Calling all parents!

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jdowell

Joined
Aug 15, 2007
Messages
171
I have a young 12 year old that wants a pocket knife for Christmas.
I would like to give him one, but am having a hard time coming up with
the proper way to go about it. Do I just give him the knife?
Should I hang on to it, and only give it to him when he has a specific task that I can supervise? This is the way I've done it so far, but he has used my knives.
I question if he is responsible enough to handle it. With kids, as any parent knows, you don't often know until you try.

I'm wondering how the parents around here handle this situation.
I would love to here your experiences and ideas.

Thanks!
 
Give it as a gift, and with it a good talk about responsibility, my ten year old son has had a pocket knife since he was 5, which i gave him and my duaghter since she was 6-7, I let them get the style they wanted with some guidance from me on there proper uses and when to use it and when not to use it. I recomend a good slipjoint american made small stockman or mini hunter for a first pocket knife, a sak is good too. anyway trust your kids man, let them have some room to show what they can do, (with in a disciplined and loving structure of course) you'll be surprised.
 
i think 12 is old enough to have a knife. just set some rules such as:

no taking it to school, knife stays at home unless with you, no "playing" with it, etc.

if he breaks the rules, it is taken away.

but you know your son better than anyone here. if you think he is responsible enough then it would be a great gift.
 
my son is 10 and I got him a simple SAK and we had the "talk" and he seems to be responsible about his new ownership..I watch him while he uses it and he cleans it after every use and places it in his sock drawer...LOL
 
My generation all had knives long before we were 12, and so did my boys. (I am younger than dirt.)
 
My son is almost 9. He has a little BM Mini-Griptilian and a SAK. Both knives remain in my consolidated collection. Whenever we go out (under my supervision), he gets them. If he wants to clean or practice shapening (again, under my supervsion), he has access. My only issue is that part of the problem is responsibility. My son isn't too bag, but often loses his shoes:mad:, so I would much rather make sure he doesn't mis-place his knife. He of course understands all the safety rules and that knives will get you in big trouble in school.

The additional benefit is that when he wants to use his knife, you get to spend time with him.

ROCK6
 
12 is plenty old enough to take responsibility of a sharp cutting tool as long he/she understands that it is a tool and not a toy. In my youth, many moons ago, this question would not even be raised. Having a pocket knife around to use was no different than borrowing Dads screw driver, wrench or hammer. If we needed a knife to cut rope to make that old tire swing or whittle a marshmallow stick, we just went to the drawer and got it. I never got bit by the knife, but that old hammer had done a number on my fingers a few times. I would wait until he is around 15 to buy him his first hammer.:)
 
All depends on the kid---I got my first .22(supervised--but it was mine) and knife(unsupervised) when I was 6.

One of my friend's kids who is 6 asked for a knife---I wouldn't let him touch one with a 10ft pole---simply because he doesn't listen and is very impulsive. I can see bad things happening within hours of that kid having a knife.

All depends on the kid.
 
i gave my little brother a small lockback a few days after his ninth birthday, but he grew up with me and my sister , so his maturity level was about that of an average 11-12 year old. his tenth birthday is coming up, and he has yet to cut himself with his knife or when borrowing one of mine.

ultimately, you need to base your decision on if you feel that he is ready for it. think about when you got your first knife. would it have been better to wait a year or two? were you really ready for one a year or two before you got yours? generally, i would say that 12 is a good age to get the first knife. i suggest getting him a real knife, something like a mini trapper or small stockman, as suggested above. you also can't go wrong with a good old victorinox or wenger. i had a vic classic for my first knife, and didn't take it seriously. i cut myself within the first couple of days. if he takes it seriously, everyone will be happier.
 
I speak from experience,

if you dont give it to him, he will buy some cheap crappy knife from someone else, and not telling you

The result is, he thinks you are too strict, and because you dont know he has a knife, you cant give him guidance, and he can go the wrong way with it.
 
I have had three boys go through the same learning process. The key is to teach them the correct way to open, use and close the knife. Get him one that is smooth to operate and well built enough that knife failure won't be what causes him to get hurt. I demonstrated to my boys how "not" to use it as well, and showed them the scars on my fingers from improper use. They haven't created any scars of their own yet. Age doesn't really matter(mine were about 7 and ready) and you will know when his ability has reached the point you are comfortable. I also threw in some basic first aid, which can't come to soon in my opinion. They feel better(read here "they don't panic") when they get hurt, if they know up front that it might happen and how you want them to deal with it.
 
FWIW, I am 39 y.o. and got my first BB gun* at age 8 and my first knife around the same time. He should be responsible enough at age 12. It's a good tool for teaching responsibility, too. I suggest a SAK.



*In my household, airguns were treated with the same respect as firearms. If I did anything stupid with the BB gun like point it at someone, my hide would've been tanned.
 
I got my first knife when I was twelve. I was alsways sensible and took good care of it because it was MINE and I was proud to own it. My parents had no real interest in knives, so I saved up and bought it myself. It's a SAK Huntsman. I still have it, and plan to give it to my daughter some day.
 
Thanks for all of the responses folks!

I grew up without a Dad around. I think my first knife (balisong) was around 11.
I don't remember how I got it, but my Mom didn't know. Remember that movie The Outsiders? When he whips out that "butterfly" knife? That did it for me.
I definately want to do it differently with my kids.
Thanks again for all of the good ideas.
 
jdowell said:
I have a young 12 year old that wants a pocket knife for Christmas.
I would like to give him one, but am having a hard time coming up with
the proper way to go about it. Do I just give him the knife?
Should I hang on to it, and only give it to him when he has a specific task that I can supervise? This is the way I've done it so far, but he has used my knives.
I question if he is responsible enough to handle it. With kids, as any parent knows, you don't often know until you try.

I'm wondering how the parents around here handle this situation.
I would love to here your experiences and ideas.

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Depends on the boy. Some I'd trust at 6. Some not at 60.
If he takes responsibility well, he's probably old enough.
 
I am 16 years old and every Monday night i teach 12 year olds military drill at the local air cadets. I would trust most of them with a sharp knife.

I was given my first knife when i was 9 or 10, I really liked that gift, still have it. It was my dad's old schrade pocket knife. I was looking at it and he told me I could have it-and you know how much kids love gifts. Give him a knife that he will use- and treasure, I have found that good knife skills is a trait that i am glad i know.
 
Keith_H said:
I am 16 years old and every Monday night i teach 12 year olds military drill at the local air cadets. I would trust most of them with a sharp knife.

I was given my first knife when i was 9 or 10, I really liked that gift, still have it. It was my dad's old schrade pocket knife. I was looking at it and he told me I could have it-and you know how much kids love gifts. Give him a knife that he will use- and treasure, I have found that good knife skills is a trait that i am glad i know.
Click to expand...

They might think its for fighting. and Keith, go on MSN! come on!:D
 
My Grandfather gave me my 1st knife, a Case Whittler, when I was around 8 years old. He showed me how to open & close it, how to sharpen it, and told me to always cut away from myself. He also told me not to do anything stupid or irresponsible with it or he would take it back & tan my hide.

Of course as a kid, I did something semi-stupid & got cut. Taught me a valuable lesson right there.
 
It's funny because I'm on the exact opposite end of this discussion. I'm 13 (although most people say I act like a late teenager, very laid back, very conservative) and have been trying to get my parent's to get me a spyderco calypso jr and sharpmaker for Christmas, but my parent's are very liberal and I live in California. My dad does not have apocket knife so I don't have any support from that. I got my first knife, a lockback SAK, at age 11. Then last birthday I got a Leatherman Wave. The reason I want a Calypso jr is because 1) My Leatherman is way heavy for EDC 2) I want a real knife, not a multitool. What arguements can I present to persuade them to get it for me?
 
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