In the self-defense industry, there aren’t so many players that some of them don’t become very famous. One of those is Master at Arms James A. Keating, one of the “O.G.” members of the self-defense set who helped send a number of early online self-defense exponents (myself included) down this road. One of the tools James Keating is best known for is a simple impact tool called the ComTech Stinger.
The Stinger is a simple pressure-nodule tool. It increases the impact of your strike by concentrating that impact into a smaller area. The tool braces in the hand, the handle against the palm, and the nodule can project either through your index and middle fingers or between your middle and ring fingers (depending on how centered you want it).
Mr. Keating has been around long enough that he has inspired others. One of those others is Delta2Alpha, which now offers a slightly more “plausibly deniable” tool called TheJAKal whose name is a direct homage to James Keating.
The difference between TheJAKal and the stinger is that the former’s lines are more abstract. It’s also much flatter in cross-section, which means it can be slipped into, say, a wallet without adding much bulk. Mr. Keating’s tool is excellent; the Delta2Alpha tool he has helped inspire is also excellent. One is not better than another; they are simply different in appearance and profile. The Stinger produces bone-crushing impacts when wielded in a fist. TheJAKal delivers insidious, thin-edged strikes from its deceptively slim envelope.
TheJAKal is made from 1/4-inch impact-grade polymer. Sold in packs of 2, it makes an excellent, l0w-profile, inexpensive defensive option where it is legal for you to have such a tool.
I increasingly find myself turning to tools from Delta2Alpha to supplement the “old school” tools I have from respected experts like James A. Keating. TheJAKal is one such tool. You would be well served to have several of these and several ComTech Stingers available to you. Given the way our political landscape continues to devolve, the time to buy these is now, not later.