Knives & Martial Arts?

Does anyone know of any production folders that are regulary used in martial arts/self-defense training?
 
I would add the Spyderco Gunting designed by Bram Frank, I remember it raised a lot of controversy when it came out years ago.

And I'm not sure if he had a hand in the designs but Southnarc has certainly done a lot to promote blades using the edge-in reverse grip Filipino style, notably the Shivworks clinch pick and Spyderco P'Kal.
 
MassMatt said:
I would add the Spyderco Gunting designed by Bram Frank, I remember it raised a lot of controversy when it came out years ago.

And I'm not sure if he had a hand in the designs but Southnarc has certainly done a lot to promote blades using the edge-in reverse grip Filipino style, notably the Shivworks clinch pick and Spyderco P'Kal.
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Seeing as how they're designed by him, I'd say so.
 
AlphaDog86 said:
Can anyone think of any others?
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Chad Los Banos has designed several small defensive fixed blades for Boker. They're inexpensive and extremely effective. He also designed the Spyderco Lava, one of the most misunderstood and under-appreciated folders.
 
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Brahm Frank's "Gunting", Bob Lum "Tantos" & ShivWork's "P'Kal". Another really underrated self-defense knife by Spyderco is the "Massad Ayoob". Currently In my EDC rotation along with Emerson's "P-SARK" (another one of my favorite self-defenders) has a "unique pistol-grip" angle for uncompromised cuts & Thrusts straight towards your enemy when applied. Also look up "Karahawk" a karambit/hawkbill hybrid and "Snody" Knives.
 
Steve Tarani with Strider and 5.11 and Kelly Worden with Timberline. Jeff Imada back in the day with Balisong, Inc. Master of Defense MOD had a line designed by martial artists Graciella Casillas,' Lady Hawk model (Filipino Kali), James Keating and others.
 
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Kelly Worden also had some models produced by TOPS, as has Johnny Waysun Tsai. There's also Doug Marcaida's DART, the MaxVenom designs (including at least one by TOPS), Mickey Yurco (also a martial artist), and the Blackhawk Crucibles designed by Kelly McCann.
 
Michael Janich has designed several knives for custom makers as well as the production knives he has helped produce. He has designed the Spyderco Ronin, Yojimbo, Yojimbo 2, Reverse (a collaboration he did with Craig "Southnarc" Douglas of Shivworks) and the Ronin 2 (coming this year hopefully). Mike has also designed the Tempest for the now defunct Masters of Defense (MOD) Knives and he designed the Kalista, the BeWharned, the Tatang,the Janisong and the Hawkhook for Blackhawk Blades. Kahr Arms collaborated with Mike and Spyderco to produce the Kahr Delica in 2014. Another specialized Spyderco is the "JanDura" which is a Spyderco Endura custom modified by Janich himself. Spyderco has also picked up and produced their version of the Janisong due out sometime this year as well.
 
XL Cold Steel Espada, if you want a folding knife you can replicate many of the Bowie techniques with.

Or for that matter the Navajas made by companies like J. J. Martinez in Spain. The martial techniques for those are centuries old. Of course the Italian stiletto has its schools too.
 
Y'all know I dig the nasty.












[video=youtube;fEhDm7-WQkw]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fEhDm7-WQkw[/video]
 
Rex Applegate

He's not alive anymore so technically he is no longer involved in the martial arts, but it wouldn't surprise me if he was influential to many who currently teach the combative use of a knife.
 
This is pretty much the exact direction my collection took after a year of random collecting. Now i pretty much exclusively seek out folders designed by martial artists, as this was what got me into knives to begin with. But my contribution to this list.

Michael Janich - MOD Tempest, Blackhawk Be Wharned, Spydie Yojimbo, Spydie Janisong
Dean Rostohar - Fox Specwog Alfa
Borut Kincl - Fox Bantay
James A. Keating - MOD/Blackhawk Hornet, Spydie Chinook
Rich Derespina - Fox Chiroptera
Rob Walker - Combative Edge X9, M1, SR11
James Williams - CRKT Hissatsu, Heiho, Otanashi noh Ken, Shizuka noh Ken
Bram Frank - Spydie Gunting, Mantis Z'mora, Cherusker Messer Lapu Lapu Corto
Chad Los Banos - Spydie Lava, Boker Karambit, Direkt, Trance, XS, Compliance, G4, Hyper, KeyCom, M-Type, Subcom, etc.
Shane Sibert - Benchmade MPR, Vicar, Adamas
Louis Krudo - Krudo SNAG, SNAGbit, Krona, Vice, Dao
Kelly Worden - Timberline Wortac
Greg Lightfoot - CRKT M1, Urban Shark, HTM Bullwhip
Fred Perrin - Spydie PPT
Laci Szabo - Spydie Folding Fly
steve Ryan - CRKT Seven, entire Surefire line
Alan Elishewitz - Entire Hogue line
Ernie Emerson - Entire CQC line from Emerson knives/Kai
Andrew Demko/Lynn C. Thompson - Pretty much entire Cold Steel line
Col. Nick Rowe/Al Mar - Al Mar SERE
Rex Applegate/William Fairbairn - Gerber Applegate-Fairbairn Covert, Boker AF-FD
Bob Taylor/Randy Wanner - REKAT Hobbit Warrior

That's all I got for now.
 
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