jdw wrote: ↑Thu Dec 29, 2022 12:03 pm
Naperville wrote: ↑Thu Dec 29, 2022 10:19 am
WilliamMunny wrote: ↑Thu Dec 29, 2022 5:13 am
Is the Native Chief anything like the Native 5? I really like everything about the Native 5 and a bigger version seems neat. But just by looking at the blade geometry/shape the Native Chief looks like it would be a totally different knife, not just a bigger Native 5.
On the other hand the Lil Native looks just like a small Native 5.
Spyderco designers seem to have maintained the ratios pretty well. The Native 5 is definitely shorter and stubbier.
The Native 5 that I have is an excellent knife but smaller knives are harder to press into a self defense situation than larger knives. Anything will do in a pinch but the Native Chief is a better self defense knife.
The Native Chief is a well dimensioned knife. For self defense it has just enough piercing ability and has enough edge for slashing. When doing slashing moves to an opponents arm or thigh, it is hard not to strike your knuckles on the target. With a small knife this could mean missing the target completely. There is enough blade there to get an edge on the target.
If they ever made a 1 inch longer version I'd be all over it.
I have a non-argumentative question. What would the extra inch give you in a real life, last ditch knife defense? I have read enough of your posts that I understand that you believe in knife SD and are likely trained. I have no knife SD training and in a real life situation, if I had lost my gun, I would choose either a Civilian (due to it's design for untrained people) or a Military because I am most familiar with how it feels in hand. Just wondering. Thanks Naperville.
Thanks for the question.
I think Michael Janich has a solid weapon in the Yojumbo, but it lacks a bit of penetrating ability, so I choose to carry the Native Chief.
Stand with an opponent facing you, and have them thrust and swing their arms and hands as if they are trying to strike/cut you. Allow them to have a 1ft long piece of wood protruding from their hands.
Hold a small piece of wood in your hands, and allow only 1 inch of wood to protrude from your clenched hands, and try and cut the opponents arms/hands as they swing at you with the ft long weapons. Difficult isn't it? You need more length/reach in your weapons.
Did you successfully cut or pierce their body with the 1 inch piece of protruding wood? Did you bang your knuckles on their body as you tried to cut them?
Now you do the same thing with a longer piece of wood, and allow 24 inches of wood to protrude from the top of your hands. Keep your opponent with just 1ft protruding from their hands. Run the test again.
Obviously we can continue to do this until we have a tool that has the ability to "stand off" an opponent so that they do not get close to us to cut us, and we can easily cut and thrust at an opponent, striking them.
Typically the Filipino martial arts escrima and arnis use 20 to 30 inch short swords or knives. The Spyderco Darn Dao is almost perfect for these arts, and almost perfect for self defense.
Every inch that you gain in your self defense weapon, allows you to "stand off" or keep away an opponent. They will be unable to close the gap between you without getting cut, as long as you brandish the weapon before they close the gap. There are diminishing returns for this type of weapon the longer that you go, and there are other hand-to-hand combat weapons. These are melee weapons. Longer weapons are more cumbersome, and less able to change direction because they are heavier and the balance point of the weapon moves away from the hands.
Within escrima and arnis is the style of Largo Mano, where the feinting movement of the body and weapon is used to disarm or defang the opponent. It often uses weapons that are longer than 30 inches in length, but it works with shorter weapons as well.