Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Best knife for a 7 year old

Medium Trapper, Sodbuster Jr., or Medium Stockman. From Case or Buck.

need a pair of dingo boots with a pouch for the barlow.

Case makes some nice locking blades with plastic handles, USA made too. Get 1/2 doz because it will get lost.

In my opinion this is an excellent knife. Have had one for decades. Light and easily carried in the pocket or on the belt in the leather sheath that comes with it.

https://www.buckknives.com/product/501-squire-knife/0501RWS-B/

My first knife wa a cheap barlow. Easy to dull but easy to sharpen. After a bit I got knives of better steel including the ubiquitous Boy Scout knife. Once Dad figured that I would take care of a better knife I suppose. It wasn't the knife so much as that Dad thought I could be trusted with one.

In your position i would settle on a Spyderco with a flat ground blade...you may as well get her something that will last and be useful.

My first knife was a Joseph Rogers. I think I was around 8 to 10 yo.

A Case knife

Agree

Two thoughts:

1) Simple, single bladed folder, no lock.
2) Something inexpensive enough that no one is going to be upset if it gets lost.

I started carrying a boy scout knife @ 8. Of course, within 6 months I'd cut myself with it.

Ditto for #2 son and #3 son. They got simple Victorinox Swiss Army Knives

1) The standard Swiss Army Knife is wickedly hard to sharpen. It also has a lot of stuff on it that a kid won't use at first.

2) That Ka-Bar that Joken2 showed is about ideal for a first knife as far as I'm concerned.

3) If the kid is going to hunt something like deer, I'd also get him a Ka-Bar 4062 Folding Hunter for gutting and tell him to keep it in his deer kit.

4) A kid will lose a knife that isn't attached to him. Another reason I liked my boy scout knife and all my other EDC knives is that they had an attachment point (shackle or whatever) so I could put them on a lanyard that went on my belt and stayed on if the knife fell out of my pocket. I kept it the same knife all the way through to adulthood. I've never lost an EDC knife as a result.

That was my first knife and I still have it! Dad bought it for me 45 years ago. Its on its third blade. Its an excellent knife for a kid or anyone.

Another option for the OP could be an Ontario Rat 2. I've heard for years that they are perhaps the best "budget knife" and can be had for around 30 dollars give or take. They are more "modern" in that they have a liner lock, one hand opening, and pocket clip which you can remove.

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Ontario+rat+2&ref=nb_sb_noss

Jon
Is it her first knife ?

If she is responsible ? Sounds like it . I'd get her a pink Dozier for 20 bucks . You can't go wrong with those . Perfect size ,lightweight , take & hold a decent edge . Soft enough to get sharp easily and also good to learn on for actually sharpening If she loses it .no biggie on price tag

I like the idea of a basic Swiss Army knife. Kids like different gadgets on the knife. A Barlow is also a very usualful knife that can start a life long knife user.

Just be careful with the Swiss Army knives, the last two I had were super sharp.

My dad used to get me the little black plastic handled Gerber lock backs. I say lock backs as in plural because I must have lost the first 6-8 pocketknives I ever had. I think I had a couple Imperial slip joints in that timeframe too, the black plastic handled ones. Never recall cutting myself but I sure could lose any little trinket I made a habit of carrying around.

I'm a big fan of the Opinel kids line of knives for a first one. The blunt tip keeps them from accidentally running one into their hand and the locking mechanism is secure and very easy to operate.

https://www.opinel-usa.com/collections/opinel-kids-corner

This.....get him a Victorinox Huntsman.

Scissors, wood saw, corkscrew, big and little blades.....all sorts of tools for a youngster to explore.

Get a sheath....... makes them feel more adult in the wilderness. Not school, though.

Cheap like-new used knives on eBay. Not end of the world if lost.

Barlow.

Barlow has been a great first knife for 150 years.