Does having a roll of quarters in your fist actually ever help in a fight? Is it just a myth or is there a biomechanical advantage?
In: Physics
If you want to look at it strictly from a physics POV, use momentum equation. More mass with same velocity = more momentum. More momentum is more force so bigger hit. For example a ping ping ball that weighs 3 grams flying at 40mph is going to hurt alot less than a baseball which weighs 150g flying at that same speed.
Everyone missed the real answer here.
What a roll of quarters is going to do is allow you to solidify your fist as much as possible prior to impact. The palm and knuckle portion of your hand is not a singular piece of bone, it is comprised of over a dozen small bones. It is fairly easy to break your hand due to this, as the average human adult male can produce enough force via punch to accomplish this. But in a fight, breaking your hand not only would cause you pain, but would cost you one of your weapons/defensive tools.
This is why you see boxers/mma fighters with all of the tape on their hands underneath the gloves. The tape is applied tightly in a manner to help solidify the fist into as much of a singular object as possible in order to protect the fighter.
A roll of quarters, when squeezed, can simulate the effect of taping your hands for a fight, but it can be done substantially faster, and you dont need to have the knowledge of how to tape your hands. You also dont need to deal with removing the tape from your hands. And it is not nearly as visually obvious, in the event you want to be a bit more subtle.
FINALLY someone has asked this important question.
Yes, having a roll of quarters in your fist helps in a fight. Imagine the utility. You could pay surrounding spectators to assist you in the fight OR you could pay off the aggressor! Lastly, if there are no spectators and bargaining with your adversary has failed, you could simply chuck them at the enemy. So yes, they are highly advantageous in a fight.
Fingers (and also knuckles) are not of same strength. When you punch something, the weaker ones give first. You can test this by forming a fist and just pressing on fingers – some can compress further into palm than others.
Roll of quarters puts an uniform, solid wall behind them, so there’s no weaker links in the chain.
As for actual practicality in a fight, it’s quite desperate. If you’re really going to have a fight, it makes all the more sense to put those quarters in a sock or grab a random stick or stone. Even a short stick increases your possible damage by 5-10 times and lessens chance of injury perhaps as much. Fingers are fragile and weak. Few brawlers (doormen, really) I’ve met carry a sap for that same reason. All the power amplification and injury mitigation with no visible, flashy traces on yourself or your opponent. And nearly not lethal, unless you hit the head.
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