To be horrified at knife in this survival kit

[MissFaversham]

DS (14) goes to Explorers/Cadets etc. and is just about to do his Duke of Edinburgh Bronze.

He was raving about the Bear Grylls "basic" survival kit, so I sent for one.

Well there's a flipping knife in there that is sooo ruddy dangerous! It's nasty looking too and could do more harm than a stanley knife.

This is being sold to kids and in the wrong hands or even the right hands (just childrens) is immensley worrying.

Sorry, don't know how to link (hopefully a skilled MN linker could help me out?)

Take a peek and see what you think?

Have now thrown this in the bin and bought the recommended DofE ROUND topped penknife.

The blade is only 2.22" and it folds

I don't see anyone here handing out grips. So let me be the first.

OP.....Get a grip.

My daughter is 9 and very into outdoorsy stuff. She has been asking for a penknife for a while so we have decided to get her a decent penknife and teach her to use it safely. Kids had penknives all the time in the past.

So he can carry this in London then? Hmmmmm.

Just going over the park to whittle? Hmmm.

As for trusting my son, he's a lovely boy but I ain't naive enough to "trust" a teenager from not "showing off" in front of his friends.

Lentilly, maybe grips should have been in the kit :o

That's a really nice knife.

More money than sense!!

What was that about? It was part of a birthday pressie

But a teenager get get into difficulty "showing off in front of friends" with or without a knife. Wherever there is a tree or a river or a hole or a height, or pretty much anything. I'd rather they had access to all these things as part of learning sensible behaviour around them.

I wouldn't let my son take his knife with him if he was just off to hang out with friends. He has it when he wants to use it for its proper purposes.

If you think he can carry one in London just to go over the park to whittle, you really need to read my post again OP.

Lentilly, how long is the grip and does it fold?

We carried knives when we were much younger than your ds, we stayed in the country a lot and used them to do all sorts, chopping down stinging nettles, making bows and arrows, making spears, (we were very 'tribal' ) tbh the more you keep kids away from these things the more likely they are to hurt themselves as they wont be used to using them safely.

I can't believe you threw it in the bin! I'd have had it!

'Show off to his friends? ' my point exactly, we were so used to having knives that we wouldn't have thought it was anything to show off about!

Sorry, time's up at work for me. Not disappearing etc. will be back later.

Well, obviously you use your judgement about when is an appropriate time to carry the knife. DofE supervised course - yes. Off to the park to dick about with mates - no.

From what you've said you don't really trust him. If he's as silly as you're making him out to be, then fine, dispose of the knife in a sensible manner.

You're a fool to throw a knife in the bin. For goodness sake woman where is your common sense?!

Even if you don't want your DS having it, why mindlessly fill up landfill by throwing it in the bin? You could have kept it for when he was older, or for yourself, or given it to a friend, or sold it. Just chucking it in the bin is irresponsible and ignorant.

Back in the Dark Ages when I was a kid we used to do all these outward bound adventure holidays and EVERYONE had knives! Not dinky little penknives either ... We used while away the hours playing " splits "

No stabbings at all, although one kid did get into frightful hot water for cutting down someone's tree ...

Thanks for that link Worra, have just ordered the knife for my 9yr old DS, for our wild camping trips.

Please don't put knives in the bin. If you really want to dispose of it then take it to your nearest police station to be disposed if safely.

i once saw a 5 year old hacking stuff with a machete in some country unaided. i find it funny that your worried about a toothpick of a knife.

I nearly bought a survival kit for my nephew then I realised it had a wire snare in it, for catching animals (probably illegal to use in this country, definitely cruel, so only justifiable in a RL survival situation, not just when messing about in the woods)

YABU to buy a survival kit and not realise it would have sharp stuff in!

I don't think you have to take knives to the police, DeepPurple. With kitchen knives you can throw them in the bin, if they're securely wrapped. I should think that the same applies to small survival knives, although it is very wasteful.

www.askthe.police.uk/content/Q644.htm?letter=K

I think it's a case of buyer aware, the knife is photographed well enough in pics to have made better judgement before buying, can clearly see the type it is, so on that basis YABU. I don't have a problem with older kids being taught to use survival equipment in a responsible way, but that's not relevant to D of E, it's not a survival exp, it's a hike, they're not needed. Apart from whistle,none of the other things in the kit are required on D of E, would have looked into that before wasting the money...would have returned though, not chucked in bin, bit odd that. The D of E kit list suggests a small pocket knife or basic multi tool, ie gerber type, which is what my dc's took, and is as much as they need...didn't make much use of them if any but had in case. Good idea to research what you buy,loads of info/reviews online and very helpful in stores like Outdoors.

mumble at buttering a grizzly to death

You can't skin a rabbit with a blunt knife. 10yos skin rabbits with the Scouts - your ds will be fine.

I think you've been living in London too long

It's a survival kit.
You bought it.
That knife is perfectly legal.
Your child is 14.
YABU!
GET A GRIP!

It's no dangerous than any other knife, and if it's sharp, so what? A blunt knife is WAY more dangerous than a sharp one.

All he should need to do with a knife anyway is cut the top off his packet of dehydrated food. If you are not happy with him having a knife, then the small pair of scissors that should be in his first aid kit will do just fine.

In fact on googling the pack contents, all he actually needs out of it for the Bronze DofE and Chief Scout's Platinum Awards is the whistle.

Safe use of knives, axes and saws may be part of the Explorer or Cadet unit's programme. Likewise, the other expedition kit such as tents and stoves. Check with the leaders if you're concerned that the young people are being encouraged to purchase kit without having training in their proper use.

Looks back at my own childhood in the country.

Decides NOT to tell OP what my brother and I were allowed to do.