What is blade length?

J

Joseph Loveland

Joined
Jul 9, 2013
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I have been looking throughout the Internet on Knife Laws of the States. Today I called a Lieutenant with the local Law Enforcement Agency and I asked this question:

When the Law states 'Blade Length' exactly how is this measured?

There was a pause and I asked if he was still there. He said, "I'm not sure if it's the blade length or the cutting edge length. I guess it's up to the Officer on scene or their Supervisor." This is from an Officer with 30 + years service, so does any one really know the answer?
I'd appreciate any help I can get. Joseph
 
I have never got a clear answer to this question. I have seen
mention on other sites where people have claimed it was the
distance from the edge of the handle scales to the tip of the blade.
But this leaves the obvious question, "what about knives such
as the BK14, or the Kabar 1117 or the Benchmade Nimravous
etc. etc. that have no handle scales?" Do they have infinity long
blades since there is no 2nd point to measure from?lol
I actually called the local D.A.s office to try and ask him, and
he never responded.

Edit to add: Also, what about knives which have finger a choil?
If an area is obviously made flat and textured to safely fit a finger,
and be used as part of the handle, how can it be considered blade
length?
But I guess we all know that logic has nothing to do with
the current legal system...
 
I'm assuming that you are in South Carolina.

I don't know S.C law, but unless the written law of your state/county/city specifically states that blade length is measured by the cutting edge, then I would err on the side of caution (and staying out of jail) by assuming that blade length means the entire length of the blade.
 
To be safe, I'd go with the full blade length. From the scales to the tip. But I mean really how much space do most knives have from the handle to where the edge starts? Usually not much. Lets say I have a blade that is 4 and 1/4 inch long, and the legal blade length is 4 inches. Does that 1/4 inch really matter? What I'm wondering is how they come up with what is a legal length to begin with. For instance when I lived in San Antonio, it was shorter than most places. Like 3 inches legal limit.
Anyone with insight on that? Maybe it could help explain if we should count the whole blade or the edge.
 
Ponsau said:
To be safe, I'd go with the full blade length. From the scales to the tip. But I mean really how much space do most knives have from the handle to where the edge starts? Usually not much. Lets say I have a blade that is 4 and 1/4 inch long, and the legal blade length is 4 inches. Does that 1/4 inch really matter? What I'm wondering is how they come up with what is a legal length to begin with. For instance when I lived in San Antonio, it was shorter than most places. Like 3 inches legal limit.
Anyone with insight on that? Maybe it could help explain if we should count the whole blade or the edge.
Click to expand...
If the law says that the legal length limit of a blade is 4 inches, and you are carrying a knife with a 4 1/4 inch blade, YES, that extra 1/4 inch is enough to get you arrested and taken to jail. The law, and those who make their living by enforcing and interpreting it, can be hyper-technical. A cop might give you a break, but then agin, maybe not. And a prosecutor is certainly NOT likely to give you a break. Prosecutors can only advance their careers by getting convictions, and a guy carry a knife 1/4" longer than the specified legal limit is pretty much a slam-dunk conviction.

People who put the law to the test often wind up sitting in a jail cell regretting their decision. When it comes to the law, I strongly recommend erring on the side of caution. An extra 1/4" of blade isn't worth going to jail, losing ones job, and facing financial ruin.
 
I appreciate all of your responses for they are really on line. I had looked at KNIFEUP.com and this is where I found some information ta ask the LEO about. I guess I need ta invest in a few more phone calls and see what will be my EDC. Again, thanks ta all.
 
Assume that blade length is going to mean they measure from tip to handle. Then you will be safe.

Get a knife that is the right length from tip to handle, and then you will have less concern with the officer making a decision in the field.
 
Joseph Loveland said:
I have been looking throughout the Internet on Knife Laws of the States. Today I called a Lieutenant with the local Law Enforcement Agency and I asked this question:

When the Law states 'Blade Length' exactly how is this measured?

There was a pause and I asked if he was still there. He said, "I'm not sure if it's the blade length or the cutting edge length. I guess it's up to the Officer on scene or their Supervisor." This is from an Officer with 30 + years service, so does any one really know the answer?
I'd appreciate any help I can get. Joseph
Click to expand...

AKTI has been trying to get "straight line extending from the tip of the blade to the forward-most aspect of the hilt or handle" as the legal standard. If you wanted to be more conservative, you could use the "straight line extending from the tip of the blade to the aft-most aspect of the blade or sharpened edge" to cover angled hilts and handles
http://www.akti.org/resources/akti-protocol-for-measuring-knife-blade-length
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This pretty much confirms what I found out today. I called the Greenville County Sheriff's Department Front Desk today and talked with the Deputy on duty. What he told me was there is no length requirement on folding or sheath knives. He said that a rule of thumb is that if the handle (folding knife) measures 5" or less then he blade would be a little less than the handle. (I hope I'm using the right terminology. If not let me know) in length.
My Smith & Wesson Homeland Security measures 5" for the handle, and the blade measures 4 1/2". So I guess the Deputy was correct, by the way I live in South Carolina and I did look up the law on knives for South Carolina and it's vague, so that's why I called the Sheriff's Department to get the view of this department.
 
I want to thank everyone for your comments and advice. I have a copy of the South Carolina Knife Law and it's really confusing . That's why I called the Front Desk Officer at the Greenville County Sheriff's Department. I believe I can now put this ta bed.
 
I don't get what your saying? I live in WI which has a 3" blade limit and what I want to know speciffically is can I carry say abstrider sng which has over a 3" blade but like 3/4 of an inch is actually an unsharpened finger choil so the cutting edge is under 3". Can I legally carry an sng?
 
Most police will consider it from the scale to the tip. That is how manufacturers measure blade length.
 
Ya, that's kind what I figured. It sucks because I have big hands and just can't get a great grip on small knives. I really wanted an sng but I guess it was good that I went with the pt. The law is stupid though because a finger choil that isn't even sharpened should not be considered part of the blade imo.
 
Locutus D'Borg said:
Most police will consider it from the scale to the tip. That is how manufacturers measure blade length.
Click to expand...

Yep, unless statute says something about "sharpened edge" or something to narrow it down, you can pretty much bet your bippie it's everything past the hilt. I don't know of any state definitions that do, though, although that is a determiner in England.

Sort of makes sense, as the whole thing is what determines penetration depth, like a push dagger, where the sharpened part may only be 75% or less of total length of distance to hilt.

- OS
 
dskobli said:
Guess I really need to invest in a conceal carry license.
Click to expand...

It is my understanding that concealed carry laws often (varies by state) DOES NOT apply to anything other than firearms, so find the statutes and make sure you don't inaccurately apply something you heard.
 
TrojanSteel said:
Here're TSA's guidelines which indicate their method of measurement:
Click to expand...

The TSA rules are NO KNIVES.

They recently came out with a proposal for the rules you show, but the anti crowd screamed louder than we did and those rules never went into effect.
 
This is what i would do.
Below are results for keyword "710"

710
McHenry & Williams


Blade Length: 3.9"
Blade Thickness: 0.115"
Handle Thickness: 0.48"
Blade Material: D2 Tool Steel
Blade Style: Modified Clip-Point w/ Ambidextrous Dual Thumb Studs
Lock Type: AXIS
Overall Length: 8.8"
Closed Length: 4.9"
Series: Blue Class

Above is the manufactures specifications. Where it says blade length it says 3.9" I live in TN where max blade length is 4". I consider it good to go because the manufacture says 3.9" they would know better than I. How long is the blade in reality? I don't really care to know because the manufacture states in the product description that it is 3.9"
 
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