"Matthew 6, I love those verses."
Knives better than Guns?
I am a fan of a good knife. Right now I am fixing to get a bowie knife manufactured by a company called SOG. It's a stainless (AUS-8 type), rather than the high-carbon types which some guys prefer, but I like my knives to last without having to worry about polishing and care. It's a beauty, and from what I can tell it seems like a high quality piece for a decent price. But I am a frugal bastard so I will save it as a birthday present to myself or for some special occasion which will give me a justifiable excuse to spend for it.
I've read some of the many posts regarding the great debate we have been having recently on gun control. Good points, for and against. But I think there was something missing to the argument, and that is the fact that knives are much more versatile and better to possess overall than guns. I mean, you can use it for many, many purposes, including camping and wilderness trekking, or for carving wood, or using it as a make-shift all-purpose tool, for self-defense, or just simply for cutting things. And they are convenient to carry on your person.
Obviously, guns are much more powerful for the very limited purpose for which they are used. But, dollar for dollar, and for variety of purposes, anyone else think that knives are better than guns overall? For hobby or collecting purposes anyway.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Louis House on -
Well, as they say, don't bring a gun to a knife fight.
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Permalink Reply by Corey C. Jordan on -
Actually, you have it backwards.... Knives are weapons of last resort.
A knife is better for cutting things. A gun is better for killing things.
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Permalink Reply by Chuck Knight on -
There is no such thing as a single solution for all problems, so yes, logically, a knife is better than a gun in certain circumstances, and vice-versa.
I'd like to see you construct a proper argument supporting your assertion.
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Permalink Reply by The Dutch Dastard on -
For hobby or collecting purposes there is just one thing that matters, and that is how much you like it.
Knives make great tools and lousy weapons. With a knife, you have to have the strength, agility and skill to make it work, and you have to get up close and personal with your assailant. If he's a couple of feet away you are no threat. If you bring the knife in close, you might be supplying a deadly weapon to someone more fit to use it.
Even then, I daresay that in your country (wherever legal) a guy carrying a concealed gun looks much more sane than a guy with a 6.4" fixed blade strapped to his belt unless he is indeed out hunting or something.
Usually you need a knife often, and a small one will do. But you don't ever need a gun until you need one badly.
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Permalink Reply by Samuel Chapman on -
I like knives more than guns. I use a knife everyday.
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Permalink Reply by Liam S. on -
Knives are more useful to me on a day to day basis. I need to open boxes, cut food, etc.
From a self-defense standpoint... within 10-15 feet, they are pretty handy, but beyond that, someone with a gun has more than enough time to make you irrelevant.
AUS-8 is a decent steel. I'm not a big fan of bowie knives though. Blade heavy, to thick to use for skinning, wrong shape to use for fighting, too big to conceal. :/ Sog makes decent blades though, in general. Enjoy.
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Permalink Reply by C.C. Dolph on
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10 to 15 ft? That's some reach you have!
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Permalink Reply by Liam S. on
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Mythbusters did an entertaining segment. A man charging with a knife vs. a man drawing a gun. Consistently, the knife wielding man could stab the gunslinger first, within about 15 feet. Obviously, adjust situationally and YMMV. But they are far from useless.
Ultimately, for me it is irrelevant. Guns are illegal for me to carry in the city. So I carry my knives.
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Permalink Reply by Sam I. on -
In law enforcement they call that the 30 foot or 20 foot rule, depending on how paranoid your instructor is. I was lucky enough to get some training in it. A good few of us were able to clear leather and "fire" with that orange rubber gun, but the excercise was both to show us to be wary, as well as to use defensive tactics to protect you while drawing.
Whether or not a pistoleer can engage before someone with a blade gets on him has much to do with holster options. The more retention devices you have, or worse, having to draw from a iwb, the more danger you're in from a sudden encounter.
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Permalink Reply by Jack Bauer on -
That Mythbusters segment wasn't really about knives for self-defense, though. It was more about knife as an offensive weapon ... or, at best, a dueling weapon. According to that test ... if you're close enough and have a knife in your hand, you can get the drop on a guy with a holstered gun so long as you surprise him, sprint, and stab him.
If you have a knife in a sheath -- or, worse, folded in your pocket -- good luck with that. You probably won't draw faster than a guy with a holstered gun. If the guy with the gun is the aggressor -- thus already drawn -- he'll shoot you ten times before you get the knife out.
JB
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Permalink Reply by Liam S. on
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I don't disagree. It's more the assumption that the knife useless against a gun at all, that I'm arguing with.
But as with someone who trains to use their gun for self defense, you train with your knife too. A knife I use for self defense is a different beast than the folder in the bottom of my pocket with my keys. And, as I said - for me, it's irrelevant. I cannot legally carry a gun (and likely wouldn't at this point anyway). I would never suggest a knife is superior to a gun for self defense, but it's far from useless.
If the guy with the gun is the aggressor -- thus already drawn -- he'll shoot you ten times before you get the knife out.
That's usually true of your gun too.
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Permalink Reply by Jack Bauer on
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There is almost always a tactical advantage to the aggressor. He has the element of surprise.
If its a robbery or carjacking or whatever, and he doesn't know you have a weapon, you can take back the element of surprise. If he just wants to shoot somebody ... you've got a better chance if you're not first.
JB
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