How to Use a Dagger?

I've been enjoying some of your vids. But this vid has too many things that are... incorrect.
Having a sharp edge braced against your arm isn't dangerous to the wielder unless they have bare arms and are drawing the blade against their own arm.
An opponent hitting the edge of your weapon in a block or parry is 100% normal and often even desirable (as it provides grip to control their weapon), trying to preserve the edge when in combat is senseless and blocking a sword or axe swing with a dagger is even more senseless as it will most likely just blow through your block.
Daggers are only really good at defending from thrusting attacks, blocking against swinging attacks are ill-advised at best.
No one would whittle with that type of dagger, its a pure weapon, not a tool. You present too many personal theories as though they are tested and proven facts in martial practice.

where did you get this dagger you had in the video

Excuse me how tf are you switching to icepick grip i wanna learn to do that

I’ve been a viewer of your channel for a while now and I love your content. I found this video to be thought provoking and interesting. However, I’d like to politely disagree for a few reasons. I know I’m 2 years late, but I’d still like to add my 2 cents.

I think the biggest trap of taking on the topic of “how to fight with a knife” is that people feel the need to come to a conclusive answer. To borrow from the esteemed Matt Easton, in my mind and in my experience, it all depends on the context in which you intend to use your knife/dagger.

For instance, the clinch pick and the SOCP dagger (and fighting system) are built for the specific context of close-in fighting at grappling range due to the realities of modern civilian violence or military CQB. In both these cases you typically have no choice but to “start” the fight at such a close range so the blade upwards grip of the clinch pick and the ice pick grip of the SOCP dagger are more suited to a grappling scenario.

However, in a scenario where you expect to use a larger knife against another knife wielding opponent, the benefits of a conventional/standard knife grip can’t be overstated. The range and length of cutting edge gained by a standard grip are your best friend when it comes to surviving that kind of encounter. A standard grip is also still incredibly effective in a clinch/grappling scenario. The most common method for knife attacks (at least in the US) is for the attacker to grapple/post off the victim with one hand and prison shank with the knife held in a standard grip in the other hand.

To address the Bowie knife being wielded with a blade-up grip, I believe the reason is due to the proliferation of firearms. I believe that so much of the art and discussion around the implementation of the Bowie knife deals with fighting at grappling range specifically to negate the opponent’s use of a firearm. Trying to stay at range and duel with an opponent who also has a gun is an easy invitation for him to pull an Indiana Jones and blast you before you can use your years of knife training to filet him. I also believe this is why in SOCP, the dagger is meant to be used in a grappling context; it limits your opponent’s ability to shoot you with a firearm and also makes any of his friends less likely to shoot you as well (as they might not want to risk accidentally hitting their friend).

As I said in the beginning of the post, the thing I see most often ignored in discussions about knife fighting is the specific context in which you’re using the weapon. In my opinion there is no “right” way to wield a knife so long as it makes sense for your specific context.

I gotton a dagger at a Shakespeare festival recently and I just polished it and I wanted to learn to use it and this helped a lot! Thanks.

From a medieval perspective, nome of what you posit is supported by evidence. While I’m no expert in Dei Liberi, I am generally familiar with its dagger techniques, and I know a good bit about /Lichtenaeur (which is literally the only other medieval source; we have no evidence of how one might fight with a seax, for example. I’ve also studied a fair bit of modern knife combatives, though to be fair that’s not especially relevant.

One is never shown blocking with a dagger at all. Ever. Every technique in the Lichtenauer system, and to the best of my recollection in Dei Liberi as well, is there a dagger technique wherein one blocks an attack with the blade. One displaces the attack against the arm of the attacker, either with the hands or with the blade. And while the masters are not explicit in how the blade should be oriented, there are several techniques which the long edge should definitely be the sharp edge. The low to high backhand cut is simply never shown, but would be dome differently than you show it in thd forehand grip; you would lead with the point. It’s not hard to accomplish, and I’d much more in keeping with Lichtebauer;d principles.

I will note that changing grips by spinning the blade around is likely to get you killed very dead unless your opponent has stepped out for coffee. I have had this ahem point driven ho,e painfully in my youth. Don’t do it.

Would comment about using the guard as a extremely strong locking position that leaves your blade angled so any attack is deflected . The way you hold here ? Your just going to hit hard and opps there's a big slice in my arm because your blade has no room to rebound the force and can't deflect because your square edge.AH BUT YOU DONT REPLY SO ILL LEAVE TO CARRY ON PLAYING

Could you teach me how to flip the dagger to change grips plz?

You just wanted to show off the flair, didn't you😂

I just love this channel. Common sense experimental archeology with just the perfect amount of fantasy flavour. This has a similar vibe to Modern History TV channel, only he replaced the fantasy part with horses.

I have not seen anyone cover using a dagger with a curved guard or quillons such that quillons can be used to capture the attacker's sword. This seems a valuable option when presented with a single sword armed attacker. Thoughts?

It's your choice of type of dagger and blade position. What is important is that you are well verse in using your selections.

IMO in a medieval setting, if it comes down to an armed fight with a knife - you should mainly use thrusts and go for a kill.
Maybe one could deter a fight with a bigger weapon, but with a knife it`s too risky.

Although I prefer an edge-forward fighting style, I would assume that IF the Vikings held knives with the spine forward to their enemies it'd be for a similar reason as bowie knives..."thrusts" to the abdomen are more like a 'punch" in the gut than a forward stab. Not only is the stab itself lethal, your opponent's own weight works against them, like falling on a guillotine. On that note, an advantage of having an unsharpened spine on the back edge of a knife or dagger is that you can baton the back of the blade...while it's inside someone, cutting even further into their body.

POV: you watch 20 episodes of Vinland saga

Now go wet your hands with some slimy like blood, egg yolks work, and do some of that play acting knife twirling and see how well it works.

I already know how to use daggers i even have 2 of them

hahaha " Ah Child" I really began to like your videos.

Hi, who makes this dagger and what is it called?

all make since seeing as in you block with the blunt side flat of the it will be less li to chip or dull the blade it shelf! to there is that to! 🤔

Site to get the dagger?

It makes total sense especially if your using it to block income blows from an opponents blade all while preserving the sharp side of your blade.

EE…I don't know about Medieval Daggers. Double-Edged Daggerswere quite popular on the Frontier. Daniel Boone had a Double Edged Dagger; supplied to the Indians by the French and subsequently inherited by Boone, Boone carried that dagger for Decades. Why was the Double-Edge popular? For much the same reason that Double Axes are popular. ONE edge was Razor-Sharp for fine cutting while the other Edge had a thicker edge for coarser work. IF I bought a Double-Quillon Dagger and it only had a sharpened Swedge on one side, I'd feel like I was cheated.

Wow, this is so cool, I've never come across anyone addressing this topic, love the video!
All my daggers are double bladed but I hold my sax with the sharp edge up since my most common stroke is the upwards thrust from under the shield. When striking from above the shield I do not change the grip.
I wear my sax hanging vertically on my belt, but if you have it hanging horizontally you can twist your wrist to draw it either way.

This is considered thoroughly in Bowie knife techniques. Some traditional Bowie knives have brass spines to catch blades. It is called the mountain grip.

That was far more interesting then I thought. And the idea of... skinning someone in self defenses, brutal but unless drugged, they would back down.

The only time you'd want to use a reverse grip is if you're in very close quarters such as with your back up against a wall OR fighting an unarmed opponent... but that would make YOU the bad guy in the (legal) real world. If fighting an armed opponent you need to create distance and use the forehand grip for longer reach and speed, keeping your knife hand forward. You want to slash at the incoming hand or inside wrist (tendons) to disarm your opponent. If you're attempting to block you are too close. Reverse rip 'cuts' your reach considerably which means you have to bring your body closer to the opponent. Deadly mistake. Once your opponent is disarmed you can use the more powerful (but slower) reverse grip to finish him off OR to apply leverage and locks if you don't want to finish him off.

In all fairness, that is not a proper dagger. This was instantly apparent because I have a very similar weapon. I acquired a dirk blade several years ago and did nothing with it until I suddenly found myself with a broken sword hilt to attach it to. I realise it may seem a trivial quibble, but I prefer to keep things like the distinction between a poignard and a stiletto clear, and a dagger (whether both edges are sharpened or not) would not be single-edged and have a spine. It's not that a dagger can't function that way, just as a rapier can be used like a saber, it's that it's not inherent in the design. - Not that it invalidates the technique under discussion, which would certainly be fitting for a dirk or seax - and at least useable for a dagger...

Your opponent thinking you’re a bit daft when you know what you are doing is a good thing.

Here's how you use reverse grip: you grapple. Otherwise it's bad

this is the best video on dagger fighting i have seen!! You seem to be a smart and nice guy. thanks alot

the dagger itself is a natural weapon for a boxer as well as a wrestler, and the "backside gri / clinch pick" concept makes it even more powerful for fighting super close / clinch or even ground range....

clinch pick and grappling got me here. nice video, very interesting. As a grappling trainer i think i just found my favorite hema weapon
greets from europe

The Bowie knife is held the same way when fighting, blade towards yourself with the spine and false edge tip towards your opponent!

Reverse grip is only effective if the target it lower than the pivot, otherwise its a waste of energy and less effective because of blade angle. Its primarily good for backstabbing, as I have been the recipient of many of those, mainly figuratively but the physics still apply ;-)

Its like a bayonet.
Bled edge upward

Based wps refference

Bill Bagwell, infamous Bowie guru: "there is NO defense against The Back Cut."

🤠👍🏿

Thrusting is what we see designs based around anyway. If clothing was thick enough, as I've seen some suggest, that thrusting was the preferred design basis for a self defense weapon, then the only slash that would be most effective most of the time is a tipcut, which 3 inches of blade would be perfectly capable of.

Well. That sounds like a intelligent idea

One thing when you stab someone would you rather stab thru bone mussle and a dense upper body or would you rather deal with a softer midsection? That's just my humble opinion to have the cutting edge in on a dagger.

I herd a similar explanation by a knife maker talking about fighting with a Bowie knife. I believe he used Indian and Mexican fighting styles but I think whatever works for you is the best method if you are comfortable with the way the weapon feel in your hand you can focus on the fight. I do not recommend trying to defend against a sword or axe with a dagger your feet provide a much better defense.

If an attacker believes that I am stupid or incompetent for holding the dagger with the edge to me, that only adds to my advantage. Let the enemy underestimate me.

I was a CQB instructor for the US Marines. You are on the right track. The movement of the blade dictates the direction of the edge. Grip also is a factor