Making a khuk "safe"

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wldmn13

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Apr 13, 2004
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I'd like to give my son a khuk for his 3rd birthday, as he is very interested in the work I do with my khuks and wants very badly to help. I've tried giving him a fake knife, and also the chakma, but he gets frustrated when they don't cut branches and cries.

I've ordered a kagas katne and a bilton, and want to give him whichever one I think fits him the best. Only problem is, I don't want it sharp enough to cut him or anything else. I just want it to look like "Daddy's knives" and actually break a very small branch off if he swings at one.

What's the best way to dull a knife blade without ruining it? I'd like it to be usable as a sharp khuk when he gets older, and hopefully he'll keep it forever and pass it on to his son when the time comes.

Many thanks
 
I think Dan Koster made one as you describe for his son. Hopefully he'll drop by soon.
 
I've never dulled a knife purposefully so can't help. The first thing that comes to my mind, however, is stick it on the grinder and put about 1/16" flat edge on it.
 
Bill has it exaclty right, least, way I used to do it for prop weaponry in theatre(ddn't use cheaper nonedged stuff, as, as we all know, generally cheap crap, 420j2, etc, which takes chance of breaking. So bought good stuff, such as HI, then removed all edges/points on grinder).

Your problem there is that if you did that, then later wanted to try to sharpen it again, you'd face dual problems of a changed bevel, and distinct possibility that putting edge back on would require grinding past hardened section.

So hopefully someone else will have some better suggestion than that which is only one I can give.
 
It'll still have a point on it. If he runs across the room carrying it?

Makes me a little nervous- the idea of a de-dangered blade that is still dangerous.

I suppose it won't be worse than a fork or butter knife if you really dull it.

Yangdu gave my four year old a small khuk when we visited last summer. He's happy just to know he owns it. I've let him carry it in the sheath while hiking, and he thinks that the best- all those tigers and snakes and bears and cougars and stuff that might attack. My Eight year old also recieved a gift from Yangdu, and he is allowed to carry it more often.

Here's a thought- how about one of those silly little tourist models instead? You could grind the thing into a spatula and never look back.

munk
 
I've safed knives before using a grinder and a buffer. I would hate to reactivate any of those blades. You should consider dulling one of the blades--with a wide rounded edge and no point--and reserving the other for future issue as a cutting tool.
 
Three years 0 months seems young for a knife, dull or not. Standard advice is to never underestimate what a kid can do, and never overestimate a kid's common sense. Considering that the downside to a premature gift is physical injury, why not wait until he's older?
 
Taina - Welcome to the Cantina!


Yes - I did give a very-much-dulled Sgt.Karka Bilton to my son when he was 3 yrs old. He has had limited access to it and because of that, now has more patience and care when it comes to knives. I didn't see it as a gift, as much as an opportunity to learn knife safety. The edge is thicker that the back of most butter knives....and the point is rounded. However, it could still very easily be used to bludgeon....so it remains a "special time with Dad" khukuri.

I've let him hold other sharp knives - all my khukuris, in fact. And just the other day, I had him use the Moose knife to help me cut some string.

Like all young children, he is still learning the difference between inside/outside toys....behavior.....etc. So, it'll probably be a while until he "earns the priveledge" of caring for a knife of his own.

I believe in the "V" style of parenting.....those that don't agree with me...I'm ok with that. Basically the premise is that at a young age, you exert great control, and then (like the letter "V") opportunities open up and over time the child earns priviledges, rights, etc. and learns to control them themselves. I know positives/negatives of this system and don't think any system is the best. Just works best for me as a father (and thankfully, my wife and I agree). There are some that believe that a child learns to control himself best by being given privileges early on - practice makes perfect. Again, I see no fault with that. Just doesn't work for me.


To answer your initial technical question.....:o.......just about any power tool attached to some kind of abrasive will work. Use what you've got already. Maybe a drill bit with a sanding wheel? Maybe a dremel? Perhaps just a board with med. grit sandpaper. It will all work. Power tool = faster, that's all. File = easiest, but dangerous.
 
wldmn13 said:
I'd like to give my son a khuk for his 3rd birthday.
Click to expand...
Wldmn what I would do is forget the HI lhuls as they are just too nice to make safe and then try to make usable again.
What I would do is order one of the small, Officer's Khuks from Atlanta Cutlery and make it into a safe knife, but on 2nd thought it may be too big for him even if it's the smallest they make.:(
It is 14" and has a 9-1/2" blade, but by the time you rounded the point and took off the edge it might still work. It weighs 1 pound they are saying. And they sell for $29.95 according to the latest catalog.
The weight it has would help enable him too knock off small branches.:D
 
May I suggest that you let him have an undulled knife, but you watch every move when he wants to cut something?
 
The first thing that comes to my mind, however, is stick it on the grinder and put about 1/16" flat edge on it.

During the 19th century, it was common for police and other gaurd units to carry short swords with blunted (unsharpened) blades. They were used very much like truncheon to control suspects and crowds, and were very effective at delivering bone crushing blows.

I would not bother blunting the edge. Even a blunt knife can be very dangerous. The real question is, whether the youngster is ready for his first knife. If he is then begin to introduce him to the real thing. Show him the proper technique, familiarize him with safety, teach him how to behaive around others, then show him how to sharpen, store, and maintain his knife. You are up against alot of garbage that the kids are picking up through the TV, friends, and video games. Stay with him and make it a positive father and son activity; he can use his knife as much as he wants provided he does so under your supervision, and as long as he follows your instructions.

It sounds like you have a little partner in the making. Keep him safe, and have fun with it.

n2s
 
IMHO and in this case Knives are like guns.

Very enticing to our young, but very dangerous to have.

Rather than child proofing what is ultimately not designed to be child proof perhaps the best course would be knife proofing the child?
 
In this case the khuk might not be the answer. Get yourself a Spyderco FRN* Endura or Delica that you can teach him with, then give him a tiny version of his own, to only be used with you present. I'm sure there's something with a 1" blade that will look similar. You keep it for him, and he has to ask you to use it, then return it to you.

*Fiberglass Reinforced Nylon
 
Reminds me of a line from a Robert Boatman story entitled "Cocked and Locked"...
Texas Ranger Charlie Miller was minding his own business when a concerned citizen came up to him, noted the hammer cocked back on the big 1911 dangling from the Ranger's belt, and asked, "Isn't that dangerous?" Charlie replied, "I wouldn't carry the son-of-a-bitch if it wasn't dangerous.":D

Larry S.
 
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