poison hand strikes

[fujau]

You make a good point. Would "behind the collar bone" be called a Tiger's Claw, ShoriKid? I practice hooking my fingers into BOB's collar bone, one side, then the other, and pulling down hard.

I usually angle in and then hook down. So, it starts as a spear and then turns into a hook or a claw. Tiger claw type attacks are more for hooking and gripping "meat". A bicept, a tricept or the neck. Something like that where your getting a handle on things.

In chinese martial arts the dragon was used more to seize hook and control . . .

So would the strike I've been practicing be more of a dragon's claw than what I'd thought, a Tiger's claw, Fujau?

That would depend on how you shape your hand, The shape of the hand is depicting what strike you use the dragon hand / claw looks like the tiger claw but it is used in a different way the claw shape should be slightly curled over as if you hand looks like its crippled it is used for locking and seizing there are strikes that can be used like the dragon horn but thats done with steel rod fingers like a spear hand but applied in a different way. I have been told back in the day the dragon claw was used to strike and claw the pressure points and with the added bonus of the finger nails were used to pierce the points to give untold damage.

the tiger claw uses a simple and direct approach. paws and then reaps

IMAO If you look at any style across the world everybody seems to have a take on its description and its action

Like the cats stance we call it a hanging stance why?

Well i have been told you never see a cat in that position which kinda makes sense But the cat stance sounds better

[stonecrusher69]

what's more important then the shape of the hand is whether or not you have enough force to do damage with what ever hand shape you use.

[bushido_man96]

Like the cats stance we call it a hanging stance why?

Well i have been told you never see a cat in that position which kinda makes sense But the cat stance sounds better

I think that in the Karate circles, one of the older masters, I think Gogen Yamaguchi, was nicknamed "The Cat," and was known for his quickness, and he used that stance very exclusively in kumite. I think that is where the stance got its nickname.

Karate guys, let me know if I totally botched this.

[ShoriKid]

I can't pin anything specific on where the name came from, but I fairly certain the term is older than Yamaguchi

[joesteph]

what's more important then the shape of the hand is whether or not you have enough force to do damage with what ever hand shape you use.

I was thinking about this one, because when I practiced seizing the throat/neck with one hand in the past, we experimented with different grasps. It was one thing to simply grasp straight forward with the thumb and index finger wide apart, another to grasp similarly, but with a tilting up of the opponent's head, and, lastly, to grasp with a digging in of the thumb into the throat.

All three could be used to drive the opponent back, but we practiced just with the first one, staight back, as the practice session would often be to a wall, and the chances of banging the back of one another's heads went up with the tilt, while the thumb into the throat was simply seen as too uncomfortable--and hazardous--for us to practice.

[stonecrusher69]

what's more important then the shape of the hand is whether or not you have enough force to do damage with what ever hand shape you use.

I was thinking about this one, because when I practiced seizing the throat/neck with one hand in the past, we experimented with different grasps. It was one thing to simply grasp straight forward with the thumb and index finger wide apart, another to grasp similarly, but with a tilting up of the opponent's head, and, lastly, to grasp with a digging in of the thumb into the throat.

All three could be used to drive the opponent back, but we practiced just with the first one, staight back, as the practice session would often be to a wall, and the chances of banging the back of one another's heads went up with the tilt, while the thumb into the throat was simply seen as too uncomfortable--and hazardous--for us to practice.

I use this one a lot myself.

[badclams]

Tiger claw, crab, eagle claw, leppards paw, bears paw, and cranes beak all have their place (and time) in our style. block, parry, divert and striking, no loss of motion, im pretty confidant they'll work fine in a street situtation.

[SnakeStrike77]

Awesome topic! We also use Tiger claw, Leopard strike, but ours are the middle knuckles. (Very affective to the ribs) Snake, and Spear hands, Crane swings, and Dragon claws. Some of the not so well known like the "Heavy Hammer". All very affective, and can be applied to (in my opinion) to street use. What it may boil down too is what’s in your "street tool box" meaning what are your "go too" moves when the gi or uniform come off, and you're in jeans and a T-shirt? The other X factor that’s been stated and I agree with is circumstance, and opportunity to use said moves.

[RichardZ]

Do you think that hand strikes such as tiger claw, spear hand strike, and crane beak, leopard paw, and others strikes like them are practical and/or usable during an actual street/bar fight?

In many actual confrontations, the situation unfolds so fast, that these will not be applied. the good 'ol making a fist and the strike called a punch, is always paramount and used long before other strikes are even thought of or reflexed. Although, for defense upon a situation without the opponent seeing any forcasted posture, a eye rake, palm strikes, hammer fist, or other without such fanciness, is possible.