How to Make and Use Primitive Weapons

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HOW TO MAKE AND USE PRIMITIVE WEAPONS

Inside This Report INTRODUCTION

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INTRODUCTION What to do Without Guns Guns are fun. Holding one brings an incredible sense of power and security. A day at the firing range

MODERN TOOLS FOR MAKING PRIMITIVE WEAPONS

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WEAPON TYPES

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you have all your personal security needs in one neat, technologically advanced package.

AND USES

However, a lot of states don’t allow concealed carry licenses. Your gun is useless for self defense if it’s safely,

MAKING SIMPLE WEAPONS FROM

is a pure joy. If you own a gun, it’s easy to feel like

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responsibly locked away at home while you’re across

MODIFIABLE

town. If you stumble across

WEAPONS

an illegal pot farm while out camping or your ultralight plane hits some rough turbulence and goes down, the contents of your home

MAKING ADVANCED WEAPONS FROM

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MODIFIABLE WEAPONS

gun cabinet won’t help you survive. Luckily for you, humans were experts at self defense for thousands of years before guns were invented. With a little know-how, you can look at a rock, a bike helmet, or even toothpaste with the same sense of security you feel looking at a gun. Be warned, one of the biggest advantages guns have over primitive weapons is their range and stopping power. Most primitive weapons are meant for close-range fighting. You need to be psychologically comfortable with the idea of being able to smell your attacker’s breath. It can be disconcerting at first. One of the best ways to prepare yourself is by taking a self

Survival Life Special Report

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How To Make and Use Primitive Weapons

defense class in Israeli Krav Maga or Russian

you can use the blade of your Bowie knife to

Sambo, both available in cities across the

strip small limbs from trees and the curved

United States. Between those lessons in

point to create punctures and indentations.

unarmed self defense and knowledge of how to make and use primitive weapons, you can

German Army Knife

rest assured of your safety regardless of your

The German Army knife has a serrated edge

circumstances.

and a file surface. These allow you to do

Modern Tools for Making Primitive Weapons

some light sawing. After you’ve chopped a small branch down with the Bowie Knife, the German Army Knife is useful for cutting

You don’t have to use primitive tools to make

your wood to precise sizes.

your primitive weapons. Sure, it can be

Swedish Army Puuko

fun to try and make a bola using the same techniques as the ancient Celts, but if you need a weapon in a pinch, you’ll be glad you

The Pukko is a great utility knife. One side

have a modern toolbox at your disposal.

has a razor sharp edge. The other widens

You can make most primitive weapons with

out to a flat surface. You can press your

nothing more than your bare hands. After

thumb hard along the flat edge, adding

all, if you had a bowie knife, you probably

plenty of pressure when cutting. This makes

wouldn’t need a spear. However, if you

it great for whittling, stripping the bark off

have some time and want to make some

tree branches, and shaping precise areas,

high quality primitive weapons, you can

such as the hole in an atlatl.

do surprisingly good work with these five

Wire Saw

modern tools.

A Wire Saw is exactly what you think. It’s a loop of strong, dangerous, flexible wire with a handle on each end. The size and shape of cutting teeth varies. In this case, don’t

Bowie Knife

be seduced by size. You’re best off picking

A Bowie Knife is both strong and versatile. If

a smaller saw with a

you want to make a spear, javelin, atlatl, or

sharper blade. If you

anything else that requires a little carving,


can’t carry it in a small 3


pouch pocket, it’s probably too big. Smaller

when anyone can buy a beautifully crafted gun,

ones are typically easier to transport and

a precision crossbow, or a razor edged knife, it’s

more efficient at cutting.

easy for forget the basic simplicity of a rock.

Leatherman

Unless you’re standing in a fighting pose

A pocket Leatherman will do you a lot more

people don’t think of someone holding a rock

good than a Swiss Army Knife. Instead of

as being “armed.” Ask your grandfather,

a toothpick and nail file, a Leatherman

though. A rock dropped into a sock suddenly

multipurpose tool comes equipped with useful

transforms from two random objects into a

things like needle nose pliers, wire cutters,

flexible, potentially lethal way to beat off an

and an awl. They’re perfect for performing

attacker without damaging your own hands.

impromptu repair work on your primitive

If you expect to be in a dangerous situation,

weapons.

tuck a pair of old, worn out dress socks in

while clenching a rock in your fist, modern

one pocket and a sturdy rock in the other

Weapon Types and Uses

and you are quite innocently armed in a way that will take any attacker by surprise.

Rocks

In a city, there’s usually plenty of rubble

Rocks are one of the most deceptively

around which can substitute for a rock;

dangerous weapons you can find. In an era


half a brick, a bit of crumbled sidewalk, the

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residue of never-ending road construction.

Most modern clubs are deceptively civilized objects with some clear other use. However,

Defending yourself using a rock can also help

nothing says get off my lawn like a polished

keep you out of legal trouble. After all, you

piece of oak with a dozen nails hammered at

weren’t technically armed. You just found

odd angles through the end.

something in your environment to defend yourself with and flailed about in self defense.

If you’re in the wild, you can make

A carefully used rock looks like nothing more

improvements to a basic stick by splitting the

than a combination of desperation and luck.

top 1/3 of it with a knife or sharp rock and shoving a palm sized rock into the wedge.

If you know how to use your rock, you can

Tightly tie the rock in place. If you don’t have

cause blunt force trauma to vulnerable

any rope or twine, rip strips off the hem of your

parts of your attacker’s body. A sturdy rock

shirt. Now your basic backwoods club has some

is most useful in close quarters. Brace it

real heft to it.

against the meaty base of your palm in order to give yourself greater striking force and to

There’s no gentle way to use a club. They’re

protect your fingers. Try to smash it against

used to take someone down, break some

their temple, use it to crush their nose, or

bones, and make sure they don’t get back

slam it into their mouth. If you’ve had time

up again. You can’t use it from a distance. If

to drop your rock in a sock, swing hard at

you’re going to make a club, be sure you’re

the same areas. The goal is to take your

the kind of person who doesn’t mind doing

attacker down as fast as possible.

serious damage to another human being.

Clubs

Bolas

If a rock is an extension of your fist, a club is an extension of your entire arm. The

Rocks and clubs are most useful against

advantage of a club over a rock is it keeps

other humans. If

your attacker arm’s length away while also

you need to feed

giving you leverage.

yourself in the wild, you’ll want some

Any long, narrow, strong object can be used

distance weapons.

as a club. Baseball bats and crowbars make

Any hunter will

excellent clubs. They channel all the power

tell you animals are a lot sturdier than

of your arms and upper body into a narrow,

they look.

focused blunt trauma impact zone which

In its most simple form, a bola is nothing but

can do some serious damage. Survival Life Special Report

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some rocks tied up in string. Rocks and clubs

entangle something human sized and only 3

may be the oldest weapons known to man,

or 4 to trip up a deer.

but with over 50,000 years of anthropological

Of all the primitive weapons, these are both the

evidence, the bola is a close third. A bola is

most fun and the most frustrating to play with.

essentially a weighted rope net which can be thrown at animals to tangle them up. You

Slingshots

throw it at a distance, trip the animal up, then run in and stab the animal before it can

The story of David and Goliath is a good

disentangle itself. This is a lot safer than just

demonstration of just how dangerous a person

running up and trying to spear a deer.

can be with nothing more than a rock and a few scraps of leather. A slingshot uses the same

The bola is hard to master, but also

principle as a rock in a sock, only instead of

incredibly effective at making sure your

close quarters the slingshot is a used from a

prey goes down without doing you a

good distance.

serious injury. To make a bola, tie leather or rope around an egg shaped rock, wooden egg, or any solid object that feels comfortable in your hand. Weave your rope out, making a net. About 1/3 of the way out, add a few smaller rocks to give it some weight. Anchor the edge of your net with even smaller rocks. You now have something you can hold centered in one hand, spin overhead, and set flying to entangle an animal. Or, on your first dozen throws, something that

Slingshots aren’t easy to master, but they’re

may well end up deeply embedded in a nearby

cheap and easy to make as well as pretty

bush. But keep trying, you’ll get it.

harmless to practice. The simplest slingshots

Most bolas are made from anywhere

can be made from a one inch wide, one foot

between 3 – 10 rocks. The smaller the prey,

long strip of leather. Take a second, egg shaped

the more rocks you want to use. Remember,

piece of leather around 3 inches across, cut

the rocks aren’t there to knock out an animal

two slits in it, and slide it to the middle of your

– they exist to direct the net and make it hard

long leather strip. That’s it. All you need now

to pull off. You’d want something with 10

is a rock small enough to comfortably fit in

small rocks to entangle a duck, 5 or 6 rocks to

the leather circle. In a pinch, you can easily


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improvise a leather belt into several slingshots.

be just the right size to fit comfortably in the tube without getting lodged inside. If they’re

To use your slingshot, hold one end of the strap

too small, they’ll rattle around in the tube’s

clenched in your fist and the other end snug

interior and lose valuable momentum. If

under your first two fingers. Spin the rock over

they’re too large, they’ll get stuck, leaving

your head to gain some momentum and let

you with a useless stick full of poison.

go of the end of the strap under your fingers (while keeping hold of the end in your fist.)

For obvious reasons, blowguns are best used

The first few times you try this you’re

hollow tube up in the air and blowing in it

probably going to hit yourself in the face

is a good way to end up swallowing a dart.

with the leather, send the rock flying off into

Instead, make sure you’re pointing straight

the distance, and lose your balance enough

or slightly downwards. Since darts are

to make you fall. There’s a reason slings were

mostly useless without some form of poison,

historically given to boys to use as toys. They

you’ll also want to both wear gloves and be

take a long time to master, so it kept the boys

extra careful handling the darts themselves.

occupied. However, within a year of messing

Spears and Atlatl’s

when you have higher ground. Pointing a

around with a sling for fun, a lot of boys ended up bringing home small birds, rabbits,

Spears are a great simple weapon. You take

and other fast moving prey for the family

the advantage of a pointy rock (or some

dinner table. They could just as effectively

other tip) and combine it with the physical

climb up in a tree and rain rocky destruction

distance of a club. Unlike knives, spears don’t

on anyone attacking their family. So can you.

have a cutting edge. They’re used to create giant puncture wounds that will cause the

Blowguns

person or animal attacking you to bleed out.

Blowguns are subtle, guerilla weapons. You’re not going to build up enough force in your lungs to take down a bunny, much less an angry man. However, if you know how to make poison darts, you don’t have to take your attacker down. You just have to nick them.

To make a really primitive spear, all you

A blow gun can be as simple as a hollow

really need to do is lash something small,

piece of bamboo. Any long, narrow tube with

sharp, strong and pointed to the end of a

a smooth interior will work just fine. The

something thin, light and long. Most healthy

real magic here is in the darts. They need to

people can chuck a spear at least two to three


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times their body length. If you want to make

thus more penetrating power.

your spear into a real distance powerhouse,

A javelin is both heavier and more

you need to add on a simple spear thrower,

complicated than a spear. You can literally

or atlatl. Spear throwers have been

throw together a spear out of a rock, a

reinvented all over the world by nearly every

stick and some twine. A javelin takes those

culture. The Aztec’s called theirs an “atlatl.”

primitive principles and builds on them with

The Spanish mistook the name of the weapon for the people. You’ll be just as amazed as

careful attention to weight and balance. The

the Spaniards by the power leverage and

end result is a thrown weapon that stayed so

gravity put behind your throw by using an

useful people kept using it in battle all the way

atlatl.

from ancient Greece to Medieval England.

All you need for a basic spear thrower is a

To make one, you’ll need something wickedly

piece of wood about two inches thick and two

sharp but lightweight for the penetrating end.

to three feet long. Flatten it out, and then carve

That should be 1/3 the length and no more than

one end until you have something that looks

¼ the weight of your javelin. Strap that to a

like a giant crochet hook. Make a little recess in

longer, heavier throwing base. Try to keep it as

the hook end where you can rest the blunt end

sleek as possible to improve the aerodynamics.

of your spear. The hook should curl around it.

Javelins are frankly useless against most

Stand with your spear thrower over your

animals, but they’re historically tested and

shoulder. Tuck the spear into the crochet

proven effective against humans. Since

hook end and hold onto the smooth end.

they’re thrown by hand, they don’t have

Your thrower should be at an angle over your

the range of a spear thrown with an atlatl,

shoulder while the spear itself is pointing

but the longer penetrating end and heavier

forward. Now give it a good overhand throw.

weight can do some serious damage.

A trained user can fling a spear up to 150

Throwing Arrows

miles per hour. If you compare a bow and arrow to a gun, think of a trained spear

It’s amazing how, given enough time, weapons

thrower wielding an atlatl as a cannon.

can turn into toys. Once, throwing arrows

Javelins

were popular small game hunting tools for the ancient Celts. Today, throwing arrows are still

Think of a javelin as an evil lawn dart on

popular among British school boys. Basically,

steroids. You have a long, tapered pointy part attached to heavier, weighted base. The

you take an eighteen inch dowel rod, garden

weight gives the javelin more thrust and

cane, or something equally lightweight and


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Making Simple Weapons from Modifiable Household Items

ramrod straight. Sharpen one end and put a notch near the back of the opposite end. Add some fletching to the notched end to help it fly straight. School boys often use cardboard

It’s easy to joke about pitchfork wielding

from cereal boxes. Then tie a string around the

villagers chasing an incompetent army

notch and knot it tight. The string should be

out of town, but have you ever seen a real

about 2-3 times as long as the arrow.

pitchfork? It has three sharp spikes at the end of a pole. If that goes in your gut, you’re

You throw the arrow from the front, holding

not getting up again. Sometimes, being

it close to the tip. Wrap the string around

armed is entirely a matter of perspective.

your hand and keep it taut. It should stretch

The modern world is full of just as many

the length of the arrow from the notch up to

stealthily dangerous objects. Look around

your hand. When you pull your arm back and

your house. As long as you play dirty, you

throw, the taut string gives the arrow a little

have a veritable arsenal at your disposal.

extra thrust while the trailing string from your hand helps keep it steady and balanced. Part of the trick here is learning to both keep the string taut when throwing ad let it unwind quickly and naturally after the arrow leaves your hand. Expect to have a few strings get mangled in your fingers.

Bats

This is still a good weapon for hunting small

Every house should have at least one

game such as rabbits and squirrels. Since it’s

aluminum baseball bat for self defense. Keep it

lightweight and hand thrown, it’ll do limited

near your door or near your bed. When going

damage to something as large as a human

up against a physically stronger or heavier

unless you have exceptionally good aim and

opponent, a baseball bat is the great equalizer.

throw it into the eye or throat. Like slingshots,

Bike Helmets

throwing arrows are great toys for boys. They’ll burn off energy while learning valuable

If you’re going to head-butt someone, you

skills which can be easily translated to more

might as well make your head as dangerous

dangerous weapons should the need arise.

as possible. Bike helmets have a nice pointy end at the front and are designed to take a


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heck of a beating. In dire straits, strap one on

weapons. You have a

and charge at their gut or groin.

comfortable handle built in at one end. At

Dumbells

the other, you have one side which can inflict

If you have Russian Kettlebells, you’re

small, focused blunt

golden. The handle at one end and heavy

force trauma and the

weight at the other make them easy to wield

other side which can dig in and rip up flesh.

at arm’s length. Don’t ignore your standard dumbbells, though. Grab a weight you’re

Hammers are great for attacking someone’s

comfortable holding – as little as five pounds

joints. It’s surprisingly easy to shatter a

will do – and use it to add power and force to

person’s knee with a hammer. A good blow

your punches. Holding a small dumbbell can

to the elbow can turn the arm into a useless,

give a roundhouse or uppercut lethal force.

limp source of searing pain. Hammers are also notoriously good for cracking skulls.

Bottles

The prying end of a hammer can dig in This is important. Don’t try to break a full

between ribs. Use the same leverage you’d

glass bottle over someone’s head. You’ll

use to remove a nail to break the rib up and

most likely shatter the narrower end in your

outwards. A person armed with a hammer

hand and do yourself a severe injury while

is a person well equipped to survive any

your opponent stands and laughs. Instead,

close-range attack.

grab an empty bottle and smash that on something hard like your sink or the edge of a table. You now have a multi bladed knife with a convenient handle. It’s a fragile knife, though, so go for soft, vulnerable places where you can do a lot of damage. If they raise their arms, stab for the armpit. If you’re on the ground, go for the back of the thigh and try to hamstring them or the back of the

Paintball Gun

ankle and attack the Achilles tendon.

Paintball pellets hurt. There’s no question

Hammers

about that. Go for the face in the hopes of temporarily blinding your attacker. You

A hammer is another one of those deceptive


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can also go for the gut and groin. Shoot early, shoot often. You’d be surprised how many people will end up genuinely upset over you messing up their clothes. Use this disorientation and confusion to your advantage. Getting paint all over them also makes them slippery. If they get in close enough to grapple you, covering them in paint gives you better odds of wriggling away in search of your dumbbells.

Padlocks

A brick in hand is also a great tool for attacking joints. Try to smash your attacker’s

The same padlock you

knee in order to bring them to the ground. If

take to the gym can be

you can get behind them, a hard blow to the

a versatile weapon. You

base of the neck can debilitate or even kill.

can grasp the base and slip your middle finger

Making Advanced

into the hole to make an

Weapons From Modifiable

improvised brass knuckle. You can tie some

Household Items

rope or even a pair of ladies tights through the hole and suddenly you have a swingable

Basic primitive weapons are good for hunting

weapon to keep someone at bay. Like the rock

and outdoor survival. Simple weapons made

or the brick, you can also drop it in the bottom

from household items are meant to give you

of a sock and swing it at your attacker.

an advantage when you’re caught at home by surprise. Advanced household weapons are

Bricks

for when something has gone really wrong. Those bricks or paving stones left over from

You have time on your hands, you’re in

a home construction project are all weapons.

danger, and you’re unarmed. You can get out

If you have some broken bricks, dump half of

of situations like that if you’re clever.

one in a long sock or tights. You now have a distance weapon with a heck of a punch.


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Toothbrushes

plastic comb. You now have a vicious slicing

A toothbrush and some

weapon that can do some real damage.

rough concrete (or any

Tiny exacto blades can be pushed through a

abrasive surface) is

comb or toothbrush and held in place with

all it takes to make an

duct tape, glue or wire, depending on what’s

incredibly primitive

on hand. These give you some piercing

knife. First, do your best

power as well as slicing power, though they

to pull out most of the bristles. Next, file the

don’t penetrate as deep as the razor blades.

sides down using any hard, coarse surface. Since toothbrushes are made of softish plastic, all you need is patience to eventually wear one down. Be careful. You can’t get a super sharp tip on a plastic toothbrush. Trying will just make the end snap. You’re best off only filing down one side to use as a blade and letting it slope up to the point.

Ventilator Metals

Disposable Razors

If you’re trapped in a room where the air

If you have disposable razors or Exacto

conditioning or heating vent is protected

knives around you’re halfway to a dangerous

by an accordion style metal plate (typical

weapon already. It’s hard to use a razor as

in most apartments and houses) you’re in

is without slicing up your own hand, so the

luck. Most of them are screwed down. As

real goal is to attach it to something sturdy

you work it off, keep the screws. They can be

in order to give yourself a safe handle. If

surprisingly useful.

you’ve been sharpening a toothbrush, adding a razor blade to give it a cutting edge can be

You’ll need patience and strength, but if you

very effective. You’ll still want to sharpen

brace one end of the grill plate on something

your toothbrush to a point for stabbing

steady you can kick it repeatedly, stand on

purposes, but now that you have a razor

it, sit on it, and otherwise bend and damage

blade attached, you can stab or slice.

it until the grill plate snaps. Now you have a row of long, thin metal strips. Each one of

You can likewise use some kind of sturdy

those is immeasurably easier to remove. The

metal wire to attach razor blades to a plain


pointy end of the screws can be helpful in 12


cutting grooves where you can weaken the

go ahead and break your toothpaste dried

metal. Mostly, you should be able to slowly,

paper in several places. You’ll have some

methodically, bend the metal strips back and

rough, serrated edges which can do minimal

forth until they break or rip off.

damage. Slowly sharpen those edges against something gritty like an unpolished concrete

If you’re lucky some of them will break off

or brick wall or floor. You’ll be surprised to

with a nice serrated edge. Most will be blunt.

see a real edge come through.

If you’re in a room with a concrete wall or floor, you can begin the slow, methodical

This works because toothpaste, much like

process of sharpening the metal strips into

dishwashing detergent, is actually made

an assortment of knives.

from a suspension of grit intended for scouring. That grit gives it strength while the

If you don’t have time for that, you can still

paste part creates a slow-but-effective glue.

rip up your shirt and use it to carefully wrap

The paper gives it structural integrity.

the strips in between your fingers, Wolverinestyle. You won’t have mutant slicing power,

Your knife can be easily defeated by

but you will be able to do more damage than

anyone wielding metal or ceramics. It’s also

punching alone. It’s best to wrap your left

incredibly vulnerable to water. However, if

hand. Save your right for precision work,

toothpaste and paper are all you have, you

such as gouging eyes or unlocking doors.

can still create a primitive blade. The bottom line to defending yourself

Toothpaste-hardened, Sharpened Paper

with primitive weapons is creativity. Everything we have talked about is simply

This is a straight up MacGyver move. Evenly

the repurposing of a commonplace item

spread a thin layer of toothpaste over a sheet

into a defensive or offensive weapon.

of paper. Press a second sheet of paper on

Don’t be too surprised if you find yourself

top of it and smooth it down to remove all

seeing potential weapons everywhere you

bubbles. Each night, let your toothpaste

go. Don’t feel bad about it; it’s a survival

completely dry. The next day, add another

mechanism that mankind has been using

layer to your ongoing toothpaste and paper

since the beginning of time, so you’re in

sandwich, smoothing out the bubbles and

good company.

letting it dry. After 10 days you’ll have a thin, rock solid, but slightly fragile surface. At this point, Survival Life Special Report

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How to Make and Use Primitive Weapons

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