Just Another SD Thread

[Boink]

It seems to me the overwhelming majority of tactical knives are, thankfully, not used tactically. For the NY area, I can count only one instance where a trained knifer tragically and stupidly killed a bouncer. Almost every other time a knife has been used to damaging effect, it's been an ordinary kitchen knife used by untrained individuals in and about the home.

 

[fishface5]

Back to the original question, IMHO (and I'm sure some will disagree) the most important aspect of an SD knife is the handle, which must be designed for grip-retention under stress (next prioity is speed of presentation). If you really need it, you don't want the knife slipping from your grasp. Unfortunately, most of the folders with highly-retentive handle designs look more like nasty fighting blades than tools - like the BM AFCK, or CRKT's Ryan 7 or Kaspar folding fighter. Other CRKT possibilities might be the Lightfoot M1, or the Grant Hawk DOG, or the Maritzelli prowler if you put grip-tape on the scales. Spyderco has re-issued the Wayne Goddard lightweight in grey FRN, and there have been past posts that acclaim it as a stealth tactical. The Spydie Salsa is also worth looking at. There are much better SD knives, IMO, but these will work well & don't look so much like SD knives. I'm sure others will have other suggestions.

 

[Quiet Storm]

However, without training, a knife is little better than empty handed, and definitely worse than a stick.

Of course you should train with any weapon you'd like to carry, no matter if it's a gun, knife, OC or a club.

But the martial arts myth "a knife in an untrained defender's hands could make things even worse for him" is a crock of bulls***.
If you don't believe it, just hand an untrained 12 year-old child a Magic marker, put on an old white shirt and tell him to paint as many dots and lines as possible on it while you try to disarm him. Afterwards just check out how often he hit you and imagine that all those points are deep thrusts and all those lines are gaping slash wounds.