Custom Knives for a 5yo?

[ATwistedStaple]

Ridiculous you say? I think not! Check out my stepson's new custom knives made by yours truly of course. Well, me and Klecker knives. Sourced from Derrick and his folks at Knivesshipfree.com.

I just bought the blue and the glow in the dark kits and swapped the springs and pins between them.

If you're going to make one of these buy some super glue. A bit of glue on the flats of the bottom spring/spacer and over the tops of the pins on both side makes it feel a lot sturdier. Before I did that I was putting the knives back together every 30 minutes. The fit on them is great, but we all know how tough a 5yo boy can be on a toy.

He also has one of the fantastic Buck Bantams with his name etched on it from Derrick's Knives for Kids program. So does my stepdaughter. They stay in my footlocker unless we're outdoors as a family though. They're not quite ready for the full time responsibility of knife ownership I'm afraid.

 

[WK ONE]

Ridiculous you say?

Indeed, I do.

 

[ATwistedStaple]

I think they're a neat way to show your kids how a lockback knife and a folding knife in general works without the possibility of a blade closing on a little finger.

Lord knows my parents had to pony up to a few emergency room bills due to that very accident.

 

[PURPLEDC]

In general I am usually against fake knives such as these. A live blade demands respect and care. I always worry knives that have zero to little threat of injury could promote bad habits as there is no consequence for poor decision making. I simply feel if they are too young for a real knife then they are too young for a knife period.

 

[Jens Schuetz]

In general I am usually against fake knives such as these. A live blade demands respect and care. I always worry knives that have zero to little threat of injury could promote bad habits as there is no consequence for poor decision making. I simply feel if they are too young for a real knife then they are too young for a knife period.

My first knife was a butter knife usually used during breakfast and dinner to spread Butter Marmelade Nutella and some soft sausages.
I don't think I learned bad habits that way.
Point is even fakes or baby knifes can teach or at leat don't harm when parents are around.

 

[PURPLEDC]

My first knife was a butter knife usually used during breakfast and dinner to spread Butter Marmelade Nutella and some soft sausages.
I don't think I learned bad habits that way.
Point is even fakes or baby knifes can teach or at leat don't harm when parents are around.

a butter knife has a sole purpose. Spreading various substances. At least that is all I have used it for. And it doesnt fold or have a sharp tip. I see it less as a knife and more of a spreading utensil like a spatula. To me its like comparing a cup of water to a glass of whisky. They may both be liquid but that is where the similarities end. We will just have to agree to disagree. I was given a knife in first grade. I wanted one as far back as I could hold one. But when it was given to me it had been dulled to the point that it was useless. I still carried it and played with it. And a couple times the blade closed on my finger and there was no consequence to that happening. And children dont think rationally like we do. A child could easily associate that experience with any other knife they come into contact with and underestimate the danger that can come along with it. Those things are fine when used under adult supervision but I think they give a false sense of security and should that same child find a live blade laying around somewhere they may overestimate their ability. These are possibilities. Not certainties. But my daughter and her safety is paramount to me. And Im simply saying its not something I would do. I would rather her know and respect real knives for what they are a dangerous tool. Not a hobby kit toy.

 

[Goosey]

In general I am usually against fake knives such as these. A live blade demands respect and care. I always worry knives that have zero to little threat of injury could promote bad habits as there is no consequence for poor decision making. I simply feel if they are too young for a real knife then they are too young for a knife period.

And toy swords?

 

[asdf12345]

Recurve tantos.. starting them out with the good stuff!

In general I am usually against fake knives such as these. A live blade demands respect and care. I always worry knives that have zero to little threat of injury could promote bad habits as there is no consequence for poor decision making. I simply feel if they are too young for a real knife then they are too young for a knife period.

I agree with this sentiment..

 

[craytab]

I agree with Purpledc. Either real knife or no knife. Knives are not toys. You gain experience from making mistakes. Your kids are going to cut themselves. I am teaching my daughter how to use knives. She is 8. The kitchen is the best place to start. She cut herself on Thanksgiving will prepping some asparagus. She wasn't paying attention and was going too fast. Guess what. She doesn't do that anymore. She pays attention and slows down a bit. She can save me a lot of prep time in the kitchen now. She diced half the veggies for our pizzas last night. She is also learning to use her own knives when we go camping.

Supervision is key when learning how to use a knife. Is this kid going to be supervised while playing with this toy knife? I understand why he may not. After all, it is a toy. But if there is less supervision with this toy than with a real knife, is this kid going to learn anything. The whole idea of a toy knife defeats the intended purpose of learning how to use a knife.

When I was 10 or 11 we were camping with my cousins. My Dad and Uncle were away from camp and my cousin and I were screwing around like usual. I had a SAK for a couple years. I used it a lot for carving and cutting stuff and when we went fishing. This particular day I did a stupid thing as kids have been known to do. I stabbed my SAK into a piece of wood and the blade closed on my pinky. Still have the scar all these years later. And Guess what. I have never stabbed a slip joint into anything since. Lesson learned.

 

[stabman]

I agree with Purpledc. Either real knife or no knife. Knives are not toys.

And I disagree with you both.

My dad made me wooden folders back in the very early 1980s when such things were not on the market.
Later, he gave me real knives...which were ground duller than butter knives.

Later on I got sharp knives, and didn't cut myself in any ways inspired by "fake" or dull knives...I got cut the regular way, like everyone else.

And knives most certainly are toys...just read some of the threads around these parts.

 

[Jens Schuetz]

Yeah. Wouldn't let the little ones train on real pistols /ammo either.

Wherever they can get hurt a mockup can be useful.

Butterknife can teach you not to lick the blade, poke your sisters eye with it or do other acrobatics. Now only because the feedback during a fail wouldn't be a split tongue a lost eye or a severed artery doesn't mean you can't learn from it.
Feedback can be explanations from parents of the consequences. But that requires actual effort from the parents and some prefer to be more hands off/lazy and let them learn the hard way.
Some peeps even go so far to let kids get burned by fire if they are stupid so they know it's hot. Well mine so far didn't touch any electrical plug points, stove or irons without having to make their own negative experiences.
Also have live blades since in my opinion they aren't dangerous as long as I'm guiding them.

 

[PURPLEDC]

And toy swords?

I would say there is a pretty good chance a kid playing with a toy sword isnt going to aspire to be a viking, ninja, or knight of the round table. But I think its perfectly reasonable to assume that someone may graduate to carrying a pocket knife. A sword? Its possible but not likely.

Yeah. Wouldn't let the little ones train on real pistols /ammo either.

Wherever they can get hurt a mockup can be useful.

Butterknife can teach you not to lick the blade, poke your sisters eye with it or do other acrobatics. Now only because the feedback during a fail wouldn't be a split tongue a lost eye or a severed artery doesn't mean you can't learn from it.
Feedback can be explanations from parents of the consequences. But that requires actual effort from the parents and some prefer to be more hands off/lazy and let them learn the hard way.
Some peeps even go so far to let kids get burned by fire if they are stupid so they know it's hot. Well mine so far didn't touch any electrical plug points, stove or irons without having to make their own negative experiences.
Also have live blades since in my opinion they aren't dangerous as long as I'm guiding them.

I have never, ever in my life cut anything with a butter knife. And my butter knives have serrated edges. And they werent cheap. But they never gave me any reason to respect their edge. As for guns i probably again wouldnt let them use a gun period until ready to hande a real firearm. Maybe an airsoft as there is at least pain involved with a mistake of a low powered version. I just see no benefit to having a child train with anything that doesnt operate or can be manipulated like the real thing. Firing a cap gun or even a BB gun isnt going to prepare a child for the recoil of a real weapon. So you might as well have them play with a rock as thats about how many similarities they share. And i dont know about you but I know a lot of kids that "feedback" from their parents on what not to do is what peaks their curiosity to see if its true. YOU may not have kids that disobey. But there are plenty who will. I wouldnt necessarily call consequences as lazy parenting. Id probably say your approach is overly hopeful. Maybe even naive. But thats just me.

 

[The Aflac Duck]

Great...

Now we're arguing over toy knives

 

[Goosey]

I would say there is a pretty good chance a kid playing with a toy sword isnt going to aspire to be a viking, ninja, or knight of the round table. But I think its perfectly reasonable to assume that someone may graduate to carrying a pocket knife. A sword? Its possible but not likely.

Great...

Now we're arguing over toy knives

Next thing you know we'll hear of kids playing with toy guns!

 

[stabman]

Great...

Now we're arguing over toy knives

And we wonder why society at large has problems with real knives...we have folks here that don't want anyone having toy knives!

 

[PURPLEDC]

Next thing you know we'll hear of kids playing with toy guns!

And I dont agree with that either. I dont think that just because someone has the idea to create a toy version of a dangerous object that it automatically makes it a good idea. So if they ever come out with toy crack pipes, toy stripper dolls and Toy nipple clamps I will probably avoid those too. That to me is true lazy parenting. Oh, they made a toy of it, how bad could it be? Well when a kid gets shot and killed because some cop cant tell the difference between his "harmless" toy and the real thing yeah, I call that a problem.

And we wonder why society at large has problems with real knives...we have folks here that don't want anyone having toy knives!

I know you are being funny but you are always using sarcasm so I have to assume you have some belief attached to your post. And to that I also disagree. I dont not want kids to have toys knives because I think they are just as dangerous as the real thing. Which I really believe people have problems with knives and guns because they are dangerous and feel threatented by them. That is precisely why i dont like toy weapons they pose no danger. And I dont feel they command the respect of the real thing and therefore are useless in my eyes. There are plenty of other toys. Just because someones daughter may grow up to be a stripper doesnt mean we install a pole in her room.

 

[WK ONE]

I dont think that just because someone has the idea to create a toy version of a dangerous object that it automatically makes it a good idea. So if they ever come out with toy crack pipes, toy stripper dolls and Toy nipple clamps I will probably avoid those too. That to me is true lazy parenting. Oh, they made a toy of it, how bad could it be? Well when a kid gets shot and killed because some cop cant tell the difference between his "harmless" toy and the real thing yeah, I call that a problem.

Well said.

 

[stabman]

Well when a kid gets shot and killed because some cop cant tell the difference between his "harmless" toy and the real thing yeah, I call that a problem.

Yeah, it means that cop sucks, and should have never had that job.
When I was younger (now I'm 38..."Back when I was a kid...") we all had toy guns...even the girls in the neighbourhood had toy guns.
Cap guns, water guns, they mostly looked real, because that what we wanted as kids.

Yet, a funny happened...or rather didn't happen...cops didn't shoot us.
Because they were able to use this marvelous thing which used to be standard issue; a brain.

Do you also disapprove of toy hammers and saws?
The real versions of those can be dangerous too.

 

[craytab]

And we wonder why society at large has problems with real knives...we have folks here that don't want anyone having toy knives!

If by having you mean playing, you are correct :thumbup:

I would rather they have a real knife than a toy one. Toy knives can't even take out sentry guards.....

 

[WK ONE]

Yeah, it means that cop sucks, and should have never had that job.
...
cops didn't shoot us.
Because they were able to use this marvelous thing which used to be standard issue; a brain.

Unfortunately most cops these days seem to be overly-militarized trigger-happy assholes just waiting for an excuse to use force, which begs the question: Why give them an excuse/opportunity to use force, or even put them in that position by carrying a toy knife?

I'm the same age as you, so I'm sure we've both seen how police have changed over the 3 decades we've existed. They're not what they used to be, it just is what it is.