Bayonets For Self-Defense?

 In 2020, as we witnessed widespread BLM riots (the only type of gatherings where COVID could not spread according to the boffins and politicians), the author of the New Rifleman blog wrote a piece asserting that "Your Rifle Needs a Bayonet." He argued (bold in original):

Your primary home defense rifle needs to be able to take a bayonet, and you need to have a bayonet ready to mount to it.  You scoff, of course. You think, “I’ll just shoot them.  The military hasn’t used bayonets in years”.  But I ask you to remember what you’ve seen on the nightly news for the last few weeks and think about it.  What are you going to do when you find yourself in the middle of a violent mob that will rush you and kick your head into the pavement if they decide they don’t like you?  The military may have abandoned the bayonet, but I’m not in the military. Most of the time I’m at home with my family.  I have to think about what benefits me and my situation. I have seen enough videos by now to convince me that a sharp, pointy blade on the end of my rifle is very good, for two reasons.     

The first reason he gives is that "it serves as a psychological motivation for people to keep away from you." He raises a point that I've seen from several sources which is that because most people have experience with being cut but not with being shot, most people will have a greater fear of being stabbed or cut than being shot. 

... If a mob rushes upon you to do violence, a gun pointed at them may not deter them much if they don’t think you will use it (shooting it probably will), but if there’s a bayonet on the end of it, they will avoid it. If they rush you, you don’t have to take much action; they will be the ones injuring themselves. No one hates their own body, but cherishes it and cares for it. Nobody will willingly impale or cut themselves.  A bayonet is like barbed or razor wire for your person, clearly stating “STAY BACK”.  A group of friends all together with bayonets pointed outwards would be even better.  Your rifle needs a bayonet.  Your friends need bayonets too.

The second reason he gives is as a backup to bullets--particularly, running out of bullets or if the distances are so short you can't employ your rifle. 

         Leroy Thompson, writing at SWAT Magazine, similarly states in his article, "Bayonets for Bad Times": "If you have a rifle with a bayonet and run out of ammunition, you have a pike, which is still a formidable weapon until you get more ammunition." And, he continues:

A weapon mounting a bayonet is an excellent deterrent as well. Given any breakdown in society, your likelihood of encountering undesirables will increase. You will want to keep those undesirables at a distance. A bayonet does a really nice job of that. Someone who comes onto your porch or approaches you in your yard uninvited during disturbing times will likely hesitate to come too close to a leveled bayonet. In many cases, the fear of getting jabbed will be more of a deterrent than the fear of getting shot.   

He also notes that it may provide some defense against a weapon being snatched (assuming you know how to properly use it).  For instance, he argues, "[i]f you’re searching your house at night after the power has gone out, the bayonet can be the first thing through a door, once again discouraging anyone from attempting to grab your weapon." And maybe more important than other reasons in a SHTF situation: "Another consideration in bad times might be that you don’t want to call attention to yourself. If lethal force is necessary, it might be better to administer it with a quieter weapon such as the bayonet."

    The next issue is whether your rifle can take a bayonet. Going back to the New Rifleman article, the author relates that most rifles with bayonet lugs can mount a bayonet (there are apparently some rifles with lugs that are just for show--too large to fit a bayonet--with Ruger specifically mentioned). But he notes that sometimes the distance between the lug and the end of the rifle may preclude bayonets. For instance, speaking of the AR system, he observes:

If you have a 20-inch rifle or a 16-inch midlength AR-15 with a bayonet lug, it will take an AR-pattern bayonet.  But many older 16-inch AR rifles have the shorter carbine gas system, and although they have a bayonet lug, a bayonet will not fit properly.  The end of the muzzle is too far from the lug.  The bayonet will go on the rifle, but the seating ring will sit on the thinner barrel rather than be held properly by the flash hider. 

He also mentions that bayonets will work with the 14.5-inch carbine and 14.5-inch midlength with an extended flash hider. If you do have a 16-inch carbine length system, don't despair. He mentions a bayonet adapter made by Triple R Products (which appears to be available here) which is an arm or extension with a bayonet lug on it that essentially pushes the lug out to the correct distance from the muzzle, and I discovered that Midway sells a sleeve that fits over the barrel to make it thick enough to accept a bayonet. Or if you are using a free-float handguard, Geissele makes a "Super Stabby" bayonet mount in black or FDE. (At the time of this writing, the black was out of stock but the FDE model was still available). 

    Finally, there is the question of learning to use the bayonet if you have not been through basic training or boot camp. For a book, probably one of the best for giving you a simple but effective system is Cold Steel by John Styers (here is the Amazon link and here is a link to a PDF you can download for free). Much of the book is about using a knife, but there is a detailed section on using the bayonet. While one of the articles stated that videos on how to use a bayonet were easy to find on YouTube, I did not find that to be true. Most were just short clips showing one or two maneuvers, or were news stories discussing whether or not the military should bother with bayonet training. However, I did find a 1938 Army training film (see below) that is about 1 hour and 16 minutes long that looked pretty good based on what I've watched so far. It begins with the proper stance and goes from there. The Brent0331 YouTube channel also has a relatively short (17 min.) video on the bayonet and its use (link here).

     I will point out, though, that self-defense laws still apply to bayonets. I suspect that pointing a bayonet at someone would be considered an assault or brandishing. As always, consult your local laws or legal counsel. And remember: I'm not your attorney and this article is not legal advice.  

VIDEO: "1938 U.S. Army Training Film - Bayonet Training (Full)"
WWIIPublicDomain (1 hr 16 min.)