Knife vs. D cell Mag-lite - Which would you choose?

Knife.

An attacker can grab your maglight, which renders it (and the hand holding it) ineffective. Anyone who grabs the protruding end of my Ka-Bar is going to be badly sorry.

If you just nick someone with the maglight, you might cause a bruise. The knife will draw blood, which has a big impact on people. Hell, I've had multiple assailants run away when I started bleeding.

Same goes for probing/stabbing motions. You have to do it a lot harder with the light for it to be effective, and it will almost never be as damaging as with a knife.

A flashlight probably has some legal advantages, though I can easily see a lawyer introducing a big, scary assault-light into evidence.
 
2 Guys moving to do me HARM???

Who SEZ I'm on the DEFENSIVE:confused:
I'll take the 6" fighting knife! Preferably in the DARK:eek: = by the time the BG's see the blade, they'll have both been sliced & perforated multiple times:p ..........By the time they notice the pain & the blood, they're no longer a factor unless I'm peeved enough to STOMP them.:mad:
 
Easy on this question...

I pick knife, why? I don't have to worry about having to keep it moving, it requires less force to use a knife than it does to use the flashlight. I love my CRKT, I've used it many times carving walking sticks and it's still just as sharp as the day I bought it. Beautiful knife, I love it! If I was being attacked and had no firearm, I'd definately want the knife, because I'd rather be on the offense if an attack is inevitable.


Epyon


P.S: For all you gaming geeks out there, what game am I referring to when I say, "You always run faster with a knife.":D
 
Knife. You don't have to kill with it, there are a lot more options than that. But it's faster, and if necessary, can be used to kill faster than a Maglite. And there is the psychological effect. People may think very little of being whacked a few times, but nobody wants to be stabbed or cut.

Although a 6" knife may be a little big for my taste. I am not sure what it could accomplish that a 4" folder couldn't.
 
Do my attackers have weapons? What kind? Where are we...alley, parking lot, garage etc. But all in all, I would choose the club. I can bash arms, shins, legs and knees to incapacitate w/o worrying about killing someone. Also, I have trained pretty much my whole life, so competency would be almost equal with each weapon...I choose the least lethal. Slicing and dicing can get really messy too...blood spray and all that. Yuck!
 
I would take the knife, that's a no brainer.

First, you are outnumbered and need to IMMEDIATELY take down at least one of the attackers. That isn't going to be very likely with a maglight.

Thinking from the perspective of the attackers, if I were an attacker I wouldn't be at all concerned about a defender with a maglight. I could block a maglight strike and suffer only bruising and immediately neutralize the defenders weapon.

However, if the defender had a large 6" hunting knife or survival knife, I would be much more hesitant on attacking.
 
First, you are outnumbered and need to IMMEDIATELY take down at least one of the attackers. That isn't going to be very likely with a maglight.
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Gotta disagree with that somewhat, LC. I got cut during a fight some years back, and while the injury wasn't horrendously severe, I didn't even know I'd been cut until after the fight.

On the other hand, a 5-D cell Mag Light to the head is pretty likely to put lights out, and I can tell you from experience that the same blow to the shins will have the guy on the ground and howling in pain lickity-split ;) .
 
My father was a career Highway Patrolman and he always carried a 6 D-cell MagLite in addition to his service gun and baton.

They TRAINED on how to use the MagLite, and better yet, the MagLite in conjunction with their Baton. It has better reach than a knife if someone is closing in, and blocking a well placed full force swing won't result in just "bruising", it can (and likely will) cause nasty compound fractures of the radius and Ulna, will break ribs easily, and one pop on a kneecap - look out!

And, as Capt. Charlie said, upside the head, lights out!

Have you guys actually HELD a 6 D-cell MagLite??? It's quite a piece of metal!! :eek:

About the only advantage I can see with a knife is a badguy won't grab and hold on too long. I discount the psycological advantage, because if a BG is cranked out or otherwise messed up, he's probably not thinking straight anyway.
 
Knife = fast, sharp, and deadly. Probably 3 deadly strikes in 1-2 seconds. Hard to take it out of my hand.

Club = slow, easier to dodge (a full swing is telegraphed), and while painful you can block it and sacrifice your forearm or with another weapon.

There is no reach significant advantage with a maglight over a 6" knife. Now, if you're talking about a staff, I'd take the staff over the knife purely for the reach advantage. But, I'd take a sword over a staff in this scenario too.

There is NO WAY I'd take a club over a knife unless I stuck up on someone and wanted a non-leathal way of knocking them unconscious.

We're talking about a life threatening sitatuion where you are attacked by two men.

You need to count on taking at least one out immediately, and you can count on him attempting to block/dodge your attack.

With a knife, your best attack might be slash move slash move stab, etc.

With a club your best move might be wind up, swing.... attack less than effective, then you get jumbped. Fight over. You lose.

There are some professionals that state that a knife is a more effective offensive tool than a gun. I have no opinion.

I challenge you to find a credible source that says a maglight flashlight is a more effective offensive tool than a gun.

I rest my case.
 
It's relative. I have trained pretty much all my life in several different Martial Arts (no, I am not saying that I am an expert or better qualified to respond), and I will say that if you can get away from the conventional thinking of just swinging a club around and actually use it for surgical strikes to the elbows, ribs and knees of your opponent (yes this can be done very effectively, competently and quickly)...the club is as deadly and useful as a knife...and in MY opinion, much more practical. If you stab a person or even want to slash at your opponent, you have to remember that they are now in close quarters with you and can grab hold of you or DIE and fall on top of you or get stabbed and tangle you up. Slashing with a knife may not be as effective as "slashing"/bashing with a club. Was it Magellan or Cortez that was killed by the Pacific Islander Chieftan in combat...Cortez/Magellan had a sword, the Chieftan had two short sticks. Not that every outcome will turn out the same way...but do not under estimate a 3' broom stick, let alone a 6cell maglight.
Just a side note...I have trained extensively in knife and stick fighting, believe me, in a fight, I would much rather have a stick...a sword on the other hand...that is an entirely different story.
 
Knife = fast, sharp, and deadly. Probably 3 deadly strikes in 1-2 seconds. Hard to take it out of my hand.
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Agreed LC, but the problem is that death or disablement comes from loss of blood. Unless your strike is directly to the heart or aorta, it takes awhile to bleed out. Unless the psychological effect causes him to give up, he can go on fighting for several minutes, and that's a very long time in a fight!

In 1982, one of the officers I worked with was working a side job as security for a supermarket in a nastier part of town. He tried to stop a shoplifter, who pulled out a straight razor and sliced his abdomen wide open. Roger, with his guts literally in his hands, was still able to rally, draw and aim. (He couldn't fire because the %#$@ manager jumped in front of him & later said he didn't want to be sued :mad: )

I rest my case.
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I guess you can't take the lawyer out of the lawyer :D .
 
Broken arm, knife in throat.

The maglite is too heavy to really move like a good fighting stick.

Closing the distance is easier in actuality than in sparring practice and then the maglite becomes less useful. A behaviour based attack (IE Rage, Fear) will ensure that distance is rapidly covered and a clash of bodies happens. Fighting on the inside is the knifes domain.
 
Okay, I carry a Mag-Light... ONLY because I am in an unarmed position right now. I can get away with this because a good flashlight is needed.

I'll take the knife ONLY because the Mag-light is a VERY slow weapon to get moving. Now, I'm no coward, but my first choice might just be to run away. I am clearly over matched unless they are fall-down drunk. But if I must attend I'll take the knife...EXCEPT...

... IF a knife is a tool, then a 6" fighting knife is a tool with a purpose. Now since all 3 are deadly weapons, and since a 6" knife would be a CCW in most places...WHY ARE WE NOT CARRYING A GUN? If you fear for your safty enough to carry a weapon WHY HALF-@$$ IT?

Remember, they could have knives/clubs, too, and NOBODY "wins" a knife fight. You WILL get cut up some.
 
The knife for sure. A blow with the maglite to the extremities can be lessened with tactics. I mean you might get one swing hit an arm before I am inside a zone that limits the speed of the subsequent blows thus making them less effective. Given the double bad guy scenario you are up poop creek if both attack simultaneously. A strike with the knife is faster and takes less effort to generate effective speed. If the bad guys get in close it is worst for them. It is much harder to take a knife away from you as the bad guys can't grab it without getting cut. Being wounded by a knife is much more psychologically effective.

If my attackers didn't have arms then I woud opt for the mag lite LOL.
 
I would probably take the knife. While I might land a couple good whacks in with the light before one of the 2 disarm me, I could definately get the knife into one of them if they are close enough. Then it's one on one. With the light, if someone grabs it, the other assailant is free to jump in and finish it. With the knife, if the assailant grabs it, I twist and jerk it free of his now shredded hand.

Also if one of the assailants gets ahold of me from behind, I doubt I will be able to get enough force into my swing to get him to let go of me. With the knife on the other hand, if I were to be grabbed from behind, I bring the knife down and into his thigh.

I don't think this really applies to me though. I don't take knives to gunfights. :D
 
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