TSA got my MT Mini UDT at SAC

R

Romak3

Joined
May 5, 2012
Messages
3
First post for me and its a tear jerker.

I bought a mini UDT (my first auto) back in 2001. I cherished that little guy like no other. Well, I went on a flight to Cali to see my Bro and family and debated on if I should take it or leave at home... I took it, checked in my baggage.

Well, after all these years together, day in and out, I forgot to put it in my checked bag at the airport while running late on the way home!! Like everyday of my life since I got it, it was in my pocket like it should be. I filled the totes with everything they asked for and without thinking the mini went into the tote.

On the other side walking to my belongings, I heard a voice saying "is this yours" while holding it between his fore finger and thumb and shaking his head. My heart sunk.... I said "yes" and about burst into a blubbering mess thinking I was going to get a "physical" AND loose my mini. The guy was about the best guy you could ask for though. He asked me over and over if I had anyone to come and get it. I had a rental and drove my self so that was out. I told him to do what he needed to do. Again he asked "are you sure".

Now, after all this drama, my plane was delayed by 1.5 hrs. I ran back to the security area and asked if I could try to salvage the mini by calling my Bro to come and get it.... it was gone and again the agent was respectfully sorry.

Its been 2 weeks now and I still get a lost feeling for it. I have since bought a Protech Brend 2, Mini SOG TEC and looking at a Mikov.

It wasn't a show piece, it worked! What a great little knife. :blue:
 
Too bad about the knife. I hope you find a worthy replacement.

The only knife I take traveling with me is my Victorinox Classic, which was purchased for $3 off the auction site and was probably confiscated by the TSA from its original owner.
 
If I had an other EDC I would still have the Mini. I guess I better keep my eyes out for a worn mini UDT on the net!

I thought to myself when I went back it was in his car already. HAA What a pisser....
 
TSA once allowed me to go to the gift shop and buy an envelope and stamps and mail my multi-tool I accidentally left in a carry on.
 
sorry you had to go through that, i understand your frustration. i had a pain in the ass experience WITHIN CALI once.
at the start of the whole "remove your shoes" tsa searches, i went to vegas and they confiscated my shaving blades (i use a safety razor).
they were nicer german merkurs. we landed and i didnt want to shop around at specialty stores so i went to cvs and got some gillettes (yes they were shitty).
ON THE WAY BACK before i boarded to angeles they spotted my beretta money clip. yeah it had a micro blade. i loved it and the spring always stayed tight. it was made in japan and had stainless sides with nice wood inserts and a brass PB symbol.
i said FINE TAKE IT, but the guy was cool and said i can mail it back to myself. i was in a hurry but wanted to keep it since it was given to me. so i went to an automated machine, paid around 10 bucks and filled a form, put it in an envelope and dropped it in a suspicious hole thinking "now i lost this and they got my money, i'll never see it again".

a week later it came in the mail! but those days are over, they just take them now.
 
aaronlam said:
TSA once allowed me to go to the gift shop and buy an envelope and stamps and mail my multi-tool I accidentally left in a carry on.
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That's really nice of them.

To the OP, I am really sorry... I wonder if I should always carry a stamped envelope whenever I go on a plane just in case?
 
res1cue said:
That's really nice of them.

To the OP, I am really sorry... I wonder if I should always carry a stamped envelope whenever I go on a plane just in case?
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I always have a flat-rate priority box ready whenever I travel in the event anything like this were to happen to me. If you look at auction sites there are tons of confiscated items for sale and I bet the majority of them are from airports.
 
That really sucks. My typical move is to leave my own knives in the car or at home when I'm outbound and stop at a store first thing when I get to my destination to buy a cheap knife to carry while out of town. At the end of my visit, I give the new one to a hotel concierge or cabby or whatever as a tip (if they want it).

Last time in DC, I still had it on me when I went to the airport - no one wanted it. At the TSA check, I handed it to the agent and told him I wanted him to have it - or if he didn't want it, he could give it to a coworker. Took a second for him to understand I was giving him a gift, but then he was my best buddy in DC. He walked me through the rest of the security process as we chatted. He must have thanked me twenty times.

Everyone won. :D


---

Beckerhead #42
 
Romak3- That is indeed a sad story. Being a knife enthusiast and a collector of autos, your story pained me.
The UDT/LUDT side openers are great,stout knives. I hope you find your replacement.
I read some good tips in this thread.
In the future I will make sure a flat rate shipper or a FedEx shipper is tucked inside my carry on, just in case...
 
Thanks all! That little guy will be missed sorely! I asked the TSA agent if I could ship it back home, his reply was there was no way to do it. Maybe it was just SAC that didn't have the capabilities? BUT, not a bad idea to keep a shipping envelope in the future, great idea! All I keep telling myself is the TSA agent was kind as he could be. That takes a bit of the sting out of the deal.

I still have my MT OTF's from back then I can still look at, and a bad thing turned good, I have since bought what was stated above and just tonight I got a Mcusta Tactility in Cocoblo..... what a beautiful piece! One of these times I will put them all together for a family picture. :)
 
:crushed: Oh Man, I Am So Sorry That Happened. I'm Glad I Don't Go On Planes.. But I'm Sure I Will One Day And Will Carry A Box With Me, If They'll Let Me Mail It To Myself.

When I First Got Into Knives The First "Real" Knife I Bought Myself Was A Kershaw Tremor Because I Just Fell In Love With It And HAD To Have It. I Had Sold Some Of My Cheapo Collection Just To Get The Cash For It. I Always Carried That Knife Because I Loved It And It Was The First Real Knife I Had Truly Wanted So Badly And Bought. Well, I Misplaced It And Couldn't Find It Anywhere, I Asked Everyone Around In My Complex To Keep An Eye Out For It. I Seriously Cried Because It Was My First Real Knife I Had Bought And Was My Favorite. A Few Days Later My Brother Found It Safe And Sound Somewhere In The House. I Hugged Him And Was SOOO Happy.

Anyways, So I Kinda Know What If Feels Like To Lose Something You Love And Are Attached To. If I Had Lost It Forever... That Would Have Been Worse. It Has Since Moved Onto A New Home, But That's Because I Just Didn't Really NEED A Knife Of That Style And Such For EDC, But Like I Said I Was Young And Fell In Love With It Lol.

Now My Favorite Is My Spyderco Chokwe.... And If It Got Taken Or Something... I Would Cry Lol. Yes, I'm A Girl, I Know Lol.
 
don't they give you a receipt for the confiscated item so you can claim it when you come back? the same thing happened to me before and it was in Hong Kong, they gave me a receipt or some kind of a claim tag and i was able to get my SAK my next trip to Hong Kong
 
TTpower said:
don't they give you a receipt for the confiscated item so you can claim it when you come back? the same thing happened to me before and it was in Hong Kong, they gave me a receipt or some kind of a claim tag and i was able to get my SAK my next trip to Hong Kong
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Unfortunately, that is not the policy of the US TSA. When I left Sacramento through SMF airport last year to come here to the UK, they had a mailbox and envelopes at the entrance to the security checkpoint. Guess they removed them recently.
 
Smebbin said:
I always have a flat-rate priority box ready whenever I travel in the event anything like this were to happen to me. If you look at auction sites there are tons of confiscated items for sale and I bet the majority of them are from airports.
Click to expand...


Here in Texas they sell all the knives confiscated at the airports at the State Surplus Store in Austin. buckets of SAK's all for ~$2 :D How ever anything besides SAKs and cheapo folders get put in a case and sell for a little bit under secondary market prices.
 
Bummer about your loss, that's a shame.
You can't go wrong with a Mikov, though... I'll highly recommend them. Great users. Very sturdy, built like tanks. Not a show-piece, but super functional and durable.
 
Some airports have a kiosk where you can mail soon to be confiscated stuff home for a fee.Ask the TSA. I once put my Al Mar ultra lite under a stack of magazines in the book store in the Hartford airport and came back and got it a week later upon returning.---KV
 
It's odd. I had been looking for my Buck Hartsook for weeks and finally found it in the bottom of my book bag. The odd thing is that bag (with the knife in it) had been through at least *four* TSA check points, X-ray machine and everything without any problems.
 
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