[winstonsmith]

I found this knife in my brothers room. I don't know if it began it's life as crap or my brother just treated it really badly, but when I found it it was missing the axle the blade spins on (it's a folder obviously). So I take it, fix it up with a trip to my local hardware store (parts were under a buck) and it works pretty well. Best I can expect for a knife with non native parts in it.

There are no brand labels or indications of who made it, but I suspect it's a cheapy 10 buck big5 (big chain sporting good store out here) house brand. It says made in China.

The lock is still in good condition, the only problem is the blade wobbles ever so slightly because the new axle (sorry, don't know the right parts) is slightly undersized. But the next axle size up was too big.

So I sharpened her up real good and now she's sitting right in front of me. It looks like my brother tried to sharpen the top part of the blade where theres that false second edge thing.

So I've got two questions. Morally do I keep her? He wasn't going to use it. It had been sitting there it looked like for at least a week. And he hasn't asked me if I took it yet. He travels in bad neighborhoods, drunk, with the knife on him.

And Safety conciously, do I keep it? Obviously I'm still gonna get that kershaw, and this isn't going to be my carry knife, but is that little blade wobble (like a 1/32nd of a inch.. less even) just too unsafe?

[4v50 Gary]

Pivot pin is the term we use in firearms when talking about round stock that a part rotates around. I'm not sure what the proper terminology the knifemakers use.

BTW, regarding keeping the knife, it's theft - even if the victim is your brother. Better to hide it from him so he doesn't carry it when he's drunk. I suspect your brother is a little older than you and if he decides to get drunk (and what teenager doesn't?), better he gets drunk at the home of a friend whose parents tolerate it (and can supervise). My pop didn't mind if my brother and his friends got drunk at our place. He figured they would anyway and at least this way they wouldn't run afoul of the law or get themselves hurt. He figured right.

You want to be a cop? Well, consider your actions now and how it will reflect on the background investigation later.

[Bruz]

Morally do I keep her?

You already know the answer to that now don't you! Instead show him how you fixed it up for him. Plus, it's a piece of junk, so just wait for your Blackout!

[winstonsmith]

Yeah you guys have a point...

[Alan Smithiee]

sounds like the one I bought from Big 5 2 weeks ago that broke across the pin hole after 3 days use...

but moraly, you didn't pay for it, you don't have the owners permission to have it.

[winstonsmith]

Yeah. I gave it back. Only thing I could do, really. Thanks for the little push in the morally correct direction.

[4v50 Gary]

You could always ask him for it as a gift.

[Bruz]

Yeah. I gave it back. Only thing I could do, really

Good man! Proud of ya...

[Sir Galahad]

Somewhat off topic, but the didactic, PITA grandmother in me HAS to say it:

If a parent allows their childrens' friends to get drunk in their house, it is a crime. It is called "providing alcohol to minors". In some states, it's a felony if the kid gets hurt while under the influence of the alcohol. It may be a felony in some states regardless. Parents who allow their kids to get drunk can expect a visit from Child Protective Services and the police if they go to school bragging about it and the teachers overhear it. While some might see this as an abridgement of parental rights, think how you'd like it if your kid's friends' dad thought it'd be ok to come over to his house to smoke crack. Yeah, we all got a hold of alcohol before we were 21, but our parents weren't putting their seal of approval on it. Anyway, just wanted to take this opportunity to get my nagging in.

[winstonsmith]

I agree with Sir Galahad here. My brother, at 18 is showing signs of alcoholism. Frequent drinking in quantity. And he has negative consequences and doesn't stop. He lives a "punk rock" lifestyle, which means getting drunk and going to rock and roll shows, and getting in to fights. Which is where the knife comes into play.

I'm not gonna play god here, but should someone like that really have a knife?

[hso]

WS,

No, your brother shouldn't - 1 get drunk
2 get in fights
3 have any potentially deadly weapon due to 1 and 2

Binge drinking is unfortunately a common problem with teenagers and college age people. They may grow out of it, they may not. Much depends upon whether they are an addictive type personality or whether they move on from the community that supports such behavior.

Oh, and NO not every teenager gets/got drunk during high school and after. This is the lie, "everyone does it", told by many to rationalize behavior. If 4v50Gary's dad took a "liberal" position that it was better to provide a safe drinking environment for his kids and their friends I expect he was also trying to demystify it and steal the guilty pleasure aspect of drinking while under age (I hope so). I expect he did not get drunk with them and never let his kids see him drunk. (I have provided beer or wine for my son and a friend or two with meals, but would never allow them to drink to excess or see me doing so either. Better that there be no mystery and that they consider drunks to be out of control victems-in-waiting.)

[4v50 Gary]

Sir Galahad brings up a good point. I might also add in Caliph charges of contributing to the delinquincy of a minor can also be tossed in.

My father was aware of both and believed that some form of supervison where they're safety can be insured was better than being out in public or someplace where they could really get hurt. With the exception of two of them, most of my brother friends (and including my brother) today don't drink anymore. They all respect my father who what he did for them.

[Sir Galahad]

I think the problem here is providing a potentially addictive substance to minors, really. I'm no saint and I don't play one on TV. After I got out of the army, I really began drinking and by 1993 was drinking hard every night, missing work because of it, too. I've been sober now since 1998. I thank my Gods and my wife for the support and it's been a hard road and a tough one. Yes, I'm a recovering alcoholic, but I'm not here to preach. I'm just saying that what happened to me can happen to anyone. I may have been more susceptable to alcoholism genetically as my birth mother was one and plus I have Native American ancestry. What I am saying is that there are people out there who can quite easily become alcoholics. You really can't pick them out of a crowd. As such, it's best not to contribute to that by providing alcohol to minors. It's not easy being an alcoholic, trust me on this. It's physically hard, mentally hard, emotionally hard, and humiliating. But I always hope people can learn from what I went through and so I'm willing to share it here now. I can joke around about it now in some ways and have, but just thought I'd bring it up since Winston mentioned alcoholism. The hardest thing is to admit being one. Anyway, your brother may have to hit rock bottom before he can realize he needs help, Winston. All you can do is be there for him when he does.

[Don Gwinn]

You really want advice? Maybe your brother shouldn't have it. But if you take it, and he wants a knife, you know he can replace it in the blink of an eye for next to nothing.

If you use his unfitness as an excuse to take the knife for yourself, you will know what you did. You won't feel good about it. If he shouldn't have it, then throw the thing in the trash. Better yet, undo the repairs you made and put it back where you found it.

Think about it for a moment--you aren't really just trying to keep your brother from having a knife to use in fights, or you could've done nothing. If you hadn't fixed it, there'd be no knife. We've all been there in a situation where you know it's wrong but you also know that nobody's watching. It's not worth it. You did the right thing.

Integrity is what you do when nobody's looking!