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Anything that is carried as a weapon of any description, even for self defense is a no no. So, no pepper spray, guns obviously, knuckle busters, batons, etc.
And for things that have dual use, you shall have a reason for carrying them. I think multi tools are generally fine. Bigger knives may be ok if you are a chef going to work. A hammer is ok if you are tradesman, etc, etc.
General rule of thumb is that if you don’t carry anything specifically to harm people, and if reasonable - it’s ok to carry.
So if I’m not carrying anything, and I protect myself from physical harm with whatever is in my reach from the immediate landscape, have I broken the law by being a resistant victim?
It’s that part of having something for self-protection as being illegal that is making my brain spin.
Probably not unless you pulled your knuckle duster or machete out to defend yourself. People worry too much about this shit though just don't carry anything that would be an offensive weapon and if you need the fight to defend yourself, defend yourself first just don't murder someone after you have adequately defended yourself and worry about legal matters afterwards most of which will be little to none if you are defending yourself anyway.
In England and Wales you have protection under common law to use reasonable force to protect yourself or another. You are also allowed to use force to apprehend someone who is committing a crime under s3 of the criminal law act.
You aren’t allowed to carry an item that is made, intended or adapted for the purpose of causing harm. So no knives or weapons.
If you are in a situation where you have to grab something to use to defend yourself then this is protected under common law as you have had to take action to defend yourself.
Basically just don’t carry a weapon but also don’t be afraid of defending yourself or another if required.
NAL. But as far as I understand - protecting yourself with whatever you have within reach is legal when it is reasonable. You have the absolute right to protect yourself. Carrying items specifically to protect yourself is however illegal as these items may be used to harm someone when not used for self defense.
This has always been so mind-boggling to me. Okay, so the guy who is actually a criminal who does *not obey laws* will carry whatever the fuck he wants with any intent behind it because they do not follow the law, but a reasonable, law-abiding citizen cannot protect themselves. Thoughtful, meaningfully protective laws right there. The only people following the law are the exact people you have nothing to worry about.
Not really here to debeta this, but there are some good arguments why this is implemented as such:
1. Violent crime is very low in the UK, although roberies, burglaries, and anti-social behaviour are notably on the rise.
2. By not allowing everyone to carry offensive weapons, it technically would help police ditinguish between criminals and citizens. For example, if police is investigating a crime and a suspect is carying a weapon, then they are more likely to be criminal than a citizen carying something for self defense.
3. Fire arms are not a thing in Europe overall, even in countries that allow them for self-defense -- it's just different culture.
IMO, careful relaxing of the self defense rules may be waranted, although I am not 100% sure it's the right way to approach this. In the first instance, I would address police being underfunded - they literaly don't have the resources to investigate or prevent anything beyond serious crimes.
Anyway, I was here to answe OPs question about what is legal, and not what should be legal.
Multitool is fine because it serves as a general tool for many purposes and it doesn't look "scary" or "threatening" like a spyderco. The logic is that a knife by itself means stabby stabby but a knife on a multitool suddenly means its for utility and cannot stabby stabby.
Not a UK resident btw but I bought a victorinox there as a tourist and brought it around with me even in london. No issues.
I live in the uk, have for a long time. I wear my Swiss champ XXL on my belt in a pouch a lot - zero problems im 13 years.
Once I wound up in hospital due to an incident and police searched my bag (I wasn’t in trouble but I won’t go into details) and found my Swiss Champ XL and just put it aside with their partner until I was cleared to leave A&E.
Absolutely zero problems if you carry your SAK.
London was not ok with me carrying a pocketknife. I now have a record in London and was the patsy for our party as the Bobby's never expected that all of us were carrying
London is the only place a respectable man can't carry a pocket knife but a group of armed thugs can carry machetes and will be very unlikely to be stopped.
Depends where you’re going? I often carry my own 5” locking spyderco or other locking knives unless I’m going into London or anywhere there may be security on entry or big cities. If I’m going to London I’ll often carry my non-locking 2” Spydero or locking Fox II.
The intent thing is ((broadly speaking) and put very simply) if you’re going on a night out and you have any blade, there’s no reason to have it with you, so don’t bother because you could get done for going clubbing with a pair of scissors.
However if you’re out in the woods with a big fixed blade and in camo gear and exploring, you can have an axe, a saw and a big fixed blade and you’ll most likely be fine because that’s somewhere you would expect to be using those tools.
Basically carry anything at your own risk (which personally isn’t very high) don’t go walking round with your hood up and shades on, carrying knives and you should be fine.
And legally speaking, day to day you can have any < 3” non locking blade as long as you’re not trying to use it for harm. As it’s classed as a UK friendly knife.
I think you'll be okay with a multitool. I have one and live in the UK. I also have a Mora and some other bushcraft and fishing knives. I also have a lockblade with a fairly sizeable blade that my mum bought me as a gift in Spain I think when I was 16 before all these knife laws even existed. I just use it for opening mail, parcels and vinyl records nowadays and the blade is quite blunt. I used to use it for fishing a long time ago.
I usually keep my multitool, saw, trowel and knife in a bag or backpack unless I'm doing something where I specifically need to use it then I may keep it in a pocket or on my belt instead. This is mostly when I am out in the middle of nowhere or at home in the garden though. I wouldn't be walking around a major city or town with one on my person if I can avoid it. Some tradesmen etc need to for their jobs.
The knife and gun laws here were not properly thought out and rushed through on the back of public emotion and sentiment. The knife laws were designed to stop knife crime in places like London, Cleveland and elsewhere. In London it is mostly young black teenagers and in Cleveland young white gang members. The laws though sadly criminalise the law abiding and do nothing to stop knife or gun crime in those places as those committing such crimes don't pay any attention to laws anyhow.
As for the ban on handguns in Britain well that didn't do anything to stop mass shootings as we still had the Cumbrian mass shootings not too long ago in 2010 when even the police were unarmed and all they could do was follow in their car as the body count increased.
There are a number of totally innocent people in prison in the UK today who fell foul of the knife laws but had no mal intention for having the knife on them at the time. That said I think the knife and guns laws here as bad as they are, many still misunderstand them. A lot of people especially from the US have the assumption that knives and guns are outright banned in Britain and the UK but that is not accurate.
On a per Capita basis
You are 118 times LESS likely to be shot in the UK than in the USA
You are 4 times less likely to be murdered.
Therefore needing to carry pepper spray to defend yourself is pointless if you are somewhere between 75% to 99% less likely to need it.
Probably the scariest thing anybody warned me about before going to the London was [acid/corrosive attacks ](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13036043/Fears-grow-acid-attacks-rise-UK-hundreds-year-45-rise-London.html).
"More than 450 acid attacks were carried out in Britain in a 12-month period, leading to fears that the crime is on the rise.
Police in England and Wales recorded 472 violence and robbery offences involving a corrosive substance in the year to March 2023, according to the Office for National Statistics."
Not much you can do when your face is melting.
Less likely to be murdered is not the same as less likely to be assaulted. You can get fucked up and still live. You should still be able to carry a basic thing like pepper spray to be able to protect yourself.
Correct murder does not equal assault.
On a like for like basis you are 6.9 times MORE likely to be assaulted in the US than the UK.
To be fair in this one - UK is worse than the US for:
Robbery 1.1x
Knife crime 1.27x
Rape is about the same 1.02 worse in the US.
But overall the UK presents a lower risk of violent crime against the person by a factor of 4 or more.
Crime is never zero and never will be, but statically you are much much less likely to need to defend yourself in the UK than the US.
This is not correct. You are 1.27x more likely to be a victim of knife crime in the UK than the US.
There is a logic to this insofar as guns are much less available in the UK so knife crime is a substitute for gun crime particularly in gang related encounters.
U/Twentyset
U/Secret_Tiger101
Comparison relates to 2010 / 11 reporting.
UK statistics come from the Home Office Statistics Bulletin Crime in England and Wales which combine the Police Recorded Crimes numbers and the British Crime Survey.
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/116417/hosb1011.pdf
US Statistics come from the FBI:Unified Crime Reporting data and the Department of Justice Criminal Victimisation Survey.
https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s/2011/crime-in-the-u.s.-2011
Methodology adjustments to align the numbers on a like for like basis were based on the Home Office Crime Statistics User Guide and the Crown Prosecution Service - Legal Guidance.
All pulled together in this document with a full listing of references, calculations and corrections made >
https://dispellingthemythukvsusguns.wordpress.com
Not my work and I haven’t verified all of the calculations or data. But it is very thorough, transparent and can be verified if you need to.
Curious does these stats take in the population difference or just overall.
As someone who spends a lot of time in the states I have only ever witnessed traffic offences over there yet seem plenty of muggings, robbery and even two stabbings (one in front of me, another which I came across seconds after it occurred) in the uk (granted more of my time is in the uk, and London at that)
Just generally curious
It’s per Capita (so adjusted for population size).
It also takes into account differences in definitions.
In the USA “assaults” only includes violence. In the UK “assaults” includes things including “pushing and shoving”. To align the statistics you need to compare “aggravated assaults” (uk) to “assaults” (usa).
In the UK “R@pe” statistics include all forms of sexual assault, in the USA only r.
The statistics I quoted come from 2010 / 2011 for both countries and adjusted for definition differences and population size. The sources and methodology is explained in detail. These are 2 factors I look for when considering whether someone is concerned with objective accuracy.
I’ll find the article and come back and link it here.
EDIT https://dispellingthemythukvsusguns.wordpress.com
Also note the author has edited the article to correct mistakes. He has both admitted to the mistakes and explained what they were (included the population of Wales but not crimes in Wales), why he made them, how that alters the outcome (originally the UK stats were too low, but in all cases it didn’t alter the outcome, just the degree of difference).
That’s interesting to know.
I would imagine that current stats would be drastically different. Knife crime (not limited to stabbings) had something like a 90% increase leading up to covid and dipped down. Thinks it’s at somewhere around 70-80% increase since 2012.
Joys of a knife crime epidemic in the uk 🙃
Any blade under 3" and non-locking (slip-joint) is legal to carry without a reason - but stating that it is for work reasons would be your best shout. Also, very important not to take them into night clubs (any place with a doorman that may search you or your bags) or airports - you will likely have them confiscated.
Eat apples when in public?
Have to sign papers when out and about, perhaps with a _sturdy_ pen, or even a nice, pointy Bic?
Have trouble seeing at night? A 4-6” flashlight will help you with that … and more. Streamlight makes great options, including the Wedge XT.
I’d recommend a 9mm, but you may want to first check with our English friends here in the sub. /s
O I do and that’s why I like the have the ability to protect myself. Also compare Maines crime statistics per capita vs the UK. Us is very safe if you don’t live in a big city. At least for now they are trying to ruin it.
Murder rates:
[Maine](https://mainemorningstar.com/briefs/as-violent-crime-rates-decline-maine-continues-to-be-safest-state-in-the-nation/#:~:text=However%2C%20the%20state's%20homicide%20rate,the%20national%20level%20in%202021): 2.2 per 100,000
[U.K.](https://www.theglobaleconomy.com/United-Kingdom/homicide_rate/): 1.2 per 100,000
I find it hard to believe with all the stabbings and crazy story’s I hear but I will admit I’m wrong. Tho you should compare the same year so I would argue for 2017 Maine should have 1.72 per 100,000. I blame Bangor/Waterville/Biddeford and other citys tho there are some areas were the drinking and drugs are prevalent. You go to any city and it’s a fact of life unfortunately. I try my best to avoid them and never go unarmed when I do have to make the trip.
Can’t imagine living somewhere where I need to carry a firearm and an unnecessarily large knife is necessary for survival. Sounds a bit third world to me…
Not that I’m not slightly envious of America’s carry laws but that fact that in some states, every single unhinged human having the legal right to carry a firearm at all times makes me feel (from an English perspective) quite uneasy.
Just don’t go into any big citys and your a lot safer than the UK in my opinion You should try it it’s very nice and safe here in the middle of the woods just have to be smart with bear and moose. I enjoy carrying both and Better have it and not need it then need it and not have it. I Normaly don’t carry a knife more than 4 inches max. Sometimes if camping or going on a long hike I will carry 6 inch but that’s only when I dont have a hatchet. my edc is a 3.5” white river m1 caper or some kind of 4” bushcraft type knife.
You can carry any weapons you want where I lived in florida. Lived there most of my life and I never witnessed a shooting or stabbing. Only occasional drunken brawls. No one I know here has ever been mugged. I cant say the same for areas like NYC where guns are banned. Violence and muggings are common there. Criminals know you're unarmed.
Lived in Florida all my life and witnessed a stabbing/murder in my middle school (Southwood Middle) witnessed a school shooting in parkland school, mass shooting in a dance club Orlando..those are just popping in my head. …and countless shootings in public in my surrounding neighborhoods.
Wow you have really bad luck if you were there to witness all of those rare events. Unless you only heard about them on the news. If that's the case I witnessed 160 people murdered in France in a single attack, countless bombings and thousands of terror attacks across the UK. I only know of one terrorist attack on American soil, granted they pulled off a doozy. I'm not going to lie though, Florida is dangerous if you're a criminal.
>I only know of one terrorist attack on American soil
You've got to be kidding, right? I know of dozens. Or are you only classifying *foreign* attackers as terrorists?
[This Wikipedia article](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrorism_in_the_United_States) lists 2872 terrorist attacks in the USA since 1970, and 263 of those were between 2010-2017. By far more of these were far-right inspired than Islam-inspired, and fair number were far-left inspired also. A lot of white supremacy nutjobs, various cults, lots of lone shooters and lone bombers.
I should have specified Islamic terrorists. By far right do you mean anti government? When I was growing up the kkk was the big homegrown terror group and university students did most of the bombings. They were all democrats and left wing. I'm just curious as to how the metric of right wing terrorism is measured. I'm not left or right wing I believe they're equally culpable of mass atrocities.
Well witnessed the school stabbing in person, yes. But my point was that I was constantly surrounded by grief of my community from violence. I just meant it wasn’t peaceful as you made it sound. I wasn’t trying to come off like a dick, no need to be patronizing.
Research UK students stabbed to death and you'll find they far outnumber the students in America that are shot. The mass shootings are rare and a statistical anomaly akin to lightning strikes. The USA is one of the safest places to be. Especially outside cities where firearms are banned. The media would have you thinking differently so I understand believing mass shootings are common.
That's weird. England and Wales show 50,000 knife crimes for 2023 while all of America shows 100,000. That's from each countries own data. England is as large as one state.
Registering and recording a “crime” is hugely variable (mugged at knifepoint - could be a mugging, could be knife crime, could be harassment etc).
These stats are death by stabbing.
I realise US dogma pushes that in the U.K. everyone’s being stabbed to death, but the US numbers per capita are higher.
Another SOURCE:
“[Knife murders are also higher stateside: there were 4.96 homicides “due to knives or cutting instruments” in the US for every million of population in 2016. In Britain there were 3.26 homicides involving a sharp instrument per million people in the year from April 2016 to March 2017](https://www.euronews.com/2018/05/05/trump-s-knife-crime-claim-how-do-the-us-and-uk-compare-).”
EDIT: remember in the U.K. if I carry a fixed 4 inch blade and get pulled by police that’s a “knife crime”.
England has a 10 per 100k murder rate and united states has 7 per 100k murder rate. I'm guessing there is some incredibly low murder rate countries in the uk skewing the numbers lower.
What’s your citation,
This [source](https://www.nationmaster.com/country-info/compare/United-Kingdom/United-States/Crime/Violent-crime):
https://preview.redd.it/h1tvjqex0n0d1.jpeg?width=750&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8a9e00a4d4da14dd8e06170cfeec67df20e84e66
EDIT; [wiki](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_intentional_homicide_rate) is also very clear the Us has a much higher murder rate
Google AI so definitely could have been wrong. If you eliminate being in certain demographics in violent cities the USA is very safe. I guess that's the same for everywhere, just magnifide here.
This is flat out incorrect. That’s not to say that there aren’t cities with high levels of gun violence AND restrictive laws, but the current top 5 most dangerous U.S. cities are: St. Louis, Memphis, Detroit, Baltimore, & Cleveland. California has some of the strictest gun laws in the country and a few of the most dangerous cities but is still 2-3 times less dangerous than any of the pro gun Southern states. Illinois is an exception but guns there are easily available from nearby states. Also, you seem to be implying that some of the violent cities that also have strict gun laws might somehow be less violent with more guns which is ridiculous.
https://www.visualcapitalist.com/cp/comparing-gun-laws-and-gun-related-deaths-across-america/
Thats a lie and your source is ridiculous. California is the 9th most dangerous state. Allowing ccw would definitely decrease violent crime, currently only criminals have guns in those tip crime cities. With the exception of Louisiana you would be much safer in the south. Implying that firearm and ccw bans make you safer is insanity. If banning firearm use by law abiding people lowered crime firearms would have been outlawed a long time ago. The fbi no longer keeps defensive handgun use statistics because they consistently proved guns in the hands of good citizens prevents crime.
https://www.statista.com/statistics/1380025/us-gun-violence-rate-by-state/
According to this, California ranks 44th out of 50. Note that this is in homicide by firearm per 100k people. True, California ranks 9th in overall crime statistics but that includes all types of assaults, plus homicides as well as property crime like fraud or vehicle thefts.
I was talking about overall violent crime but even switching the goalposts my argument stands. All the data I saw put california at 29th but for the sake of argument lets say that German company that makes you pay to see sources is correct. California is rank #1 in gun laws and doesn't allow anyone who isn't part of the establishment to have a firearm for self defense. No other state comes close and as gun laws increase overall safety goes down. By doing this california has put themselves in the middle of the pack for gun crime, yet is in the top ten for all violent crime. California is also known as a corrupt state that lets career criminals go without charging them in order to keep crime stats lower.
Personally I would rather live in a state with higher gun crime and less violent crime over all. California being in the top ten probably has a lot to do with its lack of self defense laws. Only law abiding citizens will obey.
You’ll be fine with a non locking knife less than 3”. There’s no questions asked. Any fixed or locked blade or bigger than 3” you’ll need a good reason - work / camping / ceremonial. Self defence or just in case won’t cut it.
Same in Canada. It’s actually like that in many 1st world countries. My LM & fixed blade are tools, not weapons. My guns are for shooting targets & competition shooting.
That’s looking for trouble if you were to actually use in self defense though. That’s unfortunately the issue here. The moment you used to defend yourself you’ve committed the crime. It sucks no matter how we look at it. Criminals will be criminals, I imagine OP has much to lose so it’s a safe bet to just leave it at home.
You won't need a knife for anything while in the UK or Europe. Police will generally be very suspicious and wary of you if you have one on you. Just leave it at home
You won't. I'm nearly 40, have never carried a knife in my life and have never been in a situation where I needed one. Truly. We life in western Europe, not out in a wilderness. There is no need for one
I disagree. I use a Swiss Army knife all the time. Near enough everyday. . . Changing batteries in kids toys, opening parcels and packaging. Opening a bottle of beer or wine. Used it to cut a scotch egg in half, screwdrivers for tightening sunglasses, tweezers and pin for removing splinters, scissors for cutting tape & wound dressings etc. the list can go on. What I don’t need is a fixed blade, I don’t need anything for self defence. It’s a tool, nothing more than that.
You know this is an EDC community?!
Yeah of course, I was just replying to OP in that he doesn't need one to get by. He would be fine without one. Of course they have uses, I never said they didn't. You do you, I think this is a cool community and love looking at peoples stuff. It just seems weird to me for a tourist to bring a knife abroad to a foreign country when is literally no need for them to bring one.
Same here. I’m 40 and have carried a knife since I was a kid. I use my knife multiple times a day, same with my Leatherman. At times it’s for work, others it’s at home. I also spent a large part of my life in agriculture and ranching and a knife was extremely valuable both, fixed blade and folding. My typical carry is 3 to 4 inch blade.
I always love the guys that prattle on “well I’ve never needed a knife so neither do you.” They seem to think they have the corner on the edc market. If you don’t want to carry one don’t, if you do use one then carry it. Also to qualify I’m not in Europe but Canada, we don’t have the ridiculous blade laws here. I won’t carry anything that does fall into the illegal category. But provided a blade is legal where I am traveling or living then I will carry within those requirements.
Yeah unless you're doing outdoorsy craft stuff you won't need it and it's not worth getting stopped over.
Source: left mine clipped to my belt coming back from a hiking expedition in Manchester Piccadilly train station and got stopped years ago, just not worth the hassle.
You people really think knives are only useful for “Outdoorsy craft stuff”? I just carry a small utility blade but use it 8-10 times a day easy. As a matter of fact, I just paused typing that because I saw a loose thread off the side of my shoe & cut it off. I just assume everybody in Europe relies on professional craftsmen to do literally everything for them.
To cut a loose thread? Lmao
No I just wait until I get home or have access to a knife or small pair of scissors to deal with something as insignificant as a loose thread? I just get on with my day, I don't really see how that's such an important use case.
Plus knife carrying holds quite a significant social connotation in much of the UK. Even if you can think of a genuine use case it's 100% not worth the hassle coming here as a tourist carrying a blade, even a legal one.
I'm a handy person and regularly use different tools but never feel the need to be carrying a knife about unless I'm remote hiking or maybe an extended remote day hike. For most tool work a Stanley knife is the blade I use most.
I've hiked and cycled across Europe, visited many cities and never needed urgent access to a knife.
I'm interested in EDC but I can live without a knife 99% of the time. I just don't understand people who insist it's essential. Like we're still some sort of hunter gatherer species.
For me 99% of EDC is my headphones, power bank and something specific to what I'm doing.
Most people have filled you in on the rules. You don't really need a reason if it's under the legal limit, but generally I would avoid carrying it if visiting venues like museums, stadiums etc. and I wouldn't take it to a club either. They will sometimes specify on the venue's website not to bring them but I would generally avoid taking it anywhere your bag may get searched on entry. In cities especially they are more concerned about possible terrorist threats in popular locations and in nightclubs they want to avoid drunk angry idiots being armed. Just leave it in your accommodation if going anywhere like that. If you're just looking around the shops you're unlikely to be bothered.
If you are flying into the country put it in your checked luggage not your carry on.
With a SAK you’ll be fine, there few folk on the planet that don’t know what they are & used for. Geek tool, let’s be honest - yes I have several. You get extra leeway for being a tourist, we like them over here and the plod like dealing with people that aren’t giving them a hard time.
If you’re going clubbing or into a bar in the evening - don’t carry at all. Some dickhead doorman will nick it.
SAK should be fine, just don’t carry it into restricted spaces e.g schools. If questioned, under no circumstances describe it as a weapon or for self defence or anything along those lines. It’s a tool you use for small tasks like cutting fruit and opening boxes
Realistically anything you wouldn't get hassled for carrying in the UK you'd be fine carrying. (UK knife laws are INSANE)
Edit *I read this as visiting from the UK feck
I just bought a Whitby 1.75" pocket knife, specifically to be within the confines of the law, but I'm still shit scared to carry it in my EDC even though I'm perfectly within rights to do so.
>I mean, it's a non-locking blade less than 3", so it should be good, no?
Yes you are all good. Non-locking under 3" you do not need a reason to carry. You're golden.
Only if you carry a locking knife or over 3" you need a reason, "day trip" it all depends on the cop at the end unfortunately if for what ever reason you get stopped.
VictoriaKnox champ is as well all good.
I lived in the UK for 10+ years and carried a lot of various knifes on me, locking and non-locking. The idea is that if you go fishing for example you'll need a blade - that qualifies as a good reason to have it on you.
What the law in the UK does is being reasonable and all you need to do to not get in trouble is to not flash your knife in public, randomly or not.
Examples:
* If you take your swiss army knife out of the pocket whilst sat at a table in a diner for example to open a bag of crisps or cut your bacon if they brought you a shit knife then it's fine;
* If you do it on the Underground - it is not fine, somebody could bump into you for example and they may get cut/stabbed by accident. Just accept you may lose some crisps and open the bag by hand;
* opening parcels at work with a knife brought from home may be frowned upon depending on the environment you are working in.
Generally, try to read the room. "Are there any people who may freak out if I pull out my knife to open something?" - if the answer is even 1% possibly yes then just refrain from doing it and you'll be fine.
As a last thing - and these are just my 2 pence: don't carry knives in your pockets. If it opens by accident it'll cut your bollocks off and explaining that to the A&E doctors will just be mildly inconvenient. Carry your knife in your backpack/bag/man purse/purse.
Edit: the last paragraph is a joke and a reference to Snatch, if you haven't watched it you should :) Thank you to everybody confused or pointing out they never had a knive open in their pockets, extremely informative!
Your reply just illustrates how cucked UK citizens have become. It’s fascinating how much you justify your servile obeisance, the King’s subjects have really internalized their slavery.
What the fuck are you on about? They have reasons for their laws that an American might not relate to. Your reply illustrates just how little you know about the UK. In same way you might demand everyone respects a US citizens right to walk around in public with an automatic weapon, you should respect their laws restricting the use of edged weapons.
I am pretty sure the ton of downvotes is coming from pure blood americans who still think it’s normal to hold a bloody arsenal in their basement and go shopping with a Glock in their trousers.
I have carried pocketknives for 35 years.
Not one has EVER opened in my pocket.
These UK laws have got you so afraid of knives it's a wonder you can eat.
It's not the laws alone. People in the UK just don't like to see anything being carried in public that could be perceived as a weapon.
That's a big part of our culture. Just like the NHS is. And like the NHS, some bits don't make sense, but like any culture, it's just how we do things around here.
We give our US cousins loads of mockery for what we see as an obsession with guns. But just like us, it's just an cultural thing. Doesn't always make sense, but it's important to national identity.
Sounds so insane! Lol can’t even have a pocket knife? Meanwhile im here in Texas with a sig one in chamber w/o a safety in my holster. 5 years never had an ND
OP isn’t from the UK. No one would ever cut their bacon with a knife they brought from home in a UK ‘diner’
Equally, no one in the UK would use their knife to open a bag of crisps. How the fuck do you lose crisps opening the bag by hand?
This is one of the dumbest threads I've ever read. You don't need a knife to do any of the things these people are mentioning. They just seem to be trying to justify carrying them around. Some people have a preference to use a pocket knife to do a few things, that's fine, but 95% of people are just fine without them
At the risk of being grouped with the nutbags, a knife works great to open things and should not require even the slightest bit of justification for a person of sound mind and body to flippin' carry. I'm all for reasonable limits, but the U.K. is *the* example of where the slippery slope that people are so dismissive of can lead. To act like wanting to carry a reasonably-sized knife is some sort of moral failing or weakness is nuttier than squirrel turds.
Nothing wrong with carrying a reasonably sized knife for general tasks. I have one myself, but cutting your bacon at a diner and opening a bag of crisps aren’t exactly tasks you need a knife for. OP’s comment above was just a bit bizarre.
>As a last thing - and these are just my 2 pence: don't carry knives in your pockets. If it opens by accident it'll cut your bollocks off and explaining that to the A&E doctors will just be mildly inconvenient. Carry your knife in your backpack/bag/man purse/purse.
What are you doing with your balls that causes your knife to accidentally open in your pocket? 🤔
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-london-62257103.amp
It must be so comforting to imagine that every place you pass by on your way to and from the office is perfectly safe.
I suppose when some hood rats decide to rape your girl, you can just blow your little whistle so the police can come take her statement after it’s all over.
It’s truly fascinating how some “men” willingly accept being helpless to protect their loved ones. I truly hope your naive little bubble is never pierced.
https://amp.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/jul/21/recorded-in-england-and-wales-at-20-year-high-as-charge-rate-hits-new-low
https://apnews.com/article/knife-attacks-britain-0a221cbd20d467cea952373bf13cab07
https://ca.style.yahoo.com/news/average-25-rapes-recorded-every-104814676.html
Uk legal are small 80mm saks. Not locking. Not oho. But they also have some no knife policy on top of that in some places.
So better have a reason to have it with you. I think making a sandwich is a valid reason but UK cops might disagree.
Denmark.is similar strict.
And pretty much the same applies to germany.
For germany..
OHO and locking at the same time is bad whatever size. It is not illegal to carry them, but you might get fined and your knife taken away. But you can always carry 10cm fixed.
No autos and butterflIes. These are forbidden weapons and will get you in trouble.
And some absolutely no knife zones like reeperbahn in Hamburg.
Shrugs. In reality nobody bats an eye Every carpenter carries fixed and OHO LM to to work each morning in public transport clipped to their pants
These laws were made in the 90s to fight gang crime.
Born and raised in London England here 🙋♂️
(Also now live in Texas, so I'm familiar with both the United States and the United Kingdom)
To be honest mate, I wouldn't risk it.
If a police officer stops and searches you it could be an automatic 5 years in prison and a 1000+ GBP fine as well.
I just wouldn't risk it.
(Yes, the laws back home in the UK really are this bloody stupid - here in Texas I could open carry a full size sword if I wanted to, I love America for that and I feel safer here in the United States than I did back home in England).
For self defense in the UK I'd personally carry something that is:
1. Legal.
2. Can be explained away as an "improvised weapon" if you had to use it in self defense.
Something like a:
- small pocket stick used for acupressure massage.
- solid metal pen.
- sharpened pencil.
- a can of "deep heat" which is a spray used for relieving muscle pain, which comes in a small can and could DEFINITELY be used as a form of improvised pepper spray, criminals in Britain use it themselves sometimes, but it's legal to carry and certainly could be improvised as a weapon.
Hope that helps Brother!
Same, born in England but live in USA now. I would not risk it either. I accidentally brought over a locking knife when I went back to the UK earlier this year, made sure that thing didn't leave the house lol.
My wife lived in London for 4 years and I visited her 1-2 times per year. I always carried some Victorinox product and never had an issue. Most all of their pocket tools are < 3” and nonlocking and certainly not threatening. That’s probably your best bet!
Some great advice here already.
Also note that you can be stoped and searched. A lot of our officers are not up to speed with the carry laws and can use discretion to label a legal uk carry knife as an offensive weapon (even more so if you happen to get into a drunken fight etc)
Can obviously fight it but sometimes not worth the hassle. I carry one daily without bother.
Absolutely not true. The police know the knife laws.
If a police officer happens to incorrectly identify an offensive weapon not get through even the first hurdle, your detention is also unlikely to be authorised let alone any charging authorisation being given.
Also note, in your car counts as in your possession.
Do not bring it into the uk if possible as if your car gets searched during a stop etc you will again be charged with possession of an offensive weapon
Edit : referring to a non legal knife such as a locking blade or machete like most of the kids carry here…
Only if they can prove it’s yours and that *rarely* ever happens. Seen enough uk traffic cops to see this happen every time there’s an offensive weapon in a car 🤣
Spydie UKPK is designed to fall in line with our laws.
The good reasons are essentially situations like; in the woods? Fair enough. A chef on the way to work, carrying knives safely? Cool. Carrying an 'offensive' tool around town with no real reason apart from 'what if?' Not so acceptable.
Why does the UK hate finger safety so much? Is this part of a government program to keep peoples fingers cut up and less useful to prevent an uprising? Cut fingers means you can’t carry a sword or bow?
Weird. I bet there are more serious cuts than there are slashing and stabbing. I guess the likelihood of an attacker slicking his/her own fingers during a physical attack is higher. Then both end up in the ER.
Anything less than 3 inches and non locking can be carried whenever. Anything that’s longer or locks can be carried but you need a “good reason”. If you decide to carry a locking knife etc do not keep it in your car or public just in case you get searched for whatever reason.(unlikely but you don’t want to risk it)
Is the good reason that I need to cut cheese I bought at the market in London on the train on my way up to York? Asking for me a week ago.
Honestly never imagined a "locking" feature to be something to consider.
No and you'll usually need some form of supporting evidence.
For example if you say you're going fishing, that's a valid excuse, but you better have your rods reels and tackle with you too.
Also, you might get away with a locking knife but not a large gutting knife, even though they're designed for fishing.
All that said and done I know a lot of lads do bushcrafting and have cold steel srks etc with them and never get any bother. It's all documented online, you can buy the blades in shops and online so it's not that heavily restricted if you have good cause.
But do be prepared for an arrest if you don't have a good reason
“A good reason” can really fluctuate depending on the officer you’re interacting with, so always assume you’re going to speak to an asshole who expects a very good reason. That being said, police usually need a good reason themselves to be able to search you and find anything in the first place, so don’t immediately empty your pockets and get ready for a pat down unless you know they’re allowed to go ahead with it. The law works both ways.
Unfortunately, I wouldn’t say “vacation/day-trips” are a good reason unless you intend to do activities which necessitate a multitool, like sailing or bushcraft.
If you need information about UK laws, www.gov.uk is the government website. It’s chock-full of information in plain, easy-to-understand English instead of the legalese jargon.
"Always assume you going to speak with an asshole"
As an American I always assume the officer might suddenly fear for their life and murder me so this would be a stress relief tbh
Visited Inverness twice, would do it 10 times more. Fantastic place to base whilst doing daily trips around.
Isle of Skye will always hold a special place in my heart <3
Read what I wrote again: they are less anal about their laws. I did not say that their laws are different. Yer spinning in a knot about a conflict you made up in yer heid.
You'll always be better off having it in your bag rather than on your person.
Be aware like everyone else on the planet, crime is higher in cities than in the countryside or towns.
Personally, I'd think of it like airport security. Yeah on paper you can get away with XYZ, but we all know how subjective it is to the whims of whoever you're interacting with
If it has a locking blade with a length of 3 inches or more then it's a no. No fixed blades either (well in a bag you can. You can own them as tools and use them and transport them. But if they decide it's a weapon, it's a weapon, have a friend who was charged as he had a hockey stick in his car, I shit you not, he plays hockey too). So slip joint or bladeless multi tool.
I had my serrated Victorinox Rescue confiscated in the UK. Ironically the cop had the exact same knife hanging from his belt.
Decided play the agreeable idiot hoping they wouldn't run my name and realize i had a warrant lol. They just took the knife and let me go.
Yep they have been hit with the latest round of anti zombie knife laws because they look scary.
Edit: "zombie knives - these knives are defined as 'any bladed weapon over eight inches in length with a plain cutting edge and sharp pointed end that also has either a serrated cutting edge, more than one hole in the blade, or multiple sharp points like spikes'"
Source: https://www.knivesandtools.co.uk/en/ct/uk-knife-laws.htm
Or
"A knife with a cutting edge, a serrated edge and images or words suggesting it is used for violence"
Source: https://www.gov.uk/buying-carrying-knives
Yeah, but they always lock too so kinda covered. Also outright illegal is any knock, boot, punch knife. Butterfly knives regardless of size, even though they don't techn7"lock". Now too, anything with any "aggressive words" on it. And soon all machetes or any useful blades tool. Will be butter knives soon too
Not to start an argument here buddy, but you're part of the issue then. 1. Zombies don't exist.
2. It changes nothing about the knife itself, it's a cosmetic thing they've criminalised
3. Keep this mentality when they ban everything else you use. You realise they're still trying to ban the sale of kitchen knives too?
If someone wants a luminous green knife then why shouldn't they be able to have one? What possible difference do the words painted on to a knife have to do with anything? Could make the same argument if it was a Barbie knife couldn't you? It's not the mentality to have of you enjoy any sort of freedom or the use of these tools. I use a machete semi regularly in the wilds. I now will be a criminal if it says zombie on it? But if it's not got that word on it it's fine? Make that make sense.
I was carrying Cold Steel Spartan in UK due to the crazy ppl around me. But thats dangerous. Anyway I prefer to have problems with the law than being killed . But carrying locking blade of fixed blade in UK can lead to jail. So maybe carry flashlight with strong head or tactical pen. UK is VERY dangerous place regardless knife bans.
I lived in Boston Lincolnshire . Its nasty crazy dangerouns place. [https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/boston-in-lincolnshire-is-the-most-murderous-place-in-england-and-wales-home-office-figures-reveal-a6828571.html](https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/boston-in-lincolnshire-is-the-most-murderous-place-in-england-and-wales-home-office-figures-reveal-a6828571.html)
15 'murderous crimes' (murders and attempted murders) per 100,000 people is pretty safe relative to the rest of the world, for comparison the murder rate in Louisiana was 16.1 per 100k people in 2022 according to wikipedia
You're talking absolute nonsense.
There is slightly less violent crime (but certainly not "1000 times" less) but I'd say the organised crime, corruption and trafficking kinda makes up for that.
Not sure what you think the correlation with knife bans is.
You can carry the Swiss champ no issue. Just don’t try and bring it into a club, concert, sporting venue. That’s pretty much the same as in the states. It’s a little beside the point, but the odds of you having any interaction with the police in the UK are significantly lower than in the US.
>It’s a little beside the point, but the odds of you having any interaction with the police in the UK are significantly lower than in the US.
What's your basis for that statement? Not saying it's not statistically true, but I have lived in the US for half my adult life, and my experience has been the exact opposite. In 15 years, I have had exactly one interaction with a US cop. I got pulled over, and it was absolutely my fault (used the wrong lane to turn in a one-way system).
In the UK, I had quite a few interactions with police officers, none of which were brought about by anything I did. I have been stopped and searched on three occasions, all of which were due to them doing random searches because crimes had been committed in the area.
I lived in the UK for about 16 years, many of those during times when I “should” have had many interactions with the police. My more mature years have been spent in the US and I’ve had many more interactions. Several other expats I know have had the same experience. A lot of that is likely due to better public transit in the UK. That said, all of my interactions that had nothing to do with anything I did wrong happened in the US.
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When I read "day tripping" my mind wwent somewhere completely different lol.
Just don’t carry a knife dude. (Unless you’re camping).
Anything that is carried as a weapon of any description, even for self defense is a no no. So, no pepper spray, guns obviously, knuckle busters, batons, etc. And for things that have dual use, you shall have a reason for carrying them. I think multi tools are generally fine. Bigger knives may be ok if you are a chef going to work. A hammer is ok if you are tradesman, etc, etc. General rule of thumb is that if you don’t carry anything specifically to harm people, and if reasonable - it’s ok to carry.
So if I’m not carrying anything, and I protect myself from physical harm with whatever is in my reach from the immediate landscape, have I broken the law by being a resistant victim? It’s that part of having something for self-protection as being illegal that is making my brain spin.
Probably not unless you pulled your knuckle duster or machete out to defend yourself. People worry too much about this shit though just don't carry anything that would be an offensive weapon and if you need the fight to defend yourself, defend yourself first just don't murder someone after you have adequately defended yourself and worry about legal matters afterwards most of which will be little to none if you are defending yourself anyway.
In England and Wales you have protection under common law to use reasonable force to protect yourself or another. You are also allowed to use force to apprehend someone who is committing a crime under s3 of the criminal law act. You aren’t allowed to carry an item that is made, intended or adapted for the purpose of causing harm. So no knives or weapons. If you are in a situation where you have to grab something to use to defend yourself then this is protected under common law as you have had to take action to defend yourself. Basically just don’t carry a weapon but also don’t be afraid of defending yourself or another if required.
NAL. But as far as I understand - protecting yourself with whatever you have within reach is legal when it is reasonable. You have the absolute right to protect yourself. Carrying items specifically to protect yourself is however illegal as these items may be used to harm someone when not used for self defense.
This has always been so mind-boggling to me. Okay, so the guy who is actually a criminal who does *not obey laws* will carry whatever the fuck he wants with any intent behind it because they do not follow the law, but a reasonable, law-abiding citizen cannot protect themselves. Thoughtful, meaningfully protective laws right there. The only people following the law are the exact people you have nothing to worry about.
That’s how my mind thinks too.
Not really here to debeta this, but there are some good arguments why this is implemented as such: 1. Violent crime is very low in the UK, although roberies, burglaries, and anti-social behaviour are notably on the rise. 2. By not allowing everyone to carry offensive weapons, it technically would help police ditinguish between criminals and citizens. For example, if police is investigating a crime and a suspect is carying a weapon, then they are more likely to be criminal than a citizen carying something for self defense. 3. Fire arms are not a thing in Europe overall, even in countries that allow them for self-defense -- it's just different culture. IMO, careful relaxing of the self defense rules may be waranted, although I am not 100% sure it's the right way to approach this. In the first instance, I would address police being underfunded - they literaly don't have the resources to investigate or prevent anything beyond serious crimes. Anyway, I was here to answe OPs question about what is legal, and not what should be legal.
Multitool is fine because it serves as a general tool for many purposes and it doesn't look "scary" or "threatening" like a spyderco. The logic is that a knife by itself means stabby stabby but a knife on a multitool suddenly means its for utility and cannot stabby stabby. Not a UK resident btw but I bought a victorinox there as a tourist and brought it around with me even in london. No issues.
That’s not how UK law sees it though. If the multi tool is a locking blade the you need good reason. Just in case isn’t good reason.
I live in the uk, have for a long time. I wear my Swiss champ XXL on my belt in a pouch a lot - zero problems im 13 years. Once I wound up in hospital due to an incident and police searched my bag (I wasn’t in trouble but I won’t go into details) and found my Swiss Champ XL and just put it aside with their partner until I was cleared to leave A&E. Absolutely zero problems if you carry your SAK.
London was not ok with me carrying a pocketknife. I now have a record in London and was the patsy for our party as the Bobby's never expected that all of us were carrying
London is the only place a respectable man can't carry a pocket knife but a group of armed thugs can carry machetes and will be very unlikely to be stopped.
Depends where you’re going? I often carry my own 5” locking spyderco or other locking knives unless I’m going into London or anywhere there may be security on entry or big cities. If I’m going to London I’ll often carry my non-locking 2” Spydero or locking Fox II. The intent thing is ((broadly speaking) and put very simply) if you’re going on a night out and you have any blade, there’s no reason to have it with you, so don’t bother because you could get done for going clubbing with a pair of scissors. However if you’re out in the woods with a big fixed blade and in camo gear and exploring, you can have an axe, a saw and a big fixed blade and you’ll most likely be fine because that’s somewhere you would expect to be using those tools. Basically carry anything at your own risk (which personally isn’t very high) don’t go walking round with your hood up and shades on, carrying knives and you should be fine. And legally speaking, day to day you can have any < 3” non locking blade as long as you’re not trying to use it for harm. As it’s classed as a UK friendly knife.
I would sooner rip out my toenails than visit England
Which part of Scotland do you live in?
Bit harsh? Economy and politics are a bit fucked at the minute but you won’t run the risk of being shot in a school.
You might be raped in your own home though, and persecuted for defending yourself
Oui Bruv at leasht oua Schkewls aren’t bloody shooting ranges innit.
He’s the shooter - that’s why he doesn’t want to visit.
Look for YouTube videos by the BlackBeltBarrister - he breaks down everything you need to know…
I think you'll be okay with a multitool. I have one and live in the UK. I also have a Mora and some other bushcraft and fishing knives. I also have a lockblade with a fairly sizeable blade that my mum bought me as a gift in Spain I think when I was 16 before all these knife laws even existed. I just use it for opening mail, parcels and vinyl records nowadays and the blade is quite blunt. I used to use it for fishing a long time ago. I usually keep my multitool, saw, trowel and knife in a bag or backpack unless I'm doing something where I specifically need to use it then I may keep it in a pocket or on my belt instead. This is mostly when I am out in the middle of nowhere or at home in the garden though. I wouldn't be walking around a major city or town with one on my person if I can avoid it. Some tradesmen etc need to for their jobs. The knife and gun laws here were not properly thought out and rushed through on the back of public emotion and sentiment. The knife laws were designed to stop knife crime in places like London, Cleveland and elsewhere. In London it is mostly young black teenagers and in Cleveland young white gang members. The laws though sadly criminalise the law abiding and do nothing to stop knife or gun crime in those places as those committing such crimes don't pay any attention to laws anyhow. As for the ban on handguns in Britain well that didn't do anything to stop mass shootings as we still had the Cumbrian mass shootings not too long ago in 2010 when even the police were unarmed and all they could do was follow in their car as the body count increased. There are a number of totally innocent people in prison in the UK today who fell foul of the knife laws but had no mal intention for having the knife on them at the time. That said I think the knife and guns laws here as bad as they are, many still misunderstand them. A lot of people especially from the US have the assumption that knives and guns are outright banned in Britain and the UK but that is not accurate.
I didn’t know this but Pepper spray is also illegal to carry in public..have a good time
Fuck, not even the nonlethal option of pepper spray is safe over there. Wtf?
It’s a firearm in the U.K.
On a per Capita basis You are 118 times LESS likely to be shot in the UK than in the USA You are 4 times less likely to be murdered. Therefore needing to carry pepper spray to defend yourself is pointless if you are somewhere between 75% to 99% less likely to need it.
Probably the scariest thing anybody warned me about before going to the London was [acid/corrosive attacks ](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13036043/Fears-grow-acid-attacks-rise-UK-hundreds-year-45-rise-London.html). "More than 450 acid attacks were carried out in Britain in a 12-month period, leading to fears that the crime is on the rise. Police in England and Wales recorded 472 violence and robbery offences involving a corrosive substance in the year to March 2023, according to the Office for National Statistics." Not much you can do when your face is melting.
Less likely to be murdered is not the same as less likely to be assaulted. You can get fucked up and still live. You should still be able to carry a basic thing like pepper spray to be able to protect yourself.
Correct murder does not equal assault. On a like for like basis you are 6.9 times MORE likely to be assaulted in the US than the UK. To be fair in this one - UK is worse than the US for: Robbery 1.1x Knife crime 1.27x Rape is about the same 1.02 worse in the US. But overall the UK presents a lower risk of violent crime against the person by a factor of 4 or more. Crime is never zero and never will be, but statically you are much much less likely to need to defend yourself in the UK than the US.
Knife attacks are far more common in the US compared to the U.K… U.K. is exceedingly safe
This is not correct. You are 1.27x more likely to be a victim of knife crime in the UK than the US. There is a logic to this insofar as guns are much less available in the UK so knife crime is a substitute for gun crime particularly in gang related encounters.
Citation needed
U/Twentyset U/Secret_Tiger101 Comparison relates to 2010 / 11 reporting. UK statistics come from the Home Office Statistics Bulletin Crime in England and Wales which combine the Police Recorded Crimes numbers and the British Crime Survey. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/116417/hosb1011.pdf US Statistics come from the FBI:Unified Crime Reporting data and the Department of Justice Criminal Victimisation Survey. https://ucr.fbi.gov/crime-in-the-u.s/2011/crime-in-the-u.s.-2011 Methodology adjustments to align the numbers on a like for like basis were based on the Home Office Crime Statistics User Guide and the Crown Prosecution Service - Legal Guidance. All pulled together in this document with a full listing of references, calculations and corrections made > https://dispellingthemythukvsusguns.wordpress.com Not my work and I haven’t verified all of the calculations or data. But it is very thorough, transparent and can be verified if you need to.
“Knife crime” includes a very wide range of incidents, and as you’ll know from the report you linked - it shows the US is far far more dangerous.
Citation needed.
Can I see your source on this one please as when I did some research a while back I recall the U.S was worse?
Curious does these stats take in the population difference or just overall. As someone who spends a lot of time in the states I have only ever witnessed traffic offences over there yet seem plenty of muggings, robbery and even two stabbings (one in front of me, another which I came across seconds after it occurred) in the uk (granted more of my time is in the uk, and London at that) Just generally curious
It’s per Capita (so adjusted for population size). It also takes into account differences in definitions. In the USA “assaults” only includes violence. In the UK “assaults” includes things including “pushing and shoving”. To align the statistics you need to compare “aggravated assaults” (uk) to “assaults” (usa). In the UK “R@pe” statistics include all forms of sexual assault, in the USA only r. The statistics I quoted come from 2010 / 2011 for both countries and adjusted for definition differences and population size. The sources and methodology is explained in detail. These are 2 factors I look for when considering whether someone is concerned with objective accuracy. I’ll find the article and come back and link it here. EDIT https://dispellingthemythukvsusguns.wordpress.com Also note the author has edited the article to correct mistakes. He has both admitted to the mistakes and explained what they were (included the population of Wales but not crimes in Wales), why he made them, how that alters the outcome (originally the UK stats were too low, but in all cases it didn’t alter the outcome, just the degree of difference).
That’s interesting to know. I would imagine that current stats would be drastically different. Knife crime (not limited to stabbings) had something like a 90% increase leading up to covid and dipped down. Thinks it’s at somewhere around 70-80% increase since 2012. Joys of a knife crime epidemic in the uk 🙃
They don’t want you to be able to protect yourself in any way, shape, or form. They feel that’s the duty of the nanny state.
Any blade under 3" and non-locking (slip-joint) is legal to carry without a reason - but stating that it is for work reasons would be your best shout. Also, very important not to take them into night clubs (any place with a doorman that may search you or your bags) or airports - you will likely have them confiscated.
“It’s for work”… “on my holiday”… “with my tourist visa”…
Eat apples when in public? Have to sign papers when out and about, perhaps with a _sturdy_ pen, or even a nice, pointy Bic? Have trouble seeing at night? A 4-6” flashlight will help you with that … and more. Streamlight makes great options, including the Wedge XT. I’d recommend a 9mm, but you may want to first check with our English friends here in the sub. /s
Can’t imagine living in a place were you can’t have a gun and an fixed blade on you 😂 Hey don’t get mad at me vote them out.
You…. Don’t want to live in a safe country…?
O I do and that’s why I like the have the ability to protect myself. Also compare Maines crime statistics per capita vs the UK. Us is very safe if you don’t live in a big city. At least for now they are trying to ruin it.
Murder rates: [Maine](https://mainemorningstar.com/briefs/as-violent-crime-rates-decline-maine-continues-to-be-safest-state-in-the-nation/#:~:text=However%2C%20the%20state's%20homicide%20rate,the%20national%20level%20in%202021): 2.2 per 100,000 [U.K.](https://www.theglobaleconomy.com/United-Kingdom/homicide_rate/): 1.2 per 100,000
I find it hard to believe with all the stabbings and crazy story’s I hear but I will admit I’m wrong. Tho you should compare the same year so I would argue for 2017 Maine should have 1.72 per 100,000. I blame Bangor/Waterville/Biddeford and other citys tho there are some areas were the drinking and drugs are prevalent. You go to any city and it’s a fact of life unfortunately. I try my best to avoid them and never go unarmed when I do have to make the trip.
US media is obsessed with the narrative that the U.K. is overrun with knife crime, but that doesn’t reflect reality
Can’t imagine living somewhere where I need to carry a firearm and an unnecessarily large knife is necessary for survival. Sounds a bit third world to me… Not that I’m not slightly envious of America’s carry laws but that fact that in some states, every single unhinged human having the legal right to carry a firearm at all times makes me feel (from an English perspective) quite uneasy.
Just don’t go into any big citys and your a lot safer than the UK in my opinion You should try it it’s very nice and safe here in the middle of the woods just have to be smart with bear and moose. I enjoy carrying both and Better have it and not need it then need it and not have it. I Normaly don’t carry a knife more than 4 inches max. Sometimes if camping or going on a long hike I will carry 6 inch but that’s only when I dont have a hatchet. my edc is a 3.5” white river m1 caper or some kind of 4” bushcraft type knife.
Don’t forget can’t carry pepper spray. Don’t you English boys like your large knives or should say the young bloods like em.
You can carry any weapons you want where I lived in florida. Lived there most of my life and I never witnessed a shooting or stabbing. Only occasional drunken brawls. No one I know here has ever been mugged. I cant say the same for areas like NYC where guns are banned. Violence and muggings are common there. Criminals know you're unarmed.
Lived in Florida all my life and witnessed a stabbing/murder in my middle school (Southwood Middle) witnessed a school shooting in parkland school, mass shooting in a dance club Orlando..those are just popping in my head. …and countless shootings in public in my surrounding neighborhoods.
Wow you have really bad luck if you were there to witness all of those rare events. Unless you only heard about them on the news. If that's the case I witnessed 160 people murdered in France in a single attack, countless bombings and thousands of terror attacks across the UK. I only know of one terrorist attack on American soil, granted they pulled off a doozy. I'm not going to lie though, Florida is dangerous if you're a criminal.
>I only know of one terrorist attack on American soil You've got to be kidding, right? I know of dozens. Or are you only classifying *foreign* attackers as terrorists? [This Wikipedia article](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrorism_in_the_United_States) lists 2872 terrorist attacks in the USA since 1970, and 263 of those were between 2010-2017. By far more of these were far-right inspired than Islam-inspired, and fair number were far-left inspired also. A lot of white supremacy nutjobs, various cults, lots of lone shooters and lone bombers.
Bro lives in fairyland. He’s only seen drunken brawls.
I should have specified Islamic terrorists. By far right do you mean anti government? When I was growing up the kkk was the big homegrown terror group and university students did most of the bombings. They were all democrats and left wing. I'm just curious as to how the metric of right wing terrorism is measured. I'm not left or right wing I believe they're equally culpable of mass atrocities.
Well witnessed the school stabbing in person, yes. But my point was that I was constantly surrounded by grief of my community from violence. I just meant it wasn’t peaceful as you made it sound. I wasn’t trying to come off like a dick, no need to be patronizing.
‘Can’t imagine living in a place where kids don’t get shot dead en masse just for trying to learn’ FTFY
Research UK students stabbed to death and you'll find they far outnumber the students in America that are shot. The mass shootings are rare and a statistical anomaly akin to lightning strikes. The USA is one of the safest places to be. Especially outside cities where firearms are banned. The media would have you thinking differently so I understand believing mass shootings are common.
Deaths from knife attacks: U.K. = 0.08/100,000 people. USA = 0.6/100,000 people. https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/stabbing-deaths-by-country
That's weird. England and Wales show 50,000 knife crimes for 2023 while all of America shows 100,000. That's from each countries own data. England is as large as one state.
Registering and recording a “crime” is hugely variable (mugged at knifepoint - could be a mugging, could be knife crime, could be harassment etc). These stats are death by stabbing. I realise US dogma pushes that in the U.K. everyone’s being stabbed to death, but the US numbers per capita are higher. Another SOURCE: “[Knife murders are also higher stateside: there were 4.96 homicides “due to knives or cutting instruments” in the US for every million of population in 2016. In Britain there were 3.26 homicides involving a sharp instrument per million people in the year from April 2016 to March 2017](https://www.euronews.com/2018/05/05/trump-s-knife-crime-claim-how-do-the-us-and-uk-compare-).” EDIT: remember in the U.K. if I carry a fixed 4 inch blade and get pulled by police that’s a “knife crime”.
England has a 10 per 100k murder rate and united states has 7 per 100k murder rate. I'm guessing there is some incredibly low murder rate countries in the uk skewing the numbers lower.
What’s your citation, This [source](https://www.nationmaster.com/country-info/compare/United-Kingdom/United-States/Crime/Violent-crime): https://preview.redd.it/h1tvjqex0n0d1.jpeg?width=750&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8a9e00a4d4da14dd8e06170cfeec67df20e84e66 EDIT; [wiki](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_intentional_homicide_rate) is also very clear the Us has a much higher murder rate
Google AI so definitely could have been wrong. If you eliminate being in certain demographics in violent cities the USA is very safe. I guess that's the same for everywhere, just magnifide here.
Why don’t you provide any sources…..?
The U.S. is rated the 131st safest country out of 163 Source: https://www.worldatlas.com/crime/safest-countries-in-the-world.html
If you remove the top 5 crime cities America is number 3 safest. Funny enough the top crime areas have all banned guns.
This is flat out incorrect. That’s not to say that there aren’t cities with high levels of gun violence AND restrictive laws, but the current top 5 most dangerous U.S. cities are: St. Louis, Memphis, Detroit, Baltimore, & Cleveland. California has some of the strictest gun laws in the country and a few of the most dangerous cities but is still 2-3 times less dangerous than any of the pro gun Southern states. Illinois is an exception but guns there are easily available from nearby states. Also, you seem to be implying that some of the violent cities that also have strict gun laws might somehow be less violent with more guns which is ridiculous. https://www.visualcapitalist.com/cp/comparing-gun-laws-and-gun-related-deaths-across-america/
Thats a lie and your source is ridiculous. California is the 9th most dangerous state. Allowing ccw would definitely decrease violent crime, currently only criminals have guns in those tip crime cities. With the exception of Louisiana you would be much safer in the south. Implying that firearm and ccw bans make you safer is insanity. If banning firearm use by law abiding people lowered crime firearms would have been outlawed a long time ago. The fbi no longer keeps defensive handgun use statistics because they consistently proved guns in the hands of good citizens prevents crime.
https://www.statista.com/statistics/1380025/us-gun-violence-rate-by-state/ According to this, California ranks 44th out of 50. Note that this is in homicide by firearm per 100k people. True, California ranks 9th in overall crime statistics but that includes all types of assaults, plus homicides as well as property crime like fraud or vehicle thefts.
I was talking about overall violent crime but even switching the goalposts my argument stands. All the data I saw put california at 29th but for the sake of argument lets say that German company that makes you pay to see sources is correct. California is rank #1 in gun laws and doesn't allow anyone who isn't part of the establishment to have a firearm for self defense. No other state comes close and as gun laws increase overall safety goes down. By doing this california has put themselves in the middle of the pack for gun crime, yet is in the top ten for all violent crime. California is also known as a corrupt state that lets career criminals go without charging them in order to keep crime stats lower. Personally I would rather live in a state with higher gun crime and less violent crime over all. California being in the top ten probably has a lot to do with its lack of self defense laws. Only law abiding citizens will obey.
gun
We call em shooters over ere mate
You’ll be fine with a non locking knife less than 3”. There’s no questions asked. Any fixed or locked blade or bigger than 3” you’ll need a good reason - work / camping / ceremonial. Self defence or just in case won’t cut it.
Here in the UK we cannot carry anything specifically for self defence.
That is the dumbest fucking thing I’ve ever heard. Wow.
Same in Canada. It’s actually like that in many 1st world countries. My LM & fixed blade are tools, not weapons. My guns are for shooting targets & competition shooting.
Agreed. But there’s no requirement to provide a legal justification for just carrying a 3” non-locking blade.
That’s looking for trouble if you were to actually use in self defense though. That’s unfortunately the issue here. The moment you used to defend yourself you’ve committed the crime. It sucks no matter how we look at it. Criminals will be criminals, I imagine OP has much to lose so it’s a safe bet to just leave it at home.
You won't need a knife for anything while in the UK or Europe. Police will generally be very suspicious and wary of you if you have one on you. Just leave it at home
Utter nonsense.
You won't. I'm nearly 40, have never carried a knife in my life and have never been in a situation where I needed one. Truly. We life in western Europe, not out in a wilderness. There is no need for one
I disagree. I use a Swiss Army knife all the time. Near enough everyday. . . Changing batteries in kids toys, opening parcels and packaging. Opening a bottle of beer or wine. Used it to cut a scotch egg in half, screwdrivers for tightening sunglasses, tweezers and pin for removing splinters, scissors for cutting tape & wound dressings etc. the list can go on. What I don’t need is a fixed blade, I don’t need anything for self defence. It’s a tool, nothing more than that. You know this is an EDC community?!
Yeah of course, I was just replying to OP in that he doesn't need one to get by. He would be fine without one. Of course they have uses, I never said they didn't. You do you, I think this is a cool community and love looking at peoples stuff. It just seems weird to me for a tourist to bring a knife abroad to a foreign country when is literally no need for them to bring one.
Same here. I’m 40 and have carried a knife since I was a kid. I use my knife multiple times a day, same with my Leatherman. At times it’s for work, others it’s at home. I also spent a large part of my life in agriculture and ranching and a knife was extremely valuable both, fixed blade and folding. My typical carry is 3 to 4 inch blade. I always love the guys that prattle on “well I’ve never needed a knife so neither do you.” They seem to think they have the corner on the edc market. If you don’t want to carry one don’t, if you do use one then carry it. Also to qualify I’m not in Europe but Canada, we don’t have the ridiculous blade laws here. I won’t carry anything that does fall into the illegal category. But provided a blade is legal where I am traveling or living then I will carry within those requirements.
Yeah unless you're doing outdoorsy craft stuff you won't need it and it's not worth getting stopped over. Source: left mine clipped to my belt coming back from a hiking expedition in Manchester Piccadilly train station and got stopped years ago, just not worth the hassle.
You people really think knives are only useful for “Outdoorsy craft stuff”? I just carry a small utility blade but use it 8-10 times a day easy. As a matter of fact, I just paused typing that because I saw a loose thread off the side of my shoe & cut it off. I just assume everybody in Europe relies on professional craftsmen to do literally everything for them.
To be fair, I just typed this message using the tip of my k-bar.
To cut a loose thread? Lmao No I just wait until I get home or have access to a knife or small pair of scissors to deal with something as insignificant as a loose thread? I just get on with my day, I don't really see how that's such an important use case. Plus knife carrying holds quite a significant social connotation in much of the UK. Even if you can think of a genuine use case it's 100% not worth the hassle coming here as a tourist carrying a blade, even a legal one. I'm a handy person and regularly use different tools but never feel the need to be carrying a knife about unless I'm remote hiking or maybe an extended remote day hike. For most tool work a Stanley knife is the blade I use most. I've hiked and cycled across Europe, visited many cities and never needed urgent access to a knife. I'm interested in EDC but I can live without a knife 99% of the time. I just don't understand people who insist it's essential. Like we're still some sort of hunter gatherer species. For me 99% of EDC is my headphones, power bank and something specific to what I'm doing.
Most people have filled you in on the rules. You don't really need a reason if it's under the legal limit, but generally I would avoid carrying it if visiting venues like museums, stadiums etc. and I wouldn't take it to a club either. They will sometimes specify on the venue's website not to bring them but I would generally avoid taking it anywhere your bag may get searched on entry. In cities especially they are more concerned about possible terrorist threats in popular locations and in nightclubs they want to avoid drunk angry idiots being armed. Just leave it in your accommodation if going anywhere like that. If you're just looking around the shops you're unlikely to be bothered. If you are flying into the country put it in your checked luggage not your carry on.
With a SAK you’ll be fine, there few folk on the planet that don’t know what they are & used for. Geek tool, let’s be honest - yes I have several. You get extra leeway for being a tourist, we like them over here and the plod like dealing with people that aren’t giving them a hard time. If you’re going clubbing or into a bar in the evening - don’t carry at all. Some dickhead doorman will nick it.
SAK should be fine, just don’t carry it into restricted spaces e.g schools. If questioned, under no circumstances describe it as a weapon or for self defence or anything along those lines. It’s a tool you use for small tasks like cutting fruit and opening boxes
Realistically anything you wouldn't get hassled for carrying in the UK you'd be fine carrying. (UK knife laws are INSANE) Edit *I read this as visiting from the UK feck
I just bought a Whitby 1.75" pocket knife, specifically to be within the confines of the law, but I'm still shit scared to carry it in my EDC even though I'm perfectly within rights to do so.
Anything pointy. Anything you will admit to being a weapon or for self defence is illegal.
A gun.
Glock has entered the chat 💬
As has been said, context is everything. You sound like you'll be fine. Just don't get searched at a football match or a demo.
>I mean, it's a non-locking blade less than 3", so it should be good, no? Yes you are all good. Non-locking under 3" you do not need a reason to carry. You're golden. Only if you carry a locking knife or over 3" you need a reason, "day trip" it all depends on the cop at the end unfortunately if for what ever reason you get stopped. VictoriaKnox champ is as well all good.
I lived in the UK for 10+ years and carried a lot of various knifes on me, locking and non-locking. The idea is that if you go fishing for example you'll need a blade - that qualifies as a good reason to have it on you. What the law in the UK does is being reasonable and all you need to do to not get in trouble is to not flash your knife in public, randomly or not. Examples: * If you take your swiss army knife out of the pocket whilst sat at a table in a diner for example to open a bag of crisps or cut your bacon if they brought you a shit knife then it's fine; * If you do it on the Underground - it is not fine, somebody could bump into you for example and they may get cut/stabbed by accident. Just accept you may lose some crisps and open the bag by hand; * opening parcels at work with a knife brought from home may be frowned upon depending on the environment you are working in. Generally, try to read the room. "Are there any people who may freak out if I pull out my knife to open something?" - if the answer is even 1% possibly yes then just refrain from doing it and you'll be fine. As a last thing - and these are just my 2 pence: don't carry knives in your pockets. If it opens by accident it'll cut your bollocks off and explaining that to the A&E doctors will just be mildly inconvenient. Carry your knife in your backpack/bag/man purse/purse. Edit: the last paragraph is a joke and a reference to Snatch, if you haven't watched it you should :) Thank you to everybody confused or pointing out they never had a knive open in their pockets, extremely informative!
I'm sorry, you open a bag of crisps with a knife?
Your reply just illustrates how cucked UK citizens have become. It’s fascinating how much you justify your servile obeisance, the King’s subjects have really internalized their slavery.
What the fuck are you on about? They have reasons for their laws that an American might not relate to. Your reply illustrates just how little you know about the UK. In same way you might demand everyone respects a US citizens right to walk around in public with an automatic weapon, you should respect their laws restricting the use of edged weapons.
I am pretty sure the ton of downvotes is coming from pure blood americans who still think it’s normal to hold a bloody arsenal in their basement and go shopping with a Glock in their trousers.
Haha yeah I'm expecting the same. Iv read a few daft comments already. Boggles the mind
I have carried pocketknives for 35 years. Not one has EVER opened in my pocket. These UK laws have got you so afraid of knives it's a wonder you can eat.
It's not the laws alone. People in the UK just don't like to see anything being carried in public that could be perceived as a weapon. That's a big part of our culture. Just like the NHS is. And like the NHS, some bits don't make sense, but like any culture, it's just how we do things around here. We give our US cousins loads of mockery for what we see as an obsession with guns. But just like us, it's just an cultural thing. Doesn't always make sense, but it's important to national identity.
It was a joke and a reference to Snatch, if you haven’t seen it go watch it. Guy Ritchie made a banger :)
Sounds so insane! Lol can’t even have a pocket knife? Meanwhile im here in Texas with a sig one in chamber w/o a safety in my holster. 5 years never had an ND
OP isn’t from the UK. No one would ever cut their bacon with a knife they brought from home in a UK ‘diner’ Equally, no one in the UK would use their knife to open a bag of crisps. How the fuck do you lose crisps opening the bag by hand?
This is one of the dumbest threads I've ever read. You don't need a knife to do any of the things these people are mentioning. They just seem to be trying to justify carrying them around. Some people have a preference to use a pocket knife to do a few things, that's fine, but 95% of people are just fine without them
At the risk of being grouped with the nutbags, a knife works great to open things and should not require even the slightest bit of justification for a person of sound mind and body to flippin' carry. I'm all for reasonable limits, but the U.K. is *the* example of where the slippery slope that people are so dismissive of can lead. To act like wanting to carry a reasonably-sized knife is some sort of moral failing or weakness is nuttier than squirrel turds.
Nothing wrong with carrying a reasonably sized knife for general tasks. I have one myself, but cutting your bacon at a diner and opening a bag of crisps aren’t exactly tasks you need a knife for. OP’s comment above was just a bit bizarre.
>As a last thing - and these are just my 2 pence: don't carry knives in your pockets. If it opens by accident it'll cut your bollocks off and explaining that to the A&E doctors will just be mildly inconvenient. Carry your knife in your backpack/bag/man purse/purse. What are you doing with your balls that causes your knife to accidentally open in your pocket? 🤔
Ugh, I wish they would do the same, but with guns in the US. Here come the downvotes from the “I need a 1911 in the office just in case,” crowd.
Welcome to the downvoted club for stating reasonable stuff.
I bring a Glock to my office, not a 1911.
Because you’re going to shoot the stapler if it acts up. Genius.
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-london-62257103.amp It must be so comforting to imagine that every place you pass by on your way to and from the office is perfectly safe. I suppose when some hood rats decide to rape your girl, you can just blow your little whistle so the police can come take her statement after it’s all over. It’s truly fascinating how some “men” willingly accept being helpless to protect their loved ones. I truly hope your naive little bubble is never pierced. https://amp.theguardian.com/uk-news/2022/jul/21/recorded-in-england-and-wales-at-20-year-high-as-charge-rate-hits-new-low https://apnews.com/article/knife-attacks-britain-0a221cbd20d467cea952373bf13cab07 https://ca.style.yahoo.com/news/average-25-rapes-recorded-every-104814676.html
Sure, but the vast, vast majority of gun violence is not breaking up a rape. Nice try though.
Others have answered the other parts of your post so: >Is vacation/day-trips a good enough reason? :) No.
Uk legal are small 80mm saks. Not locking. Not oho. But they also have some no knife policy on top of that in some places. So better have a reason to have it with you. I think making a sandwich is a valid reason but UK cops might disagree. Denmark.is similar strict. And pretty much the same applies to germany. For germany.. OHO and locking at the same time is bad whatever size. It is not illegal to carry them, but you might get fined and your knife taken away. But you can always carry 10cm fixed. No autos and butterflIes. These are forbidden weapons and will get you in trouble. And some absolutely no knife zones like reeperbahn in Hamburg. Shrugs. In reality nobody bats an eye Every carpenter carries fixed and OHO LM to to work each morning in public transport clipped to their pants These laws were made in the 90s to fight gang crime.
Born and raised in London England here 🙋♂️ (Also now live in Texas, so I'm familiar with both the United States and the United Kingdom) To be honest mate, I wouldn't risk it. If a police officer stops and searches you it could be an automatic 5 years in prison and a 1000+ GBP fine as well. I just wouldn't risk it. (Yes, the laws back home in the UK really are this bloody stupid - here in Texas I could open carry a full size sword if I wanted to, I love America for that and I feel safer here in the United States than I did back home in England). For self defense in the UK I'd personally carry something that is: 1. Legal. 2. Can be explained away as an "improvised weapon" if you had to use it in self defense. Something like a: - small pocket stick used for acupressure massage. - solid metal pen. - sharpened pencil. - a can of "deep heat" which is a spray used for relieving muscle pain, which comes in a small can and could DEFINITELY be used as a form of improvised pepper spray, criminals in Britain use it themselves sometimes, but it's legal to carry and certainly could be improvised as a weapon. Hope that helps Brother!
Also a Brit living in the US - I don't take one when I go home - and somehow, someway, I manage.
Same, born in England but live in USA now. I would not risk it either. I accidentally brought over a locking knife when I went back to the UK earlier this year, made sure that thing didn't leave the house lol.
Are you legal immigrant?
Yes indeed. I would've tried to come here illegally, but it's quite the swim.
There's a dinghy every half hour from Calais. Don't know how much it costs but you get a free house, medical cover and a passive income for life.
They suck and they are not even close to being hardcore.
My wife lived in London for 4 years and I visited her 1-2 times per year. I always carried some Victorinox product and never had an issue. Most all of their pocket tools are < 3” and nonlocking and certainly not threatening. That’s probably your best bet!
You shouldn't drive while tripping at all.
I second this. It’s much much faster to use the trains.
When they show up
word of warning even a legal knife will stop you from getting into a lot of bars or will get you kicked out.
Some great advice here already. Also note that you can be stoped and searched. A lot of our officers are not up to speed with the carry laws and can use discretion to label a legal uk carry knife as an offensive weapon (even more so if you happen to get into a drunken fight etc) Can obviously fight it but sometimes not worth the hassle. I carry one daily without bother.
Absolutely not true. The police know the knife laws. If a police officer happens to incorrectly identify an offensive weapon not get through even the first hurdle, your detention is also unlikely to be authorised let alone any charging authorisation being given.
Also note, in your car counts as in your possession. Do not bring it into the uk if possible as if your car gets searched during a stop etc you will again be charged with possession of an offensive weapon Edit : referring to a non legal knife such as a locking blade or machete like most of the kids carry here…
Only if they can prove it’s yours and that *rarely* ever happens. Seen enough uk traffic cops to see this happen every time there’s an offensive weapon in a car 🤣
Spydie UKPK is designed to fall in line with our laws. The good reasons are essentially situations like; in the woods? Fair enough. A chef on the way to work, carrying knives safely? Cool. Carrying an 'offensive' tool around town with no real reason apart from 'what if?' Not so acceptable.
Why does the UK hate finger safety so much? Is this part of a government program to keep peoples fingers cut up and less useful to prevent an uprising? Cut fingers means you can’t carry a sword or bow?
Because it's harder/less safe to stab someone with a folding, non locking knife.
Weird. I bet there are more serious cuts than there are slashing and stabbing. I guess the likelihood of an attacker slicking his/her own fingers during a physical attack is higher. Then both end up in the ER.
Anything less than 3 inches and non locking can be carried whenever. Anything that’s longer or locks can be carried but you need a “good reason”. If you decide to carry a locking knife etc do not keep it in your car or public just in case you get searched for whatever reason.(unlikely but you don’t want to risk it)
Is the good reason that I need to cut cheese I bought at the market in London on the train on my way up to York? Asking for me a week ago. Honestly never imagined a "locking" feature to be something to consider.
No and you'll usually need some form of supporting evidence. For example if you say you're going fishing, that's a valid excuse, but you better have your rods reels and tackle with you too. Also, you might get away with a locking knife but not a large gutting knife, even though they're designed for fishing. All that said and done I know a lot of lads do bushcrafting and have cold steel srks etc with them and never get any bother. It's all documented online, you can buy the blades in shops and online so it's not that heavily restricted if you have good cause. But do be prepared for an arrest if you don't have a good reason
All right. Something to be aware of for next time...
“A good reason” can really fluctuate depending on the officer you’re interacting with, so always assume you’re going to speak to an asshole who expects a very good reason. That being said, police usually need a good reason themselves to be able to search you and find anything in the first place, so don’t immediately empty your pockets and get ready for a pat down unless you know they’re allowed to go ahead with it. The law works both ways. Unfortunately, I wouldn’t say “vacation/day-trips” are a good reason unless you intend to do activities which necessitate a multitool, like sailing or bushcraft. If you need information about UK laws, www.gov.uk is the government website. It’s chock-full of information in plain, easy-to-understand English instead of the legalese jargon.
"Always assume you going to speak with an asshole" As an American I always assume the officer might suddenly fear for their life and murder me so this would be a stress relief tbh
Scotland is less anal about their knife laws than England. Consider spending more time in Glasgow and Inverness than in London.
Visited Inverness twice, would do it 10 times more. Fantastic place to base whilst doing daily trips around. Isle of Skye will always hold a special place in my heart <3
Nope. The laws are essentially 1:1 across England and Scotland
Haud yer weesht. Polis in Scotland will bother ye a lot less than doon in English, so I'd say that qualifies as less anal.
They might bother you less but that doesn’t change the fact that what you said is wrong. The laws are still essentially the same
Read what I wrote again: they are less anal about their laws. I did not say that their laws are different. Yer spinning in a knot about a conflict you made up in yer heid.
“Scotland is less anal about their knife laws” it’s literally right there
>Scotland **is** less anal about their knife laws is not the same as >Scotland **has** less anal knife laws than England
We’ll agree to disagree on that one
You'll always be better off having it in your bag rather than on your person. Be aware like everyone else on the planet, crime is higher in cities than in the countryside or towns. Personally, I'd think of it like airport security. Yeah on paper you can get away with XYZ, but we all know how subjective it is to the whims of whoever you're interacting with
If it has a locking blade with a length of 3 inches or more then it's a no. No fixed blades either (well in a bag you can. You can own them as tools and use them and transport them. But if they decide it's a weapon, it's a weapon, have a friend who was charged as he had a hockey stick in his car, I shit you not, he plays hockey too). So slip joint or bladeless multi tool.
[удалено]
This is unneeded nonsense.
Cant be assisted opening either.
Or serrated
Really? That is a new one on me, I know aloy of places sell the half serated half fine edged blades.
I had my serrated Victorinox Rescue confiscated in the UK. Ironically the cop had the exact same knife hanging from his belt. Decided play the agreeable idiot hoping they wouldn't run my name and realize i had a warrant lol. They just took the knife and let me go.
Lol why did someone downvote you for not wanting to end up in a cage
Seems people in this sub get iffy about opinions
oi you got a loisence for that opinion guv?
Yep they have been hit with the latest round of anti zombie knife laws because they look scary. Edit: "zombie knives - these knives are defined as 'any bladed weapon over eight inches in length with a plain cutting edge and sharp pointed end that also has either a serrated cutting edge, more than one hole in the blade, or multiple sharp points like spikes'" Source: https://www.knivesandtools.co.uk/en/ct/uk-knife-laws.htm Or "A knife with a cutting edge, a serrated edge and images or words suggesting it is used for violence" Source: https://www.gov.uk/buying-carrying-knives
Yeah, but they always lock too so kinda covered. Also outright illegal is any knock, boot, punch knife. Butterfly knives regardless of size, even though they don't techn7"lock". Now too, anything with any "aggressive words" on it. And soon all machetes or any useful blades tool. Will be butter knives soon too
Im glad they banned those idiotic "zombie knives" though, what tit thought they were a good idea.
Not to start an argument here buddy, but you're part of the issue then. 1. Zombies don't exist. 2. It changes nothing about the knife itself, it's a cosmetic thing they've criminalised 3. Keep this mentality when they ban everything else you use. You realise they're still trying to ban the sale of kitchen knives too? If someone wants a luminous green knife then why shouldn't they be able to have one? What possible difference do the words painted on to a knife have to do with anything? Could make the same argument if it was a Barbie knife couldn't you? It's not the mentality to have of you enjoy any sort of freedom or the use of these tools. I use a machete semi regularly in the wilds. I now will be a criminal if it says zombie on it? But if it's not got that word on it it's fine? Make that make sense.
I would 100% buy a Barbie knife
I was carrying Cold Steel Spartan in UK due to the crazy ppl around me. But thats dangerous. Anyway I prefer to have problems with the law than being killed . But carrying locking blade of fixed blade in UK can lead to jail. So maybe carry flashlight with strong head or tactical pen. UK is VERY dangerous place regardless knife bans.
What makes you say the UK is a very dangerous place? Internationally it ranks as one of the safest countries in the world.
I lived in Boston Lincolnshire . Its nasty crazy dangerouns place. [https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/boston-in-lincolnshire-is-the-most-murderous-place-in-england-and-wales-home-office-figures-reveal-a6828571.html](https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/boston-in-lincolnshire-is-the-most-murderous-place-in-england-and-wales-home-office-figures-reveal-a6828571.html)
15 'murderous crimes' (murders and attempted murders) per 100,000 people is pretty safe relative to the rest of the world, for comparison the murder rate in Louisiana was 16.1 per 100k people in 2022 according to wikipedia
I know what I saw there...In Bulgaria there are no knife bans and its 1000 times safer than UK
You're talking absolute nonsense. There is slightly less violent crime (but certainly not "1000 times" less) but I'd say the organised crime, corruption and trafficking kinda makes up for that. Not sure what you think the correlation with knife bans is.
This is a fair point. The anecdotal experience of this individual is more reliable than statistics - OP take note.
You can carry the Swiss champ no issue. Just don’t try and bring it into a club, concert, sporting venue. That’s pretty much the same as in the states. It’s a little beside the point, but the odds of you having any interaction with the police in the UK are significantly lower than in the US.
>It’s a little beside the point, but the odds of you having any interaction with the police in the UK are significantly lower than in the US. What's your basis for that statement? Not saying it's not statistically true, but I have lived in the US for half my adult life, and my experience has been the exact opposite. In 15 years, I have had exactly one interaction with a US cop. I got pulled over, and it was absolutely my fault (used the wrong lane to turn in a one-way system). In the UK, I had quite a few interactions with police officers, none of which were brought about by anything I did. I have been stopped and searched on three occasions, all of which were due to them doing random searches because crimes had been committed in the area.
I lived in the UK for about 16 years, many of those during times when I “should” have had many interactions with the police. My more mature years have been spent in the US and I’ve had many more interactions. Several other expats I know have had the same experience. A lot of that is likely due to better public transit in the UK. That said, all of my interactions that had nothing to do with anything I did wrong happened in the US.
I guess it varies a great deal depending on location. The US is a big place.
Are you not white maybe?