Traveling by Air with a Knife

[Lostification]

I think that is what I will have to do in a few months. :D

[eljay]

I usually bring a SS cricket. I'm sort of hoping it doesn't particularly look like a knife when closed, and that way I at least have something. On a longer trip I'll bring something like a serrated ZDP Delica which is unlikely to need sharpening for a while and put it in with the underwear and hope for the best. So far, so good, but that's more of a once or twice a year thing.

[Bolster]

What would be great for air travel is to disassemble the knife. Store it in pieces around your suitcase. Who wants a bare blade? Or a half of a handle? Or a backspring? Not very useful, or threatening, by themselves.

[WinstonWolf]

I generally (I'll explain this in a minute) put my steel inside a lockable gun case then put a padlock on it. I also put a starter's gun in the same case and declare it at the counter. I have found that Airlines are very diligent about making certain that a declared gun in luggage gets to the owner to the point were I have had airline reps waiting for me at the baggage claim with my bag and wanting to verify that I have the claim ticket for the bag.

I say generally because in more than one occasion I have forgotten my Temperance in my laptop bag and have gone through security with it to find it later when I am inside the airplane. Yes you read that right. This was Post 9/11 and that knife has gone though in my laptop bag at least 4 times that I can remember and never so much as got a "sir could you step aside" from the TSA.

that said - YMMV

WW

[CWO]

I generally (I'll explain this in a minute) put my steel inside a lockable gun case then put a padlock on it. I also put a starter's gun in the same case and declare it at the counter. I have found that Airlines are very diligent about making certain that a declared gun in luggage gets to the owner to the point were I have had airline reps waiting for me at the baggage claim with my bag and wanting to verify that I have the claim ticket for the bag.

Interesting approach. I'll have to file that away for a rainy day.

[SimpleIsGood229]

Simply put, Tony NAILED it!

[Lostification]

I think I'm going to use a small bike lock to attach the spydie hole to the retracting bars of the suitcase. That'll do'er. :D

[The General]

On my first visit to America, I went through two security checks at the Empire State Building and they missed my Leatherman Charge Ti. I forgot it was there.

Its dependent on the person watching the screen.

[ming65]

:spyder: I keep a delica in my shaving kit in my checked luggage. :spyder:

Ditto - except it's Salt 1. Have been all through SE Asia, Oz, S America and Polynesia with that arrangement. The Salt 1 is the perfect balance of useability and disposability.

[FLYcrash]

Yep, airport security, as restrictive as it is, is a total joke for keeping weapons off of planes...

I've forgotten a Swiss Army knife in a backpack that made it through a round trip's worth of handbag X-rays without detection.

Interestingly, the only blade ever found on me by security was at a Greyhound bus station. I had a straight razor in my toiletry bag, and it was found during a hand search of my backpack. I had to check the razor, which cost me $5 because I didn't have a suitcase to check. On the way back, I just got on the bus...there were no security checks at all!

So much for preventing hijacking.

[zenheretic]

I have a far simpler solution: I don't travel by air.

It's been working for me for fifteen years :D

Oh but the steamships to jolly ole England are so painfully slow this time of year... :D


I do the zip tie to the internal luggage frame trick. On my last trip, I took the largest Hossom. Flying out of Vegas, one of the two zipties was "broken". I had a hard time believing the zip tie would just break from flying. :rolleyes:

Don't forget to pack extra zip ties for the return trip!

[Fred Sanford]

If it's a screw construction knife, remove the blade and put only the blade in your suit case. Lock it to the frame of your suit case through the Spyder hole.

Throw the handle in your pocket. It makes for interesting looks etc. when you go through the X-ray checkpoint. Most people don't know what to make of your knife handle with no blade. :D

Why would anyone want just the blade?

Hey.......they brought it on themselves.

[Mr Blonde]

AND THESE YELLOWS AREN'T UGLY!!!!

I agree, but many people (NKP & afi) disagree. :D

I seem to remember an article by a hobby photographer with tips for transporting high-end cameras through airports. Apparently the 'afi' photography crowd is just as finnicky about transporting their gear through airports as we are. His main tip was to declare his expensive cameras as 'guns'; I'm not sure if he just used a gun case or that he declared it as such. The gist was that Airlines really don't want to lose stuff like guns, and he never lost a camera again.

Personally, the tip about disassembling your knife for transport goes too far for me. I think I'd rather invest in an affordable 'travel knife' as opposed to going through the hassle of dis- and reassembly during my vacation or business trip.

My Ti Salsa got some weird looks and repeat scans a few times, when I was present. I explained that I had a small titanium handled pocket knife, and after they recognized the knife shape (I think) it was let through without a hitch.

BTW I worry more about my Surefires going through customs than my pocket knives. I always think that the metallic tube with 'odd' batteries and digital circuitry behind the LED must look mighty suspicious to the average screener.

Wouter

Wouter

[zeus]

Here is a reprint of my post from 4/5/06:

"If you are set on taking a knife in your checked baggage, try to attach it with nylon zip ties to a hard part in your bag. Spyderholes are perfect for this and my suit bag has fixed metal rods for the hangars. Two or three zip ties around the handle and thru the hole should discourge "sticky fingers" at the airport."

This is from a similar post concering overseas travel with a knife:

http://spyderco.com/forums/showthread.p ... ht=baggage

[knarfeng]

I've traveled a fair bit for my company and have never lost any knives. I just make sure they are not out on top when the bag is opened but are buried in my clothing. So if someone were quickly rifling through my bag the knives would not be obvious.

[hoon]

Does anyone is it illegal to bring a knive on board a plane? how bout if we check it in with the luggage so we dont' access it till we get off again? still illegal? or are you guys more worried of some assholes stealing the knives if you check it in?

[Michael Cook]

:spyder: We're talking about checked baggage here. Perfectly legal. :spyder:

[Wharnie]

Second that. Nobody's trying to get a knife into the passenger section, that's highly illegal. We're talking checked baggage only. The main concern is an unethical baggage handler doing a quick unzip-and-grab.