PTI Blog

  • KARAMBITS & MAGIC SWORDS

    by Bill McGrath

    “Smell the blade.” said my Indonesian Penchak Silat instructor, Suryadi “Crazy Eddie” Jafri.

    “Why?” I replied, not understanding what this had to do with the question I had asked him.

    “Billy, just smell the blade.”

    Eddie had given me a small Indonesian knife, with a pistol grip and a 3 inch, leaf shaped blade of black damascus steel. It had a strange, elongated hole that looked to be deliberately forged into the center of the blade. The whole thing was small enough to fit into the palm of my hand.

    Posted in karambit, knife fighting, silat

  • SURVIVAL DRILLS – BEYOND SPARRING

    by Tuhon McGrath
    Basic symmetrical sparring, with two evenly matched opponents, each using the same evenly matched weapon, is a great way to introduce students to m...
    Posted in Training

  • LEARNING THROUGH COMPARISONS VS. RULES (and how to combine them)

    by Tuhon McGrath
    I read an interesting article several years ago on an experiment computer scientists did to test an artificial intelligence program. The scientists...
    Posted in Training

  • MEET THE MASTER OF DRILLS

    by Tuhon McGrath
    by Jack Billington In our weekend and four day self-defense programs a typical class sometimes may include three or four school owners, about an e...
    Posted in Training

  • EDC Knives for Women’s Self Defense

    by Tuhon McGrath
    Photo:Spyderco Endura (old model)Spyderco Endura (new model with the steel clip and Emerson wave feature)Cold Steel Black Talon IISpyderco Resilien...
    Posted in Survival

  • TUHON BILL’S 2018 EDC KNIVES

    by Tuhon McGrath
    I was asked recently for my recommendation for an Every Day Carry knife (a.k.a. EDC). The parameters were that this knife should be capable for sel...
    Posted in Survival

  • NEW TUHONS!

    by Tuhon McGrath
    TWO NEW TUHONS FOR PEKITI-TIRSIA INTERNATIONAL This week I promoted Guros Scott Faulk and Jack Latorre to the rank of Tuhon Guro “Chief Instructor...
    Posted in Organization

  • Think before you post a knife video

    by Tuhon McGrath
    Dear FMA, Silat and Edged Weapon Instructors, There have been three terrorist attacks in the last two days in Europe. Two were in Spain and the ot...
    Posted in Promotion

  • PEKITI-TIRSIA INTERNATIONAL KNIFE OUTLINE

    by Tuhon McGrath
    PEKITI-TIRSIA INTERNATIONAL KNIFE OUTLINEBy Tuhon Bill McGrath (originally published in the 1998 PTI newsletter) The following structure closely f...
    Posted in Training

  • HOW BIG IS YOUR “US”?

    by Tuhon McGrath
    When I started training in the Pekiti-Tirsia system in 1975, I was 14 years old. It very quickly became a major part of my life. You know how it’s ...
    Posted in Organization

  • WHY RATTAN?

    by Tuhon McGrath
    Why use Rattan? Most blade based martial arts have included wooden swords as part of their training.The samurai had oak training swords called “bo...
    Posted in Training

  • ISSUES REGARDING SELF-DEFENSE & THE LAW

    by Tuhon McGrath
    The following is adapted from the lecture I often give as part of my job as a firearms instructor for the New York State Court system. I am not a l...
    Posted in Training