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I couldn't care less what people think.
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regardless of laws, are you adapting your choice of EDC to public opinion
- Thread starter NetshadeX
- Start date
I have a vic classic on the keychain for lending out and using in front of people. It has the added benefit that most folks dont look at a vic classic and think "hey what can I do to that knife to torture test it/ dull it horribly/ break off the tip". I dont lend out my expensive knives anymore. 
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- Aug 1, 2011
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I tried EDC'ing an Izula ii for a little bit, but I didn't like carrying the fixed blade and I felt that people would get uncomfortable. Same thing with a Benchmade Barrage 580 that I have…when opened, the Barrage has a loud snap and it looks too "automatic" to non-knife folks. I've been EDC'ing my various GEC's and have never looked back. No one gives a second look to my pocket knives (GEC or Vic SAK's) especially the TC Barlows.
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Yes and no. I live in the middle of a large urban area, but I work in the middle of the night, and I don't normally go anywhere where knives are frowned upon (courthouses, schools, etc.), so I carry whatever strikes my fancy on a given day (laws here also allow me to carry basically whatever I want in any manner I choose). I rarely find a situation where I need to whip out whatever knife I'm carrying in public, but on the rare occasion I do, I just try to be as discreet as possible. I AM likely to be more so, however, when I'm carrying an XL Voyager than when I'm carrying a small slip joint. So, you could say I don't let public opinion (or my perception of it) determine what knife/knives I actually carry, but I do let it dictate how and when I use said implements. I do try to be courteous to those around me and don't like to be aggressive, obnoxious, or obvious about the fact that I'm carrying knives. Most of that is tied to my personality, of course. I'm a fairly introverted and shy person in "real" life, so I don't like to draw attention to myself. :thumbup:
I carry what I feel best serves my needs. The laws where I live (San Diego) are very permissive when it comes to knives so I have almost no limit on what I can carry. When choosing a knife, after considering what I need in a knife, and then what the law says, I choose what best suits my personal tastes. What others might think of my knives never figures into the process.
I openly carry a fixed-blade (Wilson Tactical model 25) hanging from my belt wherever I go here in urban San Diego, have done so for many years without issue. I also carry a folder in my pocket (Bradley Alias 1). And to give a more complete picture- I ride a big black motorcycle, wear a ragged black leather MC jacket and ragged black leather MC boots, and I haven't shaved since I was a teenager (I'm 43). If I worried about what others thought of appearances, and lived my life based on their opinions, I imagine I'd be a very different person. But I say to hell with that, because I like who I am.
And although I never consider others when choosing my knives, I do consider others when it comes to using my knives in public. A perfect example is this- I was at Costco (big warehouse type store), and I was sitting outside at a table at their food court. I had purchased an item inside that was sealed in a plastic clam-package. There were several women and children close by. So instead of pulling out a knife and cutting open the package, I waited until I was out in the parking lot and away from the crowd. I wouldn't even describe this as an inconvenience.
And now just for the hell of it, here's a little story of a knife-related experience I had a little ways back- I was out riding one of the more desert-type areas here in San Diego when I pulled into a gas station. Sitting on my bike having a cold drink I heard this loud scraping noise coming up the street. I looked and it was a woman in a mini-van, and there was something big hanging down from behind her front bumper. She pulled into the gas station lot, got out, looked under her van and started becoming upset. I walked up and asked what the problem was. At first she looked at me with a bit of alarm, but I smiled a friendly smile and asked if I could help (there was no one else around in the parking lot).
She proceeded to tell me how she had bottomed-out her van a while ago and the plastic panel that protects the front undercarriage had broken loose. She said a mechanic had rigged it back up, but that it had just come loose a few miles down the road. So I got down on the ground and examined the problem, and came to the conclusion that it was too damaged to reattach it (I always carry zip-ties and wire in my bike). I told her that it looked like the only option was to completely remove the panel (it was still being partially held on by several plastic fasteners). She was completely fine with the idea, she just needed to get back on the road.
I couldn't get enough leverage to break the fasteners loose with my hands (tight squeeze under there) and I didn't want to risk damaging anything under her van, or risk cutting myself, by trying to force it free. So I told her I would cut it free (I told her this in advance specifically so it wouldn't shock her when I pulled my fixed-blade out). She said that she was fine with me cutting it off, so I pulled my knife and used it to pry and cut the fasteners away. The panel came off, went into a garbage dumpster, the woman thanked me, offered me money, I accepted her gratitude but refused the money, we said our goodbyes and she was on her way down the road.
Now I can't help but wonder if she tells this story to people ("A biker with a big knife fixed my van"). And I can't help but wonder if she was thankful that I, and my knife, were both there in her moment of need. I like to think she was. She sure seemed thankful anyways.
I openly carry a fixed-blade (Wilson Tactical model 25) hanging from my belt wherever I go here in urban San Diego, have done so for many years without issue. I also carry a folder in my pocket (Bradley Alias 1). And to give a more complete picture- I ride a big black motorcycle, wear a ragged black leather MC jacket and ragged black leather MC boots, and I haven't shaved since I was a teenager (I'm 43). If I worried about what others thought of appearances, and lived my life based on their opinions, I imagine I'd be a very different person. But I say to hell with that, because I like who I am.
And although I never consider others when choosing my knives, I do consider others when it comes to using my knives in public. A perfect example is this- I was at Costco (big warehouse type store), and I was sitting outside at a table at their food court. I had purchased an item inside that was sealed in a plastic clam-package. There were several women and children close by. So instead of pulling out a knife and cutting open the package, I waited until I was out in the parking lot and away from the crowd. I wouldn't even describe this as an inconvenience.
And now just for the hell of it, here's a little story of a knife-related experience I had a little ways back- I was out riding one of the more desert-type areas here in San Diego when I pulled into a gas station. Sitting on my bike having a cold drink I heard this loud scraping noise coming up the street. I looked and it was a woman in a mini-van, and there was something big hanging down from behind her front bumper. She pulled into the gas station lot, got out, looked under her van and started becoming upset. I walked up and asked what the problem was. At first she looked at me with a bit of alarm, but I smiled a friendly smile and asked if I could help (there was no one else around in the parking lot).
She proceeded to tell me how she had bottomed-out her van a while ago and the plastic panel that protects the front undercarriage had broken loose. She said a mechanic had rigged it back up, but that it had just come loose a few miles down the road. So I got down on the ground and examined the problem, and came to the conclusion that it was too damaged to reattach it (I always carry zip-ties and wire in my bike). I told her that it looked like the only option was to completely remove the panel (it was still being partially held on by several plastic fasteners). She was completely fine with the idea, she just needed to get back on the road.
I couldn't get enough leverage to break the fasteners loose with my hands (tight squeeze under there) and I didn't want to risk damaging anything under her van, or risk cutting myself, by trying to force it free. So I told her I would cut it free (I told her this in advance specifically so it wouldn't shock her when I pulled my fixed-blade out). She said that she was fine with me cutting it off, so I pulled my knife and used it to pry and cut the fasteners away. The panel came off, went into a garbage dumpster, the woman thanked me, offered me money, I accepted her gratitude but refused the money, we said our goodbyes and she was on her way down the road.
Now I can't help but wonder if she tells this story to people ("A biker with a big knife fixed my van"). And I can't help but wonder if she was thankful that I, and my knife, were both there in her moment of need. I like to think she was. She sure seemed thankful anyways.
I've carried a knife as a tool for ordinary daily use for more than the past 50-odd years (except during the day when I was attending public school, where knives were banned). Apart from occasionally cleaning my fingernails in public, most people who did not know me never knew I had a knife in my possession. That's because I was practical and discreet in what I did with my knives when I took them out. When I'd offer the use my blade in service to the request of some other person, it was always appreciated that someone had the needed tool available.
Granted, the majority of those years came and went before tactical knives became popular. Inexpensive 2 and 3 blade Schrade and Buck folders were far more prevalent than any other knife. These are what I usually had with me; and as they tended to get lost on a semi-regular basis, it was just as well.
For quite a few years I carried a Buck 501-C in its pouch on my belt. The 3-1/2" blade was legal where I lived. When the Buck got misplaced during a move, I purchased a SOG gentleman's folder that had a nicely designed spear-point blade. That got dropped onto a concrete floor one day and broke a bit of the tip off. I haven't yet sent it back to have SOG re-point the blade. I found my Buck and went back to that, as it was easier to open than the SOG with the thumb stud.
The internet came along, and I was looking around one day when I spotted an Al Mar Falcon with a 3-1/2" Talon, spear-point, blade. I ordered one and discovered I liked it more than I'd expected I would once it loosened up a bit, and I was able to snap the blade open with one hand as quick as I could my Buck. I also learned to appreciate the pocket clip quite a lot. I liked the knife so much I ordered its bigger brother, an Eagle with a 4" blade, even though the blade was longer than the state where I lived allowed. I didn't intend to carry it. But the heavier blade deployed more securely than the smaller Falcon, and when that smaller knife went "missing" at work one day, I took to carrying the Eagle, anyway. In addition to being a bit handier, the larger knife tended to remind me to avoid unconsciously setting it down and forgetting about it after I'd used it for whatever.
That 4" Al Mar has served as my EDC for the past 5 years. For the 3 years I've lived in Kansas, it's been legal. While I've been aware others might be intimidated by the shape and length of the blade, that's never stopped me from using it when called for. A few days ago I located a dealer who had one of the "HD" versions of this knife with the ZDP blade steel. I ordered that and am looking forward to its arrival. I've sent an inquiry to a company where I buy pistol grips from, to see if they would make a pair of scales for the knife, in case I don't like the blue scales it comes with. But all that doesn't really speak much to the question at hand.
Political correctness is one side of a coin; a coin that has "show-off" and rebelliousness written on the obverse side. When it comes to simply living, life is always lived on the edge of that coin -- somewhere in the middle between the two sides, both of which separate you from what really matters once you get stuck on one side or the other.
Granted, the majority of those years came and went before tactical knives became popular. Inexpensive 2 and 3 blade Schrade and Buck folders were far more prevalent than any other knife. These are what I usually had with me; and as they tended to get lost on a semi-regular basis, it was just as well.
For quite a few years I carried a Buck 501-C in its pouch on my belt. The 3-1/2" blade was legal where I lived. When the Buck got misplaced during a move, I purchased a SOG gentleman's folder that had a nicely designed spear-point blade. That got dropped onto a concrete floor one day and broke a bit of the tip off. I haven't yet sent it back to have SOG re-point the blade. I found my Buck and went back to that, as it was easier to open than the SOG with the thumb stud.
The internet came along, and I was looking around one day when I spotted an Al Mar Falcon with a 3-1/2" Talon, spear-point, blade. I ordered one and discovered I liked it more than I'd expected I would once it loosened up a bit, and I was able to snap the blade open with one hand as quick as I could my Buck. I also learned to appreciate the pocket clip quite a lot. I liked the knife so much I ordered its bigger brother, an Eagle with a 4" blade, even though the blade was longer than the state where I lived allowed. I didn't intend to carry it. But the heavier blade deployed more securely than the smaller Falcon, and when that smaller knife went "missing" at work one day, I took to carrying the Eagle, anyway. In addition to being a bit handier, the larger knife tended to remind me to avoid unconsciously setting it down and forgetting about it after I'd used it for whatever.
That 4" Al Mar has served as my EDC for the past 5 years. For the 3 years I've lived in Kansas, it's been legal. While I've been aware others might be intimidated by the shape and length of the blade, that's never stopped me from using it when called for. A few days ago I located a dealer who had one of the "HD" versions of this knife with the ZDP blade steel. I ordered that and am looking forward to its arrival. I've sent an inquiry to a company where I buy pistol grips from, to see if they would make a pair of scales for the knife, in case I don't like the blue scales it comes with. But all that doesn't really speak much to the question at hand.
Political correctness is one side of a coin; a coin that has "show-off" and rebelliousness written on the obverse side. When it comes to simply living, life is always lived on the edge of that coin -- somewhere in the middle between the two sides, both of which separate you from what really matters once you get stuck on one side or the other.
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It is 100% correct, 28 cm is the legal limit, HOWEVER, there is a catch. There is "small print" in the law that allows Dutch law enforcement to seize anything you might carry on your person if they feel it's purely aimed at harming other people.
For instance, carrying a large screwdriver in a bar or walking around with a tire iron downtown on a saturday night means they can confiscate it. Same obviously applies to knives. We had a change in the law in 2012. Before that we were allowed to carry automatic knives and balisongs with a maximum BLADE LENGTH of 3 inches. Today all autos, switch and balisongs are deemed illegal.
Eventhough it's technically legal for me to carry my Cold Steel Talwar, I'm convinced the menacing look of the knife would mean it getting confiscated any time I pull it out in public in the presence of law enforcement. It would be impossible for them to charge me with anything since I'm technically not breaking any laws, but that knife would be gone. I'd have to file an appeal to get it back I'm sure.
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- Joined
- Dec 29, 2013
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- 52
I have several EDC's. When I am working, I have a number of knives on me: Fallkniven F1, Benchmade 810 Contego, Spyderco Dragonfly, and a neck knife, typically a BK11, under my shirt. I know that sounds like overkill, but each one has a purpose that the others aren't best suited for. When I am not on the clock, I have a much more scaled down carry. Typically, I still wear the neck knife under my shirt, but I usually carry only one of the following: Benchmade 941, Benchmade 581 barrage, spyderco delica, or spyderco persian2.
I usually don't worry too much about public opinion. Of course, I should point out that I live in the Ohio River Valley in the middle of the Appalachian Mtns. Most people here have the same reaction to knives as they do guns: "Oh cool! What do you got?" Usually, the only time when there is a problem, it's typically some yuppie urbanite transplant.
I usually don't worry too much about public opinion. Of course, I should point out that I live in the Ohio River Valley in the middle of the Appalachian Mtns. Most people here have the same reaction to knives as they do guns: "Oh cool! What do you got?" Usually, the only time when there is a problem, it's typically some yuppie urbanite transplant.
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There's no knife laws here, so I carry whatever I want. But I don't flaunt it either. My main EDCs these days are traditional slipjoints anyway. In many ways, it's still the Wild West here, and it's not rare to see people openly carrying guns.
I started carrying slipjoints a few years back because it was "easier". If I found a broken nail in a doctor's waiting room I didn't have to go to the bathroom to get my knife out and fix it.
Nowadays, at work I'll carry a working knife (usually a slipjoint still) but on weekends I like to carry a small watch pocket knife only. It does most of the chores I need done while not at work and the comments I get are usually favorable.
I "whip out" my 2" blades wherever I want. I usually don't feel bad about using them as a worry stone if I feel like it.
I can't imagine what it would be like to be afraid to whip out an SAK.
Nowadays, at work I'll carry a working knife (usually a slipjoint still) but on weekends I like to carry a small watch pocket knife only. It does most of the chores I need done while not at work and the comments I get are usually favorable.
I "whip out" my 2" blades wherever I want. I usually don't feel bad about using them as a worry stone if I feel like it.
I can't imagine what it would be like to be afraid to whip out an SAK.
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- 856
I live in Oklahoma, and I see very little knife phobia here. Most people are more curious than alarmed when I pull out whatever I'm EDCing on a particular day. I mean, I wouldn't stand in a crowd at the movie theater or state fair and brandish a knife, you have to apply some common sense. But I EDC up to a 4" folder and really never even have to think about it. So for the most part, adapting isn't required.
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Given that I'd prefer my EDC to be something like a Fusion Battle Mistress, I'd have to say that I, and I suspect most of us do try and take the eye of the public into account if for nothing other than our own convenience. There's also the whole practicality thing where a smaller knife is often better, but that's why you can carry more than one right?
Great question and good discussion.
I live in BC, Canada where the laws are a little vague meaning if you use proper etiquette you won't have any issues. That said the police do have the ability to take your knife away if they see fit without too much justification, so you do need to think about it.
I own my own business so when I am at work I don't have to be overly concerned with public opinion. It is also a business where a knife is a very handy tool to have on your person for cutting rope, packing straps, webbing and the like. So in my situation it is good to have 2 knives for days that I am planning to carry a larger folder larger than 7" and I may be in both a work and public setting. I have ordered a dragonfly to carry as a secondary knife for times when bringing out a larger folder is not acceptable or just isn't required.
I don't use knives for personal protection I use them as tools and I don't want to make people that are uncomfortable around knives feel uncomfortable. I feel it is acceptable for me to bring out a large folder for a task that requires a large folder or in a setting where it doesn't really matter, labour type jobs, hiking etc. I don't feel it is acceptable to bring out say a Military in a public office setting or a mall to use for a task that could be better served by a much smaller knife.
I live in BC, Canada where the laws are a little vague meaning if you use proper etiquette you won't have any issues. That said the police do have the ability to take your knife away if they see fit without too much justification, so you do need to think about it.
I own my own business so when I am at work I don't have to be overly concerned with public opinion. It is also a business where a knife is a very handy tool to have on your person for cutting rope, packing straps, webbing and the like. So in my situation it is good to have 2 knives for days that I am planning to carry a larger folder larger than 7" and I may be in both a work and public setting. I have ordered a dragonfly to carry as a secondary knife for times when bringing out a larger folder is not acceptable or just isn't required.
I don't use knives for personal protection I use them as tools and I don't want to make people that are uncomfortable around knives feel uncomfortable. I feel it is acceptable for me to bring out a large folder for a task that requires a large folder or in a setting where it doesn't really matter, labour type jobs, hiking etc. I don't feel it is acceptable to bring out say a Military in a public office setting or a mall to use for a task that could be better served by a much smaller knife.
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The biggest knife I ever carry as EDC would be Endura: because it's so flat and carries so comfortably for its size. All other knives I use as EDC are smaller than that with many would be likely socially acceptable in any circumstance.
I guess some people may still get uncomfortable around somebody brandishing Endura or Stretch, but I think there will be less chance of that if the knife is used for a good reason rather than flashed and showed off: so no nail cleaning for me! Thus I do not get that many situation when I have to pull my EDC out publicly, and I actually do not recall a single case when somebody would show any reaction whatsoever. Another thing as I think about it might be that I do not actually "invite" the reaction: I just do the thing and make a point of not watching who shows what, so people probably feel there will be no point in showing it...
P.S. There would be situations, work related, where I would not consider using my EDC at all, or only use the smallest ones if I happened to have them on me: I do draw the line when it comes to dealing with my colleagues and clients, some things I would rather keep to myself, there is no harm in this.
I guess some people may still get uncomfortable around somebody brandishing Endura or Stretch, but I think there will be less chance of that if the knife is used for a good reason rather than flashed and showed off: so no nail cleaning for me! Thus I do not get that many situation when I have to pull my EDC out publicly, and I actually do not recall a single case when somebody would show any reaction whatsoever. Another thing as I think about it might be that I do not actually "invite" the reaction: I just do the thing and make a point of not watching who shows what, so people probably feel there will be no point in showing it...
P.S. There would be situations, work related, where I would not consider using my EDC at all, or only use the smallest ones if I happened to have them on me: I do draw the line when it comes to dealing with my colleagues and clients, some things I would rather keep to myself, there is no harm in this.
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- Joined
- Feb 6, 2010
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I live in California so I carry what I want and nobody gets offended. I saw a Goth dude walking down the street about noontime last week with a full-size sword strapped to his back. Most usually, people without a knife will start asking to use mine once they know I've got it. If I were to need a knife for some minor thing, I guess the SAK or slipjoint in my pocket would be more precise than the Benchmade 710 or Bedlam.
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- Apr 14, 2013
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- 824
I always have a Victorinox Compact on me, and for most jobs that's all the knife I need.
If I need something more substantial then I'm usually carrying a large clip point Voyager and Charge TTi.
I just got a Voyager XL Vaquero serrated. I'm not sure what I'm going to use it for.
If I need something more substantial then I'm usually carrying a large clip point Voyager and Charge TTi.
I just got a Voyager XL Vaquero serrated. I'm not sure what I'm going to use it for.
I always have a Victorinox Compact on me, and for most jobs that's all the knife I need.
If I need something more substantial then I'm usually carrying a large clip point Voyager and Charge TTi.
I just got a Voyager XL Vaquero serrated. I'm not sure what I'm going to use it for.
Fondling is a valid use. Or you could cut bottles like they do on youtube.
I'm with this dude, I carry what I want as long as it's within the law. If someone pulls out a knife and it "scares" you, unless the knife is actually being used to threaten or attack you, grow a pair and get over it.