Behind the Blade

Whip of the Stingray

2008-08-22T14:45:00.009-05:00

Filipino superstition says the tail of a stingray, known as buntot pagi, is a useful tool for repelling ghosts, ghouls, vampires, shape shifters, witches or other malicious and macabre creatures referred to as aswang in the Visayas. Although I have not had the opportunity to ward off an aswang, I have found that the buntot pagi could serve as a very nasty and cruel weapon. Hearing the sound it makes when being whipped through the air is like feeling the whip with your ears. The screaming hiss is alone enough to make one cower in fear. It is as if the tail is warning of the searing pain it will cause its victim.

The abrasive, dried skin of the tail feels like very course sandpaper. Its surface closely resembles sharkskin with hundreds of small bumps varying in size. With just a light feel of the tail, one can clearly see how the texture could easily abrade human skin upon even very light contact. Whipping an opponent with the tail would fiercely rip patches of skin off any target. With some speed, the tail would likely tear deeply through flesh as well. Anyone whipped at the head would be instantly stunned and likely discontinue any aggression. In addition to feeling the horrible pain resulting from being whipped by this beautifully implemented weapon, the opponent will be envenomed by it as well.

While living, the stingray fights it’s predators with a venom or neurotoxin that is extremely painful and sometimes lethal to predators and humans alike. The stingray’s neurotoxin is transmitted by puncturing an attacker with one or more barbs located on the stingray’s tail. Once this barb punctures its target, the stingray can transmit its venom from glands beneath its skin.

The neurotoxin remains in the stingray’s tail skin even as it dries. When whipping an opponent, the stingray tail will break the opponents skin and thereby deliver its neurotoxin. Although the neurotoxin is likely more concentrated when delivered from a live stingray, it is quite powerful nonetheless. In addition to intense local pain that can last up to two days, the neurotoxin can cause chills, fever, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, fainting, tremors, seizures, paralysis, an elevated heart rate, decreased blood pressure and, rarely, even death. Wounds often take longer to heal as infection is common and can, if untreated, result in gangrene or tetanus.

The pliable stingray tail has a “memory” like a wire. It is flexible, but it can be bent into a shape that remains even when being whipped at high speeds. My stingray tail, a gift from Grand Tuhon Leo Gaje, is roughly 4.5 feet. It’s long enough to keep anyone out of reach while still easy to manage. I have seen one in Grand Tuhon’s personal collection that may have been close to 6 feet and very rigid.

I have not been wounded by the stingray’s tail, but I have been affected by its venom. When Grand Tuhon first gave me the tail, it had no handle. After spending a few weeks in the Philippines, I returned to Texas. Upon returning, I began to incorporate the stingray tail into my personal training. Until this time, I had only swung the tail a few strikes at a time. After a few minutes of vigorously swinging the tail in the sun, I became dizzy and experienced flashing sensations in my eyes and head. My arm was tingling and partly numb from my weapon hand itself through my bicep and partly in my shoulder. Apparently my sweat leeched venom from the tail, this venom then entered my body through my pores. Fortunately after about 15 minutes, I was back to normal. In retrospect, it should have been common sense to avoid contact with the tail itself, but I suppose I was somewhat skeptical as to how potent the venom actually is. Needless to say, my stingray tail now has a thick leather handle.

Not only does the tail make an excellent weapon, but also the barb or spine of the stingray is vicious as well. The spine is the part of the stingray’s tail that serves to deliver venom to anything that threatens the animal. It is essentially a serrated dagger that is made from hardened cartilage. When removed from the tail, the spine can be crafted into a single use shank by fashioning a handle. Although there may not be much poison in the dried spine, it will easily break apart inside the wound making recovery difficult and infection likely. Whether it be a spine of the stingray or the tail itself, be sure you are at the right end of its anger.

A Legend of the Philippines - The Colt 45

2008-03-14T16:43:00.007-05:00

During its campaign against the Moros, 1899 –1935, the U.S. Army adopted the Colt .45 Model 1911 semiautomatic pistol after American soldiers found that the .38 caliber New Army Long Colt and Smith and Wesson revolvers they had previously used were unable to stop the fierce Moro warriors of the Southern Philippines. Eyewitness accounts describe Moros continuing to kill American soldiers with their barongs and kris after receiving multiple rounds from the .38 pistols and .30 caliber Krag rifles. Realizing the Moro was tougher than any opponent previously encountered, the Army requested guns with more “knocking power” to physically shock and immobilize their opponents.

In 1904, Brigadier General William Crozier, Chief of Army Ordnance, requested a study to determine what caliber would be best to serve this need in a new service handgun. The research led to the recommendation of a cartridge with a caliber of no less than .45.

In selecting a new model for the gun itself, designs from several manufacturers were examined. The choices were narrowed down to two candidates including the Colt. On March 15, 1911, an endurance test was held having each gun fire 6000 rounds. Afterwards, the pistols were then tested using deformed cartridges, which had been rusted in acid and submerged in sand and mud. By the end of the test, the competing design suffered over 37 incidents of malfunction or breakage, but the Colt never failed even once.

Thereafter, the Colt design known as the United States Pistol, Caliber .45, Model 1911 became an icon of Philippine and American history as it was adopted on March 29, 1911 and served the U.S. Armed Forces for decades.

Five Facts about the Colt 45 M1911:

1. The 45 in .45 caliber refers to the .45 inch diameter of the cartridge also known as the round or slug.

2. Following its adoption by the Army, the M1911 was also accepted by the Navy and the Marines and became the official sidearm of the US Armed Forces.

3. The Colt .45 M1911 was designed by legendary gunsmith John Browning who invented a variety of pump and automatic shotguns, rifles, and the Browning .50 caliber Machine Gun, as well as most of the .30 cal and .50 cal machine guns produced by Colt and used in WW II.

4. Although minor modifications were made, the essential M1911 design continued to be used by the U.S. Armed Forces until 1985.

5. In selecting the .45, the Army tested several types of handguns, calibers and bullet styles on live cattle, deer and human cadavers.

How many waves in a Keris?

2008-03-07T11:25:00.007-06:00

Currently we are designing an aluminum training keris for Kali Gear. What we would like to produce is something that represents the very recognizable Indonesian keris shape and feel. The challenge is that there are in fact over 145 different distinct shapes of keris catalogued in central Java alone. The hard part is deciding which one to make first.

Although the keris comes in many shapes and sizes, whether straight or wavy, every keris has some standard attributes. Two of the main characteristics that describe the physical aspects of the keris are the dapur, (the blade shape) and the pamor, which is the surface patterning resulting from the damascening of iron, steel and often nickel or titanium. Since our keris will be made of aluminum as a training blade, we will focus primarily on the dapur.

A keris can be straight or it can have waves, known as luk. Typical keris luk (wavy keris) designs range from 3 – 13 waves, but keris can also have up to 29 luk. Keris always have an odd number of luk, and the number of luk can determine some of the mystical properties of the blade. Our keris will likely have 15 luk, which bears no specific mystical significance. See the sketch to get and idea of the coming prototype. The number of luk a keris has, can be counted from the base of the blade. Start at the bottom edge and count inside the depressions, while alternating sides, until reaching the top.
A real keris is made by an empu who in addition to physically making the blade, will chant mantra and prayers, meditate, fast from sleep, food and sex. This process is to enrich the blade with mystical powers and tailor it for the owner. I’m sorry, but if all goes well, we will not be skipping any meals or missing out on life to make this training keris for you. Nonetheless, we hope to capture as much as we can of the primary keris features while still making a simple training blade. Any ideas you have on this design or others are welcome.

Stop Bleeding!

2008-02-29T00:14:00.026-06:00

After breaking in my balisong, fresh from a trip to Batangas, I was finally spinning the blade in a constant flow. A week of gradually loosening up the blade with some oil and the monotonous click…clack…click…clack, and I was ready to show off. With my girlfriend watching, I flipped the blade through my fingers, around my thumb, over the top of my hand then with a fumbling swat, I hurled it into the top of my foot. I first looked at her and she at me, then we both looked down. Of course I was barefoot.

By the time I had hopped to the bathroom to dress my wound, there was a lot of red. I’ve reamed out plenty of the cheap silver butterfly knives over the years, but eventually my preference is only to use the real thing – a thick handled, hand crafted balisong with water buffalo horn handles and brass fittings. Not only does it have a better weight, but the size I like has a spine on the blade that’s nearly a quarter of an inch thick. Well, this makes a really nice hole. “Honey, will you go get the himog!?”

In my travels to Indonesia and the Philippines, I found that very potent herbal medicines often accompany the fighting arts. Injured during an attack, bruised from constant drilling, or cut in the field, no fighter will survive without some form of emergency medicine.

Years ago, Grand Tuhon Leo Gaje brought some oil for me when I was visiting him in Negros. We were riding in a taxi. Indicating a splash of the oil with a quick thrusting gesture to his own arm, he told me:

“When you get cut, you take this. If you get shot, you drink it.”
“What is it?”
“It’s himog.”
“What does it do?”
“It stops the bleeding.”

My balisong wound probably needed 6 or 7 stitches. It wasn’t that bad, but it was one of those cuts where you could see light colored flesh inside. I poured a little himog over it. The oil clung to my foot and the cut closed like a ziplock. Although I trusted Tuhon’s description of the oil’s properties, I was truly shocked. My girlfriend was amazed. No more blood came out of what was just previously a flowing wound. I put a bandage over it and checked it after a few days. Not even the band-aid had bloodstains.

Since that experience, I have tried to hoard as much himog as I can get. Often delivered in a very unceremonious, plastic, suave shampoo bottle or old whiskey pint, himog is made from the roots of a special tree. The roots must soak in the base oil to transfer the healing properties to the oil. Other ingredients and incantations may also accompany the recipe depending on the source.

At some point, I realized that there may be a time when I may not be able to get my hands on any more himog and some of the other herbal medicines I have found overseas, so I began to research other options that I could either buy or make myself. My students and I have used several of these herbal remedies for years. Some of them eventually made their way to Kali Gear for others to try.

Aside from direct pressure and other first aid measures, options to stop bleeding in the field include everything from modern blood clotting agents or styptic powders such as Kwick Stop or Quik Clot to herbs such as comfrey root powder or even powdered cayenne pepper. (No, sadly, it doesn’t sting.) Sprinkle the powder in the cut, and the bleeding stops. I carry some with me every time we train. Live blade demos ginunting vs. ginunting and on-the-spot knife tapping against the latest tactical knife at the DPS academy always makes me wonder when the next cut will come. Otherwise, it seems like I most often just cut myself practicing.

More serious cuts may benefit from super glue or duct tape in desperate situations. If training to defend your life includes improving your unarmed fighting skills or learning to use a weapon to improve your odds for survival, then it only makes sense to prolong your life by being prepared to deal with injury in one way or another as well.

Welcome to the new Kali Gear Blog

2008-01-20T15:25:00.000-06:00

Thanks to the encouragement of some of our awesome customers and friends, I have decided to start a blog for Kali Gear. I hope to discuss upcoming projects, backgrounds and details on current and upcoming products as well as training issues and other topics related to Filipino and Indonesian Martial arts and culture. Thank you for your support of Kali Gear, and I hope my future posts will prove to be interesting at the very least.