I recently started taking an interest in living a healthier "outdoor" life style, which is to say... camping and hiking. And the first thing I thought about, was buying a lovely knife for various purposes (such as cooking and carving).

And I'm eyeing up a beautiful American knife (http://www.banditsbuckknives.com/site/1286725/product/BK119BR ) and I suddenly start getting worried that if I get this knife, I'll never be able to use it, because of the British knife laws.

I don't know much about British knife law, so I was wondering if anyone could help me out here?

Nothing over 3 inches can be carried on your person. Might apply to bags or other luggage as well if you dont have a valid reason to be acarrying it. However, you could probably get away with it if it was carried as part of a fishing kit or kept in your rucksack with a bunch of other outdoorsy tools, tent etc

English people cant carry knives??? Interesting.

We have our rapier wit.

jacodemon:
We have our rapier wit.

I laughed.

And I don't know what i would do without my knife day to day! i use it for everything from feeding babies to defeating terrorists, from putting on condoms to walking the dog. The Knife is my best friend! It tells me to do things, and sometimes i do.

In Canada the max you're allowed to carry without a permit is 3 inches, I don't know how it is in England. I tend to carry a Swiss Army Knife and a Multi Tool on me though, they're very useful and make me feel like a handyman.

So why 3 inches then? What's the logic there?

Anything bigger than three inches is clearly just a weapon. Pretty sure the law is the same in the States.

Najos:
Anything bigger than three inches is clearly just a weapon. Pretty sure the law is the same in the States.

So the theory is you can't ban all knives, but you can ban the ones bigger than is necessary to cut stuff?

Me and Gordon just carry crowbars, what now?

jacodemon:

Najos:
Anything bigger than three inches is clearly just a weapon. Pretty sure the law is the same in the States.

So the theory is you can't ban all knives, but you can ban the ones bigger than is necessary to cut stuff?

Pretty much. For stuff like camping and hiking, 3 inches is all you'll ever need.

I'm not sure about England, but in the U.S. knives aren't banned at all. You just can't conceal anything bigger than three inches. I'm pretty sure you could carry a sword if you wanted, so long as everyone can see it. Gonna look that up, though...not sure.

Edit: Looked up some info and apparently the US laws vary wildly by State. Some allow 4 inch blades, some 2, etc, etc. England, apparently, allows anything up to 3 inches so long as it folds.

Najos:
Anything bigger than three inches is clearly just a weapon.

Must...not...quote...out...of context...agh, too late. I can't help myself.

Najos:
I'm not sure about England, but in the U.S. knives aren't banned at all. You just can't conceal anything bigger than three inches. I'm pretty sure you could carry a sword if you wanted, so long as everyone can see it. Gonna look that up, though...not sure.

Yeah, we don't have any knife laws that I know of. Just don't go about threatening passers-by with it and there's really nothing they can do about it. As long as you have a concealed weapons permit, you can carry whatever you want provided it remains hidden on your person.

where i am, it can't be longer that 4 fingers (as in if the hilt is on the pinky, the point can't pass the index). and it can't be a gravity knife (if you can flick it open, it's illegal)
3 ways around this:
carry blunt melee weapons instead of edged melee weapons. (bar or pipe, for example0
if you get stopped, make sure you hand it to the fattest cop there for inspection. (bigger fingers)
or keep a sizable amount of powdered drywall on it, and say it's for work.

One of the le'suck things about Canada... The knife laws used to allow 6 inches. You can barely please a woman with six inches, at three inches, you are not a man... Sorry, got sidetracked there.

British knife law is complicated because in london we have had a huge outbreak in knife crime. It's top of the politcal rant. But heres what you want to know. British knife law prohibits you from carrying any knife longer than 3 inches or which can be folded back and then locks in place like a switchblade.(note swiss army knives don't count as they don't lock properly.) british police are really good at seeing you as an indivdual so as long as it doesn't look like your not concealing it somewhere it can be easily removed then they will understand or at worst you'll get your knife confiscated.

this probably goes back to what i used to carry under my trucks seat for "protection".... sort of.
a machete. boo ya (about 16" blade)

Yeah, I just realized my knife is illegal. I've been carrying the same one for about...7 years now and across three states. Not only is it a gravity knife, but it is 3 and 1/2 inches. Then again, I also carry a Glock (legally, of course!)...so I guess the knife really doesn't matter.

What about chainsaws?

Without my chainsaw, I have no idea how I'd cut up all these corpses.

British knife law is complicated because in london we have had a huge outbreak in knife crime. It's top of the politcal rant. But heres what you want to know. British knife law prohibits you from carrying any knife longer than 3 inches or which can be folded back and then locks in place like a switchblade.(note swiss army knives don't count as they don't lock properly.) british police are really good at seeing you as an indivdual so as long as it doesn't look like your not concealing it somewhere it can be easily removed then they will understand or at worst you'll get your knife confiscated.

so what if someone was to bring a 3-inch paring knife to school? legal length, no folding.

Pretty sure weapons of any type are illegal in schools.

Najos:
Pretty sure weapons of any type are illegal in schools.

HARHARHAR tell that to the wannabe 'gangstas' i went to high school with. they had lockblades. i had steel knuckles, lock blades, and a 1.5ft bar i took off a weight machine.
....what? a guy's gotta defend himself...

Lichenthrope:
British knife law is complicated because in london we have had a huge outbreak in knife crime. It's top of the politcal rant. But heres what you want to know. British knife law prohibits you from carrying any knife longer than 3 inches or which can be folded back and then locks in place like a switchblade.(note swiss army knives don't count as they don't lock properly.) british police are really good at seeing you as an indivdual so as long as it doesn't look like your not concealing it somewhere it can be easily removed then they will understand or at worst you'll get your knife confiscated.

Right after they beat you to a bloody pulp with those batons. We've all seen the movies. They do have funny hats though, so its hard to hate them.

The knee jerk reaction to the increase in knife crime is hilarious in a scary way,Ireland is pretty much the same as England rule wise.
As for the 3 inch rule,I'm both a Scuba Diver and Martial Artist,and one of my diving knives which is less that 3 inches in length(and with a blunt tip) is arguably the most lethal,nasty weapons in my collection(due to its serration and unbelievable light-sabre like sharpness ...just goes to show.

Over here, in Sweden, the law states that you are not allowed to carry a knife in a public place unless you have a good reason, for example if you are a construction worker or similar...

we here in good o'l texas have no knife laws, I know many people with swords in their homes and also you can buy 6' filet knives off the shelf of your local walmart for about 2 dollars. not olny that but hunting knives are also legal. I got a 6' hunting knife for my birthday, and no im not a redneck... im azn

crepesack :
we here in good o'l texas have no knife laws, I know many people with swords in their homes and also you can buy 6' filet knives off the shelf of your local walmart for about 2 dollars. not olny that but hunting knives are also legal. I got a 6' hunting knife for my birthday, and no im not a redneck... im azn

azn?? what's that?

In england you can have deadly weapons in your house and you can buy knives for legitimate reasons over the counter as long as you're 18+

wahi:

azn?? what's that?

I believe that term is a shortened version of "asian." You may come to your own conclusions about asians' busy schedules to require such a shortening.

Also, what do British kids use to stab each other at school if they can't have knives? Pencils or something? What sort of barbaric country do you live in?

wahi:

crepesack :
we here in good o'l texas have no knife laws, I know many people with swords in their homes and also you can buy 6' filet knives off the shelf of your local walmart for about 2 dollars. not olny that but hunting knives are also legal. I got a 6' hunting knife for my birthday, and no im not a redneck... im azn

azn?? what's that?

sound it out lol

Well my college has a couple of flame throwers. (not kidding)

Can't really help you on the British Knife laws; you're best bet is to just stop a cop and ask him, and here's why:

"Minnesota - Section 609.66. Dangerous weapons. Subdivision 1.
Acts prohibited. Whoever does any of the following is
guilty of a misdemeanor...

(4) manufactures, transfers, or possesses ... a switch blade knife opening automatically; or

(5) possesses any other dangerous article or substance for the purpose of being used unlawfully as a weapon against another;"

And on and on like that. That's Minnesota knife law (Yes, the internets made it's way to the great frozen north, har har har.) and it's a bitch. What all that mess translates to is basically

1. No folders over three inches ('gravity' knives are lumped in, cause honestly, if you really need that little thumb nubbin after the month it takes to break the thing in, you have no business with a knife anyway.)
2. No automatics (switchblades and the like)
3. No limit on fixed blades in plain sight (This means, yes, your buck knife can be on your belt, and you could carry a sword in plain view if you really wanted to...), oddly enough, there's no real provision for a 'concealed' fixed blade; just go ahead and figure you're going to lose it if you don't tell the cops about it.

Honestly, though, the LEOs are usually pretty cool about it, so long as you're up front and honest...that being said, I'm still sure they'd take my eight inch switchblade if they ever caught me with it...

And with that being said, nobody really seems to know if a balisong is legal or not, though it's prolly just safer to figure not...

Also, that knife you're looking at is the "Scream" knife with a prettier handle; save yourself twenty bucks, and most likely answer your question, by wandering into whatever happens to pass for Wal-Mart over there (and if Wal-Mart IS there, don't tell me, I don't think my poor heart could take it...), because I'm sure a local store wouldn't sell you a knife that's illegal for you to have and mine only cost fifty instead of seventy.

Cripes, I'm long winded today...

</WoT>

One teacher had a pocket knife (allways open) in our school. Trust me, we did homework and never talked in his lessons.

I don't know, I always thought our knife laws should be like "as long as you're psychologically sound and not a criminal, you can own any knife you like, so long as it isn't designed for combat".

But anyway, can anyone tell me how your average copper would react if I had this (http://sababashopping.com/Buck-Special-With-Cocobolo-Handle/M/B0001WASGI.htm ) six inch hunting knife on me?

KungFuMaster:
Can't really help you on the British Knife laws; you're best bet is to just stop a cop and ask him, and here's why:

cops really don't know the law. usually they stop people using their mystical powers of common sense and then figure out the law once they get to their computer.

for example, here in missouri cops give a ticket for merging from a closed lane at the location where the lane ends. this is a typical manuever in most places however in the midwest, most civilians regard this as a "jerk move" and subsequently cops have been ticketing this for awhile. well, one guy not from missouri actually fought it and won the court case.

people here literally merge at the sign that says "MERGE LEFT" even if that sign is a mile away from a lane closure. fucking bizarre