Travel Wrench, Flashlights, Karambits, Oh my.

The last couple of weeks, I have been playing with impact tools. It was the first time that I got to play with Datu Kelly Worden's Travel Wrench. It has been around for a few years. It felt very natural when I walked through Cinco Teros and a couple of the other drills that the instructor walked us through. Whether you are using it for a building block or need to carry something non lethal then you should check out the Travel Wrench. Not everything that you do needs to kill.


There is a non-lethal aspect of martial arts that often gets brushed over. Whether a person is in a dojo, a police officer or attempting to control a drunken Uncle at Thanksgiving then your focus is non-lethal. Your focus is control of the situation and not to inflict last injure. This is what makes the Travel Wrench a great companion.

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Which brings me to Flashlights and Mike Pesesko aka Icy Mike. He runs one of my favorite Youtube channels and training centers. I blame him for me thinking of a flashlight as the best self defense weapon out there. I am not talking about a 4 D cell maglight that security guards lug around. I am talking something that you can easily slide into your pocket or purse. No don't get the one with spikes that you won't be able  hand over to your three year old nephew because they will stab themselves. If you accidentally shine your kid in the eyes because they startled you then it is no big deal. You didn't shoot a love one with something lethal. You can use it as an impact tool or blind someone and follow up with a punch. If you are in a boxing class late at night then work in a training session or two. Pick up a flashlight today if you don't have one.

This is the video that made me go hmmmm...I need a flashlight.

Doug Marcaida and his Karambit skills is why I am working with the travel wrench. Doug has been a great force in teaching the world about Kali thanks to his appearance on Forged in Fire. It has similar shape and use with the retention ring. Yes, these can be an every day carry developing out of the 11th century. In the video Doug is using a 599 G10 Fox Karambit trainer. He plays with the capture and control features of this misunderstood knife. There are some martial artists that hate the Karambit. In my last dojo one of the instructors referred to it as a 'scary looking knife' and preferred a straight knife. He is not the only one out there that I have heard this preference. There are also plenty of mishaps of people not using a trainer first and cutting themselves with a live blade. Once you are comfortable then switch over to the live blade. 

You can work with non-lethal weapons all day long. Look into what blade you can legally carry in your state before you start using it. What are you training with? Are you building with tools that develop into a layered skillset? Train everyday and have fun out there. 

Yes, I get a paid if you shop on this. I started creating this because I buy a lot of gear. I test it read up on it and I loan it out. I have done so for the last three years. One of the local dojos doesn't always have things in stock when I needed them so I put my resources together. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.


Boxing Section.

Yes, I use the Glove Deodorizers. There is nothing worse than stinky gloves. I have been using the Meister's for almost 2 years and they still smell like linen. I blast them with a disinfectant, let them dry and then slide them in for storage.



More than one of my partners have complained about wrist pain. The Haybusa T3 have the wrist support that should help out with those problems if you are not wrapping your wrists. I have a different set of Haybusa's and they are a good glove to use.



There is also the Captain America version if you want to go all in:



I am using the Title Platinum Punch Mitts. They are awesome. I have had partners like them for elbows. You can quickly change them out. Straight up the best that I have used.



My go to cheap pair of boxing gloves. They are bright so when you put them in an opponents face, they distract the inexperienced. Hypnotik is a solid brand and they have lasted my abuse for two years. At right around $30, they are a bargain.




Skin Care:

Straight up, this is what I use on my knuckles and every other rough patch of skin. It does wonders.




We moved back of the liquid soap and onto the Duke Cannon scrubber and big bar of productivity. It smells like the peppermint lifesavers. Which is pretty good.



When you wear the man mane take care of it. I have been using the Beard Balm since last July. It smells good and keeps it moisturized. My beard is the longest that it has ever been and I get it regularly shaped at my local barber shop so it doesn't look scraggly.



I am going to add to this list as time goes on. Buying good equipment should be easy so you can get to having fun and exercising.


If you are going to travel:

Do you IP Man? or What is with Wing Chun and their Wooden Dummy?

If you are a fan of martial arts then you have seen a Mook Jong or wooden dummy from Wing Chun before. I never saw one in person until four years ago when I first stepped foot into KI Fighting Concepts which was being run by Sifu Joseph Simonet and Addy Hernandez. It was intimidating, people break their hands all the time hitting walls and here was this log thing for me to kick and hit.

Doesn't have to be fancy.

Sifu Simonet has a few resources out there on Amazon. There is Extreme Wing Chun, The Mook Jong Slam Set and Slam Set. I have met people that have studied for years and have not mastered the Slam Set. There are 10 parts and go through a tremendous amount of hand positions. It toughens your fore arms like no other exercise that I have found. When I did knife tapping for the first time last summer, the strikes were a whole lot easier to handle. To understand how hard knife tapping can be, a student fractured his forearm the previous year.



Look, you can even get these on Amazon with out too much difficulty.

If you are budget minded then build one. Seriously, a professionally built Mook Jong can run from $500 to $2500. There are versions that are wall mounted, free standing or set in the ground. I have seen a wide variety of materials from PVC to lacquered hard wood laminates to a crude pine log. The goal is to get you practicing so don't let money get in the way of training.



There are some amazing videos out there to observe and learn.

1. The late Grandmaster IP Man performing Muk Yan Jong;


2. Sifu Joseph Simonet going through the Blade Set. This is shot at Lake Chelan a few years.

A wooden dummy is an awesome partner so don't skip it just because it is an old school training tool. When I practice one of my focuses  is to break the supports by driving it back with an elbow strike. It has cleaned up my forms considerably because it really sucks when you hit it wrong. You can tell the difference when someone has worked with one. Right now I am missing it because my local school has shut down and I am working on securing a new one.

If you know of some good videos teaching the Mook Jong then post below. I don't plan on giving up Wing Chun or the Wooden Dummy anytime soon.