How to hold the fingers in a knife hand?

[Toptomcat]

Different styles of karate throw the knife hand different ways- with their fingers straight and together, curved and together, or relaxed and slightly apart. I've had a few bad experiences with the 'curved and together' method taught by my style- I keep having the tip of the ring finger whip into whatever it is I'm striking, even though I'm delivering the vast majority of the force through the edge of the hand, as is supposed to happen.

How does your style traditionally throw it, and what's the justification for it?

How do *you* typically throw it, and why?

Specific advice from those with experience breaking with the technique and using it in kumite would be particularly welcome.

[tallgeese]

Well, stylistically, it's thrown relaxed fingers, slightly bent.

Personally, I don't use it much. I prefer the forearm as opposed to a knife hand.

[bushido_man96]

We keep the fingers tight, and relatively straight. I don't break with it much, because I don't care for the technique on boards. We also make sure to keep the thumb tucked in tight to the hand, but not under the hand.

[Kuma]

We keep the fingers tight, and relatively straight. I don't break with it much, because I don't care for the technique on boards. We also make sure to keep the thumb tucked in tight to the hand, but not under the hand.

This is the same way I use mine. I used to prefer a more cupped-hand shuto but once I practiced it on the bag and in tameshiwara I realized it's not too stable for me. Once I switched to this method, it was much better for me.

[the beast]

I tend to keep my hand relatively straight and fingers together . This may sound strange but my index and middle fingers are slightly bent but my ring and pinky fingers are straight. This just happens to be the way that feels more natural to me.

[DWx]

Similar way to bushido_man96, fingers straight and together. Instead of having the thumb towards the rest of the hand, there is a gap. I tend to think of it as pulling the thumb back into your wrist. Keeps the hand nice and flat. Have to be sure to pull the little finger in tight for knifehands, not good to have it hit your ring finger when you impact on something .

[Traymond]

In a certain style I was in shuto we held all the fingers tight with the thumb tucked down.

But in Shuto Uke we Keep the fingers relaxed and the thumb tight (Why I have no clue, but thats the way I was taught). Some styles will have you do it with your fingers spread apart, this takes alot of mastery over the techniques so that you dont break a finger though.

[jaddensinn]

We throw the knife hand block with the fingers tight together and the thumbs tucked in tight.

[unknownstyle]

when you first learn it in my system it is taught straight and together, but as you progress it becomes curved and by black belt you mostly have your fingers apart since your hands are strong enough at that point

[joesteph]

There's a gentle curving of the fingers, my hand almost--not exactly--cuplike, and the thumb against the outer base of the index finger.

When striking horizontally, with the palm down, the striking pad is higher than the ridge hand side. When striking horizontally with the palm up, the pad is lower. Blocking can be tricky, to ensure that the pad is doing the blocking, not the hand bone it's connected to. Moving while executing helps preserve the integrity of the almost cuplike knife hand.