U.S. post office told me I could not ship a knife?

Walt2 said:
What I have run into all of a sudden here lately is paying for return signature confirmation of receipt and not getting the signature card back confirming that the person received the knife. This has happened three times in a row, and this postmaster knows what she is doing, but she cannot explain why the card is not coming back all of a sudden. Someone is dropping the ball somewhere.
Click to expand...

I was once assigned to a post office as an extra supervisor to help with a reorganization. I found a small room with a very busy employee, diligently working through receipts that had backed up -- thousands of them.

With current postal problems, I see more of this coming. Lose a couple of employees, this is exactly what will back up. Sorting and delivering mail comes first.
 
I use USPS to ship all over the world also. No issues with sending knives through the mail. However I let the customer know that it is their responsibility to ensure the knife they ordered IS legal in their country. I will not take responsibility for a seized knife. I do not know and cannot determine the legality in every country. I have not had a problem so far.
 
First of all THEYRE WRONG! Second of all I would recommend just not telling them what it is in case you run into another ignorant sheeple person out there.
 
I know this may be in reverse but.....

I have a package of three paring knives that just cleared the Santa Clarita Sorting Center on their way to Santa Barbara. This is the third US-bound package I've sent in the last month and the seventh over the past three years.

I've not had one issue.

I send initially through Canada Post Expedited Parcel insured for the sale/shipping price. This time, the contents are listed as "Kitchen Cutlery". I generally just put "Cutlery" for all my knives.
 
Last edited:
unky_gumbi said:
Good point, I would never ship a knife with out some sort of sheath, even if it was just a couple slabs of basswood glued together to protect both the blade and the shipper.
Click to expand...

Excellent point, we need to be safe with this stuff. Packages might get tossed or jostled around pretty hard during a 1,000 or 13,000 mile journey.

The last (actually only) 2 knives I shipped w/o sheathes were encased in pink foam-board insulation. I cut out the shape of the knives from the insulation board so they fit in snugly, and allowed room for a wooden block that fit over the tip of each knife. Double layers of thick cardboard on both sides of that, then wrapped the whole mess snugly in a heavy tight-fitting box. No way are they cutting or slipping through all that.
 
killteamTRS said:
Second of all I would recommend just not telling them what it is in case you run into another ignorant sheeple person out there.
Click to expand...

If there are customs forms involved, I think that's very bad advice. Should something get lost or damaged, I'm guessing that false/incomplete/fraudulent info would at the very least lose you any insurance protection you may have paid for.

A C Richards said:
However I let the customer know that it is their responsibility to ensure the knife they ordered IS legal in their country. I will not take responsibility for a seized knife.
Click to expand...

Same here. It may take a couple emails to get the proper customs forms and approval for the destination country, but then you at least have a "paper trail" showing that the customer and you did due diligence.
In domestic shipping, no one ever asked me what it was, just if the package contained anything liquid or hazardous, as other folks mentioned. At that point I just honestly say "No, ma'am". No problems with USPS so far.
 
man, you guys are lucky. you can make and ship knives to any place you want.

over here in china owning knives is illegal. you can ship the knive to me, but i will not receive it. the knive will go dierectly to the police office, and i will be charged for $100~1000 and spend 15 days in jail. but the smagglers bring knives from american/european makers/ productors, then sell it on internet with the tripple price. the police will just look at them and do nothing.
 
bama,

I just shipped a knife to Canada not to long ago, no problems whatsoever, also I sent one to Afghanistan little over a week ago, ZERO problems... you need to go to another post office next town over or go in when he/she's not working... :)
 
hammerfall said:
man, you guys are lucky. you can make and ship knives to any place you want.

over here in china owning knives is illegal. you can ship the knive to me, but i will not receive it. the knive will go dierectly to the police office, and i will be charged for $100~1000 and spend 15 days in jail. but the smagglers bring knives from american/european makers/ productors, then sell it on internet with the tripple price. the police will just look at them and do nothing.
Click to expand...

Yikes... I have shipped to China, TWICE!!!
 
I'm new to knife making but have had a gun shop for over 10 years and ship a lot of firearms generally USPS long guns and handguns never out of the U.S. The problems I have encountered using a P.O. that didn't know me really will attest to the lack of awareness of the rules. I have actually given the P.O. a file copy of my FFL and if there is a question with "temporary help" I tell them to check the file. I make it a point now to only use one post office and always get to know the help. Im in a very small community so that's easy to do. Insure, delivery confirmation, and tracking is a must and never lose the receipts. I expect the rules to change soon.
 
Rick Marchand said:
colubrid.... do you have a picture of the knife? what material were the scales? Are you sure it was un"flick"able? I have seen old Buck lockbacks that flick.
Click to expand...

Sorry no pic. The scales were ivory and it was not flick-able.
 
colubrid said:
Sorry no pic. The scales were ivory and it was not flick-able.
Click to expand...

from the Canada Border Patrol website...

Endangered wildlife species, and products made from them, generally may not be imported or exported. You will need a permit from the FWS to import virtually all types of ivory, unless it is from a warthog. The FWS has many restrictions and prohibitions on various kinds of ivory - Asian elephant, African elephant, whale, rhinoceros, seal, pre-Endangered Species Act, post-CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species) and many others - and urge you to contact them before you acquire ivory in a foreign country. You may contact the Management Authority at 1-800-358-2104

You may import an object made of ivory if it is an antique. To be an antique the ivory must be at least 100 years old. You will need documentation that authenticates the age of the ivory. You may import other antiques containing wildlife parts with the same condition, but they must be accompanied by documentation proving they are at least 100 years old. Certain other requirements for antiques may apply.
Click to expand...

Perhaps it fit in with their prohibited wildlife products, somewhere?
 
Last edited:
from the Canada Border Patrol website...


Endangered wildlife species, and products made from them, generally may not be imported or exported. You will need a permit from the FWS to import virtually all types of ivory, unless it is from a warthog. The FWS has many restrictions and prohibitions on various kinds of ivory - Asian elephant, African elephant, whale, rhinoceros, seal, pre-Endangered Species Act, post-CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species) and many others - and urge you to contact them before you acquire ivory in a foreign country. You may contact the Management Authority at 1-800-358-2104

You may import an object made of ivory if it is an antique. To be an antique the ivory must be at least 100 years old. You will need documentation that authenticates the age of the ivory. You may import other antiques containing wildlife parts with the same condition, but they must be accompanied by documentation proving they are at least 100 years old. Certain other requirements for antiques may apply.
Click to expand...

CANADA SUCKS!

..and i was born in Ottowa Canada. So i can say that.

Also i have shipped several packages to Brazil and had no problems with theft there.

Go figure?
 
colubrid said:
It was legal ivory.

Anyway, they still kept it!
Click to expand...

Unless you put a stack of documentation in the package showing it was legal ivory, I would have expected that.


As for the "Canada Sucks" you can keep that to yourself.
We have enough troubling buying stuff and getting it shipped to us without that.
.
 
Last edited:
JBS TOOLMAKER said:
I have also shipped to china, the customer received the knife all was good.:confused:
Click to expand...

see, the thing is not every person can receive the knives. if the person has "friendship" with the important officers in the import costums, then everything will be easy. thats also how smagglers gets knives in. acctrully there are smaggling network does that for bussiness, $100 per kg for smagglering the knive/sword in from usa and europ.

unfortunately, i don't have that kind of "friendship". if i really want a knife bought from usa or europ, i have to taking risk paying smaggler to do the job.
 
colubrid said:
CANADA SUCKS!

..and i was born in Ottowa Canada. So i can say that.

Also i have shipped several packages to Brazil and had no problems with theft there.

Go figure?
Click to expand...

Being born in Canada does not give you the right to say it sucks, it does give you the right to have that opinion though. Comments like that could be considered trolling, so maybe you should edit your post to add an, I think, to the front of your statement. Oh and while you are at it correct the spelling of Ottawa
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top