whats your favourite weapon and why?

MAfreak · Yellow Belt

i'm no weapons expert but had some kobudo lessons and did long self study on traditional weapons, since its an amazing addition to the "common" weaponless combat sports.

my total favourite is the tonfa because its one of the few weapons which adjusts to our body and not the other way round, when it comes to arm positioning, blocking or striking. i have a very short video with some training clips, and did an example there. a shadow boxing combination and later a tonfa combination, which is exactly the same. when you can box with it, its the perfect weapon (surely except of stabbingweapons and firearms).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaNl26Og4p0 i tried sai throwing too, i think thats interesting for such a big heavy weapon (compared to throwing-knifes or shuriken).

my second favourite would be the cane like its used in hapkido. could be handled like a tonfa or a hanbo, can sweep or grab someone, can even be sharpened and no one would ask you, why you carry this stick with you.

Spodo Komodo · Blue Belt

Sai, they complement kata wonderfully, develop strong wrists and arms, feel so natural to use and are useful for after training snacks of really big corn.

Lupin1 · Black Belt

So far I've only learned one bo form and I've just started studying bando stick (a little shorter than an escrima stick-- about as long as a sai). I like the stick as it's very versatile. Pretty much anything you pick up can be used in the same way as the stick-- a stick from the ground, a bat, a book (I'm a librarian), lots of things. I'm surprised more systems don't teach it. I find it's a great introductory weapon.

Spartacus Maximus · Black Belt

The stick in all its varieties is probably the best choice overall. It has many advantages over any other weapon. Some of the best are these:

A) Stick or stick-like objects are easily found or picked up in nearly every kind of setting both indoors and outdoors.

B) Unlike every other weapon, stick does not obviously appear as a weapon and can readily be discarded

C) A stick is has longer range than most other non-projectile weapons and can be used to defend against other weapons while keeping a safer distance away.

D) There are no laws/regulations restricting or forbidding sticks. All other weapons are either illegal or heavily restricted.

MAfreak · Yellow Belt

shorter sticks like Lupin1 mentioned are also used in kobudo and hapkido. there are versions with a wristband-like cord on one end so it can't be taken away easily.

sensei8 · KF Sensei

The Bo!! No matter how well versed I am in Kobudo, the Bo has a special place in my heart across the board.

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**Proof is on the floor!!!

Wado Heretic · Green Belt

My mind

My personal favourite, right now, is perhaps the Sai. However, the long-sword and the Kon continue to be the ones I train with insistently. I find the tanto fun to work with as well, and also the kubotan, but mostly when working with my students.

So, for training by myself it would be the Tzai, right now, but I find some times I just want to work on Kon, and other times are drawn to sword work. It fluctuates. However, when training with my students I prefer the really close fighting tools, because we get some excellent and immediate cross-over with our unarmed skills, and with the rubber knives we can have a little more contact and energy to training.

When training with my instructor though; it has to be the Kon. One because I sometimes feel I am keeping up with him and am being a good training partner, and two when I get that delusion he utterly schools me and I recognise where I went wrong.
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R. Keith Williams

Montana · Pre-Black Belt

MAfreak · Yellow Belt

thank you for the feedback.

yes that throw was just for fun and just for show. i saw kobudo people throwing sai to the ground, so it would hit the opponents foot.
i think too, its to dangerous, its like saying "hey catch my weapon, your welcome!"

Wado Heretic · Green Belt

I know of a kata where one throws a sai towards the feet at the end; though said kata also requires one to keep a spare sai in the Obi so covers drawing techniques as well. I also believe the Matayoshi tradition adheres to the idea of the sai as a throwing weapon.

I have practiced using the sai as a throwing weapon; if one tries to throw it like a knife it will not work. One, because of the weapons weight, is better off treating it like a hatchet throw.

As a technique, it is one of those one in a thousand techniques; it should not a "go to" approach, or a mainstay of one's training, but I suspect it could be useful in very particular situations.

Saying all that though, shurikanjutsu is a particular hobby of mine, and I am quite skilled at throwing improvised as well as for purpose weapons. If it was an option, I would be relatively confident in finishing a confrontation before it went any further with a thrown sai. Just like a kick to a brawler, or grappling to someone who has never done it before, it is out of the realm of normal experience and thus can catch people off guard remarkably easy. Also, few people guard the foot from the sai, even those who should know better, because of weapon focus and the fact the main danger the sai presents are to targets above the waist. It is a technique of opportunity, but one I think worth having in one's repertoire.
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R. Keith Williams

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