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Shipping pocket knives USPS illegal
- Thread starter colubrid
- Start date
Esav Benyamin
MidniteSuperMod
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Are you serious? mycroftt has been proving that we can send regular knives through the mail, just as we have been.
Furthermore, I don't appreciate this turning into an attack on another forum member. As contentious as this question has been, we've remained civil until now. Let's keep it that way.
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- Jan 15, 2006
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Since I regularly ship knives via USPS and normally pay to insure them I am glad this subject is being discussed and I hope we come away with a definitve answer or at least some ammunition for when we encounter a similar problem with the PO.
This is something that may impact any of us at one time or another. I know I have learned a lot more about it through reading this thread it's prompting me to do some research on my own.
This is something that may impact any of us at one time or another. I know I have learned a lot more about it through reading this thread it's prompting me to do some research on my own.
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All those triangular cross-section boxes from Reno since 2001 and they never knew they contain HI khukuris, knives, and swords? Well duh! 
Clearly, the regs trump the chart. An administrative regulation describing shipping an item means shipment is not prohibited. That is a basic cannon of interpretation of statutes and regulations. Not to mention the negative implication of a rule that restricts mailing switchblades and gravity knives to limited persons.
I can find no authority in the statues or regulations for even describing a "sharp instrument" as "restricted matter." Tacks are sharp. Sewing needles are sharp. Push pins are sharp. Nails are sharp.
I find no definition of what "authorized parties" means. They do not get to make up thier own, local, restrictive definition. It ain't "Joe' Postal Service." (Adults=authorized maybe. Who knows, absent a definition.)
Once upon a time, I had lived, worked, paid taxes, and voted in a given state for five years - even had been married there. Nevertheless, a university in that state said I had to pay out-of-state tuition. They had a written set of rules that said so. They had a chart that said so. Had been that way "for decades." The University Counsel, a senior partner in the biggest firm in the city, told me so. "See. Says so right here. You were always a student of some kind so you don't qualify as a citizen." He was wrong. They were wrong. The actual law was contrary. I didn't pay out-of-state tuition.
Doesn't matter how firmly or clearly a mistake is stated.
Clearly, the regs trump the chart. An administrative regulation describing shipping an item means shipment is not prohibited. That is a basic cannon of interpretation of statutes and regulations. Not to mention the negative implication of a rule that restricts mailing switchblades and gravity knives to limited persons.
I can find no authority in the statues or regulations for even describing a "sharp instrument" as "restricted matter." Tacks are sharp. Sewing needles are sharp. Push pins are sharp. Nails are sharp.
I find no definition of what "authorized parties" means. They do not get to make up thier own, local, restrictive definition. It ain't "Joe' Postal Service." (Adults=authorized maybe. Who knows, absent a definition.)
Once upon a time, I had lived, worked, paid taxes, and voted in a given state for five years - even had been married there. Nevertheless, a university in that state said I had to pay out-of-state tuition. They had a written set of rules that said so. They had a chart that said so. Had been that way "for decades." The University Counsel, a senior partner in the biggest firm in the city, told me so. "See. Says so right here. You were always a student of some kind so you don't qualify as a citizen." He was wrong. They were wrong. The actual law was contrary. I didn't pay out-of-state tuition.
Doesn't matter how firmly or clearly a mistake is stated.
Perhaps a more careful reading of the thread might reveal that I offered to help a poster with an appeal - on my own time, at my own expense, if any, simply because I want to see the right outcome. You have no way of knowing that I am also engaged, via PM, in actively supporting one of the other posters who is afflicted with a misinformed local PO. If you have a problem with my offers and freely given efforts to help others, please send it to me in a PM and I will gladly provide you with a broader perspective on how government regs work, what individuals can do, and even on how to comport oneself in a civil manner, if you would like.
I am currently drafting comments, that I will send to the Customs Bureau, on their proposal to rescind letters of interpretation on their definitions of switchblades and gravity/inertia knives. Under the Administrative Procedure Act, anyone can comment on their proposal. I'll ask you to kindly refrain from sending them your comments as they will almost certainly not be helpful to our cause.
I always hated that part too. I believe the intent was to include what we used to call "flick knives" which were like a switchblade because it had a button in the handle but there was no spring so you pressed the button and flicked the blade open. The language in that rule is overly broad because it can be twisted to include models that were clearly not intended to be defined as a switchblade. For example, who hasn't flicked open a Buck knife or done what the Spyderco fans call Spydie Drop? Technically you are using the inertia/momentum of either the blade or the handle to open the knife even though a Buck 110 or Spyderco Endura are clearly outside the original intent of the rule.
Last edited:
Esav Benyamin
MidniteSuperMod
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All is well! :thumbup:
These threads can do that sometimes.
These threads can do that sometimes.
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So colubrid, did you send off that letter to the Postmaster General?
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I think its all in how the law is interpreted. Obviously a knife can be hazardous if it is not packaged properly.
On that very note, I had a custom knife maker ship me a fixed blade knife recently out of the sheath. The knife had a VERY sharp tip and wrapped only in a couple of layers of bubble wrap. It went through the bubble wrap and through the cardboard box and blunted itself against something black (residue was left on the tip). I assume it was the plastic containers the packages are transported in.
Needless to say this is NOT an acceptable way to ship a knife overseas (or anywhere for that matter).
He said that he normally doesn't ship knives in the sheath because he wants the knife to arrive in pristine condition, ie, without kydex scratches.
I said to him I would rather risk a scratch than have a knife arrive with a blunt tip, which is what happened.
I returned the knife and he is making me a new one. An expensive lesson!
Can you imagine the consequences if some postal worker had been nicked or stabbed by this blade while handling the package? I shudder to think.
Always ensure a fixed blade is in its sheath when shipping!
I thought this was obvious but apparently not to everyone.
On that very note, I had a custom knife maker ship me a fixed blade knife recently out of the sheath. The knife had a VERY sharp tip and wrapped only in a couple of layers of bubble wrap. It went through the bubble wrap and through the cardboard box and blunted itself against something black (residue was left on the tip). I assume it was the plastic containers the packages are transported in.
Needless to say this is NOT an acceptable way to ship a knife overseas (or anywhere for that matter).
He said that he normally doesn't ship knives in the sheath because he wants the knife to arrive in pristine condition, ie, without kydex scratches.
I said to him I would rather risk a scratch than have a knife arrive with a blunt tip, which is what happened.
I returned the knife and he is making me a new one. An expensive lesson!
Can you imagine the consequences if some postal worker had been nicked or stabbed by this blade while handling the package? I shudder to think.
Always ensure a fixed blade is in its sheath when shipping!
I thought this was obvious but apparently not to everyone.
The post office in question has been provided, by USPS Headquarters, with an explanation of the rules, i.e. knives that are not swithblades are not restricted in any way other than the requirement they be packaged so they don't come out through the side of the package. Now we're waiting for the original poster to have another knife shipment to send out so we can see if the PO folks now understand that they should accept the knives in the mail.
