Know Your Knife Grips

March’s edition continues with “Combat Hapkido - - Blog’s” “2009 year of the knife” topic; this month we’ll be covering knife grips. When it comes to self-defense, knowing knife grips are as important to the attacker as they are to the defender. A defender’s knowledge and understands of the different ways and attacker can grip a knife will prepare the defender to responded appropriately to a knife’s attack angels, distancing, and target acquisition.

There are multiple ways a knife can be held for offensive or defensive use. The two most common are the forward and reverse grips with the edge facing out.

The following are variations of the forward grip:

1. Hammer Grip – The hand with all fingers and thumb are wrapped around the handle as if making a fist.
2. Saber Grip – The hand will all fingers wrapped around the handle and the thumb placed on the top of the handle.
3. Modified Saber Grip – Similar to the saber grip but the thumb is placed on the flat of the blade.
4. Palm Reinforced Grip - pommel rests against the palm of the hand, index finger is placed on top of the handle or blade spine
5. Filipino Grip - hammer grip, but the thumb is along the spine, either floating above the spine, or in contact with it.
6. Forward grip edge up - similar to a saber grip, but with the knife handle rotated along the axis of the forearm, so the edge is facing upward

The following are variations of the reverse grip:

1. "Regular" Reverse Grip - more specifically, "reverse grip edge out,” where the hand is wrapped around the handle as if making a fist with the thumb capping the pommel, edge facing away from the forearm
2. Ice pick grip - more specifically, "reverse grip edge in,” the edge facing the forearm.

Preparing yourself for any encounter against a knife assault will not only take dedicated training on your part but will also require you to research and learn as much as possible about knifes and their use as weapons. Bad guys don’t play by rules, and the likely hood of the bad guys using knifes to rob or hurt you is grater then the bad guys just using their fists to rob or hurt you. Bad guys will always try to get the advantage over their pray, so do your homework and prepare yourself. The first place to start is to acquire the “Combat Hapkido Weapon disarming Knife/Handgun” DVD, and then head off to the library and research as much as you can on knife fighting.