Replies to This Discussion

In MemoriamPermalink Reply by D ale on January 11, 2018 at 12:01

I believe .. always up to the parent ..as.. they know the level of their children's responsibility more than any other. Further .. there's no need for the first knife to be really pointy or really sharp i.e. give them some time to get used to handling a real knife on their own while minimizing the danger.

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At the request of a father .. I made this one up for his 7 yr old son's b'day last yr. I purposely rounded the tip & made the edge slightly better than "butter knife sharp" .. allowing the father to gain his spouse's approval ..&.. for the safety of the child. I emphasized that I'd put a point back onto it & a sharp edge when he felt his son was ready for it.

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There is also the child's environment to consider. i.e. I grew up on a farm & was using knives for a good year before I received my first one as a b'day gift (an Imperial mini stockman). I'd already cut myself & learned not to "push" on an open non-locking blade. When they fold .. one's index finger tends to reinforce that issue. And on the farm .. all my uncles & great uncles had a tool (knife) that they carried & used daily. This would not be the same for a child living in ..say.. N.Y. , N.Y. .. with their only outdoor experience has been Central Park & their past experience w/ knives has been .. nill.

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Bottom line ..for me.. it is the parent's decision.

Permalink Reply by John Bamford on January 11, 2018 at 12:29

Things were different then I guess, but this was me at ten years old and it certainly wasn't my first knife.

Permalink Reply by Jan Carter on January 11, 2018 at 20:51

I tend to agree D ale.  Although at 10 I was not able to say my son was going to get his first knife, his son did.  He does have to leave it here for when he is with us during the summer but when here it is always on him.  I rarely see it out of his pocket.  He understands it is a tool and having it is a responsibility/privilege

In MemoriamPermalink Reply by D ale on January 12, 2018 at 8:01

.........   proof you once had hair   .........

John Bamford said:

Things were different then I guess, but this was me at ten years old and it certainly wasn't my first knife.

Permalink Reply by John Bamford on January 12, 2018 at 14:25

I did Dale, I had hair, wish I still had that knife as well.

Permalink Reply by J.J. Smith III on January 12, 2018 at 16:11

Can't remember how we handled the issue, with the girls, but basically it was done on an individual basis.  Age, as well as maturity was considered.

Currently, Kaylin (a collector, at 21) has her knives with her, while Karlee (at 18 and not really a collector) has hers in a box.

Permalink Reply by David Mullins on January 13, 2018 at 11:40

   I raised three boys and living out in the country, they naturally always wanted their own knife. It wasn't until I felt they knew enough about them to understand they were by definition dangerous if not handled and treated with respect . Thankfully all three understood and I never had a problem with either of them. Fast forward about thirty five years and my brother told me his grandson had started a knife collection after visiting with me and talking about them. I only see him maybe once every few months because we live pretty far away, and I was so happy that he was starting his own collection so young, I started giving him a knife or two when I did see him . Then one day my brother called and said the kid was in trouble at school. Apparently a bigger kid had been tormenting him for a while until one day he told him if he didn't leave him alone, he would bring a knife to school and cut him! I asked my brother to bring him next time he came over and he did. I sat down  with him and tried to make him understand what knife collecting was all about and what he did was not very smart and  I could see the shame in his face for what he had said. We talked an hour or so and along with his other ,(couldn't see his collection for a month, and grounded another month)...I hope he takes it to heart. He is only ten years old and seems to get it now. I still give him a knife for his growing collection about every couple months, but I do make sure to talk to him every time now about why we collect. He is not allowed to take a knife out without his Dad's permission and I think he is doing well. I just can't be with him as much as I'd like. I know some think I should have stopped encouraging him to keep on collecting, but I don't want to shut a door that can be very good for character in a young guy. I really feel like he understands now.  

FeaturedPermalink Reply by Charles Sample on January 14, 2018 at 14:25

This is an interesting question to me but from a somewhat different perspective.  My children are well into adulthood now but I have a six year old grandson.  I hope to get him interested in knife collecting and someday pass my collection down to him.  Now I realize that his parents are the ones to make the decision when he is ready for his first knife.  But I hope to able to influence that decision.  In a small way I have started to prepare Danny for that.  In my last visit to SMKW a few years ago I bought him a plastic toy Swiss Army knife and gave it to him for a CHRISTmas present.  At the same time I bought one of those Case wooden knife kits.  I haven't given it to him yet but I am thinking it is getting to be time to get it out and he and i try to put it together.  I think Danny will be safety conscious.  The other day UPS delivered a box.  I got my knife out to open it.  My wife called me to do something for her.  I thought I would just be a moment so I placed the knife open on the end table by our couch.  But it took longer than I thought.  When I got back to it my son had closed the knife and Danny very emphatically told me I had left the knife open and I shouldn't do that because it was dangerous.  His mother scolded him for speaking to me that way but I said, no he was right, I shouldn't have left it open.

Someone mentioned a folding knife closing on a finger.  My thinking is that his first knife should be a lockback to make it a little safer until he learns good knife safety.