Martial Arts Clothing

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This is a book by a good writer who has a remarkable amount of specialized knowledge. His other books- on survival, for instance- display an encyclopedic knowledge of things which will help keep you alive in trying circumstances.This book is flawed by two problems; one is the misleading hype of the publisher (this is not, as the subtitle suggests, “A complete guide to unarmed fighting techniques”); it is also flawed by the difficulty the author had in deciding what to teach and what to withhold because it was too dangerous to teach a civilian population. If the book had been subtitled “a basic guide to self-defense”, it would have lived up to it’s title. And if the author had been able to decide what level of damage was “okay” for what level of threat, it would have been a better book. While he withholds the “dangerous” techniques, he suggests fingers to eyes as a solution to “unwelcome attentions” when a man puts an around her shoulder in a bar. If that’s not dangerous, I misunderstand the effect of fingers thrust into the eyes with the hips rotated for more power. The publisher should go to Mr. Wiseman as ask him to write a different book, which actually teaches the syllabus with which he is familiar. Since Applegate has published, and reprints of the hand-to-hand combat manuals of the army and marines are easily available, Mr. Wiseman should not feel inhibited about sharing his vast knowledge because the techniques are too dangerous or violent. In general, this book is a good basic self-defense book if the reader has the sense to realize that the eye-gouges should be restricted to situations of extreme provocation. If a reader wants to review the spectrum of military self-defense, the reader will be better served with the reprints of the Applegate or Fairbairn books, or reprints of Army Field Manual 21-150, or the Marine hand-to-hand book. I hope Mr. Wiseman writes another book which fully sets out his knowledge and extraordinary practical experience. I would happily buy it.

Review by magellan:

I really enjoyed this book, partly for nostalgic reasons. The line drawings and illustrations showing the self-defense techniques reminded me of an earlier generation of martial arts books back in the 50s and 60s and before, such as Kyose Nakae’s Police Jiu-jutsu, the Ratti brothers Aikido and the Dynamic Sphere, Donald Hepler’s Self-Defense, Simplified in Pictures, the infamous Ketsugo book ubiquitously advertised in the back of comic books in the 60s, and others.

If you’re an experienced martial artist you will probably already be familiar with many of these techniques, but if you’re a beginner and looking for a good introduction to the field, this is a good place to start.

Before I get into my own comments, I note the extremely negative review by one writer who says the book was a complete waste of money and the author mistakenly assumes these techniques will work against larger, stronger, hopped up, homicidal, or psychotic opponents. That’s probably true, but that is not a valid criticism. As a self-defense instructor for 35 years myself who’s trained in a number of styles and methods, there is no system I’ve encountered that is guaranteed to enable you to prevail under any and all circumstances and conditions. If they do make these exaggerated claims then they’re probably selling you snake oil.

I’ve also read the Perkins book the reviewer says is far better and am quite familiar with Fairbairn’s book and methods, and although these are also fine books and I would recommend you get these also, they don’t resolve these issues entirely either although they admittedly have their advantages also–the Fairbairn methods are more vicious, but if you just add the groin rips and strikes, eye gouges, strikes to the throat and temple, and clapping the hands over the ears to break the eardrums (a technique which Fairbairn favored) to these techniques–you’ll basically have the best of both worlds. But, contrary to what the other reviewer says, you’d better have a serious self-defense situation if you end up injuring or maiming someone for life or killing the attacker using those techniques–especially if there are witnesses.

Of course, there are many legal complexities and sides to this issue that I can’t possibly go into here, but if you’re a 100-pound girl or old lady and you cripple some 250-pound guy for life who attacked you, well, even if you get prosecuted by the district attorney, the jury is likely to go easy on you, and you may get off. But if you’re a young, 200+ pound, athletic-looking guy with a dubious or disreputable past and you cause serious harm or injury, or worse, well, you can expect to do some jail time. For some reason, the law frowns on the excessive use of force and violence in self-defense even if the two parties involved are admitted scumbags.

But getting back to the issue of survivability against adverse odds, the most that can be said is that a good self-defense course will increase your chances of survival and give you options that you didn’t have before. The way I explain it to my students is that in a low-risk or low-level threat or attack situation you should be able to defend yourself fairly well; in a medium-level threat or attack situation you’ll hopefully be able to fight the attacker to a draw and at least avoid serious injury, whereas before you might be completely helpless; and in a serious life-and-death situation with a determined opponent who may be bigger and stronger and better skilled or equipped, or have other advantages, you’ll at least have a fighting chance whereas before it would have meant passive acceptance of death or serious injury. Remember, your goal in a potentially lethal street encounter is not necessarily to win, which might require more risky techniques and methods, but to avoid losing and escape with your life.

The self-defense techniques shown are simple but effective, and can be learned by most people with a minimum of training. Effective training for self-defense need not be technically difficult or long and arduous in terms of the training, but it does mean that techniques must be kept simple and complex and flashy techniques must be avoided. The self-defense techniques come from many disciplines, including karate, boxing, judo, jiu-jutsu, wrestling, and even tai chi. There’s also some good info on nerve centers and pressure points.

But perhaps the most valuable parts of the book are the chapters not on the physical techniques themselves, but on the mental and psychological and other aspects of self-defense. There are separate chapters on What is Self-Defense?, Positive Thinking, and Spotting Trouble. These chapters discuss many other useful and valuable topics, such as self-defense and the law, preventive measures, practicing assertiveness, streetcraft and being streetwise, avoiding many types of risky urban environments and dangers, calming down a confrontation, the eyes and character, the will to win, gangs and drunks, travelling on public transportation, distraction techniques, the effect of alcohol, the elements of surprise, and many others.

I note the author was also the chief SAS instructor for several years in survival tactics. All in all a very well written, thoughtful, practical and well-illustrated book on self-defense and close-quarters combat as taught to the feared and respected SAS commandos.

Review by Leftcoasterman:

If one is serious about becoming more knowledgeable about self-defence, this is one book which should be on your short-list. No, there are no photos and diagrams in this text; however, the book contains a ton of must-know information. This book hammers home the point that self-defence is no game. There is absolutely nothing glamorous about violence – it isn’t pretty. To defend yourself successfully, you must act quickly and decisively. In addition you must be prepared to use brutal techniques if fleeing isn’t an option or you can’t talk your way out of a situation. If you don’t have the right mind-set you’re going to be put in the hurt locker by some thug or some thug and his buddies. I don’t think this book is the last word on self-defence nor do I agree with the author on every point – but it is worth the money. I enjoyed reading this book and I believe you will as well.

Review by Jake Bishop:

This book gives some of the best advice on mental preparation, unarmed combat, knifefighting, gunfighting, and improvised weaponry I have ever seen in any format. This is no theoretical fantasy written by some “armchair commando,” but a collection of practical and realistic tactics written by someone who obviously has been there and knows what he’s talking about. I do not understand what would motivate certain anonymous reviewers — who obviously have not read this book, but might’ve glanced at the online excerpts — to spout such ignorance. I would not be at all surprised to find that “ladyastral” was really a 40 year old man with a poor self-image and an alcohol problem! Do not write insulting 1-star reviews for books you have not read . . . there are far more productive ways to utilize your spare time. This was a great book, and giving it 1-star makes it very clear where your head is at. To the best of my knowledge, there is nothing similar to “Hardcore Self-Defense” being offered anywhere else for any price, and the information it provides will prove invaluable if you ever find yourself in a really bad situation. Admittedly, it doesn’t provide pages of photos and diagrams for folks to gawk at, and it surely was never intended to have “mass market appeal,” but it clearly does what it was intended to do — transmit a large amount of very specific information about what works best and why. This book may not be suitable for the average citizen who thinks that the simple act of reading a “self defense” book will make them immune to muggers, but those who actually are in harms way on a day to day basis will get a lot out of it. Unfortunately, too many self-proclaimed “experts” have flooded the bookstores with far too many fantasy-based systems that consistantly fail to perform as advertised. There are less than a dozen really good practical self defense manuals out there, and this is one of the best.

Review by D. Nguyen:

This is a fine weapon for the average citizen who is not inclined to carry a knife or handgun, but it cannot be as effective as a cane or a police baton, two other alternatives to consider. The cane is perhaps the most innocent seeming yet it has reach advantages over the kubotan and will deal a most damaging strike.

The above review is a good one, but please ignore the advice about sharpening keys and using the kubotan as a flail. This is unlikely to provide any real stopping power to a determined attacker. The kubotan excels as a loadfist weapon, so use it to enhance your hammerfist and punch strikes. You can also use the point to ‘stab’ your attacker’s body points and bony targets like the back of the hand can be excruciatingly painful when struck. In other words use the kubotan like it was intended to do so. Nowhere in any traditional yawara training is it used like a mini-flail like the above poster suggested.

Review by mark twain:

these 3 dudes jumped me in an alley and i jabbed the closest dude right on the side of the jaw and he dropped like a punk the other 2 just ran as did i to the safety of my car

i bought 6 more for xmas presents this year