Speed Safe and Airport Security

U

UW Mitch

Joined
Nov 2, 1999
Messages
1,437
I'm leaving to fly out of Sea-Tac into Honolulu tommorrow, and want to carry my lefty mini-task. I'm worried that when I put it in the tray, and walk through the metal detector, the gaurd won't like it when he/she opens it. We all know that speed-safe is legal, just the airline security might not. How should I present the knife to the secuirty officer, or should I just leave it at home?
One thought was to open it and put it in the basket, but they might not like that either. Any advice?

Thanks,
Mitch
 
Mitch. I have a couple fo things you can do. First of allm I usually carry a 905 Stryker anywhere I go and when I'm at the airport I trya nd rmember to take it off. But that's only when I'm picking up someone. When i'm actually flying, I like to take it so here' what me and a buddy of mine (who owns a BM Eclipse (now called Accent)) did:

We basically used the lanywrd hole and attached it to our keys so it became a "keychain". The security guards don't really even notice or care. Just try to put a lot of stuff in the tray, ie. wallet, keys, maybe your boarding pass, loose change, etc.

I've been through Sea-Tac and I was spot checked for explosives but they gave me no problem on the knife. The sensors are on very, very low. I actually had my CRKT KISS knife in my pocket because I use it as a money clip and I forgot to take it out and put it in the tray and I walked through clean as a whistle. So I would NOT worry at all... You should be ok. Have a nice break Mitch, I hope finals didn't get you too hard
smile.gif


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-Humpty

Proverbs 23:2

AKTI Member # A000984

 
The conventional wisdom on carrying a knife on a US domestic airline is to keep it an inch under the hard regulation maximum of 4", and keep it plain edged because teeth look carnivorous, and keep it inexpensive just in case. No fixed blades and no automatics.

So far any pocket knife I've put in the little tray at the airport has been ignored, other than an "Oh brother!" from one guard as the tray filled up with more and more metal - Leatherman Wave, Spydercard, a few pens, a bunch of pocket change, keys, Dragonfly, Photon Lights - and that's with the rest of my usual knives in the checked baggage.

So far nobody at airline security has been interested enough in my knives to open them, to find out there are dreaded serrations on the Dragonfly and the Wave. But what if they open the Speed-Safe?

The Speed-Safe is not an "switchblade" because Kershaw's attorney has disected the definition of a switchblade in federal law and concluded that it isn't, and so far the issue has not been tested in court, and the jungle telegraph doesn't report any unfavorable reactions from authority figures. This may be because people with Mini Tasks and such have not snapped them open in front of authority figures.

Caution says not to give authority figures a chance to ponder whether or not a Speed-Safe is a "switchblade" if one is in a hurry to go somewhere. I think the odds are that the guard will think it's small enough that he won't bother to open it. If he is familiar enough with pocket knives to know what to do with a thumb stud, he might think it's cool, and that might be a good thing or a bad thing. If he is not a "knife person," he'll probably pull the blade open two handed, and then he might not appreciate the significance of the different way it feels.

Matter of fact, when I show an auto to a non-knife person, they typically try to open it two handed, and wonder why it won't open. So I show them, letting the blade ease past my fingers rather than doing a full-speed snap that startles onlookers. They then try it themselves, two-handed, and don't understand why it's awkward. And they also don't understand why there's a law about pocket knife mechanisms.


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- JKM
www.chaicutlery.com
AKTI Member # SA00001
 
I was wondering about speed-safe in WA. They're sold locally, but the state laws say no mechanically assisted knives, and a 3" limit. Except for full blown auto's the laws don't seem to be enforced, unless a crime has been committed. You see plenty of Buck 110's on belts, and Spyderco's etc. clipped in pockets.

As for the airport, I always check my knife. The only one I've carried on is the SOG scissors, which can't really be called a knife anyway.


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E. Larson
Edmonds, WA


 
I'm not going to be checking anything in. I only have one carry on bag and my backpack. I think what I'm going to do is bring a padded envelope with me, so that IF security won't let me through with it, I can pack it and mail it home. I hope that solves my problem. Does anyone know how many $0.33 stamps I'll need?

Thanks for all the help!

Mitch
 
Mitch, while going to pick up a family member at NJ's Newark Airport, I walked up to the Security gate and remembered that I was carrying the mini-Random Task.

Knowing that if I put it in the tray, someone might flick it open, I slowly removed it from my pocket, then keeping pressure on the blade (to avoid any fast openings), I opened it about halfway.

The guards didn't bat an eye.

Hope that helps,
VG

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Vampire Gerbil: Nosferatus Rodentus Moderatus; similar to a domestic gerbil, except for the odd accent and little black cape.

 
Thanks for the replies guys, I made it home to Honolulu. I remembered that since a friend was going to check in baggage, I put it in her bag, that way I wouldn't have to worry.
Odd thing about airport security, they were more intrested in my Gerber Multi-tool than my BM mini-AFCK. Hmm..and also I had yet another "random" check on my backpack. My pack gets checked every single time I go through! Oh well, I guess it's the "tactical" black "ballistic" nylon of my Jansport school bag that cries foul!
smile.gif

I like VG's idea of pre-opening the knife before putting it into the basket.

Thanks!
Mitch
 
The whole system in the US is a mess. If you look at the want ads near any big city you constantly see ads to hire screeners/checkers/security people at airports with minimum wage type payscales. I imagine the turnover rate is fantastic.
FAA investigators disguised as tourists have smuugled guns-even HAND GRENANDES on planes.Yet people are hassled over knives? Who hijacks planes with pocketknives?

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Tim

 
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