Weapon of Choice

There are so many different styles of martial arts that teach so many types of weapons:

What is your weapon of choice?
Why is it your weapon of choice?


Please only list weapons of martial arts. No weapons of mass destruction or fire arms of any kind are to be included on this thread. Thank you

 

To play with in a class or as a means of protection?

 

I have always been partial to the Kukris - phenomenal cutting power and it is very easy to manipulate. The extra weight makes it an effective bludgeon on certain back strikes.

Deep down though the Gladius has a special place in my heart - double edges, fast to manipulate and looks the business!!

For impact weapon I would go with a warhammer - pure brutality!!!

 

For what ever reason.

 

For defence a knife. If I had the choice a 6" switchblade.
If I was fighting I'd have the knife in my left hand with a cutthroat razor in my right. Scares the crap out of people and takes the attention away from the switchblade.

 

Oooh! Cutthroat razor over here!!

Yeah I would - and do - go with a knife for day to day too

 

My favourite weapon is the longsword. I like it's versatility:

Two edges = twice the fun. The pommel functions as a counterweight and a mace. The crossguard is your hand protection, a warhammer and a set of brass knuckles. The grip can be used as a grappling assist. When used in a half-sword grip, it's an anti-armour spear.

Here are some examples in video:

Two edges at work:

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ln94E9AGYTc"]YouTube - ‪Zwerchhau, absetzen, nachreissen - longsword techniques training‬‏[/ame]

Pommel, crossguard use:

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4W9B_Ybmro"]YouTube - ‪Hans Talhoffer Halfswording II:1right pair‬‏[/ame]

Grip as grappling assist:

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f6Pnw-9A8qQ&feature=fvwrel"]YouTube - ‪Halfsword Throw - Ringen am Schwert (Wrestling at the Sword)‬‏[/ame]

Half-sword work in armour:

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4k-vjdeZO4"]YouTube - ‪SwArta Harnischfechten‬‏[/ame]

You get the idea.

Best regards,

-Mark

 

Wow! That seems a bit like over kill.

 

I still have the very same ivory-handled razor I bought in a charity shop when I was 16. Tricks I used to be able to do with that very intimidating weapon as it's face height.
Looking back on it I probably wasn't a very nice teenager

 

Shark or Jet?

 

Had to google that. don't think I've ever seen it.
Now I love the play it was based on.

 

only weapon experience I have is a few months of kendo so I dont really have much choice but to say a shinai (or a bokken) if I stick to your rules, if I ever go back to a weapons style it would probably be stick fighting but don't see that happening till Im to old for serious competition or to care about what will and wont work on teh street.

 

Means of protection per practicality (besides firearm) would be;
Jo/Escrima/Bat/Claw Hammer

Means of protection per extreme (besides firearm) would be;
Katar, WWI Trench Knife, Native Indian Ball Club w edge, Morning star, Bolo, Gulock
(These have to be short range)

Means of practice; per interest, cultural heritage-preservation;
Bo, Sanjiegun, Pyeongon, Nunchaku, Hu Tou Gou

 

I think I would like to learn how to use a cross bow. Is that considered a martial arts weapon?

 

A cross bow is not too hard to learn.

I have one and the latest technology has these getting accurate

 

Disclaimer: I don't train for self-defense purposes, but for competition and recreation purposes.

Even though the vast majority of my training time over the years has been with the epee, I think my favorite weapon is the foil. I like the footwork of the art, the long phrases (exchanges of bladework), and the emphasis on pinpoint accuracy. Epee is a more cautious game, more about setting up traps and carefully manipulating the distance until the time is right. I'm much better at epee, and have a lot more experience, but foil is really, really fun. Saber intensely fast, and I have really mixed feelings about it. There's parts I love and parts I hate.

To contrast the two, here's what competitive foil looks like (action starts at 3:24):

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vF6gSbJ_ONg"]YouTube - ‪Fencing JWCH 2010 Mens Foil Team - Gold Medal Match‬‏[/ame]

Here's what competitive epee looks like (action starts at 4:09):

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0FfgQmEXo0"]YouTube - ‪Fencing JWCH 2010 Mens Epee Team Gold Medal Match‬‏[/ame]

And just for the sake of all-inclusiveness, here's what competitive saber looks like (action starts at 2:21):

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vF6gSbJ_ONg"]YouTube - ‪Fencing JWCH 2010 Mens Foil Team - Gold Medal Match‬‏[/ame]

The very different styles aren't a result of people trying to fence in X way for historical purposes or whatever, but simply a result of very different rulesets amongst the three weapons. What works well under one ruleset doesn't work well under the other.

 

That is such a cool art. It should be legal to carry a foil if trained in it's use. Legal? Mandatory!

 

I had PMed him about this long before he posted in this thread.

My curiousity is growing. (I can see the jokes flying)

 

can you imagine closing time outside your local night club