I think this custom goes back to the days of duels and the rules of honour/chivalry and such.

To offer someone a weapon was an invitation to single combat (or perhaps the full entourage, including seconds, etc.).

However, if money was exchanged, in the slightest amount, the exchange of weapons was a sale, a transaction, and not a challenge.

It was wise in those days to be clear about such things. Perhaps it still is. :-)

Hi dougwalkabout,

I am always impressed by what you learn on the ETS Forum!

Thanks,

Mike

The receiver is supposed to give a coin to the giver, but I find the custom is easier if I give them a coin with the knife and they give the coin back to me.

I just had a knife returned to me that I thought I lost about 20 years ago. My friend found it while going through some stuff in his basement. I must have left it at his house because I didnt loan it out, but I'd loan my knife to him any day.

Hi el_diablo,

It sure feels great when you find something that you have given up as lost for ever. With my current state of dis-organization I get that feeling too frequently.

Mike

(In the interests of honesty and full disclosure, I should mention that I can't definitively prove my explanation of the "knife and coin" tradition. I could swear I read this somewhere, and it makes sense, but I can't provide a link or source to back it up ... yet. So take it with a grain of salt. Cheers, all. D.)

My mother is very superstitious and won't give or receive a knife or pair of scissors without exchanging a penny at the same time.

Recently spotted signature: "If you can't afford to buy it then you can't afford to borrow it."

Great thread!

funny...all my loaners have broken tips. all the knives i depend on for preparedness are in great shape.