Knives at college

Cypress said:
I would like to see the actual wording of the rule. If you could copy/paste it here, that'd be helpful.

Once the wording is established, the letter of the law can be obeyed. Plus, it'll give you some armor against RA's and other staff that may not fully understand the rules.

The easiest way to foot the rules, is to know them better than everyone else :)
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This is from the handbook

Weapons
The possession of firearms, ammunition and any weapons including but not limited to knives, martial
arts weapons, guns (including BB, pellet and paintball), police defensive equipment, sling-shots, and
launching devices, and all firearms and other weapons prohibited by M.G.L. 269, Section 10 is
prohibited on campus. This also extends to any projectile objects, gunpowder and other explosives or
potentially dangerous objects. Students found in possession of firearms and/or weapons will be
immediately removed from housing and their status as a student may also be in jeopardy.
 
MAKnifenut said:
...any weapons including but not limited to knives...
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That may break the bank, as it leaves the rule vague and undefined.

I read that rule and pull out this: no knives that are "weapons". Since they don't specify what a weapon is, I refer you to state and local laws. This link shows that a knife is only considered a "weapon" when it is over 3", and more specifically, carried with the intent to harm someone.

Were I you, I'd carry my 480-1 Shoki as it has no pocket clip making it not outwardly visible, and it possesses a blade of less than 3".

A Ka-Bar is a "fighting knife" with a blade exceeding 3", and as such, defies the rules in every way. It is best leave things like that at home, unless you are creative in hiding it.

I am not (your) attorney, and only offer this post as an information dump, not legal advice, and as such, I am expempt from any and all liability incurred from the practice or misuse of the aforementioned information.
 
i think a swiss knofe, a leatherman, and a tactical pen might skirt around the rules. YMMV.
 
My grandkid is at Penn State. Their rules state that "Any knife with a blade larger than that of a folding pocket knife" is defined as a weapon and is not acceptable. Seems reasonable to me.
 
Sonnydaze said:
My grandkid is at Penn State. Their rules state that "Any knife with a blade larger than that of a folding pocket knife" is defined as a weapon and is not acceptable. Seems reasonable to me.
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That seems like it'd allow everything but large choppers. There's some pretty large "folding pocket knives." See: Cold Steel.
 
Will you be attending school in your home state or another state??

The unfortunate thing I see here is that you are from a state where hysteria is rampant. I know this from experience. My suggestion would be a Leatherman (the Juice comes to mind), a simple SAK, and maybe a very small, but decent quality pocket folder like a Ladybug or Manbug by Spyderco with a key ring clip on it. The Old Hickory type kitchen knife would come in handy, but be wary of modifying it or putting it into a sheath. It could then be seen a a "weapon" rather than a "tool".

Being discreet is a must. Not trying to bash your home state, but Mass is known for draconian laws in such areas. No sense in trying to flaunt non compliance of the "rules", just be smart.
 
harlycarly said:
Will you be attending school in your home state or another state??

The unfortunate thing I see here is that you are from a state where hysteria is rampant. I know this from experience. My suggestion would be a Leatherman (the Juice comes to mind), a simple SAK, and maybe a very small, but decent quality pocket folder like a Ladybug or Manbug by Spyderco with a key ring clip on it. The Old Hickory type kitchen knife would come in handy, but be wary of modifying it or putting it into a sheath. It could then be seen a a "weapon" rather than a "tool".

Being discreet is a must. Not trying to bash your home state, but Mass is known for draconian laws in such areas. No sense in trying to flaunt non compliance of the "rules", just be smart.
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Curry College in Milton Mass. It sucks to be going to school in MA but they have an amazing CJ program
 
Bring a SAK. You'll be a very popular guy during parties because of the bottle opener.
 
I spent four years as an undergrad and then two as a graduate student. Trust me when I say there's very little need for a knife while you are in college aside from prepping food at home, and even then most college students don't know how to cook or don't have much money to cook, so food prep won't be a huge concern either. I suggest buying something like a Victorinox Tourist, or a small keychain knife like a Vic Rambler or Rally. You'll want a bottle opener, can opener, and maybe a corkscrew on rare occasions. A small blade will be enough to do anything other than specialized tasks. If you find you need a specialized knife for particular tasks you encounter, go ahead and buy what you need then. I got by with a SAK. The bottle opener saw more use than the blade did.
 
If you're in the position to stop by home once you're set up at college, wait til then to bring em. Give your RA(s) the once-over to see what type of person they are. It's usually pretty easy to spot someone who follows the rules to a T.

I walked into my dorm last year and discovered that it was our day for random room inspections. The RAs were already in there and had seen the small collection on my shelf.

In my head, I'd composed an elaborate lie about who had left those there before I saw that one of them was in the middle of performing a few flips with my Kimura II :D
 
Check your school's code of conduct. Mine, for example, allows the carry of up to 4 inches (folder) and 6 inches (fixed).

I went to class with a spyderco delica clipped in my pocket almost every day for the past two semesters. My last school was not so lenient.

I also carried a SAK Cadet, which in my opinion is the perfect tool for college. It has a blade that wont scare most people and a bottle opener. Emphasis on the bottle opener.
 
If you wanted to be safe don't violate their rules. If it was me, I'd probably leave them at home for the first semester until I got to know my roomie, RA etc. and get a general feel for how people on campus are and around the dorm since you probably interact with them the most. It's also not just your RA, because invariably your RA will be gone etc. and another RA will be working in their stead, and if you get one on a power trip they will ding you for anything. Then if I decided they were all okay with it, I might do it but be very discrete about it. All it takes is one person to see you flip out a knife that makes a fuss about it for things to go bad. These days many colleges have very little tolerance for anything that might even look like a weapon, especially if someone complains. With past incidents I doubt any college is going to take such any weapon/knife/gun etc. complaint/report lightly, if for no other reason than to protect their own liability risk. That said, if you are discrete and responsible with it, it's probably never going to be noticed to be an issue in the first place.

Another option can be a multi-tool, even though it has a blade the sheeple don't seem to be wary/scared of a leatherman etc.
 
I've no college experience, but made it through HS, toting an SAK Recruit, and or an Opinel 06, after being busted for carrying a Spyderco Native III (long, funny story), you'd think I'd have learned my lesson and I did, pocket clips are a no go, in anti-knife establishments. Get a nice traditional slipjoint or SAK, as a treat for making it to college if you haven't already.
 
GDOK said:
If you're in the position to stop by home once you're set up at college, wait til then to bring em. Give your RA(s) the once-over to see what type of person they are. It's usually pretty easy to spot someone who follows the rules to a T.

I walked into my dorm last year and discovered that it was our day for random room inspections. The RAs were already in there and had seen the small collection on my shelf.

In my head, I'd composed an elaborate lie about who had left those there before I saw that one of them was in the middle of performing a few flips with my Kimura II :D
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The RA's i met at orientation seemed pretty chill. I guess i look really sketchy because one asked if i knew where to get a fake lol
 
whetrock said:
I've no college experience, but made it through HS, toting an SAK Recruit, and or an Opinel 06, after being busted for carrying a Spyderco Native III (long, funny story), you'd think I'd have learned my lesson and I did, pocket clips are a no go, in anti-knife establishments. Get a nice traditional slipjoint or SAK, as a treat for making it to college if you haven't already.
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I made it through HS with a spartan in one pocket and a Sak in the other and never got caught lol
 
I went to Texas A&M back in the 70s and if they had knife rules, they forgot to tell anyone. I never had less than 3 and that was my freshman year. By my senior year, I was up to 3-4 bayonets,including an 1872 Chassepot 27" one, about a dozen knives of various types, my Corps of Cadets sword and my US Navy officer's sword. My roomie had nearly as many. Even my sisters carried pocket knives in their jean pockets (or purse if they had no pockets that day).

Times have changed, sometimes for the better. Back then A&M had 16K students with less than 3k females. Now, about 48K w/ 52% female.
 
Assuming that you'll be living in the dorms since you're asking. Stick to the rules. I'm sure when having a knife that can be considered weapons would be considered a felony. At least that's my school. Don't lose sight of the big picture, you're there for school. I carry knives that are considered illegal, but I just let them sit in my pocket. I don't clip on my bigger folders till I get off campus. That may be something you can do, but living on campus is more risky. Blades can be liabilities. When I need a blade on campus, I usually use something small like my small under 3" folders or my SD SAK on my keychain. Don't bring anything that'll draw attention. RAs can just search your room if he/she has any suspect ions of you in possession of something prohibited. So I wouldn't recommend the butcher knife, it's not like you'll be camping in front of your library. With the recent events, things that are considered weapons would put you in unfavorable position. Check up on the exact details on your schools knife policy. If you need a knife for food prep, a SAK would be more than enough or go with a cheap within regulations ceramic knife.
 
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