Would You Wear a Fixed Blade On Your Belt in a Big City Environment?

My opinion is that knife laws suck, and cops who will harass and intimidate you even if you are not doing anything wrong, suck.

However, the reality is that I don't want to be attacked by the goon squad, so I conform to what is allowed and expected.
So the answer is that I do as they want when I'm in their city, and try to avoid having to go there.
 
And yet, Chicago is known as one of the most corrupt, crime-ridden cities in the country. Go figure.

I understand your desire to carry something with workmanship you admire, but even without the laws you mention, I wouldn't carry a fixed blade in the city. I also wouldn't wear my swim trunks, to go sledding.
 
A large bowie is my concealed-carry tool/weapon of choice right now, carried strong side (I prefer cavalry draw), SC style.

As noted above, always following applicable laws.

As a side note, why the h**l is a bowie knife illegal in Texas ?!?!?!?! Given their history, every man, woman and child should be required to carry one !!
 
I'd carry a fixed blade anywhere in Maine (and do) but I'm not going to wear a machete in a downtown urban area. I'm going to carry a knife suitable to my environment. I might carry a Mora #333 on the side of my pack once I get a sheath done up for it, though. It's light enough to go anywhere and looks pretty innocuous. Again, though, this is Maine and we pretty much just don't care about sharp stuff. We look at 'em as tools here.
 
redsquid2 said:
fear . . . What's you guys' view?
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My view is that life is too short to be afraid of the police. And the way to avoid fearing the police is to 1) know the law thoroughly, 2) obey the law at all times, 3) be courteous when engaging the police, even if they are not, and 4) accept that you might still get arrested (albeit unlawfully) even if you comply with rules 1-3.

That 4th one is crucial. If you fear being a lapdog and servant of the bureaucracy more than you fear an unlawful arrest, you will experience enlightenment.

Now, this is a little easy for me to say, because I've practiced law for 20 years. I think I'm pretty well versed in knife and gun law where I live, and so I probably know when I'm complying with the law. For you younger folks, and those who are not intimate with the law, I know its not so easy.

The cure there is to get back to those rules I mentioned - know the law, comply with the law, and don't cower in the face of unjustified or unlawful police intimidation. When you know in your heart that you are in total compliance with the law, that fear begins to evaporate. JMO. :)
 
"Be prepared." I definitely prefer a FB for this. It seems to me that there can be more surprises in the city. Car wrecks, jammed elevators... general chaos is certainly accelerated when given more chances. Somehow "their" reasons for restriction are similar for an honest persons reasons for carrying this tool. I spend most of my time in rural places. I carry a FB any time I know I'll be using my knife. Surely for most tasks a folder will do fine. A FB is more of a multi tool though. A prybar, hammer, more forceful cutting tool, ect... How a cop w/ nine weapons on him can make sense of telling a good person that they don't need a knife is beyond me.

Remember folks... NOBODY is afraid of knives... They are afraid of EACH OTHER. For things to change we need to get aquatinted with our neighbors & peers...not only people that we have obvious similarities with. Let none fear that which we are not acquainted with. Fellow man, knives, whatever.
 
I carry whatever I feel like.

It's not like you're walking around with an AK slung over your shoulder.
 
firecog said:
As a side note, why the h**l is a bowie knife illegal in Texas ?!?!?!?! Given their history, every man, woman and child should be required to carry one !!
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As a lifelong Texan, I agree. Another sticky issue is that the law doesn't define what a bowie knife even is. I understand ambiguity in weapons definitions is typical in law, to allow for wiggle room. But as a practical matter, I can't be fully confident that any fixed blade I carry won't meet some judge's interpretation of what a "bowie" knife is.
 
No, but have considered it. Possibly if the F.B. was small enough as I often have a folder on me anyway. I am quiet living, hard working and I'm discrete with cutting tools. I will put hawks in a bag and into the trunk etc. I figure that as long as I mind my own business, don't frighten the general public or call attention to myself, I can enjoy a few more decades of knife carry\use. I'm not sure yet if the new small line of Becker's, the 14, 15 16 ? will be too big or not. But I have little worry\concern right now about carrying something like an Izula or BK-14. A little uncommon sense and discretion go a long way.
 
powernoodle said:
My view is that life is too short to be afraid of the police. And the way to avoid fearing the police is to 1) know the law thoroughly, 2) obey the law at all times, 3) be courteous when engaging the police, even if they are not, and 4) accept that you might still get arrested (albeit unlawfully) even if you comply with rules 1-3.

That 4th one is crucial. If you fear being a lapdog and servant of the bureaucracy more than you fear an unlawful arrest, you will experience enlightenment.

Now, this is a little easy for me to say, because I've practiced law for 20 years. I think I'm pretty well versed in knife and gun law where I live, and so I probably know when I'm complying with the law. For you younger folks, and those who are not intimate with the law, I know its not so easy.

The cure there is to get back to those rules I mentioned - know the law, comply with the law, and don't cower in the face of unjustified or unlawful police intimidation. When you know in your heart that you are in total compliance with the law, that fear begins to evaporate. JMO. :)
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This is an excellent post and worth remembering.
 
PayetteRucker said:
You breathe to anyone that you have the ability to cut something and you get arrested for carrying a weapon in Chicago.
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:confused: ...no you won't. I don't know about you but I lived within the city limits of Chicago for 2 years, always had a knife clipped to my pocket, and was never arrested.

PayetteRucker said:
When I lived in Wisconsin, if you owned a fixed blade knife that was anything other than a stereotypical Git-R-Dun! deer skinner (AKA if you couldn't buy it at Cabela's), then you are a violent person.
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My girlfriend's family is from Wisconsin and I regularly carried a knife clipped to my pocket in Milwaukee, Elkhorn, Burlington, Lake Geneva, Kenosha, and Racine and was never considered a "violent person." :confused:
 
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people in this city would call on you before they l.e.o.'s would see you ! its not that police are intimidating you , its the hoards of yuppies, liberals, in there suvs that don't like the way it looks and cant mind there own business. as long as you not doing anything wrong i have never heard of anyone getting arrested just for a folder in Chicago, (3") its a city charge and would be thrown out in court.
 
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Nope, no way unless it could be concealed legally and then it would be a small one.
 
JAB said:
Count me among those who wouldn't.



Um, no you can't.
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Um, yeah you can... open carry is COMPLETELY legal, both fixed blades of any length and firearms.

And yes, even with a modest pocket knife I'm always seen with contempt for EDCing in the Midwest. Very far in Northern MN is a different story, but all over central Wisconsin and northern Illinois, people will give you a ton of crap for carrying anything more than a china-made folding utility knife.
 
No. And bear in mind that even if the blade you carry is legal in your state and city, if you walk into a US post office or another federal facility, you may be in violation of federal law. I think the only "dangerous weapon" not forbidden is a "pocket knife" with a blade less than 2 1/2 inches long.
 
PayetteRucker said:
This completely depends. There's a difference between San Antonio and Chicago. Alot of it is common sense. You can wear a Devil's Toothpick downtown San An and not catch a second glance from liberals, law enforcement, business employees, you name it. You breathe to anyone that you have the ability to cut something and you get arrested for carrying a weapon in Chicago. I carry on campus in a town of 500,000 people, and when I have my BK11 or HEST out, people are passing me pencils to get sharpened so they don't have to use the noisy manual sharpener in the back of the lecture hall. When I was at Lackland I'd go out on the town with buddies wearing a 5 inch Kabar. When I lived in Wisconsin, if you owned a fixed blade knife that was anything other than a stereotypical Git-R-Dun! deer skinner (AKA if you couldn't buy it at Cabela's), then you are a violent person. Again, use common sense. With a concealed carry permit that's good in 34 states, there are few places where I really have to worry about keeping a BK11 or a HEST hidden in my pocket, so I really don't have to sweat much.
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In Oregon it's illegal to carry a fixed blade knife concealed regardless of your concealed carry permit. Yes, you can carry a concealed 44 mag with a license but not an Izula. :rolleyes: Not that your permit is legal here either but be sure to check each state you want to conceal carry in.

To the OP, sometimes. I pocket carry my izula 2 in Portland but I don't make a habit of it. I don't need it in the city and like others have said it's not worth the unwanted attention. Besides when I'm on the pavement I'm more then content with my SAK.
 
It's funny, I live and work in downtown Philadelphia and have a concealed carry permit and they were very quick to point out, THIS IS NOT FOR A KNIFE.
I don't carry a knife for self defense (except against oranges), so generally whatever is in my pocket does me fine.
 
PayetteRucker said:
And yes, even with a modest pocket knife I'm always seen with contempt for EDCing in the Midwest. Very far in Northern MN is a different story, but all over central Wisconsin and northern Illinois, people will give you a ton of crap for carrying anything more than a china-made folding utility knife.
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I guess it depends which part of the Midwest you're in, and also whether you're in a more urban or rural environment. I grew up and spent the first 21 years of my life in rural Nebraska, and later spent time living in Illinois (Chicago northern burbs--Vernon Hilss), upper Michigan (the U.P.), and Iowa (Council Bluffs). I found differences in all cases. In Neb., I carried a Buck folder in my pocket even to school (it wasn't against the rules at that time). Going out in public in my small town, sometimes I'd have a Buck hunting knife on my belt that I used working outside, and nobody even gave me a second glance. However, when living in the Chicago area, I would not have even considered openly carrying a fixed blade on my belt. Then again, in the U.P. of Michigan (depending again on where you live), a lot of guys would have a folder or multitool on the belt in a pouch, or during hunting season, even a fixed blade. So again, because of the context, nobody would think it was unusual in those cases.

It's really hard to generalize. If there IS a generalization that can be made that applies across the whole country, in my experience it tends to be the "large urban area/city" versus everything else that is the main distinction to keep i nmind. If you carry an open blade--especially a large one--in a LARGE city/urban area, you are more likely to get unwanted attention from other people, and you may have to contend with stricter knife laws. This has been true in every state I've lived. For example, currently I live in WA state, and many parts of the state are rural, hunting, and logging oriented, and in small communities, most people would not look askance at somebody who had a knife on their belt in public. But go into Seattle (the actual city limits, not just the suburbs, where things are more open), and it's a whole other story. Stricter laws, many people of a more "liberal" persuasion who fear any visible weapon, and who are likely to confront you or report you, not to mention far stricter laws about what is allowed.

Bottom line: I always carry a blade, and a fixed one, where it's legal. But I stay within the law, and especially in large urban areas, I prefer to keep mine well concealed even if it's NOT legally required to do so.
 
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