How to properly dispose of broken or old blades???

T

TKM

Joined
Nov 3, 2010
Messages
252
Hi!!!

As weird as it may seem to some people, when one of my knives (wether it is a kitchen knife, a folder or a fixed blade) is pretty beaten up, I usually disassemble the components and get rid of the blade.

I don't try to fix it, because, for one, I don't have the right tools, but most important, I've had a couple of those home-fixed knives fail on me leaving some serious injuries.

So, how do I properly dispose of the blade? How do I "prepare it" before putting it into my local metal recycling container to avoid the people working there getting hurt?

I've tried hammering on the edge and the wrapping it with cardboard and tape, should that be enough?
 
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Thanks guys, guess I've been forgetting to dull the point. I'm gonna pay attention to that.
 
Or you could pick up some files are try your hand at making a useful blade out of them again. Its quite fun.
 
i wouldnt mind taking them off your hands lol but if you want to grind them up a bit i would just do what youve been doing and blunt the tip
 
Any knife I'd want to be rid of I'd just chuck it in the garbage, it'd be dull anyway. They get all kinds of stuff at the dump, let them fend for themselves.
Have they ever sent back something you accidently threw away?
 
I just got rid of some cheap kitchen knives we've had for years. Ran a file over the edge and tip 'til they were very dull and put them in the trash.

After taking my pick-up on many dump runs to get rid of junk from the house, I appreciate not running over something sharp in the landfill.
 
I use old knives for various jobs like as a scraper and for applying tar.

They make for good single use pry bars, or as wedges when jammed into the end of the axe handle and then snapped off.

Tent stakes

Digging tool

Make shift chisles.
 
I'd be willing to bet, you could collect your throw-aways into a box, and put 'em up on eBay or similar site. Old knives like this would be perfect for a hobbyist/would-be knifemaker to tinker with, to practice grinding/profiling/sharpening. If the blades have decent temper, they could be made into new blades by someone who's interested in such craft.
 
Thanks for the advice guys,

I'm definitely buying a grinder one of these days, I think it's a basic tool if you're into knives.

However, must of the blades I dispose, are really broken beyond repair. To give you an example, I just threw away the blade of my old Leatherman c300 folder, when I bought it, it had a wide, hollw grind, 3.25 inches blade, two years later...wel,l it was just a piece of metal no wider than a pencil and it was just a little longer than 2 inches.

Anyway, I will continue to dull the edge and blunt the tip of my old blades.

Best regards.
 
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