Monday, December 26, 2011

Improvised Weapons: Millwall Brick

The anti-defense crowd of thugs and rapist wannabes often whine about innocuous knives being weapons. They attempt to ban them for being too big, too small, opening too fast, being too military looking, or just being sharp. However, the world is full of every day objects that can be rendered into something just as potentially dangerous if not far more than your ordinary EDC folding blade. Such an item is the Millwall Brick.


The Brick hails from the disarmed serf-nation of UK. It was used as a soccer hooligan's stealth weapon. It is a mean little improvised weapon, that can be brought anywhere and made on the spot within a few minutes. Such as that, it's not really a bad idea to know how to make one if push comes to shove. The materials to make one are found in your Sunday Edition newspaper. Or rather, the Millwall Brick IS your Sunday paper!

The Millwall Brick is a carefully folded large newspaper. It is folded/rolled long wise, and then folded in half to form a handle and the rounded fold becomes the head of this bludgeon. They are often wettened down to add weight or even feature nails.

To be honest, it would be a more effective weapon than your after Kershaw or Gerber folder. It has more size and reach. It is almost like a sap.

Paper is surprisingly strong in bundles. Folks have made .22lr back stops in their homes using phone books. That paper doesn't have the density of folded either. Each time you fold paper it comes harder to fold until you cannot fold it further with a human's strength.

This simple item could easily put someone into the hospital. Used effectively it could kill someone. But it is just a newspaper. I cannot think of a single place that bans newspapers. Schools, airplanes, courthouses, bars, post offices... It is just one of the countless items that can be used in place of knives or even guns everywhere if your criminal decides to obey the rules...

6 comments:

Dan said...

Very interesting. Yes, the whole knife fearmongering thing sickens me too. I could easily kill someone with a 2x4, an umbrella, a piece of pipe, a rock - and now a newspaper. Vilifying knives is not the answer.

Weer'd Beard said...

Much like the crazy designs of Prison weapons, except all of the UK is the prison...

Sport Pilot said...

Oddly a tightly rolled new's or entertainment, golssy magazine make's an ideal impact weapon. The last time I flew on an airliner and noticed all of the magazine's in front of me I laughed out loud.

Anonymous said...

Dan,
I get your point that you could kill someone with almost anything - if you wanted to. The unique problem with knives is however what they are: designed to pierce and cut with minimal effort. So using any knife in a fight means you're LIKELY TO KILL, even if you "only wanted to wound".
Another persuasive reason not to carry a knife is, unless you are superfit and trained in martial arts, there is a good chance it could be turned on yourself. "We had a fight and I killed him with the knife he drew on me, Your Honor".
Should have bought a pepper spray...

Roadkill said...

No such thing as fight to wound? Wrong. The entire point of a defensive knifing is to inflict harm enough to get away. If that results in death, too fucking bad. Self defense is self defense. I carry a knife as backup to my guns. It is there as a point defense against someone trying to take my gun. Naturally, you will more than likely manage to be charged in 'progressive' nations like UK. Or blue states in the USA.

Anonymous said...

it's a old amry trick ..