I'm an occasional lurker here, responded to one post in the past, and I am looking for a little advice.

I was out shopping at Bass Pro with the family tonight and agreed to buy my 9 year old son a new pocket knife. We ended up deciding upon a single blade Gerber lock blade, specifically this one:



http://www.gerbergear.com/index.php/product/id/324

After getting it home though, I am concerned about the operation, especially the stiffness, of the locking mechanism. Does anyone have any experience with kids using this type of knife? Any advice or tips? Can it be safely operated or is it just a poor choice?

Any input is welcomed.

For now, I'm just working the mechanism hoping it becomes a bit easier to use (I've only owned the Linerlock style myself).

Hi Denis, that is a nice looking folder.

OK, have you watched your son opening and closing it?
I have no idea how strong your son's hands are or how stiff the knife really is, but the critical thing is that he opens and closes it safely without getting his fingers in where they can be cut.

I'll second what scafool has to say. See how well your son handles it.

I've owned a few classic lockbacks, but none of them were particularly stiff

I had him try it this morning and he can only get the lock disengaged using his thumb - which means his fingers are in the way of the blade.

However, quite frankly, that's how I was working the mechanism last night trying to loosen it up too. I can do it now with my index finger without anything getting in the way of the blade, but not near as easily. It actually physically hurts a little bit to apply enough pressure to get the thing unlocked.

Maybe this is not the knife for him. As I type, I can see a scar from my trusty Buck 110 that I got around the same age.

I now use lock back knives with the AXIS system like those on the DR RSK MKI. I like the system because it is truly one handed, very strong, and I have yet to cut myself closing the blade. (But the day is not yet over!)

New Benchmade folding knives use this system almost exclusively, so that might say something also.

Bass Pro has a decent return policy, maybe a change is needed, or just accept the risk.

I think we'll likely be returning it and look for something else. It seems like it would be a great little knife if the lock was just easier to operate. Its too bad, it is a good looking knife and seems real solid when open (my boy really loves the look too ... he likes the "old school" look and isn't as much into the more modern looking stuff).

That said, I went with a lock for safety so it doesn't make much sense to have one you can't safely close.

Also, thanks for the tip on the AXIS locks; I hadn't actually read up on them before. I know Bass Pro sells the Mini-Griptilian and, although its a bit pricier than I was originally looking at, it may be worth another look.

The money saved on band-aids will make up for the difference in price. You could always order one of the DR knives and help support the foundation also.

Denis,

Contact the manufaturer and see what they say. this may just be a production flaw.

The axis lock in my opinion is more user frendly.

-Joe

I had the same issue when trying to find a first knife for my son(6). Lockbacks seem like a great idea, except that they all require putting a digit in the way of the closing blade.

I settled on a Case Peanut with a bone stag handle in tequila sunrise (orange). It does not lock, but I've been teaching him proper handling skills and being careful not to demonstrate any bad habits myself.

So far, at four Y-Tribes campouts, I've applied seven band-aids to whittling kids, but none to my son. Teaching the skills and providing supervision as they become second nature seem to be most important.

Not one kid was cut because of the knife inadvertantly closing. Nearly all were in the wood-holding hand. The deepest cut was in opening the knife. An 8 year old got the knife open slightly by pinching the back of the blade, but then tried to open it the rest of the way by placing his fingers on the business side of the blade and sliding it open.

Oh, and the knife is "mine" right now. I plan to gift it to him this Christmas after he has used it for a year as "dad's knife". I hope that he will value it more and be less likely to lose it. I even have some pipe dreams of him passing it along to his kid some day.

I'd take some jewelers rouge to the contact surfaces and work it open and closed a few thousand times. By then it should be smoothed out. Next take some brake cleaner or boiling water and carefully clean away the jewelers rouge. Afterwards, a little grease on the contact surfaces will slick it up.
Or you can just use it for a few years and the same thing will happen