Much thanks to all for the advise !
I'm just starting my experiment , really , but I've made some progress to date . I started by throwing two of my Cold Steel Carbon V fixed blades from the 80's . A "SRK" and a "Recon Tanto" . I was confident that it would be hard to damage them much . I did blunt the cutting edges before throwing , for my safety . I used an old raggedy piece of scrap plywood that I attached to a woodshed . It is fastened only at the top , so that it hangs free . This arrangement makes it more energy absorbing to reduce bouncing back of the thrown knives . It's important because I'm throwing at very close range . Just ~3 to 6 feet , for now .
I did OK with the above , but I really wanted to try throwing a knife I might actually carry . For me that means a very large folder , a Cold Steel XL Clip Point Voyager ( the old AUS-8).
To limit both damage to the knife and bounce back , I padded my plywood target with ~10 layers of heavy cardboard . Works great ! So far , no damage to the Voyager or me .
I did entirely miss my target once .
The Voyager stuck hard right into the grain of a well seasoned piece of oak firewood that's stacked in the woodshed . It was difficult to extract the knife
. Luckily , no damage .
For further safety , I throw at an angle, obliquely, standing to the side - rather than straight on to the target . So that ricochets will more likely be directed away .
Still , I don't recommend any of the above to anyone
. The risk of serious injury to both the knife and thrower is substantial
. But for me it's great fun !