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How to carry a knife in a pack


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Viewing 18 posts - 1 through 18 (of 18 total)
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  • #1253378
    stephen wark
    Member

    @coldworlder

    Locale: Green Mountains

    I was following a thread on fixed blade knives, but was wondering how one would carry it – how are folks attaching or storing the blade?

    #1555916
    Philip Carr
    Member

    @unsponsored

    Locale: UK

    Kydex sheath. The knife will also snap into place and not drop out. I have a custom kydex sheath and Mora knife.

    #1555921
    Phil Brown
    Member

    @pbrown19

    Locale: Traverse City MI

    Place the sheath upside down on your shoulder strap and fasten it with 100 MPH tape.

    #1556160
    Brad Groves
    BPL Member

    @4quietwoods

    Locale: Michigan

    in the sheath, in a water bottle pocket

    #1556181
    David Olsen
    Spectator

    @oware

    Locale: Steptoe Butte

    For those in CA who may not realize.

    If you have it inside your pack or clothing in California,
    without a valid CCW permit or be hunting or fishing with a license with you, in many areas it is a felony.

    #1556214
    Steven McAllister
    BPL Member

    @brooklynkayak

    Locale: Arizona, US

    I keep my Mora, in the plastic Mora sheath, attached to my hip belt.
    It could be considered a concealed weapon in a lot of cases if I put it inside? I think it depends on the blade length in most states. I don't know what the laws are so I just keep it outside.

    #1556217
    Brian UL
    Member

    @maynard76

    Locale: New England

    if you are unsure keep it your pack.
    You can refuse a search of your pack.
    "Sorry officer, I don't consent to searches"
    But I think you must have it on your person to be considered concealed, but every state is different.

    #1556229
    Stephen Barber
    BPL Member

    @grampa

    Locale: SoCal

    In California, carrying a fixed blade knife in your pack would not be "concealed". Carrying a fixed blade knife in a pocket or tucked inside your pants (!) is legally concealed.

    Carrying a fixed blade inside a pocket on your hipbelt or shoulder strap is questionable.

    But this is likely unimportant, in that you are very unlikely to be stopped by a police officer looking for gangbangers and druggies while you're on the trail.

    #1556308
    David Olsen
    Spectator

    @oware

    Locale: Steptoe Butte

    I only say this cause a buddy got in deep doo for his
    river rescue knife in his van when returning from a rafting
    trip. Don't know what he did to get stopped.

    There are no length limitations in CA for fixed blades.

    #1556312
    Konrad .
    BPL Member

    @konrad1013

    Wait….carrying a fixed blade in a pocket or tucked in your pants is LEGALLY concealed????? Do you mean ILLEGALLY concealed? or did you simply mean that such a method of carrying would make it fit the legal definition of "concealed." Based on my reading of the CA penal code, and personal experience carrying fixed blades when i lived in CA, you have to have the sheathed knife visible in order for it not to be considered concealed.

    From the CA penal code…
    (24)(d) Knives carried in sheaths which are worn openly suspended from
    the waist of the wearer are not concealed within the meaning of this
    section.

    Also, in reference to the other post….what happened to your buddy with the river knife? Subject to a full car search? I'm curious, as I just finished a semester in Criminal Procedure, so it caught my attention

    #1556376
    Stephen Barber
    BPL Member

    @grampa

    Locale: SoCal

    "did you simply mean that such a method of carrying would make it fit the legal definition of "concealed." "

    Right – sorry for any confusion. A fixed blade knife in California, as you said, needs to be carried visibly, and preferably at the waist.

    If it's not visible, it is legally considered "concealed" and thus a no-no!

    No length limit for fixed blade carry in CA as a state, but local laws (county and city) may have length limitations.

    #1556383
    Mike M
    BPL Member

    @mtwarden

    Locale: Montana

    I've found I prefer a neck carry- you can see a small plastic triangle in the cord- this allows it to break off in the event of a bad spill and the cord getting hung up (the small spectra is rated at ~ 200#)

    Photobucket

    I also like the fact that the knife is w/ me at all times- see that "what would happen if you got separated from your pack thread" :)

    A waist carry would be an option if your using a very light pack sans waist belt

    #1556432
    David Olsen
    Spectator

    @oware

    Locale: Steptoe Butte

    My friend had his van searched and spent a night in jail.
    I don't know if he ended up having a conviction, it sounded
    most like they were looking for drugs and wanted another
    reason to keep him and search his van. He was on highway 1
    norcal.

    My take home message is don't leave a fixed blade concealed
    in car or on person. Don't put it in the glove box.

    #1556433
    David Olsen
    Spectator

    @oware

    Locale: Steptoe Butte

    length limitation

    It doesn't matter how short the knife either. One
    shorter than the length of a folded folding knife is legally
    a concealable weapon (ie illegal to conceal) as is a bowie
    knife.

    #1556442
    David Olsen
    Spectator

    @oware

    Locale: Steptoe Butte

    "In California, carrying a fixed blade knife in your pack would not be "concealed". Carrying a fixed blade knife in a pocket or tucked inside your pants (!) is legally concealed."

    In CA if this were a handgun, it would have to be LOCKED in a pack,
    do they differentiate on different kinds of concealable
    weapons? Wouldn't a fixed blade knife also have to be
    locked?

    #1556467
    Roger Caffin
    BPL Member

    @rcaffin

    Locale: Wollemi & Kosciusko NPs, Europe

    Hi Dave

    Just a thought: what the Police actually did, and what they were legally entitled to do, may be slightly different things.

    Cheers

    #1556476
    Konrad .
    BPL Member

    @konrad1013

    Based on the facts given, I actually believe the police were entitled to what they did. I'm assuming that the initial stop (being pulled over) was justified with reasonable suspicion that a traffic violation had been committed. If a cop stays on your tail long enough, he'll be able to find some form of a traffic violation, (e.g. failure to signal, or anything minor can justify the initial stop). He probably pulled your buddy over, walked up to the car, and saw the knife, which would then give him reasonable suspicion that your buddy is armed and dangerous. As a result of this reasonable suspicion, the law would allow him to legally frisk your friend and search the passenger compartment (including containers, where a weapon could fit) for weapons that are within reach of the occupants of the car. They cannot search your trunk b/c that is not within reach of an occupant of the car (unless your drive a pickup truck or a hatchback). The problem is, the law doesn't care about police officer pretext, and even if the cop really didn't think he was facing a gang banger, or anyone that really was 'armed and dangerous' (like us, who are plainly dressed in hiker clothes, dirty from a recent camp trip) he still had enough evidence to give him the necessary reasonable suspicion needed to search the entire car (short of the trunk), without consent. The other thing is, even if the cop didn't have a legal stop, or conducted what otherwise was an illegal search…consent cures all. So if they asked your friend if they could search his car, and he said yes, then it doesn't matter if it was a legal stop or search to begin with.

    If you're pulled over, and he sees a knife, its still up to the cop to decide whether or not he wants to subject you to a pat down and a car search. Most cops will just let you go, or at most give you a quick frisk. My friends been pulled over with a folder clipped in his pocket. He got patted down, but didn't get his car searched. Cops usually just do the necessary amount to dispel their reasonable suspicion. Seeing that your buddy got taken into the station, i'm assuming they found something else during the search. Perhaps the cop already had the thought in his head that there was something illegal in the car, and most likely used the knife as a proxy to conduct a lawful search for that 'something else' in the car. Again, it sucks because studies show tons of police officer pretext. with a disproportionate amount of minorities being pulled over, ( many most likely were the result of officer pretext.) As your buddy a minority or did he look like a pot smoking hippy? :)

    I have mixed feelings about cops doing this. I see the value behind it and the need to protect your own safety, but at the same time I see muchroom for abuse…but by all means its legal. Check out the supreme court case that allowed cops to do this. It also involved a knife
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michigan_v._Long

    So my advice, dont leave your fixed blades on your body or in plain view, when you're in your car. Keep it in the trunk of the car. And if they ask you to search your car, and you have something to hide, you tell them no. If they have the legal grounds to search, theyll search without your consent anyways…but if they dont have the legal grounds for a search, then don't give them a legal basis by agreeing to a search

    #1559131
    John Donewar
    BPL Member

    @newton

    Locale: Southeastern Texas

    Why carry a knife in your pack ?!?!?

    In an ultralight world a folder (pocket knife) goes in your pocket. Hopefully for the sake of retention secured by a pocket clip.

    In the same enviorment a fixed blade should go, first choice, upright on your belt. Second choice, and less desirable, is upright on the pack's shoulder strap opposite your strong hand. Third choice, and least desirable, is upside down on your pack's shoulder strap opposite your strong hand. This third choice is entirely dependent on the security of carry afforded by the fixed blade's sheath and how comfortable you are with the point of a knife facing up towards one of your most precious eyes.

    On the trail carry the folders in your pocket and the fixed blades in plain sight.

    The only time a knife should go in your pack is for the travel/flight to the trail or the travel/flight home from the trail.

    Party On ! 2010

    Newton

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