pull your gun, and the situation changes completely:

I don’t know if they suddenly appreciate the beautiful things in life. If they suddenly remember how nice it is to chew food, be able to walk, or the miracle of having a functioning body. If they picture themselves in a closed coffin because the damage was beyond repair. Don’t know, you’ll have to ask a psychiatrist about that.
What I do know is that guns, when pointed at them, have some strange magical power of turning these scumbags into the nicest people.
They start “I’m sorry, man, I made a mistake” or just turn around and quickly walk the other way or look as if they pissed themselves and speed away. I tell you it achieves what years of penitentiary reeducation cant.

All kidding aside, it really works that way, at least most of the time ( 9 out of 10 according the NRA)
Rambo? No, Rambo starts blasting, shooting tons of people never going to court. You shoot one person and fail to prove a good reason for that in court, and you’ll be locked away for a long time.

You, a civilized, person, reholster and go home. Because you don’t want to hurt anyone unless there’s no other choice. You’d only shoot if a weapon of their own is already drawn, or if they keep coming at you.

The key point to this nearly perfect outcome where no one ends up with a new hole in the body and everyone goes home is awareness, to realize there’s an imminent threat.
Now careful, brandishing a gun is a crime that can land you in jail and unless you know for sure, don’t go around pulling a gun.
How do you know you’re in a dangerous situation?
A car trying to force you to stop is a clear sign, guy/guys suddenly moving towards you in a hurry for no good reason would definitely be something I consider a threat.
Sometimes they just tell, “I’m taking your car”, or “give me you wallet/your purse!”.
The possible situations are infinite, you’ll have to use good judgment.

The perfect outcome? That’s the one where you saw this happening before it got to a point of no return and managed to avoid the situation entirely, by running away, turning around, or speeding away in your vehicle.
You use your gun when you already failed at awareness.
You end up shooting someone when you come across a particularly insane person, or more than likely, when you failed yet again, and didn’t use your weapon to control the situation before it got completely out of hand.

I’ve failed to see it coming sometimes. No one is perfect and it can happen. Thankfully I was aware enough so as to not screw it up again after strike one and the presence of my firearm made all the difference in the world.

So wrapping it up a bit, that’s about it. Guns drawn at the right moment save lives, including the lives of the criminals if they know what’s good for them.

2) “So I can carry a 22LR single shot derringer, because I’m not going to use it, right?”
“The friend of my uncle’s neighbor stopped a bank robbery with a NAA 22LR single action revolver.
I bought a NAA 22LR single action revolver and left my Glock behind because I want to be like the friend of my uncle’s neighbor.”

I’m telling you, there’s even people out there that even consider having and carrying unloaded guns when you tell them that 9 out of 10 times you end up shooting nobody.

No of course not. And preferably your gun wont be a 5 shot 38 Special, but something high capacity in a powerful round.

Why?
Because sometimes you just have nothing but bad luck and while odds are in your favor, Murphy may be around and decide to pay you a visit.
Instead of everyone going home, the guys that suddenly show up pull guns, and that’s when you start shooting.

I’ve heard of cases where just a couple rounds were fired, and some really nasty ones where 50 or more cases where found after the shooting.

It’s just common sense. If everyone involved has high capacity autos and we are talking about 2 or 3 guys, just point shooting and pulling the trigger until the magazine is empties will leave a lot of brass in the ground, and it will still happen in a matter of seconds.

3)Expect things to be a bit different from target shooting. This silhouette will be running around and doing a bit of shooting of its own. Expect the worse, expect to miss a lot. And expect to shoot until the guy goes down. They wont fly through the air with a single hit like in the movies.

One guy that got into a nasty shooting once at point blank told me:
“I thought I was missing, but I also knew it wasn’t possible because I was grabbing the guy and shooting at him at point blank. He was grabbing me while he tried to twist his gun in my direction to shoot me.
I emptied my Sig 220 45 ACP with Hydrashock ammo into his torso. He kept fighting a bit but then collapsed.
Then I saw the exit holes in his back. I could see the white grounded fat”
You have do hit them until they go down. Shooting one or two rounds and then waiting to see what happens would be a terrible mistake.

Hope that brought a bit of light to the issue. Separated fantasy and reality for some.

Take care.


FerFAL

Fighting knife choice

Don Williams said...
I noticed a few years ago that you favored the El Hombre knife by Cold Steel. I've always wondered why -- seems to me that the curving blade would make thrusts less precise, but you seem to make astute choices in gear (e.g, the 357 Sig.) Care to explain advantages of El Hombre?

Sure.
First let me tell you, I’ve been a “knife nut” for as long as I can remember.
My grandparents were farmers in Spain, ( worked as carpenters when they came here) and a knife was simply something a kid had to have.

Saw and used many good knifes, even at a young age I would carry a pocket knife my grandfather gave me.

So these days I have more knives than I care to count, use them a lot, read about them, even dared to make a couple.

Cold Steel, Spyderco, Buck, Gerber, Opinel, and various others, can be found in my collection.



The "El Hombre" is discontinued,replaced by the "Vaquero" series.

So, why a recurved blade?

Curved blades like the various “corvo” blades, the famous kukri, the “the corvo chileno” knife, or the blades used in some pacific island cultures have been around forever.
Greek swords, African weapons, or weapons used by ancient Mesopotamic civilizations had curved blades as well
Today you can find some blades called “claw”, which is basically a curved blade as well.

What’s the advantage? the curve draws the blade into the material, it hooks into it and with a slashing motion the material gets caught and force is directed right into the cutting edged.
In larger tools like swords or the kukri, the forward portion has better chopping geometry, almost like an axe has , offsetting the contact edge form the handle axis.



The “s” shaped recurve also has the advantage of having a point that allows it to be used for stabbing, something that a claw or other forward curved blade cant.

I should also say, you get more edge surface for the same overall length with a recurved blade than with a straight one.

When I tried various blades on an old leather boxing bag I was about to throw away, everything became even more clear:
While other high quality razor sharp knives would “slip” on the surface when slashing, the recurved Cold Steel blade would 'bite' into the material with every slash, cutting more aggressively.

The “slipping” sensation I had with the straight edges ones was replaced by a sensation of digging in, taking full advantage of the force used in each strike.
When checking for results, the straight edges would make shallow cuts, while the recurved serrated blade made brutal, deep cuts.

You could clearly see how the straight edges could probably slip on someone’s clothes when fighting, but the recurved blade would cut to the bone with a good slash, and could be used for stabbing as well.

So there it is, that’s why I have a recurved serrated folder as a self defense knife.

Having said that, as a working blade, I prefer a straight edge.
Why? 3 good reasons.

1) It’s a much more even geometry for working.
2) The recurved blade is MUCH harder to sharpen.
3) The S shape make for difference force being required depending on if you are cutting with a forward or backward motion, and this feels odd.


So, that’s why I have a recurved serrated for fighting ( just for defense, keep the edge razor sharp at all times and don’t use that knife for anything else) and a average Spartan Victorinox for every day chores.

Hope that answered your question.

Take care.

FerFAL