Rating: 
Summary: A good, but uneven, book on close combat
Review: Cold Steel is considered a classic book on close combat, and rightly so. It covers many aspects of the subject, including knife and bayonet fighting, stick fighting, knife throwing, and unarmed combat.The book's weakness is its section on knife fighting techniques. Based on classical fencing, these are deadly. For the person using them. They are totally unworkable in a real-world situation -- whether on the battlefield or on the street. On the other hand, the stick and unarmed techniques are easy to learn and brutally effective. These two sections of Cold Steel are well worth the price.
Rating: 
Summary: Best of the old corps
Review: John Styers has a system of no non-sense here! Learn the simple, but extremely effective, moves and have pity for any individual that marks you for a target of violence. The whirlwind attacks will make your poor would-be attacker think they've unleashed a sack of wildcats on themselves. The bayonet and stick sections could easily be applied to a broom, umbrella, or walking stick (i. e. cane). Get the book... study the book...
Rating:
Summary: Simple, Sweet, Effective, and Lethal
Review: John Styers has a system of no non-sense here! Learn the simple, but extremely effective, moves and have pity for any individual that marks you for a target of violence. The whirlwind attacks will make your poor would-be attacker think they've unleashed a sack of wildcats on themselves. The bayonet and stick sections could easily be applied to a broom, umbrella, or walking stick (i. e. cane). Get the book... study the book...
Rating:
Summary: A book you could study for a lifetime!
Review: My one-line summary might seem a bit exaggerated, but it is true. This book covers many life saving skills. Although not a lot of techniques are covered, it is a mistake to think of that as a negative. The skills that are covered are all vital skills in hand to hand combat or self-defense. The skills taught for the use of the stick are excellent. The empty hand skills are likewise. One area that seems of concern (judging by other readers comments) is that of knife fighting. Although some may disagree with Styers method of knife combat, I will say that if one was to train hard in those skills and be aggressive, the odds of prevailing in combat would still be high. The truth is, that not many people are skilled with a knife. If you train hard in Styers method you'll cut a person to ribbons before they know what happened. Hard training will always give you more than a fighting chance. You can study this book over and over again and always find more applications for what is taught between it's covers! This book is highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: A solid book on close combat.
Review: The sections on bayonet, stick, and unarmed techniques are simple and brutal. The knife fighting techniques are fanciful, as they are based on fencing technique. The section on knife throwing is interesting, if impractical for close combat. This book has its merits for those wishing to study the development of combatives during WWII.
Rating:
Summary: Decent, But Not Practical
Review: There are quite a few reviews already, so I won't bore you by repeating some of the same things that have already been said. If you're interested in REALISTIC knife fighting techniques, check out "Knife Fighting and Throwing" by Vladimir Vasiliev (a video). He teaches the Russian Martial Art, Systema. The most effective and "to the point" system of self defense I've ever seen. Let's face it, this is what the Russian SPETSNAZ use... these guys make our Special Forces look like boyscouts.
Rating:
Summary: Decent, But Not Practical
Review: There are quite a few reviews already, so I won't bore you by repeating some of the same things that have already been said. If you're interested in REALISTIC knife fighting techniques, check out "Knife Fighting and Throwing" by Vladimir Vasiliev (a video). He teaches the Russian Martial Art, Systema. The most effective and "to the point" system of self defense I've ever seen. Let's face it, this is what the Russian SPETSNAZ use... these guys make our Special Forces look like boyscouts.
Rating: 
Summary: ANTIQUATED
Review: This "classic" text is best viewed as a quaint bit of history. Many of the techniques have no realistic application in street combat (i.e., bayonet drill), and certain sections are best considered a mere novelty (i.e., knife throwing). The advice on combat use of the Ka-Bar combat knife isn't that great -- the grips are weak, and the moves are based on fencing. The sections on stickfighting and unarmed combat were the best parts of this popular book. Not recommended for serious students of the fighting arts, but collectors of military books will like it.
Rating:
Summary: ANTIQUATED
Review: This "classic" text is best viewed as a quaint bit of history. Many of the techniques have no realistic application in street combat (i.e., bayonet drill), and certain sections are best considered a mere novelty (i.e., knife throwing). The advice on combat use of the Ka-Bar combat knife isn't that great -- the grips are weak, and the moves are based on fencing. The sections on stickfighting and unarmed combat were the best parts of this popular book. Not recommended for serious students of the fighting arts, but collectors of military books will like it.
Rating:
Summary: ANTIQUATED
Review: This "classic" text is best viewed as a quaint bit of history. Many of the techniques have no realistic application in street combat (i.e., bayonet drill), and certain sections are best considered a mere novelty (i.e., knife throwing). The advice on combat use of the Ka-Bar combat knife isn't that great -- the grips are weak, and the moves are based on fencing. The sections on stickfighting and unarmed combat were the best parts of this popular book. Not recommended for serious students of the fighting arts, but collectors of military books will like it.
|
