Leaving to Cambodia/Thailand tomorrow, can I legally bring knives back in my suitcase?

[BladeScout]

Mail it insured.
While mail does get stolen, I trust the mail alot nore than LAX TSA.
I have had everything from laptops to professional equipment to clothing stolen by LAX employees.
There is no recourse.
Due to my former career, I have a ton of experience with their insanity.
YMMV.

I was just giving honest advice based on actual experience.

Got ya.
I travel a lot and have not had anything stolen from a suitcase in an airport through the years (yet) though of course plenty of others have (I dont deny that problem).
But then I take precautions and would never pack a laptop in my checked luggage. Electronics goes in my carry-on. Easily stolen folders are secured with a (non-TSA) lock and cable through the hole in the blade and are secured inside the checked-in Pelican case itself. Yet another advantage of a Spyderco

 

[Bad Ninja]

Got ya.
I travel a lot and have not had anything stolen from a suitcase in an airport through the years (yet) though of course plenty of others have (I dont deny that problem).
But then I take precautions and would never pack a laptop in my checked luggage. Electronics goes in my carry-on. Easily stolen folders are secured with a (non-TSA) lock and cable through the hole in the blade and are secured inside the checked-in Pelican case itself. Yet another advantage of a Spyderco

I don't think the OP is bringing a Spyderco folder back from Cambodia/Thailand.

 

[BladeScout]

I don't think the OP is bringing a Spyderco folder back from Cambodia/Thailand.

Im aware of that. You missed my point. Read the post slowly again.
Now that I have you, please also address the legal point, I raised in my earlier post. You seem to have missed that as well.

Seems to me, you are confusing the lawful possession of a blade as opposed to somebody flaunting a knifee on the streets of LA. AFAIK the latter was never the question.
The OP certainly never mentioned, that he would carry the blade around in public in LA.
One would think, this would be a simple matter of checking ones local laws:
- Am I legally allowed to own the blade in question and keep it in my house or my property? If yes, go ahead.

 

[Bad Ninja]

Im aware of that. You missed my point. Read the post slowly again.
Now that I have you, please also address the legal point, I raised in my earlier post. You seem to have missed that as well.

Lighten up Francis.

LA County frowns on all knives.

LAX TSA are not the most educated or honest people.
I would recommend spending a few dollars to mail the knife, rather than gamble on rolling through LAX with a large fixed blade in my gear.
It would be the wiser, less costly choice in my opinion.
I choose not to invite the man into my life if possible.

But you do you.

 

[Yonose]

I think you’ll be fine as long as there aren’t any drugs in your suitcase—I’ve heard of death penalty in some southeast Asia countries for hash or marijuana.

 

[BladeScout]

Lighten up Francis.

LA County frowns on all knives.

LAX TSA are not the most educated or honest people.
I would recommend spending a few dollars to mail the knife, rather than gamble on rolling through LAX with a large fixed blade in my gear.
It would be the wiser, less costly choice in my opinion.
I choose not to invite the man into my life if possible.

But you do you.

As for theft, the point was that one has to take precautions. Anything can be stolen but you can go a ways to prevent theft (like not placing your laptop in the checked luggage). The OPs blade can also be secured to the inside of the right suitcase but the problem of theft is more often with small easily concealable knives like for example folders. A large fixed blade knife or sword is less likely to be stolen, as an airport thief cant easily conceal it one his body.

I notice you still skirt the issue of whether its legal to own the blade in question and if yes, why would it pose any problem. But then as the blade most likely wont cause any problems, this wouldnt tie in well with your mini-rant/political agenda.

I dont know how you lighten up a Francis but with that comment, Im out of this thread.

Bye, Felicia*

*Movie quote. Im not inferring, that Bad Ninja is gender confused.

 

[Bow Commander]

How long will you be in Siem Reap? My wife did mission work there for a few years. I proposed to her at a secluded temple at Angkor Wat. Can’t wait to go back, beautiful country.

 

[Sidehill Gouger]

Mail it insured.
While mail does get stolen, I trust the mail alot nore than LAX TSA.
I have had everything from laptops to professional equipment to clothing stolen by LAX employees.
There is no recourse.
Due to my former career, I have a ton of experience with their insanity.
YMMV.

I was just giving honest advice based on actual experience.

I think the question is mailing/shipping back the items from Thailand or Cambodia. Have you ever tried to mail packages from a third world country? I have. There is a long list a problems involved with that and even when the item makes it through their systems it can take months to arrive. I have a friend in Thailand I have shipped gifts to. He never wants me to try as he does not trust their postal system at all!

 

[Bow Commander]

I think the question is mailing/shipping back the items from Thailand or Cambodia. Have you ever tried to mail packages from a third world country? I have. There is a long list a problems involved with that and even when the item makes it through their systems it can take months to arrive. I have a friend in Thailand I have shipped gifts to. He never wants me to try as he does not trust their postal system at all!

Same here. Whenever we shipped to or from Cambodia, we pretty much crossed our fingers and prayed it'd show up. Lots of corruption and theft.

 

[marchone]

I traveled internationally for decades with my work knives in a leather roll. The longest knife had a 10" blade/16" Overall. FWIW, I packed the knife roll in a vacuum bag in either direction whenever I could. I have no idea if that ever made a difference to X-ray screeners but it always got through both ends. It always went into checked baggage.

I have no personal experience doing this in or out of Thailand. I have in Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia and Japan. Europe and the Caribbean also presented no issues. Again both directions of travel to and from the USA.

I would heed the warning about China. They definitely play by their own rules. Last time I went through Hong Kong Airport Customs confiscated a bottle of Champagne from me on the jetway prior to boarding. I just bought it at Duty Free in a secure area.

Unless you ship DSL (expensive), a slow boat from SE Asia may takes months, or not at all. I have had both experiences.

YMMV.

 

[ErocSD]

How long will you be in Siem Reap? My wife did mission work there for a few years. I proposed to her at a secluded temple at Angkor Wat. Can’t wait to go back, beautiful country.

Cambodia for 4 days then Thailand for couple weeks .I'm really excited to see the temples.

 

[ErocSD]

I think the question is mailing/shipping back the items from Thailand or Cambodia. Have you ever tried to mail packages from a third world country? I have. There is a long list a problems involved with that and even when the item makes it through their systems it can take months to arrive. I have a friend in Thailand I have shipped gifts to. He never wants me to try as he does not trust their postal system at all!

Same here. Whenever we shipped to or from Cambodia, we pretty much crossed our fingers and prayed it'd show up. Lots of corruption and theft.

That makes me very apprehensive to mail it. I guess I never considered another country postal system being worse than America's... Ours is pretty bad but at least we can usually trust them I guess. Looks like I'll be packing it in my checked baggage then. Connecting flight is in Taipei Taiwan so I should be good in regards to Chinese laws. Thanks for all the input .

 

[A.L.]

Try to enjoy the trip instead of hunting for more stuff.

 

[USMCPOP]

Bon Voyage! 40 years ago I worked for a year with the U.S. refugee resettlement program in Thailand. Mostly worked with Hmong hilltribe people from Laos, but did some interviewing with Cambodians. I have a Cambodian buddy here who had to flee. Very sad. Next extended trip I hope to visit Cambodia and Vietnam.

 

[Bow Commander]

Cambodia for 4 days then Thailand for couple weeks .I'm really excited to see the temples.

They are unlike anything you'll see elsewhere. Have your camera ready, and soak in everything the temples have to offer. Watch out for "happy" food. Unless you're into that

 

[ErocSD]

Try to enjoy the trip instead of hunting for more stuff.

I will definitely enjoy the trip, I don't plan on taking any special detours to get a knife. My wife wants to hit the markets in Phuket and Bangkok, so I was only asking for that purpose. If I see a Dah that I want to take home, I don't want to get thrown in jail. But it would be cool to have a keepsake to memorialize my trip. I'm also gonna keep my eyes out for the whiskey with a Cobra in it. I'll grab as a few to keep on the mantle. Habusaki I think it's called.

 

[lambertiana]

I don't know if the airport screeners in Cambodia will have a problem. They will not screen your bags upon reentry to the US, aside from a customs inspection. And even the customs inspection does not usually involve opening the bags unless you are bringing certain food or plant items into the US and declare them on the customs forms.

I have brought more than one knife home from the Philippines, including a large bolo. In Manila they asked about it when it showed up on the X-ray, but didn't have a problem with me taking it in checked bags. I always come back through SFO, and no problems there, either. LA may have restrictive laws, but if you are only passing through the airport and it is in your checked bags they will not be any problem for you. They only enforce the laws on the streets. If you are driving home from LAX, put the knives in your trunk and everything should be fine. Just don't walk around downtown LA with the knives on your person.

 

[USMCPOP]

If you are a bushcrafter or an outdoorsman, get your self one of the the local cloths that is called Pakama in Thai. Cambodia has them as well, and patterns vary widely. It's a strip of cloth maybe 3 ft wide +/- 1 ft and about 6 feet long. Used somewhat like an Arab shemaugh. Very useful and cheap, though a nice hand-loomed one or made from silk can be a bit more $. See post #108 here: https://bushcraftusa.com/forum/threads/the-haversack-useful-or-hyped.242042/page-3#post-4237526

I met my future wife in a market in Thailand about 42 years ago. Her sister sold clothing. We chatted and I didn't need clothes but asked about a homemade pakama. They had one and I met them a couple days later at a festival to get it. The rest is history. My wife is in Thailand now and will be bringing me about three new hand-loomed cotton pakamas in April.

I have one that is a Cambodian pattern.

 

[another-bill]

I've brought back quite a few swords and such from Indonesia with no problems, except once.
Around 1995 we had flown into Hong Kong from Jakarta and stayed up the entire night. Hong Kong is fun.
Got to the airport the next morning, still drunk, and the customs guy kept looking back at us.
It was me, I had forgotten a sword in my carry on, lol.
No big deal back then, they fashioned a box of cardboard for it and off it went to checked baggage for the flight to LAX.

 

[Mecha]

Get a nice big dha and bring it home in your checked luggage, I say. The best, nicest dha you find. Lock it to the interior of your bag somehow so it can't get easily snatched out without a struggle.