Recently I had the pleasure of attending a one-day Tactical Knife & Stick Seminar put on by Nick Hughes. During the knife part Nick touched on something that I had been thinking about a lot lately.

That was the fact that if you are forced to defend yourself with a knife it would be much easier to defend your actions in court if you were not wielding the Ninja Death Dealer 2000 Tactical Folder buy Killco. In the litigious world we live in you can bet this will become a factor.

About a month ago a very good friend of mine for an unknown reason decided to send me a Spyderco Rescue Jr. At first even though I admired the heft and ergonomics common to all Spyderco products, I really had no idea what void in my EDC the little knife would fill. After some thought and realizing just how vicious the all serrated blade was I figured it out.

Most of us who carry for self-defense do so on our body. Many of us spend a substantial amount of time behind the wheel of a car. This can inhibit the drawing of all weapons. Especially those requiring further manipulation to open such as folding knives.

It would make sense to have a good blade positioned in the open where it is easy to access. This however can lend itself to a whole new problem. What happens when you are stopped by the police?

That is where I decided the Spyderco Rescue Jr would excel. My recommendation at least for right-handed folks would be to have the Rescue Jr clipped to the junction of the lap and shoulder belts. This is a very normal place for the hand to ride and it does not impair use of the belt.

If you had the occasion to be stopped buy the police and an officer saw this, I can’t see many of my brethren being alarmed as they would seeing some other more tactical folders. Mine is in Stainless Steel, more economical and friendlier would be one with the FRN Orange handle.

Most officers will recognize it as a rescue tool right away and will leave it at that. If you are asked about it and tell the uneducated officer the name and purpose of the tool, I doubt you will have any problems. I mean it is a rescue tool clipped to a seatbelt.

Something else I have I have been working on is static cording the Rescue in the open position in a Kydex sheath made by Phil@greenlighttactical.com. The problem is for right handers is that if you are attacked in the car and defend with your right hand then it will be hard to get to the gearshift.

A better option may be to static cord the Rescue on the visor so that it can be accessed with either hand. Plus a fixed blade is faster into action then a folder.

My personal idea about fighting with a knife is based on a saying that I got from Rob Ross of tacticalone.com and that is “any cut is a good cut.” That said I prefer to cut/slash only to work my way in for a stab.

Most people who study combatives have found that the most common spontaneous reaction to an attack is a swinging/flailing motion. Put a knife in your hand and you have slashes and cuts. Using the Rescue knife this will produce extremely traumatic injuries.

While sitting in a car stabbing someone at your door can be quite hard to say the least. But one good rake across the back of they hand they are grabbing you with or across the face may just give you enough time to access a more dedicated blade or firearm to control the situation.

In closing I would just ask that you give the Spyderco Rescue family a look. Who knows, one day you may have to cut a seatbelt with it.