Throwing daggers (again)
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- Опубликовано: 28 янв 2025
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More weapons and armour videos here: • Weapons and armour
A response to a response to a point about throwing knives, which actually goes over a lot of the same ground, but this time in high-definition.
Were throwing knives practical weapons in the ancient world? Would an adventurer be well-advised to train hard in throwing knives, or might his time be better spent improving sword or javelin technique?
My old video on throwing knives: • Throwing knives
Thrand's response to that: • Knife Throwing Reply t...
Lindybeige: a channel of archaeology, ancient and medieval warfare, rants, swing dance, travelogues, evolution, and whatever else occurs to me to make.
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Throwing knives (again)
/ user "Lindybeige"
Surely the most effective thrown weapon in the ancient world would be the holy hand grenade of Antioch.
B-but t-that’s not ancient
Thus blowing thine enemies to bits
They are very effective against killer bunnies
@@kayodagamer Look at the bones !!!!
@@cinnamongum466 actually it would, based on supposed deductions that if Canelot had existed, it would have been 500 or 600 bc, in order to be considered ancient its usually around 1400 or 1500 years old, so of its not already considered ancient its gonna be soon.
i submit that spears/javelins are throwing knives with very long handles.
+Saoir Cham In that case it IS possible to throw knifes with next to no spin!
+Hebelios axial spin. They spin the way bullets spin out of rifled barrels.
+Josh Adams do they?
Yes. And arrow fletchings were made in some cultures in the same way. It stabilizes the missile in 3 dimensional flight
They do. You can see that exaggerated in the Olympic javelin throw.
I went out with my fishing rod today
Caught me a deer
Time to take this to the battle feild
Yes, I heard that too - Hunt with a fishing rod. :D
I have in my years caught:
Seagull with a spinning rod (had to kill it), a baby hare with a flyrod (Was safely released as the small hook was only caught in it's fur), and also on a flyrod, a mallard duck (I wanted to kill it for the feathers, but it got loose before I got him to me).
All besides the seagull was pure accidents, and the seagull was just one in a million, as it was just laying about far out on the sea, being unnecessary and annoying like all seagulls are, I asked my friend if he thought I would be accurate, and launched my lure in the direction of the seagull (Note, the seagull was like 80-100 metres out), and what you know... my lure landed straight on the seagulls back and he got hooked. Ofc I was very surprised, and felt bad for it, I had to find a long, heavy stick and beat it to death while it was flapping about in panic. I was like 12 years old at the time:
The mallard duck just happen to land as I casted out while fishing for salmon, it was quite a big fly so therefore I thought it had to pay with it's life. The baby hare happen in the twilight during seatrout fishing while I was up in the grass trying to fix my reel and my fly was hanging loose, I had to catch him in the net and just drive home as I didn't have any light with me, nor a proper knife or anything, as I was sure I would have to operate the hook out.
Minecraft: "fishing rods are battlefield weapons and metal detectors. Catching fish? That's boring!"
I mean technically fishing is hunting.
And an anvil is a more effective ballistic weapon if you attach it to the end of a large stick. The problem is finding a large enough crossbow to fire it.
If you are a good archer, you may want to use a fairly oversized longbow.
+Me Robo Let's try it! (Giant longbow starts falling forwards) OH SHIT OH SHIT OH SHIT OH SHIT (Giant longbow crashed through house) ......
replace anvil with pommel, nuke mod activated.
Maybe you can modify a Spandau to shoot anvils
I know this thread is quite old and you might already know, but there's actually a videogame weapon which is literally an Anvil on a stick.
www.google.com/search?q=Gyrm+Great+Hammer&rlz=1C1CHBD_enPH776PH776&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwia3_q1k5fhAhVCBKYKHVH7AscQ_AUIDigB&biw=1242&bih=597#imgrc=_
This is Thrand!!! Very Well said and I do agree with you on the movies and every thing you said in this Reply. The Japanese used such throwing weapons in battle at times but it was more of a distraction and normally made of house nails so very cheap almost like rocks or sling bullets. They really were not expected to kill but to hinder and aid in disabling an opponent although they could lead to some ones death especially unsuspected in a duel caught by surprise with an actual blade thrown in that manner. I do not see them being very effect in a large battle field as you have pointed out in this video and especially if shields were used like in Europe or heavy later century armor even in Japan. Thank you so much for this reply! I have enjoyed your videos for years and this one very much so.Your Shield Brother Thrand :D
I know this isn't related to the video sorry. But I want to take this opportunity to ask for a video on flails and flail tactics. This is a request to thrand and lindy . I think everyone wants it. PLEAAAASEE.
ThegnThrand
Lindybeige
I think throwing knives, used as weapons and hunting implements, are probably most prevalent in Africa. Pretty much none of them look like modern day sport throwing knives. But, many of them are not exactly swords either (If not considering average size, many of them lack the functionality of a sword as they are design around the idea of throwing them). I't not a big part of popular Eurasian History. But, throwing knives do have a big history. Here is a map I found that shows all the different types from there and the places they are made:
www.ezakwantu.com/Throwing%20Blades%20of%20Central%20Africa.jpg
(within the next year or two it's one of my goals to begin collecting these...I am finishing my Indo-Persian collection first though).
In Japan shuriken were used as a shock weapon to distract, injure (hands, feet, knees and face) and intimidate the opponent in a duel type situation. I haven't seen any account of them being used in warfare against armoured opponents.
That said, I think that even in Japan they were more of a novelty, although there were techniques/systems/schools and despite the fact that they were actually used in fights.
kaizoebara They were absolutely used as weapons by ninja and duelists, but you're right, they didn't see use on the battlefield. Why would they? When you've got a spear in your hand and a sword at your hip, are you really going to reach for a puny little blade to throw at a guy in full combat armour? For covert operations, though, if you think about it, they're a pretty good idea. You can carry several of them, throw them quite accurately, access them quickly, and unlike throwing knives, they'll always cut if they connect. Are they particularly lethal? No. But one of those to your knee or rib cage is going to make you give up the chase pretty damn fast.
sambalightning I can do a video about Flails! We will put that in the works for an upcoming video :D
Teasle: "Don't be ridiculous! What do you hunt with a knife!?"
Rambo: "Name it"
+halskarl Whales.
Portuguese Man Of War
mold
+halskarl Ghosts
+halskarl I always thought he said "The enemy". The more you know, huh?
"got it in, YES! very satisfying. "
+markog1999 congratulations! is it a boy or a girl?
+yzer bach lol
+markog1999 lol that is what a nerd would say after losing virginity
Lol when he said fishing rods were used for hunting I just imagined some dude using one to beat a deer over the head with
Ahh yes the anvil of course.. who could forget the famous anvil throwing warriors of ancient Gaul. Did a nasty number on those Romans
It was that Gallic Druid's potion I tells ya
+MrHendrix17 is it a coincidence your name has "ix" in it?
CorvusCorone68 Mistarhendrix the gaul.
How bowling started
f=ma
the silliest thing i always think is ok, you've thrown a knife at someone, well done. now they have a knife and you do not.
real genius move
If a fight goes down between two people throwing a knife at each other then having the knife thrown back at them, picking it out and throwing it again so continue the cycle then I believe neither partipent is the one benefiting, it would be anyone watching the comedic display.
Ever play Dying Light?
i think the best use of throwing knives i've ever seen was in john wick 3.
so carry more than 1 like say 10 or 12 and if you can't get the job done with that many then your doing something wrong
Well if you do it right they have the knife embedded in their chest. I think by the time they pull it out they'll be too busy dying to attack you
Throwing knives are good in a nuke fight:
"The enemy cannot push a button if you disable his hand".
Now that's a reference to a great movie
Came looking for this comment, was not disappointed
i see you're doing your part
I think the main idea behind throwing knives at people is to make them go "SHIT he's throwing knives!" and make them flinch long enough for you to leg it. Also, you may stick them too.
That's a beautiful puukko you've got (not a knife!
More like romantizised fantasy ninjas had quite an impact.
Actual ninjas weren't even close to that.
Much more effective than throwing knives of javelins or stones : sword pommel
***** Wasn't that Skallagrim that did the vid about the treatise where you unscrew the pommel and throw it at your foe. I see this is a better idea that some may believe....
I can see that you wish to end someone rightly.
KainusGulch
Was it Skallagrim or Shad?
Much more effective than knives, javelins, swords or stones: a gun. Haha 🍄
The pommel of mass detructiooooon!
-Shadiversity
One thing I notice with the prevalence of throwing knives in movies (from the ones I've seen) is that they're used in a very specific way (I haven't really seen them in any 'historical' films).
a-They're typically concealed but available very close to hand
b-Because movies, no one has personal armor of any kind beyond maybe leather
c-The actor is usually doing something with his hands before then, using a sword, shooting a gun, hiding behind cover, whatever
d-In a lull in the battle whilst both parties are relatively far apart (2+ metres out of melee range) the knife is pulled out and immediately thrown like a gotcha! Suprise.
e-Fatal in the chest (ridiculous), neck (okay) and eye (how do you get it that accurate?!)
And I think the usage would be similar in the past. not used in ANY form regimented battle, but maybe as a surprise move against a decently far out unarmored opponent. Maybe some sort of duel or small melee. In this admittedly very specific case a thrown dagger is actually better than other thrown weapons because:
a-It's concealed (insofar as its not in hand)
b-It can be pulled out of sheath extremely quickly due to a daggers small blade size and thrown quickly
c-Because it's a 'surprise' -- especially if the person isn't looking at you or ready, they have less of a chance to dodge it or know its coming
A javelin might be worse in this instance as it could potentially be dodged and requires being held/is more clunky to carry around. Armor of any sort really would pretty much destroy this little tactic though.
I also felt you didn't mention the OTHER thrown weapons that in my opinion were as good as javelin or spear like weapons, which were the thrown 'axe' or 'club' which variate a lot depending on what people made them (boomerangs for aborigines, tomahawks for indians etc). You mentioned in one video the prevalence in some european tribes for throwing axes because even if they didn't hit the first person due to shield, they tended to bounce and cause havoc in the lines in a charge.
Great video as always, I love the sensible logic, brevity (unlike my comment) and interest of your videos.
I hunt with my hawk. Deer season has yet to be successful, but open season is very productive.
try hunting with a condor if you're aiming for deer.
too rare and expensive. Plus I bet the hippy animal rights activists would give me all sorts of hell for owning one.
Southpaw Moose which one? the condor or the dinosaur?
Either now that I think of it
In Stephen King's The Dark Tower a character effectively uses his hawk as a weapon in a duel
Nice 'leuku' (the sami knife)! I have one that looks exactly the same, I am from Finland and I bought it from Lapland in here. What did you do in Finland? Did you like it here?
I now have four sizes: mushroom picking, fish gutting, and puukko and leuku. Yes, I had a good trip. I met some Finnish Viking re-enactors. There are no small buildings in Helsinki. Booze shops called 'Alko' are funny. Food is amazingly expensive.
ThuleanPerspective
I think he was in Finland just recently (a month or two ago or so) and I haven't really seen mosquitoes here in months either and I live out of town. It's already pretty darn cold here so no mosquiteos anymore. But you're right, in summer, this place is full of irritating mosquitoes.
ThuleanPerspective
France sounds great, then. I've always hated flies and mosquitoes. I can't stand the buzzing noise if I'm trying to read or write or sleep. I'm so glad summer is over again and winter is coming.
ThuleanPerspective It sounds like in Canada. We have a lot of snow and a lot of Mosquitoes at dawn, plus we speak french! Tu comprends le français j'imagine, puisque tu habites en France!
Lindybeige you can throw knives without spin. throw them like a spear, or your favorite: javelin. Skallagrim also demonstrated throwing swords with this technique.
_"The people who sacked the people who were sacked, have been sacked."_
😊😊😊
Fuck knives I have a POMMEL!!!
I have a pen.
Sellanen siika I have an Apple
I have a jar of dirt
To me throwing knives are in the same category as the Japanese Shuriken or throwing star. Used only as a deterrent to pursuit. You use them, or it as the case may be to distract or deter your opponent so you can make your escape nothing more.
Shuriken were meant to be poisoned, so that even a slight cut would be fatal. I think throwing knives could also work if they were poisoned. But then again, so could javelins.
Poisoned javelins? Oh please. Just tie some dynamite to it, that ought to do the trick!
as I understand it, they're also something of a herding tool- chuck them slightly to your target's left to force them to dodge to the right and vice-versa.
mad max thought that was a good idea.
People were pretty scared of tetanus back then. Getting hit with even a small cut could mean death.
i have to say, I love the little lego guy at the end xD i always watch that part
I like his sarcastic remarks too. They always make me giggle.
But does anyone hunt with an Anvil ?
VERY well stated! When I teach knife skills someone (nearly always a teen with WAY too much time to watch B-grade movies) insist that throwing a knife is super deadly until I ask them to show any single time that any army anywhere ever used this as a primary tactic.
Insofar as we Americans enjoying knife-throwing, I know several who do, I just didn't think of it as an American thing until now. NOW, I have to say of COURSE it'd be primarily an American thing, LOL. There is a bar just a few miles down the road from my house that features lanes where patrons throw axes. Yep, drinking beer and throwing axes, what could POSSIBLY be more American (and what could possibly go wrong, eh?). As always, sir, good points and a most excellent channel.
I love listening to this guy. The way he explains things cracks me up laughing.
Can you stop bloody throwing javelins at me casually?
Thank you
~Guy on the left (our right)
I just saw an ad for Gary Johnson before watching this video. I guess Gary is going to voters who like throwing knives. I'm going to vote for him.
huh I wonder if there's a sociological thing behind that
Well this backfired
It is in fact a platform of the Libertarian Party to get rid of all the knife laws (being able to carry them in public, blade lengths, automatic knives, stilettos, etc.), so I'm not that surprised an ad for Gary Johnson would show up on a video like this.
As a veteran knife thrower I am fairly confident the level of skill you would need to hit an advancing target that is further than about 7 feet away would be so great that you may as well forget the entire fucking thing and sharpen another skill. It takes so much practice just to consistently hit a board from 10-20 feet away with a single kind of knife and building the muscle memory to ensure it spins just so....in order to hit a moving target you would have to know exactly where they would be the second the knife hits and adjust so that you threw it the exact way to hit them there....if you fuck it up SLIGHTLY it will not work. In very close quarters the knife will pretty much always hit if you just whip it like he did sure but that isn't at all a good indication of the difficulty or precision you would need to do it in ANY other scenario. Also I'd like it out there that armor and funny angles aside, throwing knives hit FUCKING HARD. Think about how much more power you get from an overhand icepick stab....thats the amount of force the knife hits with because you use the same muscle group. Sometimes my blunt ones go so deep into my target that I need to use a foot to pry it out.
YOGSCAST Seagull Muscle group counts, but the weight / size difference of a throwing knife to an icepick means the icepick would almost universally penetrate deeper, not to mention the accuracy and repeat swings you could deal with a pick.
sexc bonnie I don't mean a literal ice pick I mean that it hits as hard as an "icepick" gripped knife or overhand stab. Also throwing knives are quite accurate provided you actually stick the knife. It's no different than throwing a baseball. I also think that modern ice picks are VERY light and similar to bigger throwing knives in weight.
+Mr. Pommel yeah my dad was in a Combined Action Platoon in Vietnam. He said that they worked on learning to throw knives. It quickly became apparent that if you ever were in a situation for something like that to work, you'd want to hang on to the knife.
Fun but pointless.
cyclone8974 Well that's definitely 99% true but there is one particular exception that comes to mind......if you are a dueling situation with both parties standing close together and hesitating to begin or just starting to begin the dance of death (that is like fencing.....swiping at each other and retreating, not using locks and holds and such) then throwing knives can be a devastating instant win. If I am fighting someone and we are both intrepid, just out of each others reach, and I have a sharp, heavy, well balanced knife, that mother fucker will be buried up to the fucking hilt in that mans chest cavity before he even knew what hit him.....they hit HARD, FAST, and definitely do enough damage where you don't need to worry about what he's going to be able to do to you before he finally dies.....he will be done. It's also very easy to do provided you have ice in your veins and don't let your nerves fuck up what is usually a pathetically easy throw for someone who has done a little practicing.....however unless you are a full contact martial artist, a monotonic hearted psychopath, or a special forces operative you will probably be too shaky to risk it. In almost any other scenario I would NEVER throw my knife. That scenario is also very unlikely to ever happen in war or any scenario that doesn't involve 2 people alone fighting each other with all the time in the world.
***** In the close quarters scenario I am describing that isn't quite the case.....I would never throw in any other scenario for the reasons you describe but throwing knives hit fucking HARD. A dull 1 lbs thrower I am fairly confident I could bury to the hilt easily even if i scraped ribs and it's a very simple brainless, graceless throw at very short range. It's also the same motion generally as a slash......think of it as more of a feint or a dirty trick.....we are standing just out of each others reach waiting for the other to make the first move. Instead of starting a fight by slashing at him, I act like I'm going to and then all of a sudden the knife leaves my hand and is deep in his heart/lung/stomach. If he is bad to the bone he may still take a few slashes at me which I can deflect with my hands getting some nasty deep cuts but I will live and he will die......and you would get cut TO SHIT anyway in a regular knife fight no matter how good you are.
When I was about 12 I tried killing a deer by throwing my knife at it, because obviously I couldn't catch it on foot.
Didn't work, lost my knife, not recommended.
That's pretty messed or dude your dad should have punished you and not let you bunt again , that deer would have been in pain and or possibly died a horrible death . Guessing your a shot city kid stay out of the woods.
@@Chevalier_knight Ma dude how is bleeding out a horrible death, the knife was still in him thus the bleeding mas pretty minimal and knives, especially when thrown are pretty weak, there was a picture of a deer which had been shot by an arrow, survived and his rib cage grew around the arrow. I think if they can survive long sticks in them they could survive a knife barely penetrating skin.
Also punish him for what? He didnt do anything wrong, his dad obviously didnt care if he did these things and he just threw a knife at a deer, its not like he poured toxic acid on top of him. I think that by losing that knife he learned the lesson
Just think of a javelin as a knife with a REALLY long handle, and this whole argument goes away. :) Thanks again for posting your videos...really enjoying them all.
That sure opens up a path for a series of videos with your opinion on:
Best weapons for open battle
Best weapons for stealth ops
An interesting bit of trivia for you. No, people don't hunt with throwing knives in the US, but there is a very specialized form of wild boar hunting (only for the very brave or slightly insane) using the bayonette. You need a very large, very mean dog (also slightly insane) to engage the boar and lock muzzles with it, then you quickly run in, shank the boar and basically stir the blade around till its lungs are soup, after which it weakens and eventually collapses. You have to be quick though, otherwise you're down a dog, and possibly running from a very angry boar (unless you have a friend along who's carrying a rifle (which I highly recommend)). Yes, Americans really are crazy ~ _ ^
Just some food for thought. Keep up the great vids ^ _ ^
+Auntie Inari A Bayonet basically turns your Rifle into a Spear- pretty much the weapon of choice of "ye old Boar hunting weapon". The main advantage of a Spear to a Bayonet I imagine is the Spears ability to pin the target to the ground or to a solid object though.
+Auntie Inari
There are no boars in the US.
Kavetrol www.trophywildboarhunt.com/? One of many locations you can hunt Boar in the US.
Auntie Inari
Are those imported?
Kavetrol The Russian black boars are, but the razorback are native so far as I know.
I suppose that people took to the idea of throwing knives when they discovered that trying to hide javelins up their sleeves was rather counter productive. That's about the only advantage that a throwing knife (which is a very distinct tool from a hunting or fighting knife) has; its concealability.
Also, you can carry numerous knives more easily than numerous javelins.
I guess that they could be effective weapons at close range and against linen or other kinds of soft clothing. Definitely not at wars. Maybe duels? or in very small skirmishes. But would you really fall back to that strategy? I mean, imagine your life is at risk, would you leave your sword and reach on to your knife to throw it (which is itself a difficult task to do) to your enemy? When it would probably not kill him. At the range this has to be thrown I rather wait a couple seconds to get closer to my target and stick him with my blade.
Lluc Llumador And they would be more effective than nothing at all, as a concealed weapon, in a place where someone could not otherwise carry a weapon.
morallyambiguousnet Aright but then again, I would not throw them. Well, unless you carry like a bunch of them, and even then I think it would be risky. As you can see, my problem is basically with the difficulty and risk that you assume when you throw a knife.
You could lose precious seconds doing something that its most likely not going to kill the enemy, and at the same time, if you miss, you could be giving the enemy a weapon (I'm assuming we're talking about street level conflicts, were not everyone has a weapon) .
mortrek Yea But if ya Hunting with Javelins ya might only need no more then 3 or less cause well you can pick them back up easy.
I am not entirely sure what I would do without lindy beige
I've seen a few youtube videos of guys who hunt by throwing knives, but I think they are going out of their way to make things more difficult.
I'd say when most people had a fairly substantial belt knife you might be more inclined to opportunistically knife hunt. As you are doing chores about the homestead, or walking from one place to another, you might see a hare behind a bush. You haven't set out to hunt as such, but hey, meat for dinner! So, you'd chuck you blade if you felt confident. Clearly many people wouldn't risk beating up a valuable work knife, but this is the sort of skill people develop for the pride of it. It was common when my grandfather was young to carry a slingshot, or catapult in UK English. This was less for rascality, and more for the chance of adding lucky protein to an otherwise legume based diet.
A few years ago, I bought two throwing knives so that my son and I could learn to throw them. Learned that the first stage is to develop a consistent throwing spin (i.e. end-over-end rotation) and then move forwards or backwards from the target until the knife hits the target at the right point in rotation. If you're good, you can learn to hit the target point first after a few hundred throws, but only from the same exact distance. The skill involved in adjusting (1) the speed of rotation to (2) the distance from the target is something that most people can never achieve.
You could probably not kill someone with a knife, but injure. Someone is easier to kill with your sword, if you hit him with a knife first.
An underhand throw takes very little effort. Even if your enemy sees the knife coming, he has to doge, putting him in a bad position.
The instinctive knife thrower movement has done a lot of interesting work with "no spin" and quarter-spin technique.
Well you see lindy, your Finnish knife is a forestry tool not a specialist throwing knife. Also like Ninja's use throwing stars, throwing knives are not for killing your opponent, throwing knives are there to pelt your opponent with and then stab or bash him with a hefty sword or club.
You can also poison knives and though darts and miniature blowpipes are better, a quick toss of a small knife is a probable assassins technique.
But why would you use a specialist throwing knife over much cheaper, effective and easier usable javelins? The only advantage I see with specialist throwing knives is concealability something you don't care bout on a battlefield or if your already carrying around a hefty sword or club.
And for short ranged assassination poisoned darts are better as you say. A problem with a small throwing knife in this case is that it has very low chance of killing unless poisened and there are better, more accurate and less conspicuous way of delivering poison then a throwing knife.
Elle Sea Perhaps, but a javelin more so as it is bigger threat and can embed itself in the opponents shield, thus encumbering the. A javelin can even disable a horse, even allowing you a chance against chasing cavalry.
Or in the case of an assassin just throwing rocks or other loose objects would do the same job.
Elle Sea I believe the weapon you're thinking of is a caltrop, a small throwing weapon that has an upward-facing spike which can jab through a pursuer's foot. As such, it was a very effective tool for ninjas when escaping a castle, fort, or camp after a successful (or even unsuccessful) assassination attempt back in Feudal/pre-Feudal Japan.
Toryu Naminosaki I wasn't talking about shuriken at all. Regardless, you should keep in mind that just because something *can* kill, it doesn't mean that it is reliable. I could bludgeon someone to death with a spoon if I struck them repeatedly for hours and hours, but it would be much more effective to just stab them with a knife. If you've ever held one in your hand, a shuriken is not able to kill as easily as other throwing or projectile weapons mostly due to the fact that the blades of the shuriken have to be somewhat dull and relatively short in size in order to prevent self-injury, travel quickly, and go a reasonable distance when thrown. One of the only ways I could see one killing a person outright is if the shuriken embedded itself inside their throat, or if it just so happened to cut open a major artery. The shuriken, just like the western throwing knife, was used mainly to inflict pain as a distraction or to temporarily disable the foe so that the thrower can follow up with a killing blow from their main weapon (whether it's a katana, a club, or any other lethal weapon).
Painis Cupcake (Fuck you Google+) that's pretty much what i said, and either i or google derped, i meant to reply to the person you did about shuriken
Legend has it that the Danish an outlaw folklore hero from around 1600 and was basically the danish version of Robin Hood Jens Langkniv (Jens "Longknife") would use his knife as a throwing knife on occasion including to stalk rabbits and small prey while living as an outlaw. I am a bit skeptical about some details however - he was supposed to have tied a string of horsehair to the hilt so he could snatch back the knife again.
He famously met his downfall making a last stand in a priests house where he was shot with muskets - he ended up throwing his knife so hard that it remained stuck in the supporting wooden doorframe until the house burned down more than a hundred years later with no one being able to get it free.
My next D&D character will throw anvils.
You definitely need a good strength score. Likely need spells or equipment enchantments to viably do that lol. Or play as a Giant of some kind or maybe a Half-Giant.
Actually, yeah, I have some friends who hunt not only with guns but with a few knifes for throwing. However they are typically used for animals the size of anywhere from squirrels to coyotes. When they are in a tight spot with a bigger animal though a throwing axe or tomahawk if they are not in reach of a gun. I personally have heard of a few instances in which a small axe has been used to great effect, however it’s not common as Americans are almost always in reach of a gun.
I would never throw my knife. I use my knives for field dressing (gutting), skinning, and butchering deer. As I have several different knives for the various stages of processing game. Throwing knives are more like throwing darts for me. Throwing a knife to get a silent kill only works in a video game. Arrows and bullets are far more effective for killing game. Throwing a knife to take down game might work against a blind and deaf squirrel or rabbit.
The range for throwing a knife is extremely short. We hide up in trees with bows and arrows, or crossbows if the law allows, dressed head to toe in camouflage as the game we hunt have good eye sight for picking up movement and can smell your presence and/or passing through an area. Sent killer and Cover Sent is a must bow hunting. Any movement to throw a knife would instantly alert the prey animals which will take off and run. That's if they didn't smell you first. Also good luck trying to retrieve your throwing knife in the middle of a cedar swamp.
So a knife is useful in hunting as a tool for processing game or making items like spears to harvest game. Throwing away a good knife is the stuff of fiction.
Knife throwing takes a lot of skills you can learn the skill of knife throwing with a tree and a handful of butter knives, your not gonna use it for killing things but don't you already know enough ways to do that really? I understand taking a deer your gonna use it but your not gonna eat a squirrel or a rabbit leave it be! it's like taking down a bird your just doing it to see if you can cool if you're like 14 but grow out of that shit! If you live anywhere near rural southern Ontario anywhere close to homeowners that have dogs just take as many coyotes out as you can next time your in the bush(I know easier said than done they don't want to die) and nobody will care whatever else you do! Fuck People will usually let you hunt on their property if you're nice enough!
As and American who hunted most of my 57 years I have never seen or heard of anyone hunt with a throwing knife I also throw knives for fun and I would never choose a throwing knife to to hunt with or defend myself with if there where any choice. Really enjoyed this video keep up the good work
A skilled thrower could most certainly kill some game throwing reasonably heavy knives. A spear is definitely a better and easier throwing weapon to hunt with though.
When were you in Finland? There should have been a fan-meet-up...
he should have tell us !
larrywave
Maybe he didn't want to? He has his own life outside of YT, you know?
Indeed.
I was him on the streets of Åland. I was although so surprised that I could not believe my eyes, and he cycled away. Me missing my chance, it was not a good day, I tell you.
Number 1. I would never throw my knife with 2 exceptions, 1 throw it and charge the enemy and 2 throw it off a bridge after using it on someone.
2 Have heard it said a knife can be thrown underhanded with no spin but overhand, work out the distance of one rotation and only throw multiple of that distance.
3 One of my favorite things. My Sykes-Fairbarne, made by Knowls and son, est 1700 Sheffield.
4 Take a knife with a tang handle, remove the handle and tie on feathers. One rotation and flies point first like a dart.
4 My ex's mother wrote a book about their time in Shanghai. My father in law should I of married the lady, had been on the police force with Mr. Fairbarne.
5 To quote Sykes, "a knife should be used with the same delicacy that an artist uses his brush".
Just a few random thoughts that popped into my head after watching your video. Keep up the good work sir. I love pretty much everything you produce.
I liked scholagladiatoria's response to this. People threw knives because they usually had one on them, not because they would rather carry them than a better weapon, and there were a number of situations that could arise in everyday life where throwing a knife might benefit you in a confrontation.
If you throw a knife then you don't have a knife to defend with in close combat. A knife is very effective in hand to hand combat. If you throw it it is a 99.9% chance it will not stop the enemy.
If you do not killed your game, and wounded only it runs of with your knife. With an opponent if you mis, bounce of or nearly hurled him, you lose your weapon.
*If you throw a knife then you don't have a knife to defend with in close combat.*
You can have more than one knife you know...
*If you throw it it is a 99.9% chance it will not stop the enemy.*
Utter bullshit. If you've got any skill in throwing knives whatsoever there is no chance in hell that you will not injure or kill someone who's running directly at you unarmored, especially if it's in a tight area like a narrow street or passage. By the time you throw they will already be so close that dodging your weapon will be impossible.
Even if they manage to dodge or block it that gives you more than enough time to pull out your second dagger, close the distance and gut them, since they will be distracted by the sharp and pointy piece of metal flying towards their face.
@@filipferencak2717 yeah always these 99.9% chances... There is a decent chance that throwing a knife won't help you, and if I didn't practice throwing knives at least 1 hour per week, which I don't, I wouldn't rely on it having a beneficial effect, which I won't. I do know unarmed knife defence, so losing my own weapon wouldn't be (as) much of a factor for me, since I drastically reduce my chance of being injured by disarming my opponent rather than relying on my knife to hit them first
@@korsveien I would think any situation where a warrior would throw a blade in combat they would be inclined to think not to do so with their only weapon.
A Someone: "I think I'll give hunting with throwing knives a try to test it out."
A Bear: "That human was tasty."
Stones are cheap? Diamonds are stones.. Diamonds are expensive.. Stones are expensive. Check mate. ;)
as far as I know diamonds are chrystals.
you just got hit by the argument-pommel
Golden Bird Diamond is a gemstone. So it's a stone. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamond_(gemstone)
Also you misspelled crystal. And yes, diamonds are crystals too. But they're stones non the less. If I was hit by the argument-pommel, you were just hit with the argument-blade, mate.
GamePhysics ok I did missspell crystal. However I am not a native english speaker. And the entire argument pommel thing was mostly me being sarcastic xD
Golden Bird I understood that your argument-pommel was sarcastic, and so I just sarcastically replied with argument-blade. I'm not a native English speaker either :P
GamePhysics well... If the cutty stick was being a sarcastic answer to my sarcastic end-him-rightly-thingy everything is fine :P
I'm going to take a jab at why small throwing weapons were used. Have you ever had someone throw anything at you? What's the first thing you did? You probably took your eyes off the thrower so you could track the projectile and move so the thing couldn't hit you. Now imagine if you knew that things was covered in sharp edges and moved rather fast. You'd really do your best to duck or dodge out of the way letting the thrower escape, advance on you and so on. It's just human instinct to avoid danger even if that in itself puts you in even more danger.
+mrwindupbird101 If you played a lot of sports you've felt this. With baseball it's always at least a little dangerous to be batting in high school level on up, because you've got this hard ball whizzing 50mph+ at a space very near where you have to stand. Getting hit by them *really hurts*. Obviously boxing and kickboxing/MMA involve watching your opponents hands and feet which will be flying at you, and I'm sure tennis, hockey, basketball, football, soccer, rugby... all of them involve having to track your opponents and a very fast moving projectile.
I've always heard that a lot of sports are basically meant to simulate battle in certain ways, passed down from cultures, used to get their children used to team work, focusing on a goal, being in danger, physical pain, etc..
So sports are meant to grind down that instinct to flinch and try blind yourself immediately when trying to block something being thrown at you. This would have great use on the battlefield, so when projectiles were in the air, the soldiers who grew up playing sports would react more appropriately, being able to defend himself while still remaining aware of the overall situation around you.
Wait wait what? You were in Finland? :O Why? Where? When?
Helsinki, Porvoo, Turku, Aland. Wedding, teaching Lindy, and a bit of tourism.
When people actually make videos in response to your videos, you know you're onto something.
3:56 Suomi mainittu, torilla tavataan!
Sì
Please speak American, I don't know Japanees
@@hannibalburgers477 suomea saatana
@@raskolnikov7049 How dare you to call me a Satan, I don't care of you're a sumo wrestler or not!
@@hannibalburgers477 Nyt perkele. Loppuu se ameriikan puhuminen.
My pawpaw used to throw knives thank you did it for the circus for a little bit . It's kind of a favorite pastime with my family now every year with deer camp he liked to throw knives and see who's better . I don't think it would ever be a good idea to use in a real fight . Now axes on the other hand I think would make a great throwing weapon especially in a medieval fight against an armored Knight .
I bought these dedicated throwing knives that were cheap as dirt (four knives for 3 dollars.) I *almost* hit a mouse with them once. Not exactly a _"thrilling hunt"_ but it's a start. Maybe I could kill a rabbit with them if I'm patient enough. (but not really)
To be honest, I'm just glad I could consistently hit a target from 10-15 feet away. With enough practice I could totally do 20 feet, maybe a little more. But yes, hunting with them would be a waste. I have to make a lot of movement before I release the knife, which would spook the animal.
It can definitely work. You would want reasonably heavy throwing knives for anything bigger than a mouse though lol
I really enjoy your effects. Seriously, they crack me up because they are pretty off the wall compared to your dry, almost"beige", British manner.
I use a boomerang and that doesn't even have a sharp point.
Exactly, but the way it kills is exclusive to boomerangs.
You see, many people think that boomerangs deal impact damage, but in reality the impact is just icing on the cake. The real deadliness of boomerangs is their ability to deal _Australian damage!_
The boomerang is simply so bloody Australian, that it is lethal against any target without sufficient Australian resistance when used properly.
Sometimes, a throwing knife can deal Australian damage, but only if used by an Australian with a very thick accent who hunts snakes and crocodiles and such. Even then, it deals nowhere near the amount as the boomerang, and the Australian damage is usually not enough to kill with the knife.
dear lyndubeige: My father serves in the army of the people's republic of south africa. he drove a truck but served regular duties quite often. he kept a throwing knife with him and was trained to use it (others were as well) it's perpose was a mid ranged silent attack, though they mostly just threw them at dart bords or what have you. he only ever used it on a fellow once, and that was to stab his comanding officer in the leg. (big miss understanding, the CO had inteded to catch the nightguard off guard, when it turned out they were quite competent after all. it was dark and he had tried to climb a fence and failed to sound off when hailed.) so, yes, we may carry and know how to use throwing knives in America and other parts of the world, but there are usually beter implements available. like a bayonet,side arm, or rifle.
served. long ago *
No one hunts with a trowing knife they carry a knife to skin, gut, quick kill, the game they been hunting or to fillet and scale the fish they caught.
LOL
lindybeige
I think the use of knife as a throwing weapon is when you either are in confined spaces against unarmored oppoments or when someone is charging at you using the throw either to slow down (by distraction/the need to dodge the thing) or injure the attacker so you can reach out for an better weapon (preferrably a sword pommel) and then end the attacker rightly
as an american i can say we dont use fishing rods to hunt. we use them to fish.....
Fishing is a form of hunting.
yeah..... fishing = hunting fish. Nice try but failed.
When long casting with any weights over about 2 ozs, it is necessary to use a few yards of stronger line to cope with the shock.
If the line breaks during the cast, it is possible for a beachcaster to send a 6 oz lead over a quarter of a mile.
Aiming it might be a problem though.
J. ZAX if you pursue any game it's called hunting you don't have to kill it
Most people do not consider fishing to be hunting, at least amongst those that have done either in America.
Hello ! I wanted to know about throwing knives so i first went to Metatron to know about kunai from Japan, then by his link to Samurai and Ninja History:s video where he explained that real kunai were 50 cm digging weapons in reality. I watched you're video and instantly recognised the knife has Finnish or Lapland knife since im native Finn, but was thrilled when you confirmed that you got a Finnish knife. Thank you for a great video !
Phh anvils? Real men throw cows.
I feel that's a moot point :)
A throwing knife has much more penetration than if you would stab someone full force at point blank. You can test it yourself on a wooden board. Stab it full force, check the penetration. Then move between 4 and 10 meters, throw it “no spin” or with spin ( I prefer no spin) and check the penetration. It will be around double to triple what it did when you stabbed it up close. Does that make it a weapon of choice over other one? No, but it’s a decent back up that doesn’t take a lot of space and that is fairly easy to carry.
In John Wick 3 they had one of the best throwing knife scenes in Hollywood... The throws were realistic short range and about half of them just bounced off instead of always landing. And when they did land they weren't insta-kills either. The person would just pull the knife out and throw it back unless they received too many hits. (i.e a guy that took 5 large knives to his torso and eye)
I read a commentary some time ago written by a man who had spent quite a bit of money on a top of the line hunting knife. After he got the knife, he took it hunting. Coming upon an armadillo, he decided to see if he could take the armadillo with his knife by throwing the knife. He got a direct hit, and the armadillo ran off with a very expensive knife stuck in it. The man never saw the armadillo and his knife again. The man did not recommend that technique as a good one to use and was mortified that he had lost so much money.
hog hunters in Hawaii use them
***** maybe this guy can ;)
s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/05/e5/20/05e520a5094e01bbcda3d34c4d74c1d7.jpg
Dog and knife not throwing knives. Dogs fight and pin the boar down and hunter stabs the boar. It's a messy affair everyone can get hurt
H.I.S Survival ooo okay thanks for clarifying mate!
+H.I.S Survival Sounds like my honeymoon.
Your significant other sounds quite lively
Seeing him pull out an authentic puukko from Finland was a little surprising lol, I’ve wanted one for awhile now but I haven’t had a chance to go to Finland yet lol
TORILLA TAVATAAN
Skrollasin heti alaspäin ja pysäytin videon. Kyllä, täällä se on. Niin kulunut läppä ettei mitään rajaa. Kuitenkin se tuo aina lämpimän tunteen. Tuntuu, että jotain puuttuu jos tätä kommenttia ei ole näissä. Kiitos.
I think one of the few historcal usages of small throwing thingies in combat (though not battlefield combat) were the japanese shuriken, although those were usually not designed to kill so much as just having a small but heavy metal thing to have sail past an opponent to distract them so you could draw a better weapon or retreat. Stones were also probably used too, but it's not that easy to tell if someone grabed a particular stone to distract someone with, as unfortunatley they all look the same after they are finished being thrown.
I think shuriken were mentioned in the previous video as an exception, not exactly the same as a throwing knife. Still not able to kill a target unless you are really lucky.
Who needs knives having a pommel to end him rightly?
Eloy eh? Nice.
I dimly remember a video segment about how prehistoric archaeologists are baffled at how certain prehistoric humans use a flint or stone javelin to hunt the likes of woolly mammoths and sabre-toothed tigers, as when they tried tossing it at this stuffed mini-mammoth target, it barely penetrated and the tips tend to break off, not to mention it doesn't seem to travel far no matter how well you throw the stone javelin. It seemed impractical to use especially for those not already proficient with tossing javelins, especially since it took a bit of work to sharpen those stone spearheads using wooden and stone tools.
Then someone had the bright idea of not throwing that stone javelin, and just move close to that dummy target and just stab the thing. Not only did it penetrate many times better than throwing it, the tips didn't break off from the impact. Then they finally realized that they never threw the things, they kept it at hand and never let it go.
This somewhat relates to this whole dagger and throwing knife talk. At least, I think it does.
There is one really important thing about throwing knives I miss here. Even if you hit your enemy and kill him in best case, you now had a knife! Next opponent has to be dealt with without a knife now. So never throw it away, but get close enough to use it properly!
Throwing knives are totally different from stabbing knives, and you would likely hurt yourself trying to stab with a throwing knife, so you would carry both. I have a set of throwing knives from my teenage years, and it took something like one afternoon to start hitting hare sized targets from roughly 10m away. I haven't thrown them for decades, and it is actually illegal to hunt with them here in Finland IIRC. I also have a stabby-stabby knife from those days, and it is infinitely better at stabbing (slides into flesh-like substances easier than a hot butter knife into butter), and no, I haven't used it.
While a bow is probably a much better hunting tool, the advantage of throwing knives is that they require less space and movement, e.g. you can use them while lying on a rock or a branch. In the end, they are more for fun than effective, I believe.
In cases where a warrior would throw a knife or dagger or whatever they most definitely would think to not throw it if it’s their only weapon.
I am absurdly good at throwing knifes. I always have been. Hand me your pocketknife and I'll put it in a wall, tree, board, etc. But I completely agree. In order to throw a knife hard enough to hurt a person, you have to know the distance within an inch, pace it off, and practice so that you know your rotation. "I missed, now I don't have a weapon". It's a silly movie thing. Rocks are free, on the ground, and as an American, I can throw for 200 feet accurately (if it's baseball weighted, otherwise all bets are off) but still, If I nail you in the face at 50 feet with a .5lb rock, you're not a threat any more.
don't forget that javelins have a very practical side effet : the handle is very long.
So when and if it's stuck in a shield, this shield is really harder to use. Even more if you're in a formation, and even more if you are a spear user, cause you have this shaft in your way !
So, if you want to use your shield, then you have to de-stuck the javelin first. so you have to go turn your shield, or you need someone to help you,
In any way, there is a huge time loss, compared to the time needed to throw the javelin, and an opportunity for the opponent.
And plus, you don't need a full handle for it to be incapicating : romans javelins were made to break, and the bit still stuck seems quite long enough to limit the mobility of the shield bearer.
with a knife in a shield, nothing have changed.
About 45 years ago, Field & Stream had an article on a man who used TruBalance knives to hint wild pigs in the Everglades. He used 7 knives carried on a U.S. M 58 webbing set. Not sure, but he bore a resemblance to Lynn Thompson. The knives were VERY large, heavy Bowie type blades. Yes, he was successful.
thanks for linking both those videos
I throw knives for fun and have done a lot of throwing weapons over the years with martial arts training and from what all the instructors have said and based on my experiences, throwing knives and throwing weapons in general(besides things like spears and javelins, and specialized axes like the francesa) are meant to be more of a distraction instead of outright killing your enemy.
If you throw a knife at your enemy and manage to kill him like that then that's a bonus. The purpose is to distract him and make him so "OH CRAP!" because well a frekkin knife is being thrown at him and now you have to time to follow it up and close the distance to fight in melee while he's distracted or pull a Brave Sir Robin and RUN AWAY!
Also with most knifes you can get a spot, throw it at a target and stick it in point first all day, but then take a step back and have it hit with the handle every time.
You also have to be careful when throwing them at things like trees as the trees DO fight back and you can have a knife ricochet back at you. We practiced this once at a CQC seminar where we threw knifes at trees and then ran at them right after the throw. It was a lot of fun.
I did get one cool moment though where I threw the knife at the tree and ran up to it and the knife bounced back and I managed to actually catch it and then stab the tree. That would be a pretty cool movie moment and a bit more realistic than having thrown knives always result in instant kills.
Sorry for rambling on but I also have a slightly related fun factoid. In the Fellowship of the Ring movie where Aragorn was having that boss fight with the Uruk-Hai leader, there's a part where the Uruk-hai throws a knife at Aragorn and Aragon hits it with his sword. What was supposed to happen was that the Uruk-Hai was supposed to the knife quite a ways ABOVE him but the stuntman had pretty horrible vision in all the prosthetics and make up and accidentally threw the knife directly AT Viggo. So that moment when Aragorn is like "OH SHIT!" and deflecting that knife wasn't actually supposed to happened but it looked so good, they actually ended up using it for the movie.
I loved that every time you mentioned spears or a javelin, one went passed.
It does not serve to refute your point, but rather strengthen it, however it's illegal to hunt with a thrown knife here in the states, we have rules about minimum kinetic energy required to kill the intended animal in a quick and humane manner. For example; a crossbow that is intended for hunting must be at least 150lbs. Draw weight with a regulation grain (100-120, or so) hunting broadhead on a 16inch quarrel etc, etc. So yes we have deemed throwing knives, "not lethal enough ", over here in the states. Keep up the good work and we will catch ya next video.
In most of the US, weapons for hunting are fairly restricted. You could go after vermin, but they're small, so we usually trap them. That said, the traditional American thrown weapon would be the tomahawk rather than the knife. It has a larger portion of its arc that will stick, does more damage on a hit, and doesn't require a special design to survive being thrown. As for range, you usually want to throw it at fairly short range, ten feet or less. The goal isn't necessarily to incapacitate your opponent with the tomahawk, so much as to force them to duck, giving you an opening to press your actual attack, with a second tomahawk, knife, or spear.
We have hunted with slings, bows, short spears with atlatl and slingshots. I even hunted with a group that used a Mountain Howitzer in Wisconsin, USA. I, we, love to throw knives and axes as a sport, for fun. In real life situations, only a fool would throw a perfectly good knife away. If I was trying to 'mark' a retreating foe and I had a boot knife, a dirk, and it was the only way I could reach them, I might try to throw. Otherwise, I think not. Now, Plumbata, on the other hand, would be an excellent choice for actually throwing and killing things--very easy to use and deadly. The Plumbata, with its forward weight placement, eliminates the spinning issue as well.
When I was a young lad I took a rather large knife with a thin tang hilt. I removed the grip and tied a bunch of feathers to it. When thrown, it would make about on rotation, and then fly point first every time.
FYI. There was a big Todo here in Alberta Canada when a person put a video on RUclips that showed him hunting with a spear and taking down a black bear. Shortly after, they changed the laws making spear hunting illegal.
in my previous comment on your earlier video i talked about the no spin throwing technique. its actually pretty easy once you get the hang of it. i guess calling it quarter-spin is accurate, because of the way you throw it, but once the knife leaves your hand, with the proper backspin, it will stop spinning once the point is forward. so it does about a quarter/half turn and then just goes point first.
In answer to your question in the video does anyone hunt with throwing knives? Yes, My uncle used to hunt with a friend and they used throwing knives. My uncle did include a few caveats when relating this to me. First it took him a very long time to get proficient enough with throwing knives to make it feasible, something around a year of practice. (compared to a few days practice to use a javelin well enough to hunt) and continued use was necessary to maintain the level of skill required. The second caveat was that he reckoned that he they were only a handful of people in america who actually did hunt with throwing knives, he is heavily involved in the sort of community that would be most likely to do so. The third caveat was that he could only hunt small game such as rabbits or ground birds. I believe my uncle is the exception rather than the rule about hunting with throwing knives.
I'd love to hear a beige view on the plumbata; I'm under the (quite possibly incorrect) notion that late imperial Roman (and subsequently Eastern Roman) soldiers tended to carry these things for use as throwing weapons moreso than the more conventional javelins.
I almost wrote 'pila', but no doubt LB would quite rightly point out that it's just Latin for 'javelins'!
3:03 just put a picture in my head of someone chasing a deer with a fishing rod! HAHAHA
Lindybeige, bro, a javelin is a pretty big weapon. Peltastai were awesome, but they were dedicated javelin throwers that carried nothing but 3 javelins and a side arm. If that's your task and you're on a battlefield, then sure, a knife is utterly hopeless for this. But if you are in a civilian situation, a throwing knife is far supperior to a javelin. First, because you will not be carrying a javelin. Second, your target is likely unarmored. Third, you can conceal the knife until the very last second that it leaves your hand. Fourth, you can carry a number of knives without even noticing them. Fifth, a knife can hit plenty of fight-ending and a numer of life-ending areas of the body, despite it not being a javelin.
About your second point and the rotation of the weapon at greater ranges: with the quarter-rotation a good thrower decides when the tip is pointing forward. If you involve common sense, you will realize that if you aim for 30 instead of 10 feet range, the rotation is going to be three times slower, which means that the length you have to cover to avoid the tip of the blade by running torward it or away from it is three times greater than at 10 feet. In other words, you are much more likely to "outrun" the tip of the knife at point-blank ranges. You can dodge easier at greater distance, but that is a completely different matter.
I agree about not using knives for hunting or for yet two other reasons, too expensive to make and too easy to lose. I threw a knife once and as it glinted in the sun I lost track of it. After hours I gave up trying to find it in the weeds of my yard. On the other hand, I disagree that they would be ineffectual. As a teen I threw a 14" long piece of mild steel bar, not even a knife, just a 1/2" by 1/4" bar with a point on one end. Very handy and reliable. I found it was not too hard to put it through one side of our old refrigerator basically penetrating sheet-metal to a depth of about 4". In the torso or head I'd like to think that would have a good possibility of seriously ruining your day.
"Never throw a knife. Especially the upper torso with its ribs is not easy to penetrate. If the enemy awaits the attack, slight movement towards or away from you, or vertikal movement, will make it pretty difficult to disable an enemy with a thrown knife.
In the hand of an experienced fighter a knife is a deadly and secure weapon. A pistol will run out of ammo sooner or later, but as long as you are able to hold it, a knife is a deadly weapon. You don't want to throw your weapon. As sure as a thrown Colt M 1911 will hit an enemy unconcious, nobody ever will throw it at somebody."
John Ek
If somebody gets stabbed with a knife in my aerea in South Germany, the Police will come to action only if the knife sticks in the body by itselfes and is not falling out.
Im an American in Virginia and am a user of Kershaw throwing knives and can say they are only for fun and not for hunting. After all they only go 1cm or so into oak at about 8ft. Great vid. :-)
I come from NZ (and am of a certain vintage) - so quite a lot of people I have known from the older generation have been into hunting.
Pretty much all of them have an "end of bloodlust" story - which is the thing that happened that caused them to stop killing things. My dad's was a deer. Mine was a bird (I don't think I even injured it, but 45 years later, I can still hear the sound of the slug hitting it, and it still makes me feel sick).
Anyway - one of them (my best friend's dad) killed a rabbit by throwing a knife at it - and that was the thing that stopped him hunting.
He wasn't actually "hunting" with it tho - he was just out of bullets.
"Well yes a knife could work, but so could a stone." *Looks over at Zues campaign* "Yup, the militia is throwing stones."
Me: "Is that a Helle?"
Lindybeige: "I bought this recently in Finland, for a not insubstatial amount of money."
Me: "It's a Helle"
It surely was a pretty puukko. It looks like a Helle one, but then again the puukko has a lot of truely awesome makers here, most have pretty similar shapes. Actually there are several traditional styles, depends on the partof Finland, but..
Yes. The best all around knife in my opinion. Except for throwing. :D
I have actually seen an old manual on hunting with throwing knives. The knives in question are very large, and the photographs in the book show the author hunting boar, where he uses dogs to corner the animal, then hit it with the large throwing blades. My memory is fuzzy on further details. I would agree that a javelin is a better dedicated throwing weapon. However unlike knives you can't carry more than a couple of them on you. So I might conceded that in some contexts, perhaps some people might have thrown knives in combat in the same way that some medieval fighting manuals show how to throw swords, as an occasional tactic used in very specific circumstances. It wouldn't have been something done often in medieval Europe, but perhaps it was done.
I love your Scandinavian knife! I've been given a Brusletto when I was a boy, I still have it and use it frequently. I am very impressed by its quality.
Years ago, there was an outfitter who would take you on wild pig hunts in Texas, using spears. I do not know if he is still in business.
Another simple and cheap alternative to a knife would be the throwing club, which can be had in any woodland area for the price of breaking a short branch off a suitable tree.
I have spent a few pleasurable afternoons gathering and throwing improvised clubs at log and rock targets and I can see a typical person getting good enough to occasionally kill small game, i.e. rabbits and ground birds, within a week of motivated practice, at a range of 5-15 yards. Bigger game and longer ranges seem plausible with much practice and heavier, longer clubs.
My next step would be a sling, which are documented to provide lethal force with small rocks or metal shot at astounding ranges comparable to the best bows, and then a staff sling, which provides additional mechanical advantage and the full power of both arms. Staff slings can throw a projectile equivalent to a fist-sized stone several hundred yards, which translates to a phenomenal impact energy that will snap limbs, penetrate and pulverize soft tissue or shatter a skull like a melon.
Any of these weapons can be improvised in a primitive setting in minutes or hours (assuming you can find or make a small amount of cordage), ammunition is free and they are all dead simple to use, though all of course require practice to attain reliable skill.
Knives, as you say, are generally far too expensive and far too non-lethal for throwing them to ever be plan A--though I can imagine throwing a heavy chopping blade like a kukri could be very effective indeed, whichever end happened to strike. Very little difference between the pommel end of a heavy knife and the business end of a small club, isn't there?
If I were throwing a heavy knife at somebody, I would put as much energy into it as I could muster, and who gives a damn if I stick the point. I'm not fighting for style points, I'm fighting for my life--and a spinning projectile carries more energy. Whether I crack the guy's collarbone or slice through his quadriceps, either way he's slowed down or put down and that's what matters.
Your point is mostly correct however they where apparently used in battle in Japan. The point however was to distract and harass the enemy rather than kill them and they where much smaller than your knife being anything from a knife like shape to more like a dart, Shurikens are part of this class of weapon. They where useful because they where small and light and so you could carry a loads without much hassle and you could lob one while armed with something else. It probably helped that Shields also seemed to go out of fashion in Japanese warfare.
Knives are used to hunt pigs in America, but you don't throw them. Two dogs grab the hog's ears, then you run up with your pig sticker (usually a largish Bowie), slam it between a couple of ribs, then use a 'pump handle' type up and down motion, try to cause severe damage in said pig's thoractic cavity.
Small animals, like rabbits, are hunted with thrown weapons, but these are just heavy sticks, where it is unimportant what part of the weapon hits the critter, as it is 'weight' that is doing the damage, rather than penetration.
Good point (heh!) about rocks. Another big plus for the rock is that it's not directional, like a knife; it has no pointy end. His someone in the face with any side of a rock and it does maximum damage.
I feel like one notable point about small throwing weapons such as knives, darts and eastern equivalents like throwing stars is that while not commonly lethal in and of themselves, they probably make for great poison delivery methods. A popular thing in media is a blowpipe that fires poison darts, and I can imagine that throwing a poisoned dart wouldn't be that much harder.