A reminder about letting others use your knife...

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pvtcamo

Member
May 21, 2007
17
0
42
Krapina, Croatia
Hey, all...

... just a reminder for all of us: NEVER let others use your knife!!!

I'm writing this because a few days ago, I was practicing firemaking with a ferro rod. A neighbour's kid came to look what I'm doing. When I made fire, I put the knife on the floor together with the ferro rod. The kid picked up both, and tried to imitate me. Of course he had no clue how to do it, so he used the sharp edge of my Queen Cutlery #89 to strike the rod repeatedly (a LOT of times). When I saw what he's doing it was already too late.

The knife's OK now, I resharpened it, and kissed the boo-boo. :)

Just remember: When your knife is not in your hand it should be in it's sheath (out of anyone's reach).
 

loz.

Settler
Sep 12, 2006
646
3
52
Dublin,Ireland
www.craobhcuigdeag.org
Hey, all...

... just a reminder for all of us: NEVER let others use your knife!!!

I'm writing this because a few days ago, I was practicing firemaking with a ferro rod. A neighbour's kid came to look what I'm doing. When I made fire, I put the knife on the floor together with the ferro rod. The kid picked up both, and tried to imitate me. Of course he had no clue how to do it, so he used the sharp edge of my Queen Cutlery #89 to strike the rod repeatedly (a LOT of times). When I saw what he's doing it was already too late.

The knife's OK now, I resharpened it, and kissed the boo-boo. :)

Just remember: When your knife is not in your hand it should be in it's sheath (out of anyone's reach).

I'd be more concerned you leave knifes around for kids to pickup unsupervised in the first place.
 

Nightwalker

Native
Sep 18, 2006
1,206
2
38
Cornwall, UK.
www.naturalbushcraft.co.uk
I'd be more concerned you leave knifes around for kids to pickup unsupervised in the first place.
Yeah not good practice. Its best to put your knife straight back in its sheath after use, but yes we're all guilty of forgetting that now and again when your busy like bringing an ember to life or something, but with kids around whilst your working the knife should be the utmost concern in your head.
 

C_Claycomb

Moderator staff
Mod
Oct 6, 2003
7,355
2,365
Bedfordshire
I assume the kid didn't get cut? A pity. In your title you say one shouldn't let other people use your knife, but by the sound of it this kid wandered up uninvited, picked up your stuff without permission or instruction, and proceded to trash it. There should be consequences for people that do that, kids or not. At the very least picking up someone else's tools without permission is very rude. :cussing: Losing a finger or two would surely be a salutory lesson in not touching what isn't theirs! :D

Having been brought up to respect other people's property I would not imediately recognise the danger in putting a knife down for a few moments with a youngster looking on.:(

Note added 25/6/07: I was being somewhat facetious. I am not seriously advocating the removal of digits as a method of teaching better manners, but I believe there is something to be said for immediate consequences as a way of cementing a lesson, particularly with young people. It worked with me, getting cut a little and singed made me mindful of what my parents had been trying to tell me.
 

sxmolloy

Full Member
Mar 22, 2006
1,432
20
46
lancashire, north west england
I have to admit I sometimes leave my knife and ferro rod on the ground whilst starting a fire and I have two children (both boys) of my own. I have to admit though, they know better than to help themselves to my tools (bushcraft or otherwise).

May I ask how old the kiddy was? Also did you give him a verbal ear bashing for trashing your knife? :)

Stu
 

firebreather

Settler
Jan 26, 2007
982
0
49
Manchester
same goes for axes...

unless the person you're loaning the sharp to is very good at sharpening and polishing :lmao:

Some people i will lend them to others i wont. I nearly always carry a backup anyway so i lend them that. If they fall into the category of .....hhmmm should I? then they get the backup or told no:nono: . My main knife i will only lend to a very select group of people who are all better at sharpening than me anyway also i know they will either fix or replace it if anything happens. Same goes for all my tools.

Now repeat after me

Use the sheath,
use the sheath,
use the sheath........repeat until manic:lmao:
 

dommyracer

Native
May 26, 2006
1,312
7
46
London
Kids copy stuff. It's how they learn. It's very well saying that they shouldn't be doing it in the first place, but they will.

Leaving a knife lying on the floor when there's a kid about is a bit of a daft thing to do IMO.

Straight back in the sheath.

Then if the kid comes up and he's curious, you can teach him something....
 

giancarlo

Full Member
Oct 5, 2003
769
3
Jersey, Channel Islands
Think it's all happened to us all at least once ( letting someone use your knife / axe then not taking care of it ) :)

Mine was with my Axe, someone used it when I was fishing, came back and looked at it later on... a big ding in it.
When i started asking the others who did it, what i got in reply was "Ahh yeah, your brother used it to chop some wood, but he missed a few times and there was some big sparks"
"SPAAARRRKS!! ? "
Cheers bruvs! ;)

That's why when i go out now, I usually have a 2nd crappy folder with me... when someone wants to borrow "my knife", I hand them that! ;)
 

gregorach

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Sep 15, 2005
3,723
28
50
Edinburgh
Putting a sharp (or any other steel tool) down on the ground is bad practice regardless. I know we've all done it at one time or another, but it's something you try to train yourself not to do. If it's not in your hand, it should be in its sheath.
 

loz.

Settler
Sep 12, 2006
646
3
52
Dublin,Ireland
www.craobhcuigdeag.org
I assume the kid didn't get cut? A pity. In your title you say one shouldn't let other people use your knife, but by the sound of it this kid wandered up uninvited, picked up your stuff without permission or instruction, and proceded to trash it. There should be consequences for people that do that, kids or not. At the very least picking up someone else's tools without permission is very rude. :cussing: Losing a finger or two would surely be a salutory lesson in not touching what isn't theirs! :D

Having been brought up to respect other people's property I would not imediately recognise the danger in putting a knife down for a few moments with a youngster looking on.:(

rather sweeping reply?

What if the child was 2 years, 3, 4 5 ? you'd want the same consequences ? - does 2,3,4,5 year old have such a level of respect and manners you demand ?

cop yourself on.

Loz
 

anthonyyy

Settler
Mar 5, 2005
655
6
ireland
I assume the kid didn't get cut? A pity. In your title you say one shouldn't let other people use your knife, but by the sound of it this kid wandered up uninvited, picked up your stuff without permission or instruction, and proceded to trash it. There should be consequences for people that do that, kids or not. At the very least picking up someone else's tools without permission is very rude. :cussing: Losing a finger or two would surely be a salutory lesson in not touching what isn't theirs! :D

Having been brought up to respect other people's property I would not imediately recognise the danger in putting a knife down for a few moments with a youngster looking on.:(

I do wonder how someone with you attitudes could get to be a moderator.
 

leon-1

Full Member
I do wonder how someone with you attitudes could get to be a moderator.

Meet the man before judging him.

He is possibly one of the politest and most respectful people you will meet, if you then add a good knowledge on things concerned with bushcraft, a good judge of character and someone who is interesting to talk to and you get the basis for a good mod.

He has high standards that he sets for himself, he doesn't expect others to meet them, but does expect some common courtesy.

Off the subject of C_Claycomb.

If the child is 2, 3, 4 years old, where are it's parents, guardians or carers?

Why are they not ensuring that their beloved child is not damaging others peoples property or causing a nuisance. If the child were abducted there would be merry hell about it, but whose fault would it be?
 
I Loaned a friend my knife for last weekend as I was testing a new design, I have known this guy all my life and assumed he knew about knife care , well he hangs around me going on about it enough, anyway as you know it rained very hard on the Friday and we all got soaked , my friend kindly left the knife in the sheath in a soaking wet jacket pocket hanging on a stick outside his tent in the rain over night , this is after I caught him sticking it under ground to cut brambles :( when I found the 01 bladed knife in its sodden sheath and saw the carnage inside I could have ,,, well you know, anyway its back to its former glory now ,,,and the consolation is it did bite him the next day :) , but the moral of the story is no matter who they are they might not give your blade the same respect you would give it so DONT lend it to anyone > .
 

Eric_Methven

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Apr 20, 2005
3,600
42
73
Durham City, County Durham
I've been caught once (and only once) before when someone I trusted completely ruined my knife by using it as a lever to try and split open a log. It wouldn't split so he took a log and whacked it on the side of the blade. The blade snapped right off just above the handle.

He brought it over to me (the handle) and apologised. "I've broke your knife". "Where's the blade?" I asked. "Stuck in a big branch" he said. When I found out how he'd broken it, I went apesh1t.

He promised to pay for it so I told him how much it had cost me. "Whaaaat? You paid a hundred and twenty quid for that?" I told him it was hand made to my specs. I waited over a month, and kept reminding him and he eventually paid up. He's never asked to borrow my knife again and I wouldn't lend it even if he did.

He was a bit peed off when someone told him the knife only cost me thirty quid. He asked me why I took a hundred and twenty off him so I told him it was to teach him a lesson and to cover the distress it cost me.

Now if I'm loaning a knife for any reason, it'll be an Opinel No8. an only to someone I know knows how to handle one.

Eric
 

falling rain

Native
Oct 17, 2003
1,737
29
Woodbury Devon
There's only a few people I'd trust with my knife. They're people on here who I have met and know as friends who have a high level of knowledge and know who they are, and wouldn't even ask in the first place.
I met a chap whilst I was camping once and got talking. He seemed to know about outdoorsy stuff if not bushcraft. We got onto knives and I showed him my knife (not lent it to him to use) just passed it to him to have a look. He did study it for a while and then threw it into the ground to see if it would stick in like a kid would do. :eek: the tip got damaged and I felt quite annoyed to put it mildly. I made my excuses and left him a few minutes afterwards feeling quite angry.
I'm happy to say after some work the tip is restored and never would I give my knife to anyone to look at again unless I knew them well.
 

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