Push dagger - history and modernity

A push dagger is a knife with a fixed blade, in which the handle is placed in the hand strictly perpendicular to the palm and the blade is directed towards the fingers. When used, the blunt edge of the blade is placed between the middle and ring fingers, sometimes between the index and middle fingers, clenched into a fist. The knife is designed to move forward or in a downward arc. The main purpose of this knife is self-defense. However, it is quite capable of performing small household tasks. Besides, such a knife can also be hunting (skinning) or cutting. Usually, the push dagger is very small in size and is convenient for concealed carrying. The blade of the knife can be either with a straight (plain) edge or with a serrated one. It can have both a dagger sharpening and a one-sided one. The length of the blade of a push dagger usually does not exceed 10 cm, and the width is 5 cm, the spine thickness can be quite large, but on average about 4 mm.

According to the legislation of many countries, a push dagger with a small blade is not a cold weapon and is available both for free sale and carrying. On knives for self-defense, serrated sharpening is often used.

History of the origin and distribution of push dagger

Historically, the first type of such a knife was the Indian combat dagger-katar (कटार) known since the XVI century. It was also designed for a penetrating forward strike but was gripped by the handle with two hands. Katar was the weapon of the Indian elite. The main advantage of such a dagger was the handle, which did not require a strong grip and held well even in a wet hand.

Later, daggers of this type appeared in the XIX century in the southern United States. They became full-fledged self-defense knives and were used for concealed carry. The dagger became particularly popular among residents of the Southwestern United States, especially in New Orleans, Louisiana. There it was known as the "drill knife".  The knife had a short two-inch (50 mm) blade. It was worn in a boot, the sleeve of a coat, or hung on the button of a vest by a belt attached to a leather scabbard. This knife was used by the criminal structures of the city so actively that in 1879 the city authorities adopted a decree prohibiting everyone within the city to sell, offer or display such weapons for sale.

During the same period, the knife became very popular in San-Francisco, California. Externally, it has changed, acquired a longer blade and a T-shaped handle made of bone.

In the second half of the 19th century, the push dagger was also popular in Britain and Central Europe, especially in Germany, where it was called Stoßdolch or Faustmesser, meaning "push dagger" and" fist knife " respectively. The knife came to European countries thanks to American sailors who visited the ports of Northern Germany in the mid-1800s. German cutlery manufacturers began producing domestic versions of this design, with handles made of nickel-silver alloys. The Stoßdolch was sold primarily as a self-defense weapon for travelers and traveling merchants who needed compact, concealed weapons. Push daggers continued to be sold in Great Britain and Europe until the end of the 19th century.  Later, it was pushed out of the criminal circles by the advent of inexpensive compact versions of firearms. 

During the First World War, the conditions of constant trench bayonet fighting led to the need to have a small melee weapon. Initially, most of these weapons were made in the field from readily available materials, such as metal stakes. However, factory models of brass knuckles and push daggers soon appeared on the front lines and were used by both sides in the war. In the UK, the metalworking company Robbins-Dudley Co. from Dudley, Worcestershire, was one of the first commercial manufacturers of specialized wartime brass knuckles and daggers for private sale to individual soldiers and officers. The standard Robbins-Dudley push dagger used an aluminum handle with notches for the fingers, and a cast awl-shaped blade about 100 mm long. The blade subsequently received a dark coating to prevent reflection in the moonlight, during night operations. The knife was equipped with a large leather sheath.

The push dagger was used in the British military and during the Second World War, where it was first issued as a combat weapon for British commandos, SAS, SOE, and other specialized raider or guerrilla forces that required compact and concealed weapons to destroy sentries or close combat.

In our time, the revival of the popularity of push daggers began in the late ‘80s, when the largest American knife companies began to produce them. In particular, the famous company Cold Steel, which actively produces several models of such knives.  

Since these knives are primarily designed for self-defense and the main thing in their use is a forward thrust, the steel on such knives is usually not the most wear-resistant. Almost all manufacturers are limited to inexpensive steel grades. In addition, the impact requires high plasticity of steel, and such plasticity is contrary to high hardness. Thus, push daggers are primarily utilitarian, inexpensive tool for a narrow range of tasks. Very rarely, they are made of expensive materials and with good steels.

The push dagger can be sharpened with TSPROF sharpeners K03, and Blitz, both in whole-milled clamps and single ones. Considering that the steel on such knives does not exceed 60 HRC in hardness, they can be sharpened with almost any abrasive.