[MaterielGeneral]

Years ago I bought a Ninja style sword. It is probably medium quality, full tang with a strong blade. Defiantly not fire forged, folded high carbon steel. Anyways I just ordered a hard wood training sword and a display base. Swordsmanship has been an interest for a long time. Its not just a skill, its an art.

A secondary reason, a more of a prepping reason is what if a very long term event happened and the bullets dried up? How would you defend yourself. Knowing swordsmanship and knife fighting would be an asset. To supplement that, I have a crossbow that is the compound style but in time I want to get the traditional style with no pulleys etc. I also would like to get either a couple take down bows or long bows.

I have been looking into martial arts to further enhance my fighting skills. I learned some in basic training but that was a joke. I learned a lot of fighting skills as a correction officer and when I went thru the Emergency Response Team training. Then doing all the fighting at the prison gave me the experience to give and take a punch. Anyways, I found a dojo locally that is based on Taekwondo. Now the pleasant suprise is that I found a dojo that has several arts and one of them is Ninjutsu about 35 miles away. The bummer is that until some of the bills are paid off NO to all the above. Sucks A

I guess I fall back to youtube and learn what I can, LOL.

 

[BookWorm]

You're on the right track. At some point after SHTF bullets could run out and a person will still need to defend themselves. I'd guess bows, spears and other like weapons will become popular at that point. Learning how to use them now only gives you a head start.

 

[The Tourist]

Well, I politely disagree. Do you know how many bones I've broken taken the Rambozo route? Massad Ayoob used to carry a five dollar bill in a book of matches. When tempers flared--usually in a bar--he'd throw the book of matches at the aggressors and say, "Here, have one on me." That was Massad Ayoob, not only an author, but he ran a pistol training school called "Lethal Force Institute."

Most fights are chest-thumping affairs. We are not going to survive going from muscular idiot to muscular idiot in TEOTWAWKI.

 

[azrancher]

Most fights are chest-thumping affairs. We are not going to survive going from muscular idiot to muscular idiot in TEOTWAWKI.

This was also true in the "old West", shootouts on Main street were not common, typically it was in back alleys, and other places. Case in point in Tombstone the shootout at the OK corral was from stall to stall with the horses used as shields, most losers in shootouts died from a gunshot in the back. Just keep in mind there is no such thing as a fair gun fight, that goes for knife fights also.

Rancher

 

[The Tourist]

that goes for knife fights also.

Oh, I know. I'm more dangerous with a knife than a gun. I handle numerous knives during the day, and my "misspent youth" told me to keep my back to the wall. And my SIL is a nurse, so if I need to know where a major vein is, she'll show me how to get to it.

For example, I have my own table and chair at Barnes and Noble. I can see all three exits, and I think my Crimson Trace has a clear path to the doors and open areas. This chair is against a wall, and I sit 90 degrees to the table, watching the entire store area. This might seem paranoid, but B&N is right next to the food court, the main area for rowdy behavior.

In reality, it's one of the few places I can relax. My wife opines that I relax when I'm in complete control.

 

[Slippy]

My fighting days are over.

As of today, my intimidation days are quickly weaning. But, I can still intimidate the average Joe who loses his cool and wants to be a big man.

The real Warrior? I rely on my ability to read people. Lately over the past few years, I simply do not put myself in situations that require violence.

Oh, and if on the low low possibility that I run out of ammo, Believe me, we all got bigger problems than simply deciding to fight some pissed off idiot...

 

[Camel923]

As one gets older, using your intellect to win before a fight starts is a good strategy. Either by deceit or avoidance. It’s good in youth too although most take while to realize it.

 

[MuzzleBlastMD]

Any staff, stick, or spear can have a good effect at stopping someone. But if it’s against a projectile, it would not be very effective for sheer distance and speed.

Like others have said, avoidance and not getting into a skirmish is your best bet.

But if all hell breaks loose, and it’s every person for themself, you’re better off pooling resources and forming alliances. There is still safety in numbers.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

 

[MisterMills357]

Years ago I bought a Ninja style sword. It is probably medium quality, full tang with a strong blade. Defiantly not fire forged, folded high carbon steel. Anyways I just ordered a hard wood training sword and a display base. Swordsmanship has been an interest for a long time. Its not just a skill, its an art.

A secondary reason, a more of a prepping reason is what if a very long term event happened and the bullets dried up? How would you defend yourself. Knowing swordsmanship and knife fighting would be an asset. To supplement that, I have a crossbow that is the compound style but in time I want to get the traditional style with no pulleys etc. I also would like to get either a couple take down bows or long bows.

I have been looking into martial arts to further enhance my fighting skills. I learned some in basic training but that was a joke. I learned a lot of fighting skills as a correction officer and when I went thru the Emergency Response Team training. Then doing all the fighting at the prison gave me the experience to give and take a punch. Anyways, I found a dojo locally that is based on Taekwondo. Now the pleasant suprise is that I found a dojo that has several arts and one of them is Ninjutsu about 35 miles away. The bummer is that until some of the bills are paid off NO to all the above. Sucks A

I guess I fall back to youtube and learn what I can, LOL.

Always remember sir, the true fight is inside the man, just as much as the man is in the fight. No one kills a lion in a pithy manner, and they will remember the occasion, even if they get the cat first.
They better hope that they get the cat first, or they are cat food. I respect a lion, and I respect a black belt too, and I respect a crowd of louts. And if any of those things ever takes a bite outa my old butt, they will break their teeth on it.

A sword and a wooden training sword are lethal weapons, if you have faith in them and yourself. And if you train yourself fairly well, then you become lethal too; they key is to find what flows with you, that is what Bruce Lee did.

If you think of a sword fight, how many different ways can the human body bring a sword down? I consider an X pattern to work really well, and that is how I think with my Jo stick, I made it myself.
It is 36" long, because that is what I wanted, it makes a very good walking stick. But it is made of heavy duty aluminum tubing, I painted it camo, and it looks like wood though.

I am about as unorthodox as anyone can get, and I am mostly self-trained in fighting, I do have some Tae Kwon Do, and that is a good school/method. I am in the midst of stirring up a hornets nest on a martial arts forum right now, as I write.

I said that if the school that you train in cannot or will not train you how to kill, and maim, then the school is worthless. Just go find a better one, one that in the black belt levels teach hard corps fighting; to include maiming and killing, but only for those souls who want that training.

You're on the right track. At some point after SHTF bullets could run out and a person will still need to defend themselves. I'd guess bows, spears and other like weapons will become popular at that point. Learning how to use them now only gives you a head start.

I have made weapons all of my life, and I do it by nature, and I view a beer bottle as a potentially lethal weapon. When you break it, it can cut a throat, or be plunged into the guts. And yes bows will become popular if guns and ammo ever become hard to get. And ambushes would become an unending danger, it would be Hellish for a while.

This was also true in the "old West", shootouts on Main street were not common, typically it was in back alleys, and other places. Case in point in Tombstone the shootout at the OK corral was from stall to stall with the horses used as shields, most losers in shootouts died from a gunshot in the back. Just keep in mind there is no such thing as a fair gun fight, that goes for knife fights also.

Rancher

Keep yer back to the wall, if'n you can; and you are right, if the fight is very serious, it won't be fair. It pays to think things over before the event occurs, and let your mind roam, think the unthinkable.
Think about the possibility of being killed, and you know, not many will think that thought. Fight like death is imminent, should you lose the fight.

Oh, I know. I'm more dangerous with a knife than a gun. I handle numerous knives during the day, and my "misspent youth" told me to keep my back to the wall. And my SIL is a nurse, so if I need to know where a major vein is, she'll show me how to get to it.

For example, I have my own table and chair at Barnes and Noble. I can see all three exits, and I think my Crimson Trace has a clear path to the doors and open areas. This chair is against a wall, and I sit 90 degrees to the table, watching the entire store area. This might seem paranoid, but B&N is right next to the food court, the main area for rowdy behavior.

In reality, it's one of the few places I can relax. My wife opines that I relax when I'm in complete control.

I always face the exit when I am in the SPC West Library; and the librarians seem to think, that I might be dangerously insane or something. I face the exit, without fail, and I carry a metal walking stick.
It will be a 3 or 3 1/2 foot Jo; I have different lengths, and different metals: and I am unapologetic about carrying them; since I expect to be left to my own devices, if I am attacked. I have been left to my own devices so far. I have been attacked multiple times, and in public view, and nobody has ever helped me, so I helped myself.

My fighting days are over.

As of today, my intimidation days are quickly weaning. But, I can still intimidate the average Joe who loses his cool and wants to be a big man.

The real Warrior? I rely on my ability to read people. Lately over the past few years, I simply do not put myself in situations that require violence.

Oh, and if on the low low possibility that I run out of ammo, Believe me, we all got bigger problems than simply deciding to fight some pissed off idiot...

I ease my angst by listening to music, and watching tough guy movies

Part 1: Pistol Annies--Takin' Pills....I love this song, and those girls, yee ha! Call me crazy, go ahead, I am. There is a part of me that has no fear, Jesus will understand if I show up full of bullet holes. Or with my arm cut off, you how it is, stuff happens.
Part 2: I faced off against 12 or more screaming banshees once, and they were there to collect a friend of mine, they wanted to kill him. We were upstairs and I told him, if they go for you, duck back inside and lock the door, and don't look back. They were there because some fool accused the young friend of groping a little girl. I called him out to the porch, and I told the crowd, let him speak his side...and nobody touches him.
So he blurted out his side, and eventually, it was found out that he had not done any such thing.
3: I would have killed 5 or 6 of them if it had gone down, because I would have gone after the throats. Three on one is a felony, and 12 on 1 is a felony 4 time over.

PS: there is a coherence in my post, even if I seemed disjointed. Life made me half nuts or something, and my writing skills have taken a hit. So forgive any rambling.

 

[The Tourist]

My fighting days are over.

Except in terms of pending fatality (like multiple bank hold-up guys with shotguns) so are mine.

As you know, I had retinal surgery. In most cases, even a few jabs wouldn't disturb the repair. I think Sugar Ray Leonard had retinal surgery and kept boxing.

And let's be honest, you cut someone to the bone and I believe he will lose all interest in you.

But time marches on. We're not the young bucks we were when woolly Mammoths roamed freely in the Sears Auto Department. The worst trouble I fear is waves of people, like these half-wit Democrat nuts, or jihadists and their camels, all liquored up and dancing their humps off. I carry extra magazines, and most mobs run at the sound of one gunshot. But it would be my luck that I drop a jihadist's camel, only to find they were recently engaged.

No, I sit where I can see the exits. I'll grab my wife, look for an empty exit, and perhaps deliver a Parthian Shot.

 

[WhatTheHeck]

In hand to hand combat training at my beloved island, the first thing the instructor told us was to do anything and everything to avoid hand to hand combat.
A rock. A stick. Anything to avoid getting that close to the enemy.

And then he proceeded to teach us hand to hand combat.
Go figure.

I agree with the OP; Every time you squeeze that trigger you are that much closer to using a bow, a spear, a club, no matter how deep you stock.
Unfortunately none of us have the Green DoD logistical machine providing us with boxes and boxes of ammunition via the S4 and weekly flights of C-17s to our BOL.

There are those who promote MMA. I think I would rather train with a sword, or other impact weapon.
The question is, where to get that kind of training?

 

[The Tourist]

The question is, where to get that kind of training?

James Keating used to teach Bowie Knife fighting, he still might. As for the use of a katana, I've seen lots of guys slicing grass mats on YouTube, so there has to be teachers somewhere.

Personally I took a Schrade SCHF15 and polished that. I doubt I'll ever have to use it, although I've had three years of fencing. I found that sword and knife moves are almost identical. And even if I do use it, it's priced so low it's disposable.

I'd study Italian fencing, they fight in a circle and use dirks to augment the sword.

 

[Sasquatch]

@MaterielGeneral Put two guys in a ring and let them go at it hard and they are both winded within a minute and a half. That is unless one or both of them conditions their cardio. That's why if it comes down to a fist fight get it over as quickly as possible. Hammer fist to their clavicle and their arm is now useless. A good throat punch and they are done. And if worse comes to worse take their eyes out.

I studied Martial Arts and fought in tournaments in my 20's. My first Dojo was in someones garage learning Taekwondo. From their I moved on to Kenpo and Jeet Kune do. All the fancy moves in the movies look really cool but most aren't practical. Most martial arts training is expensive, I would suggestion trying to find some classes at a local Jr. College, learning annex or YMCA.

As for sword fighting check into Kendo. There was a Japanese church by my old house that taught this. I used to go and watch them practice. Even with a bamboo stick these guys could do some damage.

 

[rice paddy daddy]

I've got enough machetes that I have one in each vehicle, one in my camper trailer, and several more in the shop.
Being a Floridian, I seem to attract these things like a magnet.
Sugar cane knives are excellent also - my hand made Jamaican was stolen years ago and I've never found another that good.

Ahh, but training?
Give me an unloaded wood/steel military rifle with bayonet attached and I'm pretty damn good at it. WELL trained in the Spirit Of The Bayonet.
Actually, a lot of bayonet fighting moves would translate very well to a 4 foot long hunk of 2X4.

 

[WhatTheHeck]

@TheTourist and @Sasquatch,
Thank you for the suggestions.
Unfortunately I live in such a rural area, those may be hard to find.
I will try though.

 

[stowlin]

Hats off to the OP it’s not my thing, though I’ve often kept a bow and few hunting arrows around it’s my thought if the world runs out of bullets I probably caught one more myself.

 

[Annie]

@MaterielGeneral martial arts is definitely on my bucket list. Keep us posted if you find some place you like that teaches you well! I for one would like to know.

 

[Chipper]

Alternative fighting in my book is changing to my pistol when the rifle/shotgun goes down. I'm to old and crippled to start hand to hand combat. However I do remember my ole wrestling/boxing days. The idiot that gets within bad breath distance will be in for a big surprise. For a short time. Hopefully the wife will have finally dug her weapon out of her purse before I'm done.

 

[Slippy]

I may have told this story before, one of my nephews is a Black Belt Karate. He trained Karate for 15 or so years. In my opinion, his parents put him in Karate because he was "bullied".

At the time of the incident, he was in his early 20's, a grown ass man as far I was concerned. I was in my early 50's...

Nephew dipshit was smarting off to me one day and his final words were something like "Uncle Slippy, I'll whip your..."

In less than two seconds I had him on his back, my hand on his throat, my knee on his chest and my 230+lbs (at the time) of pissed off old 6'4" fat-man making it hard for little karate boy to breathe.

Yes, he cried "uncle" and Yes he peed his pants.

He ain't said shit to me since...

 

[Elvis]

Long ago an older (maybe 60) ex- NFL football player told me to never get into a fight with an old man. He said they don't have the wind for a long fight so they don't play around; an older man will go for the kill immediately, unlike a young buck like I was at the time. No "fight fair" when fighting.

I'm still young enough to dance and take a swing but now days I don't fight fair, I grab something and swat the ball out of the park quickly.

The muscle strength is still there, but the wind to go for a while isn't.