The Top 5 Mistakes In Choosing A Self-Defense Knife

Michael Janich, GetZone.com Contributor

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Training: Good training teaches you what you need from a self-defense knife
and is the best way to develop the judgment necessary to choose a good
one.
A knife can be an excellent self-defense tool. Lightweight, easy to carry, and
legal — in one form or another — virtually everywhere, it offers lethal
potential that could literally save your life. Even if you regularly carry a
handgun, in the event you suffer a catastrophic malfunction, have to travel
someplace where you don’t enjoy reciprocity, or have to spend time in any
other gun-free environment, carrying a high-quality, well-designed tactical
knife is a smart thing to do.

Unfortunately, there is a lot of misinformation out there about personal-

defense knives and their effective defensive use. If you fall victim to the hype
and hyperbole, at best you’ll be wasting your money on weapons you can’t
trust. At worst, you could end up in jail or on a coroner’s slab because you
chose poorly. With those solemn images in mind, let’s look at the five critical
mistakes people make when choosing a self-defense knife.

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Fearless 2
 Choosing a
personal-defense knife can be a daunting task. Avoiding a few common
mistakes will quickly put you on the right path.

Mistake #1: Failing to Research the Law

Self-defense is an interesting legal problem. Basically, it consists of admitting

you committed a violent act but justifying that action by providing evidence
you were the victim of a crime and that your use of violence was justified to
protect your life. A large part of that justification process involves
establishing yourself as “the good guy” in the eyes of the legal system.
Carrying an illegal knife is inconsistent with that image.

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Knife laws are complicated, confusing, and notoriously imprecise. They also
vary wildly from one jurisdiction to the next. Nevertheless, it’s your job as a
law-abiding citizen to research all the laws that apply to you (including
municipal laws that could be stricter than state laws) based on where you
live and travel. A great way to do this is with a Smartphone app called Legal
Blade, which is maintained and updated by KnifeRights.org. It allows you to
quickly research the laws of states and major municipalities to determine
what types of knives are legal and what types are not. Once you understand
those parameters, they should form the foundation of your knife selection
process.

As a wise self-defense student of mine once observed, “The worst way to

start your claim to self-defense is with a felony in your pocket.”

Mistake #2: Confusing Popularity with Quality

In today’s world of social media, we have come to evaluate things based on

the number of “likes,” “shares,” and “followers” they generate.
Unfortunately, just because something is popular doesn’t mean it has any
redeeming educational value — or that it should ever serve as a basis for any
of your personal-defense decisions. Just because a guy in a YouTube video
looks cool and can spin a knife like a yo-yo champion doesn’t mean he knows
anything about designing a knife — especially one that meets your personal
needs.

Online videos and social media posts can be a useful means of learning about
knife designs and narrowing your choices, but only if you use them
intelligently. Instead of just looking at the number of followers someone has,
look at the comments those followers leave. If they are intelligent, well
reasoned, and seem to come from people who share your values and
concerns, you’re getting potentially useful information. If you post a
respectful, inquisitive comment asking about other people’s experiences and
satisfaction with a design and get insightful responses in return, you’re on a
roll. However, if all you see are vapid or overly aggressive fan-boy posts,
keep looking.

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Even if we ignore social media, popularity still does not mean a particular
knife design is right for you. Think for yourself and learn to set specific
criteria that meet your personal needs.
 Just because
a knife is popular or its designer has lots of followers on Facebook doesn’t
mean it’s worth trusting your life to.

Mistake #3: Failing to Get Training

If you are ever forced to defend yourself, drawing a knife and hoping for the
best is not a sound plan. To use a knife effectively, you need some degree of
physical skill. And the best way to develop that skill is through high-quality
training — Ideally training that focuses on using knives in legitimate self-
defense circumstances. Such training not only allows you to develop solid
skills and tactics but should also help you understand what qualities are
necessary in a knife for it to “do its job.” This can vary greatly depending
upon the specific techniques and tactics of the system you learn.

A good defensive knife system should teach you the mechanics of cutting and
thrusting and, in the process, help you develop a sound understanding of the
qualities a knife must possess to function effectively as a weapon. Really
good systems quantify and validate the cutting performance of knives with
test cutting on various types of targets. That type of experience teaches you
volumes about how different types of knives really perform, which designs
work, and which don’t.

Obviously, highly specialized systems — like those that focus exclusively on

the use of the karambit — literally require a particular style of knife. That will
limit your choices significantly. It also means that if you are ever forced to
“make do” with another type of knife, your skills won’t translate completely.

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Also, if you are really serious about carrying a knife for personal-defense,
you’ll want to train diligently and will need a training knife that closely
matches your actual carry knife. For production knives, that requirement
alone will narrow your field of choices faster than anything else.
A self-defense knife must be able to cut and puncture its intended targets.
Validating that on realistic facsimiles like this “Pork Man” target is a great
way to separate good knives from unworthy ones.

Mistake #4: Modeling the Wrong Skill Set

In case you hadn’t noticed, we do not live in feudal Japan or in a remote

tribal village of Indonesia. Unless you are actually a duty-bound member of
an armed service or are specifically authorized to carry special weapons, you
are an average citizen — just like the rest of us. That means that when you
use a knife as a weapon, it will be in the context of self-defense. You won’t
be avenging your master, fighting a deathmatch, or stalking a sentry, so
choosing an exotic, purpose-designed martial arts weapon or high-speed,
low-drag military knife probably isn’t your best move.

Similarly, there is a huge difference between lawfully defending yourself with

a knife and killing a fellow inmate in prison over a pack of cigarettes. Prison
is, by definition, a non-permissive environment, so the weapons you find
there are invariably improvised shanks and shivs. High-speed tactical folders
are not an available option, but a toothbrush ground to a point on a concrete
wall is. With a sharpened toothbrush, stabbing is really the only option.
Because it is far from an ideal weapon, stabbing ruthlessly and repeatedly is
the best way to compensate for its shortcomings and achieve a lethal effect.
However, just because all that makes sense in the skewed, hyper-violent
culture inside a prison population doesn’t mean it should be a basis for your
choice of self-defense tools or tactics. Inmates stab each other because
that’s all their available tools allow them to do. And, yes, inmates die from
being stabbed, but ambushing another prisoner (often with help) is not the
same as decisively stopping an attacker on the street.

When it comes to tactics, it’s also important to remember that, in self-

defense, we have to establish ourselves as “the good guys.” If your “work
product” (i.e. your attacker’s wounds) looks like the victim of a felonious
assault, you are much more likely to be viewed as the perpetrator of a
felonious assault, not an honest citizen forced to defend himself.

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What does all that mean when it comes to choosing a knife? Well, besides
the fact that a sharpened toothbrush in a Kydex sheath should not be your
number one pick, you need to focus on a self-defense context and the tools
and tactics appropriate for that context. You should also avoid designs that
are associated with martial arts, knife systems, or other groups that
advocate tactics and behavior inconsistent with responsible self-defense.

Mistake #5: Failing to Consider Your Wardrobe and

Lifestyle

Most people who have concealed carry permits do not carry on a regular
basis — primarily because carrying a handgun is uncomfortable. Although
knives are smaller, lighter, and much easier to carry than firearms, a good
defensive knife must still be compatible with your wardrobe and lifestyle for
you to carry it consistently. You may live someplace where a giant, crew-
served folding knife is perfectly legal to carry. Tucked in the pocket or
waistband of your jeans, you might even get used to it. But as soon as you
put on a pair of shorts, your clothing choice no longer supports its weight
and bulk well. Dress up in a suit or even business-casual attire and it not
only sticks out like a sore thumb but makes your officemates nervous enough
to report you to HR.

Conversely, a reasonable, non-threatening folding knife that blends in well

with everything you wear is much more likely to fly under the radar. Because
it’s easier to carry, carrying it consistently — which translates to being
armedconsistently — is not a problem.

In summary, the best way to choose a good self-defense knife is to first arm
yourself with good training, good judgment, and the ability to think for
yourself.