by Cleve Cheney

We have become used to a society where everything we need is ready made. Seldom nowadays do we have to make something for ourselves and so we have, by and large, lost the art of improvisation.

What is meant by the art of improvisation? Improvisation is using something for a purpose for which it was not really intended.

A weapon is an object of offence or defence, an implement with which you can protect yourself inflict injury on another or which can be used to procure food.

A tool is an implement or object which is used to make something, which is used to facilitate a task or which can assist in procuring food.

In a survival situation a weapon can make the difference between having food or not having food – it can make the difference of being able to protect yourself or being vulnerable to attack by man or beast or both.
Whenever you find yourself in a survival situation and you do not have a weapon then start thinking about making one. Objects which would normally be considered useless rubbish suddenly take on great value and significance.

Weapons and tools work by crushing, cutting, penetrating, abrading or colliding with. With this realization you can now let your imagination run wild for any object that can crush, cut, penetrate or collide with is a potential weapon. Look around you – you are surrounded by weapons. All that is needed is a little imagination and ingenuity.

CUTTING WEAPONS / TOOLS
Cutting weapons must have a sharp edge. If possible the material used should be able to retain a sharp edge and should preferably be of such a nature as to be easily sharpened.

CRUSHING WEAPONS / TOOLS
A crushing weapon or tool is usually a heavy object which is brought into heavy contact with another object, person, or animal. Once again one does not have to look far to find a crushing type weapon. A heavy stick, rock, wheel spanner readily come to mind. Good examples of crushing weapons are "knopkerries" made of wood or a heavy stone attached to a stick (see Figure 2).

PIERCING / PENETRATING WEAPONS / TOOLS
Piercing or penetrating tools usually have a sharp point but do not necessarily have to have sharp cutting edges although in many cases such as with knives, spears and arrows this is the case. It is fairly easy to make piercing weapons. A sharpened wooden stake, or sharpened bicycle spoke would be obvious examples. In more primitive bows and arrows the latter have sharp points but not very sharp cutting edges

COLLIDING WEAPONS / TOOLS
A colliding weapon implies a projectile being launched from some launching device and the object colliding with an intended target and by virtue of it’s weight (mass), velocity, and / or sharpness can penetrate the target, but in some instances does not have to do so to be effective. Examples are arrows, spears, bullets, stones, rocks or other objects which are given an initial launch by hand or some propelling device. Figure 4 gives examples of these types of weapons.

ABRADING
To abrade means to "wear down through abrasion". Sandpaper or a file works by wearing down a surface through abrasion. In a similar way rough stones, and even some plant materials can be used to wear away, shape, sharpen or smooth down surfaces for a particular purpose.With a little imagination, survivors will be delighted to discover that they are surrounded by a variety of useable weapons and tools wherewith they can defend themselves, procure food, or use to make articles of survival value. All that is required is ingenuity and improvisation.All that is required is ingenuity and improvisation……..

Look at any object and ask yourself the following question:
What can this object be used for? The obvious will be obvious but once you allow yourself to "think laterally" (as the modern saying goes) you will discover many more useful possibilities – this is the lost art of improvisation.

In future articles we will look in detail at how to make a variety of useful weapons and tools.

Weapons with cutting edges include spears, arrows, knives, slashers, swords and so on.
	An example of colliding weapons – a catapult propel stones or other small projectiles towards a target.