FAIRBAIRN METHOD GUTTER FIGHTING - BASIC INSTRODUCTION TO THE FAIRBAIRN METHOD OF KNIFE FIGHTING.

[alfrede.neuman]

My dad trained with Maj. Fairbairn at Area C at QUANTICO, VA in the OSS during World War II. Fairbairn was legendary! He brought his knife home and kept in the night stand along with his OSS .45 pistol.

[MVK_GS]

There is a gentleman who served with the Rhodesian SAS who, sometime around 2010 was contracted to train US special operations units a course that centered around hand-to-hand combat. I participated in this course prior to a deployment overseas. Much of the principles shown here, as well as the movement shown, mirrors exactly what we were taught. The course lasted nearly three weeks and much of it was very brutal.

[buckarue]

I always enjoy your videos. There is so much self-defense BS out there, it's a real pleasure to watch a man who is the real deal.

[am]

I was in the fencing varsity team in college. When I had knife fighting training in the Marines, my fencing training helped me immensely especially in blocking, parrying and counter sticking. I also had a great advantage using fencing footwork.

[hugodesrosiers-plaisance]

Thank you, that was very educational.
My mother-in-law will never know what hit her.

[gregpenner]

A few years ago I watched an interview with a WW2 SAS commando where he gave a demonstration. A good demonstration with experience to back it up.

[dougantonucci]

I've studied martial arts and lots of weapons training, including blades.
And you my friend explained what I needed to know about attacking with a knife.

[pinkiewerewolf]

These are excellent thoughts and demonstration of skills. Notice his eyes and where the business end of the blade is presented, always to the threat. Like he said, the threat has to make it past his knife's defense.

[arctodussimus]

Good video.
Useful information.
👍🏼👍🏼
I remember back in the ‘80’s in the Corps during a knife class being told to always have the knife in front of your body.
Just makes sense.
And muscle memory is a real thing too… so always be practicing and training.

[LarsonPetty]

Finding this channel has me thinking about my father, who passed just under one year ago. A veteran of The Pacific Theater, Korea, and a few months of Vietnam, his formative years were spent growing up hard in the mountains of Western North Carolina. This type of feral upbringing saw him take to the martial arts of Judo and Defendu as if he were born to it, which culminated in the creation of a dangerous man that would suffer no fools.
His military career saw him standing at just 5'5", 160lbs of twisted steel and bad intent, however I'd still probably put money on him in a 1v1 against nine out of ten yardbirds on any level 4 prison yard.

[Native_love]

I use to train with an Army guy who taught me a version of this! Together with the Filipino system it's darn near perfect! Kinda like fencing with a knife meets the Filipino slashing style. Cool stuff. I'm happy that I taught this to my sons! Great channel!

[purpleshogun]

This 7 minute video is a wealth of information. Thank you 🙏

[SoldierDrew]

Barry, you're one of the few youtubers who actually know and demonstrate the 'proper' application of the retention thumb lanyard.
I have a rare video of Col. Rex Applegate explaining how and why both he and Fairbairn collaborated on improving the F/S dagger by creating the Fairbairn/Applegate combat knife. He gives documented history on the failures of the F/S dagger in combat during WW2. And how the F/A combat knife corrects those issues. The gerber mk2 is an excellent military combat knife as well. I knew some guys in my Infantry unit whom carried one. I carried an armor piercing, chisel point, combat knife while active duty but never needed it for CQC cause the only time a Soldier needs to use his combat knife is if he's seriously failed at his training. For sentry and guard dog removal we have sound depressers. Down range most of the OpFor had alot of dogs that acted as guard/alarm dogs that would give away the presence of a raid. You're not crawling up on several dogs to shank them w/a dagger before they sound the alarm. Same goes for multiple guards. We use sound depressed firearms for that now.
Carrying a dagger or knife on the off hand side of the chest rig allows an Infantryman or operators to create space if one fails at their training during CQB, clearing rooms, and gets their weapon grabbed or gets tackled by an OpFor while coming through a fatal funnel in extreme close quarters. But again, very rare, since CQB is firearm based engaging threats while tactically pieing corners. Operating in fire teams. Our tactical training, particularly in CQB, is far more advanced than our WWII grandfathers had. The regular infantry today has more tactical training than special forces commandos of WWII recieved. Still, strange anomalies occur, in rare cases infantry and light infantrymen have had to engage in hand2hand/CQC, like the U.S. Army Ranger who killed an OpFor w/an MRE spoon (true story, look it up). And when some outnumbered U.S. Marines fixed bayonets and charged the enemy in Iraq (you can google that).
We train unarmed combatives/CQC and when I first enlisted we also trained bayonet combat, our ranger officers taught us how to use the knife to kill in CQC, even though we were taught if we had to use this stuff it meant we screwed the pooch, failed our training, but the mentality was better to have and not need than to need and not have. Also, most of us came from prior service wrestling, bjj, judo, muay thai or mma backgrounds. Many trained in unarmed combat arts, martial arts, krav maga or filipino arts in free time to keep acquiring new skills, even if it's highly unlikely professional gun fighters will resort to unarmed combat or shank-fu. But no highspeed active duty infantry or light infantry Soldier doesn't cultivate combatives/cqc skills anyway. Being well rounded is part of the warrior profession. Hooah. ♣

[LyleSmith-qe]

Very condensed information and right on point . Thank you .

[thejerseyj]

Stay behind the blade, that one tip made this tutorial for me.

[JamesAndersonPKWC]

Thank you for an informative video. Born and raised in Hong Kong as a lifelong martial arts student, I am versed in Fairbairn’s methods, history, and somewhat familiar with Applegate. As an “old horse” I can personally tell you, as it was in Fairbairn’s time, not much has changed in Hong Kong and Shanghai.

Old manuals refer to the snake cut as a viper strike.

I noticed you use reverse slashes, that rely on the radial bone of the wrist and the thumb, for grip strength and cutting power. I avoid this as I find it a weak cut. Sure it can draw blood, but can also knock the knife from your hand. Which incidentally is why you use a wrist strap. Specifically, Fairbairn cautioned that arteries that were merely nicked would tend to coagulate and stop bleeding, whereas only arteries that were severed clean through would bleed out. Hence I do not use reverse slashes, but I do use reverse stabs.

It is my opinion that while Fairbairn’s footwork was excellent, he being a military instructor, like all the rest of them, necessarily must also be a salesman first and foremost, in order to convince the top brass and get funding. I’ve noticed military combative instructors without exception also have a breadth and depth of lexical repertoire that borders on elephantiasis considering most of the battles they fight are done with words, obviously. That said I find it curious that most of Fairbairn’s movements are clearly influenced from a fencing background, not necessarily his fencing background, but more plausibly due to whom he was dealing with, other military men whom had a fencing background, indicated by his use of majority slashing techniques which by his own admission are defensive in nature, for instance his number one preferred target being the enemy’s left or nearest arm in 85% of people, the left brachial artery on the inner elbow, yet the business end of the blade ultimately is for stabbing, as the Roman Gladius, and the Chinese word for assassin 刺客 literally “one who pierces “. This strikes me as a case of techniques for show versus techniques for go. Would you agree?

Finally, is the issue of the grip. Fairbairn used as you demonstrated and explicated, the thumb and index finger grip, an elegant grip for an elegant tool. I do not use a wrist strap for the simple reason, a marine who drops his rifle is a dead marine, a Spartan who loses his shield is a dishonoured Spartan, if you drop your blade, you deserve it. The blade should be held with the understanding that life and death depend on it, not just your own, but everybody who is counting on you as well. Knife Fighting from Folsom Prison Put ‘Em Down Take ‘Em Out, recommends the hamfisted grip in the cup or eye of the palm, tight as all life depends on it. Yes, that changes how the blade is used, less show, more go. Tingo Tango as I like to call it, ‘knife fighters’ pawing at each other, is a bit different than the real thing. What are your thoughts on that?

I don’t recall Fairbairn ever addressing what is to be done once the blade goes into the enemy, a failure methinks, for the real damage is done after the blade is in them, with a good heave or twist to rend them wide open. For instance, attorney literally means, one who turns the knife. Our people used to be more familiar with a blade, such as the Leathernecks who dealt with the Moro guerillas. WW1 and 2 saw proper Bowies used to skull cleaving effect; today as men’s balls get smaller, their blades also get smaller, clearly. They now sell rubbish for 350$ that matches their peckers.

[TheUmmahFightCamp]

People LISTEN from 5:48! Those are words of a man who knows what he is talking about! You want to KEEP your blade and you do NOT want to be hampered from doing what you feel you need to do. Having that knife outside of your center makes your motion too long and wide and easier to defend. This guy did a great job and should be listened to instead of the FMA videos that are not as practical.

[williamburdon]

I am an old man with terrible arthritis and fibro pain, many times I dream I am in a fight and being cut to ribbons, now I can learn how to fight back! I don't wan't to hurt anyone, but I guess in my nightmares it is ok. Thank you, looking forward to battling those creeps on an even footing! You are one scary looking dude behind that knife, I doubt any amateurs would hang around long, once they saw you were proficient and serious .

[willo]

You can always tell a good martial arts system by the basic moves. This is an awesome system.

[benw-king]

Thankyou for making Saturday night so much safer Barry.