Knives Illustrated – August 2019

PERSONALDEFENSE

KNIVES, SELF-DEFENSE, AND

INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL

On the Web

Martial Blade Concepts

MartialBladeConcepts.com

SAFETY ABROAD

TEXT AND PHOTOS BY MICHAEL JANICH

I

f you visit any internet knife

forum, odds are you will see

an active thread with a title of

something like, “What is the

best knife for self-defense?”

You will probably see the same

repetitive litany of useless comments

like, “Don’t bring a knife to a gunfi ght,”

“In a knife fi ght you’re going to get

cut,” “Just run away,” and so on. Sadly,

such threads rarely result in useful dis-

cussion and, when they do, the advice

given typically focuses on the technical

aspects of knives rather than the prac-

tical aspects of their carry and use.

I became interested in knife-based

self-defense when I fi rst started learn-

ing the martial arts as a teenager, but

it wasn’t until I was stationed overseas

that I made it a priority in my training.

The reason was simple: I was working

and traveling in environments that

posed a signifi cant threat of violence.

Even though I was assigned to a U.S.

embassy or consulate, I was not autho-

rized to carry a gun and as a foreigner, I

was prohibited from even owning one

privately. Knives, on the contrary, were

legal to own and carry. And since I had

a diplomatic passport, I could bend the

rules pretty far for what I could carry.

From a standpoint of necessity, prac-

ticality, and legality, the knife became

my primary defensive weapon.

Nowadays, I live in a state where con-

cealed carry is allowed, so whenever

possible, I carry a handgun as a primary

lethal-force weapon. However, since

I travel frequently and often have to

work in non-permissive environments

where fi rearms are not an option, my

knife — or more accurately, knives —

regularly return to a primary role.

In the U.S., I use Knife Rights’ Legal

Blade smartphone app to research the

laws of the cities and states to which I

travel, so I can ensure that I’m carrying

something permissible. When I travel

internationally, however, things get a

lot more complicated. To do my best

to remain reasonably well-armed and

play by the rules of the countries I visit,

I’ve developed a few “rules of thumb”

that guide my strategy.

01

Do Your

Homework

in Advance

Knife laws vary dramatically from

country to country, so doing research

in advance is invaluable. Internet knife

forums typically have international

membership, so using them to ask

Above: Decades

ago, the author lived

overseas, but had

the privileges of a

diplomatic passport.

That made bending

the rules of knife carry

a lot easier. His carry

knives at that time

were a Pacific Cutlery

Model 68 and an early

Spyderco Endura with

integral clip.

Left:Within the

U.S., KnifeRights’

Smartphone app

Legal Blade is a great

resource to determine

what’s legal to carry.

For overseas travel,

internet knife forums

are about as good as

it gets.

(^22) KNIVES ILLUSTRATED • JULY/AUGUST 2019 knivesillustrated.com