NY State, open or concealed? and best knife to carry within the legal limits?

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jason41987

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May 9, 2012
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hello everyone.. i dont actually live in new york, but im very close to the border and regularly do business within the state... since NY is pretty strict about their handgun permits, i was wondering what would be best to carry that would be NY State friendly?... does new york allow the open carry of more than simple pocket knives or are the laws the same for both concealed and open?..

the impression i got from reading the laws and past cases was that open carry was faily lenient on the dangerous type knives than those same knives being concealed... so i was looking for some clarification... if concealed, it would most likely be carried small of the back under my shirt in the summer, or under my coat in the winter... but if opened is allowed and more lenient id prefer to do that in the summer since i only wear one layer of clothing, and would find securing a knife in my boot to be easier and more comfortable...

so... my first choice would be to open carry if possible, and if open carry really is legally safer for different types of blades, i prefer fixed blades since im not very trusting of folders due to past incidents with them not being nearly as strong.... my guess is a karambit is out of the question.. so something like a kabar would be nice as i prefer the strength and shape of the blade for general purpose use as i spend a lot of time outdoors, the knives i tend to have are more suited for hiking, backpacking, camping, etc....

so.. where do i go from here?
 
NY law technically has no restrictions on concealed or open carry, or blade length for that matter. However, the "dangerous knife" wording is going to apply to any larger knife unless you're actively hiking, hunting etc or going to/from. A trip to town with an 8" Kabar might not go over too well. Generally speaking, a smaller fixed should be OK, but IMHO that means 4" blade or shorter. Any folder with a 4" blade should likewise be OK. Much larger and LE will probably jump to conclusions...
Look around next time you're in NY and see what's ordinary - a cop in Syracuse isn't going to react the same way as a cop in Warsaw to the sight of a larger knife being carried in the open. If you're down along the Southern Tier, open carry of a larger knife might not be a problem - they're mighty uncommon in my experience outside of the Adirondacks or S Tier, where they cause no concern. Elsewhere, open carry of smaller fixed blades is not that uncommon, but still not something you see examples of walking around the super market. There's a big difference between what's legal and what might get you some extra attention from LE. Personally I carry a folder with a pocket clip, or a fixed blade IWB and don't worry about it showing or printing. All my EDC knives are 4" or shorter.
 
And remember, NYC (the five boroughs) is a completely different animal. Read up on it here. No visible clips allowed. No open carry. No flickable knives. And they WILL try to flick that blade open again and again and again until it finally does and then charge you with carrying a gravity knife.
 
so... what about a single-edged boot knife in my boot under the pantleg? the area i travel to is usually in the south western part, rather rural areas.. so the kabar may still work, i use knives such as that quite frequently for a variety of purposes, good utility knoves... so besides that, what would be some recommendations for fixed, and folding knives?
 
jason41987 said:
so... what about a single-edged boot knife in my boot under the pantleg? the area i travel to is usually in the south western part, rather rural areas.. so the kabar may still work, i use knives such as that quite frequently for a variety of purposes, good utility knoves... so besides that, what would be some recommendations for fixed, and folding knives?
Click to expand...

In theory that should work fine for most fixed blades (the boot carry), but the Kabar is a readily recognized "combat" knife that is issued to troops. In reality, I'd be more concerned about the overall length and pattern then where I'm carrying it. Like I said, I'm pretty comfortable carrying a smaller knife with a utilitarian look to it. If I were carrying a larger one I'd want a traditional looking leather sheath etc. Gotta remember, the "dangerous knife" clause is very vague and gives LE wide latitude in interpretation. Circumstances, demeanor and all that are going to come into play. In theory you shouldn't have to defend your choice of carry, it should be obvious to anyone if a given knife is legal or not - but the Penal code IS vaguely worded. For EDU carry I'd feel mighty exposed with that Kabar on my person unless I was actively hiking or going to from some outdoor work/recreation. You could always send an email to the DA's office in a county near where you travel and see what they say. "It depends" is the answer you'll probably get, so use conservative judgement when choosing your EDC. I can't really give too many suggestions as my carry knives are all a bit smaller than your taste at 4" max blade length.
 
Somewhere there used to be a 4" blade length limit but in these days who knows. Carrying a 3 1/2" folder without clips should be OK [that's what I've done for years] First thing is not to do anything stupid. Handguns MUST be concealed if you could get a permit ,out of staters can't..As mentioned NYC is a separate country !!!
 
new bill to fix the definition of "gravity knife"
Attempt #2 of fixing ny knife laws, last time it almost made it and got vetoed by the governor

In the 1950's, amid a widespread fear of knife crime, the legislature
enacted a sweeping ban of switch blades and gravity knives. Decades
later, coinciding with the rise of stop and frisk policing in New York
City, the application of this law spread to any common pocket knife,
resulting in thousands of arrests.

Those who have been arrested include:

Manhattan artist John Copeland, arrested in the East Village after
having been previously assured by officers that his knife was legal. He
was offered an ACD.

Bernard Perez, an electrician who used his knife to strip wire, cut
fruit and clean his fingernails. Perez sued the city for false arrest
and won $57,000.

Carsten Vogel, who was a staunch NYPD supporter until he overheard a
conversation between the officers who arrested him for gravity knife
possession. Their casual references to arrests in pursuit of promotions
made Vogel feel like "a pawn."

Bed-Stuy folk singer and record label owner Christopher Stelling was
arrested for possession of a gravity knife that he used to open boxes in
his home office. Stelling is suing for violations of his 4th and 14th
Amendment rights and litigation is ongoing.

Jonathan Worthley, a sculptor who uses his knife in his work, had his
case dismissed and was awarded $7500 after suing.

Richard Neal, who had prior convictions, served 6 years in prison after
he was stopped for gravity knife possession.

Richard Neal is Black. John Copeland, Carsten Vogel, Christopher Stell-
ing and Jonathan Worthley are all White. At every step in the process of
gravity knife arrests, Black and Hispanic people fare worse than white
people. 86% of all arrests for gravity knife possession are of Black or
Hispanic suspects. 35% of White suspects stopped for a gravity knife are
arrested while 56% of Black or Hispanic suspects are.

Beyond the inequities that are clearly replicated in prosecutions of
gravity knife possession cases, there is a larger question of whether
these knives pose a threat to public safety. A widely reported increase
in slashings in 2016 in New York City, proved to be statistically insig-
nificant natural variation, not the beginning of an uptick in violent
crime. What's more, the only difference between an illegal gravity knife
and a legal fixed-blade knife is a gravity knife's folding mechanism.
The idea that a folding knife is somehow more dangerous than a knife
that doesn't fold is patently absurd. It is clear from the data that
stopping thousands of law-abiding New Yorkers for carrying common pocket
knives cannot contribute to public safety. Rather, these stops distract
officers from doing the work of keeping New York safe while unfairly
pushing New Yorkers with no unlawful intentions into the criminal
justice system.

This bill solves this problem by clarifying that the Legislature's
intent is not to ban pocket knives. Many states have repealed knife
bans, including New Hampshire, Missouri, Alaska, Indiana, Tennessee and
Maine with no accompanying increase in crime. It's time for New York to
join them.

I wish I could write this good
 
Bluesky, I assume you know that the NYS gravity knife issue has been settled years ago now? They have been legal for a few years now.....
 
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