Ferdelance

I just got finished posting a reply to the Naked Dojo thread,which got me thinking about the fight scene in the original version of the movie The Manchurian Candidate, the one where Frank Sinatra plays the American agent, and he hits his opponent with a technique I've seen in some old TMA books where your fist is folded flat and you hit your opponent with the four knuckles between your fingertips and your regular knuckles.
My questions:
1.Why isn't that technique used more often? My understanding is that this follows the principle of concentration, making this a more effective way to punch, say, the stomach or the solar plexus region because of its greater penetration potential, and
2.How would you train a punch like this?

xeberus

wrong.

this punch is only effective when striking the throat. and only because of the diminished area of impact.

Overall this strike blows, you won't be as effective against an opponent and you are more likely to **** up your shit.

which is why no one uses this for any other reason than striking the throat.

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Squirrelfighter

Above you see the ill-tempered answer. I'll try and explain it without the profanity!

The technique has its benefits. Its as you implied a penetrating technique. Though its benefits can definitely be outweighed by its potential deterents.

Positively. The technique can be used to strike at the diaphram(under the ribcage), or the stomach, liver or kidneys. It can also(as Cussy McDrunkerson, I kid of course, said above) can be used to strike the throat.

Negatively. If you hit a solid bone, or even dense muscle such as the thighs, arms, or any other thickly developed musculature, you are as likely to damage your fingers as you are to cause an insignificant injury to your opponent, assuming you strike an area listed in this section.

All in all, its an effective self-defense technique, however it isn't one that you can open with. If your opponent has even a marginally relevant guard, you'll end up hitting an arm, or a skull, or some other larger denser piece of anatomy. While a skull hit may be very damaging to an opponent, comparative to a palm, or fist strike to the same area, you're far more likely to damage your hand or break your fingers with the technique you're describing.

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Sig courtesy of that photo-matic magician limba

North

Your #1 has basically already been adressed by Squirrel and, to a point, Xeb. It basically is just a dangerous technique to the one using it. HOWEVER. You also have to consider that techniques, such as this, were created in a time when you would study one martial art, under one teacher, for the duration of your (or their) life, or until you absolutely could not anymore for whatever reason. People in TMAs literally spent their entire lives perfecting their technique and doing conditioning to use these strikes. Now people crack open a TMA book or go to one kung fu class and think they can use the techniques to maximum efficiency, then can't, and think it's just a bs technique then.

#2 - What's it matter? If you're not in an art that trains this, then why bother trying to learn it? That's just unsafe and inefficient.

americanfighter

SF said it best. It can be a very efective punch but you can easily hurt yourself with it if you hit the wrong thing. Best only used on vial sensitive areas.

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HexRei

How could any technique employed by accomplished martial artist Frank Sinatra not be superior?

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His helmet was stifling, it narrowed his vision. And he must see far. His shield was heavy. It threw him off balance. And his target is far away.

The Horticulturist

OW!!!!


Don't use it!

I wish I recorded video of myself just now