Urban Pal versus Nightshade versus Stinger

S

sandmountainslim

Joined
Sep 14, 2007
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I know NONE of the three are the ideal SD carry piece but given the choice as a deep concealment everyday carry piece which is the most effective for SD.

Cold Steel Nighshade push dagger

Cold Steel Urban Pal

Comtech Stinger II (I know not a knife but built in the push dagger form)


Thanks for any opinions.

Wp
 
The Comtech Stinger is not quite what your expecting I'm sure. The Stinger is a less than lethal impact weapon. The night shade push knife will just get you in a world of hurt and the urban pal would be the best "lethal" choice provided you don't mind possible jail time if you were to choose the night shade. Why not get all three they are all quite inexpensive at this point in time. And they would at least be pretty sweet to own. :cool:
 
I have a stinger and a nightshade push dagger. I have only carried the nightshade for a couple days, but i have carried the stinger for a long time. It is an extremely solid impact weapon. Out of the three, I would say stinger. But, I agree with Gear...just get all 3
 
I'd stay away from the CS Nightshade push dagger. I saw a review of it once and the tip had broken off when the reviewer was removing it form the package.

The CS Urban Pal is a bit small, but that might actually be a pro. While it could certainly kill if you slashed an artery or something, a blade of that size is less likely to do serious damage. Legally, this would be to your advantage if you ever actually had to use it in a SD situation, but keep in mind that any use of a knife, even one that small, will still get you in serious trouble. You'd need to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that you felt that your life was in danger and that you only used it as a last resort after all other options had been exhausted.

The Comtech Stinger may be the best choice. Being the least lethal of the three, it's the least likely to get you in trouble if you have to use it (though if your jurisdiction thing it's too much like a knuckleduster, you might still have problems). It would also be the easiest to deploy given its size and method of operation.

It's all a balancing act between effectiveness and consequences of carry/use. Given the confusion that is often involved in tense situations, you also need to consider the possibility of misinterpreting the situation and using force where it is not warranted. With that in mind, this my person preferred order, for best to worst:


1. Comtech Stinger - One good punch can buy you enough time to escape, and both carrying and using one of these should carry the least severe consequences of all three options.

2. CS Urban Pal - As small as it is, it's still a knife. While it would be easier to end a fight with the Urban Pal, the consequences of using it would be pretty bad. In all but the most serious of situations, you'd probably be better off using your bare fists than a knife. That being said, the diminutive size of the Urban Pal makes it less lethal than other knives while still giving it enough utility to end a fight.

3. CS Nightshade - I don't know if it was just that reviewer's product or what, but if his tip broke off just removing it from the package, I wouldn't trust it in a SD situation. For that reason, I cannot recommend this one at all.
 
Nightshade sucks.

Plain but true.

Buy a Voyager if you want something basic from Cold Steel.
 
Most important thing is to develop good footwork, timing, awareness, and the necessary grit/mindset to harm others and not freeze up. If you do that then you are good with any of those or a ball-point pen.

You are much more likely to get in legal trouble for having some of those things on you in certain areas than you are to ever have to use them.

Common legal items, awareness, and good fitting shoes with properly tied shoe-laces to run away is #1.

First time I helped train a police department in self-defense I was only about 12 years old and realized even with many weapons or items to be used as a weapon on their person most of the officers were not prepared at all, mentally or physically. None of the items you named above would of helped them much if they were in a bad place, wrong time, with some ruthless people.

Cool stuff don't help that much and to law enforcement/judge makes it seem like you have intent to get into some trouble.

I did get a couple of the Stingers a long time ago after reading Don Rearic's article on them and my mother still uses one to knock on doors instead of her own hands/knuckles.

Best bet is some training for developing the footwork, timing, learning balance, how to apply a lot of force in a strike, etc. , and maybe some pepper spray, and not being in dumb situations or places.
 
JMO, but I vote Urban Pal. I got one for my wife, and it's big enough to do damage and look intimidating as a backup, while small enough that she's never without it.

The Nightshade had the advantage of not tripping metal detectors, and the Stinger is effective but an entirely different category of weapon.
 
Urban Pal can double as a utility blade, and that's a plus. It has a 1" serrated blade that can be used to slice into the arm of someone who is grabbing you -- and that is the best use of a blade for self defense. Negative is that cutting people is messy and illegal.

Stinger is a neat gadget. You can seriously hurt someone with one of those. And it is non lethal and doesn't cut. Use of the Stinger is a humanitarian act.
 
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