goose wrote:Skiprr wrote:If a guy bum-rushes you and pins you back against the hood of a Camry, odds are you can’t get to your handgun. If you could, it would be a weak draw and might be easily taken away.
Knives, especially folders, are usually carried clipped in a front pocket. I’d suggest that be high in the offhand pocket.
Why? Because if you carry your gun strong-side hip or appendix, you can protect it by clamping your arm over it and using the blade in your off-hand to disable or fend off your attacker long enough—far enough—to deploy your firearm.
That’s the purpose of a blade: to fight back to your handgun.
I was also a bit confused (short sighted) as to why a knife might be a CHL’s first option. This was a good explanation. I need to think about a weak side pocket knife of some sort. And at a minimum, drawing and unfolding practice, weak handed.
Thanks, Goose.
Someone PMed me on this topic asking about pepper spray. In my opinion, OC can be very useful if you are practiced at deploying it and it's a stream-type dispersion system fired at a reasonable distance (and in the correct wind conditions). Using OC at contact distance is just as likely to put the irritant in your own face--and on your hands--as the assailant's. This is problematic with one attacker, but can become catastrophic with multiple assailants.
That an outside-the-home assault is most likely to occur at very close distances is also one reason I do not recommend small-of-back carry, despite everything we see in the movies. Cross-draw comes in at second worst, shoulder holster at third.
Job one if you're physically assaulted: do not give up your firearm.
If someone tries to reach for your holstered firearm, the instinctive--and correct--reaction is to blade your body away from the aggressor and clamp your forearm over the gun. That works if you're carrying from appendix to four o'clock (for right-handers; to eight o'clock for left-handers). You cannot protect your holstered weapon if you're carrying small-of-back. Shoulder-holster carry means you'll need to fight dominant side forward, which is awkward for most.
A lot of knife guys say that you should be able to reach your blade with either hand and with either front or back carry. Yeah right. Get back to me on that. I'm not 30 years old, and I'm not that flexible.
My choice is EDC firearm on the right hip and a blade high on the left pocket.
The blade is always the second choice. But I'd rather have it than not.
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