Throwing knives are different from regular kitchen knives. They are uniquely designed and weighted to be effectively thrown.
Throwing knives have been used for centuries in different parts of the world, and throwing knife competitions are always exciting!
Throwing knife technique is different worldwide, and thus the knives themselves are different in shapes and sizes.
We’ll help you choose a knife, and show several techniques for throwing knives so you can find what works best for you.
Types of Throwing Knives
There are different types of throwing knives available in the market. Before moving ahead to find out how to choose a throwing knife, let’s have a look at the types of throwing knives:
- Blade-Heavy Throwing Knife
- Handle-Heavy Throwing Knife
- Balanced Throwing Knife
- Kunai Throwing Knife
The Stance: How to Hold Your Body
- Keep the knife a comfortable distance from your head so that you do not cut yourself when you swing to throw it.
- Raise your dominant arm in front of you so that it is perpendicular to the ground, and bend at the elbow so that the knife is raised alongside your head.
- Place your weight on your dominant leg, rest your non-dominant foot in front of you (with no weight on it).
Hand Positions
- There are two ways to through a knife: by the handle or by the blade and the technique is decided by the knife.
- Hold the Knife and determine which end is the heaviest as you’ll want to through the heavy end first to achieve more force going into your target. Once the grip end is determined, hold the knife with your index, middle, and ring finger with your thumb on the opposite side.
- Position your thumb and fingers in the center of the knife and near the end so that your pinky hangs off and just curls with your hand. If this grip doesn’t feel natural or work well for you, try some of the below variations while practicing your throwing.
Types of Throwing Grip
- Hammer Grip: Take the knife in a horizontal orientation. Grip it with your entire hand like you would the handle of a hammer. Rest your thumb in the center on the side.
- McEvoy Grip: Position the knife in parallel with the palm of your hand as if it were an extension of your middle finger. Lay your thumb across it like you are making the number 4 with your hand to hold the knife in place.
- Pinch Grip: Pinch the tip of the knife between your thumb and second knuckle of your index finger. Curl the rest of your and into a first-like grip.
Arm Positions and Making the Throw
- Raise your dominant arm in front of you so that it is perpendicular to the ground.
- And bend at the elbow so that the knife is raised alongside your head.
- Keep the knife a comfortable distance from your head so that you do not cut yourself when you swing to throw it.
- Swing the knife forward and release the knife and follow through. Simply allow the knife to slip from your hand once your arm is pointing toward your target and your wrist is perfectly straight.
Knife Throwing Safety
When handling a knife, always use caution. Use common sense when handling throwing knives and you should be okay. Be sure to read through this list, there’s a few additional safety precautions you should take.
- Don’t Practice Barefoot: Use closed-toed shoes, not sandals nor slippers.
- Notify/ Alert People: In the vicinity of what you are doing. The last thing you want to do is injure your dog or kids by not alerting them of what you are doing.
- Not Pets/ Kids Allowed: Practice away from pets and family members.
- Use Proper Tools: A throwing knife is not designed like a regular knife (Kitchen Knife). A regular knife’s shape, weight or blade is different from throwing knife.
A regular knife is intended to be used for regular kitchen processes such as chopping vegetables and fruit. On the contrary, a throwing knife is a specially designed and made for throwing purposes.
Check out our review on the Throwing Knife.
Throwing Knife Reviews: 9 Best Throwing Knives 2019