Playing with nok and her Talon

[amok_hodges]

First I want to say I'm sorry for the quality of the vid. We finally had someone come by the house that speaks english and could at least hold a camea in the right direction and it wasn't pouring rain. I'll try to give a little explination of the vids. so you at least know what you are seeing.

The first is me target striking. I'm trying to do as many grip switches in a five stike combination as I can. I was looking for grip position when making the hit ,flow of transition into the different grip changes, and how many I could do in the five strike combination and if in that combination I could apply the strike that gave me the most bang for the buck from the chambers I reached thru the combination. I was not looking for great speed but to try and show the different changes in grip

http://s61.photobucket.com/albums/h66/amok_hodges/?action=view&current=MOV07713.flv




The seconed photo is the card board damage.
I was happy with the placement I could get. Even was able to throw in an AMOK! smile. And loved the nine sweep across the eyes.

The third vid is Nok and I applying those same changes I did on the card board on each other. This was the main point of the video so the tec was quite staged. Though we did try to do it with realistic strikes its not a random flow. The goal was to show the same changes as the strike pattern I could do on the card board. Of corse Nok adds the sweep and ass stab on her own and it took me completely by surpise so I guess it wasn't a set tec either. We add both knife and live hand work in the exchange.

http://s61.photobucket.com/albums/h66/amok_hodges/?action=view&current=Noktalonvideos031.flv


The last is the talon after doing the cardboard. We where looking for how much abuse it could hold up to. I did maybe twenty of those five strike patterns. The tip had the slightest bit of rounding but I never saw or noticed any drop in performance from the first to the last. Two swipes with fine sand paper had it like a needle again. I figure hey even steel blades you have to sharpen once in awhile.

Ok so what did I see.Durring the five strikes I was able to switch from the loaded to forward, to reverse ,back to forward, to reverse. to pinch for the eye slash and back to loaded to exit. That's six different changes. Not that anyone might need to change six times in one knife fight but the ability is there if needed to deliver the most powerfull srike from where you end up. Or for that matter, the least force, because you aways have the empty hand or butt end option open to you also.

I found the switching mindless to pull off in flow and grips on striking not to be a problem. Hitting what I was aiming at with it didn't seem like a problem.While making these vids I started playing with transitioning from talon to live blade and found I could clear, access, and deploy my live blade ,with my talon in my hand infact the point of the talon sticks out the back of the knife giving your live blade a sharp hook out the back.

Working with Nok she picked that exchange up in seconds and was snapping throught the switches and improvising on the fly and having fun while she was doing it. Have any comment or question feel free the throw them in. Hope this post works someone let me know if you can see the vids. Nok and Randy

 

[Cliff Stamp]

The video's are fine, any quality is a massive enhancement to plain text. As a general question, outside of a constrained series of movements, is the general goal the same level of close contact with blade vs blade. What I am wondering about specifically is the general ability to actually react fast enough to handle a non-patterened responce.

As an aside I would be curious about the legality of carrying a wooden knife in places which have laws restricting steel ones as they are considered illegal weapons. I don't see the edge having effective cutting ability through clothes/skin but the point could certainly be an issue.


-Cliff

 

[amok_hodges]

Hi cliff thank you for the response.
The Talon's EDC use is as a carryall or maybe even better said as and extra finger with a good sharp claw on it . In its relaxed position it carries itself in the palm of your hand by the elastic loop. You are able to do everyday tasks with it freely riding there without having to physicly hold on to it. You can still grab, count change, light a smoke, hold a glass of water,ect... with it freely riding in your hand. It can be used to carry heavy shopping bags, push the button on a phone or key pad, dig change out of a coin slot, flush a public toilet, and a million other things you might find to do with a sharpnailed finger that doesn't get tired or sore.Carrying it as a weapon is not it's main function.
It is very non- threatening in the hand and in public veiw, being made of wood people pay it little attention. I've sat on the sky train here for months with it in my hand flipping thru the grip changes and people don't tense in the least.

As a first line of defense improvsed weapon it is instantly deployed as it rides in your hand and all you have to do is close your hand around it to bring it into play. No accessing involved another problem endlessly argued over between fixed and folder fans. It gives you all ranges of force all of the time as you always have the option of going from empty hand to fistload to butt end striking to use of the point. Going from knife back to empty hand and then to knife again has always been close to impossible with a traditional blade as you have to hold on to the knife you are forced to use hooks and pinches both weak tacs. The talon stays in place so you can switch to grabbing with the same hand you have the talon in and then back to useing the talon again.

It's is primarilly a thrusting, stabbing, and ripping tool. As with a traditional blade thrusts are better to heavilly clothed areas, ripping is effective to to softer targets like eyes, throat, and hands.

There is the age old arguement of which grip is better hammer or ice pick and each side praises the one grip they like best. When the fact is both have their strong point and weak points. What has limited us in the past was that if you start in icepick you have to finish that way as switching in the exchange was to risky a move for fear of dropping your blade so you may not be able to take the most effctive strike from where you end up.

Here's an example: if I have a traditional blade in icepick and do an over head stab that gets block and I want to counter low to the center line now that his hand is up I have to go the slash or a reverse low stab both of which are weaker counters but because of the grip I am handcuffed to those as my only option with which to go low.

With the talon I can switch on the fly to a hammergrip straight forward thrust which is the strongest of the strikes I can deliver to that target. It totally does away with the which grip is better argument because they are all available to you all the time.

Knifing is about being able to go hard to your traget but soft again to be able to transition quickly to other targets keeping your blade in flow . Because the talon swiches grip by just opening or closeing your hand the swiches happen naturerally in that hard soft transsition.

As an AMOK! we do everything out of the hard ramdom exchange. For the vid, I wanted people to get the idea of the blades ablity to swich grips and showing something repeteable seemed the best way to demonstrate that. Rest asured Nok and I have spent hours in randon attack counter attack exchanges talon to talon .and talon to traditional blade. Heres a pic of the talon after going thru two sheets of
8th" cow hide leather.

Again thanks for the question. AMOK!'s say "Questions create" and every time Nok and I play with this we're finding something new. Nok and Randy

 

[hikeeba]

Wow! I know little-to-nothing about HTH combat, AMOK! or the device (Talon) featured, but I am amazed and interested! Cool vids, too! And as Cliff stated, what does the quality matter, their VIDS!

Very nice presentation amok_hodges! I'm guessing this 'extra finger' could circumvent most 'knife' laws. Gee heck, isn't it basically a pointed stick of sorts? Sure, one could say it is a 'weapon,' but man, anything could be a 'weapon.' Interesting stuff.

 

[Cliff Stamp]

Thanks for the details, have you done and trials on a simulated dummy. I would be curious as to the obtainable penetration outside of the throat/face.

I'm guessing this 'extra finger' could circumvent most 'knife' laws.

Yes, it might be prohibited under laws on impact tools and such though. Kind of idiotic you can carry a flashlight but not a piece of plastic the exact same size. A lot of it depends on how it is promoted.

-Cliff

 

[MVF]

Details please! I don't seem to be alone in not having heard of this before. Are these generally available? From where? Is there anyplace that gives details on making your own? (Although I guess your pic provides a good start) What is AMOK? The finger loop looks fairly snug, how do you accomplish the grip change?

Thanks for a very interesting post!:thumbup:

 

[amok_hodges]

The Talon was designed by me and is made by my wife Nok www.geocities.com/amok_hodges/blades is her site if you would care to take a look. we are still resurching what this thing is capible of doing. It started off as a check hand tool and I still feel this is one of it's most valuable attributes. When it is carried in the check hand it gives your free hand that little extra bite for eye jabs and can be used as a weapons retention tool. Please check out Noks site they are hand made one at a time. AMOK! can be seen at www.knifefighting.com

Here is a video of the switches
http://s61.photobucket.com/albums/h66/amok_hodges/?action=view&current=Tallon.flv



Thanks for asking AMOK! Randy and Nok

 

[Cliff Stamp]

You might want to add to that site, or link to another showing some the wooden knives she makes as they are just insanely striking.

-Cliff