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Abraham wrote:karder,

The Grayman knives are gorgeous, but I saw no autos.

Presumably, they don't make them...?

Have you taken formal knife fighting classes?

If so, can you share some of what they're comprised of, i.e., average course length, what's involved, etc.

Thanks!

I don't think Grayman are doing any autos.

My knife experience consists of 20 years of martial arts background in Aikido and Iaido. I am no Navy Seal by any means, but have had a lot of exposure with edged weapons. I have also been involved in a few dozen seminars on knife fighting techniques, but I was not instructing, just demonstrating (usually as the bad guy getting taken down by the instructor) and as an assistant circulating among students on the mat.
The seminars can be very helpful depending on who the instructor is. The ones I have been at were usually one or two days and consisted of about 8-16 hours of instruction, theory, and technique with a lot of mat work. The training will typically be unarmed defense against an attacker with a knife, knife on knife, knife on improvised weapon such as a cane, and so forth. Then lots of practice with other students while the black belts mingle to help with technique. I would highly recommend trying a few. The tone of the seminar will often depend on the experience level of the students. If it is a class for experienced students the subject matter will contain a lot more offense. Entry level classes often deal mostly with defending against the blade. At least that was my experience.

One or two seminars won't make an expert, but will give the participants a healthy respect for a blade and will change the way they approach a confrontation where a knife might be involved. For instance, if I think a knife might be involved, I won't be!

I think a knife is a vital component to any self-defense setup, but as others have said, training and practice with a blade is very important in the event you ever have to deploy it. I have carried Cold Steel knives for years, but I am now really into Grayman knives.

I do agree that you might want to consider carring one knife for utility and daily use, and a second for self-defense. These days I have a leatherman tool on my belt that takes care of my daily needs but like to carry a second blade for "emergency". I like a fixed blade. I carry pistol strong side and knife weak side and practice knife with both hands equally. I figure if I am every pinned up and cannot access pistol my left hand has it's own option.

Picking a knife is probably more personal a decision than picking a pistol as there are so many choices for so many different styles. I think too much is made of blade length. A 5.5 inch blade is great, but some serious damage can be inflicted in seconds with a straight razor. Remember, if you are in a fight, slashing motions may be more effective than thrusting motions depending on the situation, and deploying a folder may be tough under extreme stress, so you want to keep that in mind when picking a blade. Check out http://www.graymanknives.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;. They are expensive, but worth it in my opinion. Good luck in you search.