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I was thumbing through a self-defense book written by a former SAS member, when I found a tip so simple that it was brilliant (IMHO). To improvise a sturdy baton, just roll up your daily newspaper. You now have a weapon which you can carry in your hand without raising the suspicion of anyone (except, perhaps, former SAS members).
You can use this baton to strike pressure points, like the solar plexus, or whack someone across the face, or knock their weapon out of their hand. It may not be as hard as wood or metal, but if you hit yourself with it, you can see that it’s still pretty sturdy.
I commute by subway. Normally, I drop my newspaper off in the recycle bin at the station, but now I just roll up a few sections and walk home with it in my hand. If my club were wooden or metal, you can imagine the reaction of passersby or the police. Instead, they catch a glimpse of the latest scandalous headline and think nothing of it. When I get home, I toss my secret weapon in my recycle bin and make a new one the next day.
P.S. I advise using the national or local news sections instead of comics or sports, since those contain harder news and thus will give you a stronger baton. 😆
I think I’d use the international news for the strongest effect. I guess a newspaper could be a good improvised weapon, but it would probably serve mostly as a distraction. I’m not sure you could seriously hurt someone with it and, after a couple of whacks, it’ll start to get soft. A strike to very vulnerable spots, such as the neck, may be most useful. Or maybe to the nose or eye. I actually poked myself in the eye with one page of my newspaper the other day and it made my eyes water for a while, so that might work well.
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GiantkillerRolled Up Newspaper or Magazine
It’s an old trick I’ve known for a long time. I’ve seen one from Russian Martial Art, Systema, in which quarters are inserted between the fingers of the fist holding up the rolled up magazine or newspaper for extra punching surface, which makes it an improvised kubotan as well as an improvised brass knuckle.
Also known as the millwall brick!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millwall_brick
as popularised by millwall football holligans ( millwall played our local team in my city saturday out of intrest) and skinheads!
very tightly rolled in one plane, while open, then fold that cylinder in half at the middle. addtitonal weight can be added by wetting the paper apparently.
im sure there are better improvised weapons to hand many times, but may be a good weapon to get an inital jab to the face in on an adversary.
Also known as the millwall brick!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millwall_brick
as popularised by millwall football holligans ( millwall played our local team in my city saturday out of intrest) and skinheads!
very tightly rolled in one plane, while open, then fold that cylinder in half at the middle. addtitonal weight can be added by wetting the paper apparently.
im sure there are better improvised weapons to hand many times, but may be a good weapon to get an inital jab to the face in on an adversary.
mike10952.
I remember seeing an article many years ago, before I ever thought of self defense training, about using a rolled up newspaper or magazine. I thought about mentioning it on this thread earlier, but thought I would get laughed at. 😥If it is rolled up very tight it can inflict pain if used properly. I I remember corredtly, the article stated to use it in a thrusting or jabbing motion similar to jabbing with a knife. If thrust into the solar plexes, it can easily knock the air out of a person. If thrust into the face, it can be as effective as a punch. Slashing it accross the eyes works too.
I like the idea of using quarters between the fingers also.
Rolled up tightly as described in the article, the paper could indeed become sturdy enough to hurt someone, especially if you jab it straight forward.
From a legal standpoint, you might get away with the newspaper (although they might question as to why you folded it the way you did, if you were just innocently carrying it), however, I don’t know how you would explain the pennies between your knuckles. There is no logical reason for you to carry the pennies that way, so if you hit someone with your makeshift brass knuckles, could you still get into trouble? Or would you just lie about it and claim your fists did all of the damage?
Also, if caught in a surprise attack, you likely wouldn’t have time to position the pennies, unless you are willing to put them in between your fingers before you leave the house, which may look strange to passers-by (and cops).
\”In an alternate version, the newspaper sheets are first wetted with a liquid such as beer or urine…\” Yikes!! 🙁 Wouldn’t want to get smashed in the head with a urine soaked newspaper.
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GiantkillerIt all depends on how you explain it to the authorities. If you can justify using a weapon in self-defense, then an improvised weapon would probably be treated like a regular one (especially if a person could demonstrate how it could do comparable damage). If you weren’t justified in using a weapon then I don’t think it much matters what kind of weapon it is. Figuring out how to make a harmless object an effective weapon may also show some sort of premeditation or intent, which could work against you in a situation that unarmed self-defense would have been justifiable
I wouldn’t consider a newspaper to be like a knife, club, gun, or a expensive flashlight especially entended to be used for self defense. It is not likely a guy would walk around with a newspaper all rolled up tightly expecting to be attacked. Most people carry a newspaper folded to make it easier to carry. If threatened, it would only take a second to make another quick fold or two into a rolled up condition. It would be just as quick to unroll it back to the folded position. There would not be any indication that the newspaper was being carried soley for protection.
I don’t carry weapons and I don’t walk around carrying newspapers. But, if I felt threatened and I did just happen to have a newspaper or magazine in my hand, I would certainly consider using it. And then I would probably use it only as a distraction, jamming it into the solar plex or eyes. Hopefully, that would allow me to use my \”nike defense\” or use combatives.
I also agree that placing coins between the fingers, although not a bad idea, would not be feasible. To be seen walking around holding a rolled up newspaper with coins between the fingers would be viewed as \”intent\” in my opinion anyway.
The way it’s described in the article, it seems to take at least some effort to make the paper into a viable weapon. I wonder if you would have enough time to do this when you are suddenly attacked. You’d probably have to do some type of defense first and you may drop the paper. If you don’t, you may just be able to fold it up slightly, making it less effective, although it could still work as a distraction when stabbed toward the eye. A magazine might work even better, since it’s sturdier.
As for coins, you could also reach into your pocket and simply hold the coins in your hand while punching. That could add weight and power to your punch without being seen as a \”prepared\” weapon. It would also be faster than putting coins in between your fingers.
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GiantkillerI walked to a movie screening yesterday, carrying my invitation as I was making my way through dark, cold residential streets. The invitation was one page of thick, sturdy paper and I crumpled it up as I went and then remembered this thread and thought that even this little piece of paper might make a useful weapon.
It had pretty sharp edges and if I had scraped them against someone’s eye, it would have caused some damage, or I might have even been able to cut the neck. If I had rolled the paper up really tight, it could have served as a little mini-baton and i could have stabbed it into someone’s eye, ear or neck. Although, just plain punching him if I were close enough, or maybe hitting him with my keys, might have been more effective over all.
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Giantkiller
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