Advice On Packing Knives For Air Travel

Funny that this thread got posted today, I was just thinking about this last night since I am going to Hawaii next January. I suppose I will just take something that I will not be too pissed about losing.

Also a great excuse to pick up a little SAK or something from a gift shop while on vacation!

It's really too bad there's no completely secure way to take your valuables on an airplane. You'd think with all the new security that they would be, well, secure...
 
Funny thing here too, just before reading this I was telling the story about how a custom made stiletto I bought in france came up missing when I got home from trip a few summers back. They didn't take the WWII replica paratrooper knife from Bastogne though!

I would suggest locking them up in a small gun case and treat them like a firearm.

-K
 
I usually use spacebags to pack my cloth...so I'd put the knife (in the box) inside layers of cloth, and seal it all inside the spacebag. Lets see the ground crew try to take out a whole spacebag full of cloth... :D
 
Living in Malaysia it's almost unavoidable (check-in luggage being plundered) to the point that some people write letters with money (put inside the bags) to tell the handling staff or whoever to spare important or prized items and "here, take this money instead of my cherished possesions!". Gotten pretty laughable lately...

I have never got anything stolen in my high risk situation, I use super hard shell luggage bags with multiple solid locks every time. At least 2 locks a side giving me 6 in total (3 sides). Too much work for the scumbags. I advise you guys to travel with tough bags with good, multiple locks and only then carry your blades...
 
I travel frequently with knives, not expensive ones though, but I have never had one stolen. I have however had other things stolen, on several occasions. I would recomend shilling it w/ insurance, if possible.
 
I believe that you can declare excess value (above the airline standard loss figure). The airlines don't advertise this of course. You may have to fight to get it. Keep a picture record of your valuables and follow the other suggestions here. The TSA is no longer the pack of thieves they were at the beginning, but I still don't trust them. NEVER put any other valuables in checked luggage.
 
From the Shomer-tec catalog......

The "Brief Safe" is an innovative diversion safe that can secure your cash, documents, and other small valuables from inquisitive eyes and thieving hands, both at home and when you're traveling. Items can be hidden right under their noses with these specially-designed briefs which contain a fly-accessed 4" x 10" secret compartment with Velcro closure and "special markings" on the lower rear portion. Leave the "Brief Safe" in plain view in your laundry basket or washing machine at home, or in your suitcase in a hotel room - even the most hardened burgler or most curious snoop will "skid" to a screeching halt as soon as they see them. (Wouldn't you?) Made in USA. One size. Color: white (and brown).

To add realistic smell, check out "Doo Drops".
 
I travel all the time and I stick them in the pockets of cargo pants all buttoned up and folded up at the bottom of my bag or I take a few pair of old socks and underwear(not dirty) and wrap up my knives in them and stick them in a plastic bag so it looks like dirty clothes...and you have extra socks and drawes.
It works great only lost one knife on my way to Afghanistan via India, many many flights ago.
 
I zip-tied all my knives to the inside of my luggage last time I flew. This makes it very difficult to steal for all but the most dedicated thief. Also I tucked the knives away so they couldn't be seen at first glance. I kept a very small folder hidden away in my toiletries so I could cut the others free.
 
When I went to Katrina I just threw my SRK, a Leatherman, and a Buck folder in the duffle bag with my clothes and checked it all through with no problem. Same thing coming home that October after Rita. Everything was still there.
 
I put my folders in the pocket of my oldest pair of jeans and leave them way on the bottom. No one would bother unpacking all of my junk and repacking it to get at one knife.
 
2) Use an approved TSA luggage lock on the zipper of your bag.

The last 4 times I've traveled (all in the last 6 months), 3 of those times my TSA lock was tripped (has red/green indicator) and there was no check slip in the bag (required by law).

I'd ship the knife to yourself with that much value.
 
Get a plastic jar of peanut butter. Open it up. Submerge the Sebenza in the peanut butter until it is out of sight. Put the lid back on the jar. Put the jar in your suitcase.

Don't forget to wrap the knife in plastic first. Actually, a coffee can would be less messy.
 
Why not mail it to yourself, c/o the postmaster at your destination? This is done all the time with food/equipment at stops along the Appalachian Trail by through-hikers. Plus, you can have it insured.
 
This has been an interesting thread. The TSA could cut out the theft by various measures but they choose not to. If UPS, FedX, and even USPS can virtually guarantee that your knife will not be stolen while being shipped, why not TSA and the airlines?

And if we cannot trust them to not steal a $500 folder, how can we trust them not to take a bribe from a terrorist? I avoid flying these days whenever possible.
 
There were a couple of suggestions above about either cable-locking a knife to the suitcase frame or using a zip tie for the same purpose. These seem like excellent ways to at least discourage casual theft. However, it has been publicized that the TSA inspectors will cut locks off of suitcases if they are not the TSA-approved lock type. That would imply that they have access to cutters that would make short work of the zip tie and probably also any cable lock thin enough to fit in a knife. Or maybe the theft problem is more among the ramp workers than TSA? Anybody have any thoughts on this? Should that rule out the cable lock idea?
 
Get a plastic jar of peanut butter. Open it up. Submerge the Sebenza in the peanut butter until it is out of sight. Put the lid back on the jar. Put the jar in your suitcase.

Don't forget to wrap the knife in plastic first. Actually, a coffee can would be less messy.

I'm sorry, but that is just a horrible idea. Besides being the oldest trick in the book, they'll probably assume you've got some kinda drugs in there as soon as they see a baggie sticking out the top of a pnut butter jar.
 
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