Great post and the 1st thing the Silat teachers I trained with albeit briefly would quote.Doc Dan wrote:Fairbairn said, (and I will take his word for it) if you are confronted by someone wielding a knife, run.
Having watched these guys for a month intensive training course.
The disarming was more of a end game than any counter knife attack .
Also the mentality of attacker plays a huge part in the outcome.
If you have a crazed possibly mentally ill person or somebody high .
Then even inflicting serious wounds will bear little effect .
One thing I saw which was a sight to witness was the disarming/disabling of a knife wielding attacker with a sarong .
Various techniques used and employed once mastered make it a very effective technique.
Obviously it doesn't have to be a sarong but being a part of everyday dress for the teachers means accessibility.
If I ever got to the level I saw I'd rather employ that method than have to use a blade .
I have been attacked with a blade rather a machete and have the scars to prove it.
The thing that I often recall is the instant inbuilt reaction to put up your hands/arms to protect the head.
This was after practicing Silat and I think I used one method taught .
Back off and put as much room between the attacker and yourself .
All the injuries I sustained were on the hands , fingers and forearm whilst protecting my head.
And as so often is the case in these incidents it was somebody I knew .