[eurohacker]

I think 10 inches is 25 cm...

Anyway, how would you go about carrying such a knife concealed?

[mattw]

With a concealed carry license? Itsn't it illegal to conceal a knife longer than 6" or something like that? I just heard that somewhere.. maybe wrong. But to answer your question.. you could wear cowboy boots or make yourself a shoulder holster.

[hso]

Iwb

[mattw]

What if you drop your keys :what:


"Is that a 10 inch knife or are you glad to see me?"

[middy]

Depends on the state you're in. 5.5" is max for Texas.

I think it would be too long for IWB, it would be hard to sit down. Some kind of back or shoulder rig under a jacket is probably the best bet. See Survival Sheath Systems (http://www.survivalsheath.com)

[Soap]

IWB. River City Sheaths.

[mattw]

the only way i would carry that beast below the waist for concealment is if i just a hole in my pocket and lashed the sheath to my leg

[Jack19]

Just another post by eurohacker asking how to break the law.

Ignore him and move on.

[eurohacker]

Jack19: yes, because we all know that asking how something can be done always implies you are actually intending to do it :banghead:

I am not a believer in security by obscurity.

[Chris Rhines]

Um, Jack, there are places here in the U.S. where it is perfectly legal to carry a 10+" knife. Try not to trip over your self-righteousness.

- Chris

[mattw]

carrying it concealed is the question though, I'm not sure about that.. I thought every state had laws for knives aswell?

[Mr. Loud Guns]

The standard is that if the knifes blade is longer than four fingers it is not legal to carry. I know this because i ALWAYS carry a knofe on me. If is not for self defense rather for utility. I suggest a buck folder :)

[Jack19]

Chris, perhaps you should pay a little more attention to the nature of euro's questions. Whether he's spending too much time at the Playstation, or truly ignorant, his asking thinly veiled questions about how to break the law on a public board should be of some concern to those engaging in the discussion.

Unfortunately, we can reasonably expect those who do not share our values to monitor this board. euro's intent, while debatable, in my mind, does not withstand a test of reasonableness.

YMMV

Best wishes.

[mattw]

No need to act so stuck-up Jack, its not like he is planning on assassinating someone...

[22-rimfire]

Rule of thumb was always 6" blade length. I was reading my state's reg's the other day and learned that the legal carry length is 4-inches. That was a suprise.

Try wearing boots or strap the sheath onto your calf under your slacks. Shorts don't work very well. :)

[hso]

"The standard is that if the knifes blade is longer than ..." may be accurate for your state or local, but there is no national standard that can be applied since each state determines how big is too big for knife carry and under what circumstances. The closest thing to a national law for what blade length constitutes a weapon is the fed 3.5 in. limit for carrying a knife in a federal facility.

Some states limit legal carry length to 2, 3, 4, 7 or any length fixed blade so check the law for the area of interest.

If you want to find out what is a legal blade length to carry under what circumstances don't ask the question here and expect to get a good answer. Go to findlaw.com and navigate to the individual state regulations and read for yourself. If you want to shortcut the process check Bernard Levine's site, but keep in mind you're still not looking directly at the regulation.

As to the IWB. Bingo, DF! I've seen Mike Sastre (River City Sheaths) pull a full size Bagwell 10 in. bowie out of his pants from a IWB. Now Mike is a very slinder 5' 6" fellow that usually runs around in a T-shirt, shorts and sandals and he always has some huge knife stuck down his pants and you can't tell it when he sits or stands or whatever. So guys, it can be done because I've seen it and have been shown how to carry it. :D

[JohnKSa]

I've seen it done, and done very effectively. But I wouldn't be able to do it. The guy I saw was quite heavy and wore loose pants. He had the sheathed knife stuck down the front of his pants so that it ran down one leg a bit. I could only tell where it was when he pulled it out. When "installed" it was not visible and didn't print. Pretty amazing to watch him draw, and draw, and draw, and draaawww that knife out of it's hiding place. :D

[loandr.]

I use the shoulder rigs for all my blades over 10 inchs (Perfectlly legal here in Fl.) from Rob. at Survival Sheath Systems.....In Kydex you cant beat him. Mike from River City does great work(his southern comfort sheath which he uses for the bagwell would interest you).......... BUT is WAY to backlogged, you could easily wait 6mo-1yr. with very little contact from River City BUT hey when you do get it , it's worth the wait, he is a good guy! IMHO :-)

Loandr.

[Soap]

hso- I've heard all the stories about Mike's concealment ability :D That rocks you actually got to see how he does it. I have a River City for a Kasper that I have. Pretty nice sheath!

[GregGry]

Due to my physical size, I could very likely carry a 10 inch knife that was in a sheath, if it was attached to the side of my right leg. I could probably sit down and move without any issues. Either that or I could have it on my back like a sword . Personally I wouldn't carry a knife with a blade bigger then 6 inches (more like 3 inches for every day), at 10 inches you might as well have a machete (I think that's the correct spelling).

[Don Gwinn]

Geez, guys, let's not all fall over ourselves in our haste to make goofy assumptions about laws we don't understand. :rolleyes:

Did ANYBODY who posted "that's illegal, you doer of illegal things!" actually check the laws in SWEDEN, where Eurohacker lives? Or did you post your understanding of your local and state laws as if they applied to the whole U.S., much less the entire globe?

In Illinois, for instance, you can legally carry any size knife you want, concealed any way you want, as long as you're not carrying it "with intent to illegally harm another."

In California, you can't conceal a fixed blade, but if an inch or so is visible, there's no length limit. Jim March's Outsider, back in the day, was designed as long knife for "outside" fighting and he had the sheath fitted so that an inch of the pommel was visible below his jacket. Perfectly legal.


As for "Rules of Thumb," my personal rule of thumb is that if somebody tells you there's a "Rule of Thumb" that has to do with how many fingers long your knife is, it was probably made up by some cop or security guard. 9 times out of ten, if you check the law, it's NOT in there. I've heard so many length limits for Illinois you wouldn't believe it--three inches, four inches, three and a half, four fingers, three fingers, six inches, etc. etc. etc.
NONE of those are in the law.

[rudolf]

Just another post by eurohacker asking how to break the law.
Ignore him and move on


As he calls himself Eurohacker, he might be in Europe. Here in Germany, I can legally carry ANY blade length, swords and spears included. We do not have the concept of concealed carry anywhere in our laws. Either you carry, or you don't.

The web is international, and believe it or not, you've got friends in Europe. Even though reading the news will make this hard to believe :( Give us some leeway.

As to concealing a big knife, hang it into the left inside of a jeans (or other cotton) vest. The sheath must hold it while hanging. You can then stand around with your arms crossed, and your right hand is already gripping the knife. Why care for a knife? There's no legal gun CCW for us over here!

Just in case anyone accuses me of endangering the Swedish public safety by my advice, Ms. Lind was stabbed and killed by a jugoslaw immigrant using a 4" knife. The knife was not the problem.

[loandr.]

Do a search here OR on GT for "MercLeash" and you will find a cheap.....efficent alternative :D IMHO assuming the knifes sheath is currently set for such carry.

Loandr.

[thebucket]

Yeah, this whole it's illegal thing bugs me too, because as far as I can find, there are no knife laws in Minnesota other than a prohibition on carrying switchblades. So I could have a five foot long two handed sword strapped to my back and it wouldn't be illegal. It might bring unwanted attention, but it wouldn't be illegal.
Of course, Mr. Eurohacker lives in Sweden, so how would our laws work there anyway?

[Bix]

Don,

I cringe at picking nits on an internet forum, but I think you may have overstated things a bit :)

As I suspect you are aware, municipalities in Illinois can enact all manner of ordinances which may restrict possession of weapons. Section 8-24-020 of the municipal code of the City of Chicago, for example, prohibits concealed carry of a knife with a blade larger than 2.5", regardless of intent (with certain exceptions).

Interestingly, the same provision seems to allow open carry of larger blades - with the intent requirement you mention in your post (tracking ILCS).

In any event, I felt compelled to mention it, lest anyone get the urge for a stroll down State Street with a Vaquero Grande tucked in their waistband ;)

[AK103K]

They can be easily and comfortably carried IWB. If your worried about legalities, then dont carry it. I love the way people want to regulate what they perceive to be dangerous, or tell you what you should or shouldnt do, but are nowhere around when you need them to take the beating, knifing, or shooting, unarmed of course, since its so much safer, and this goes for the police and authorities too. :rolleyes: Funny how "bad" people dont seemed to bothered by silly rules. :)

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid65/p0cad2487e84df66c09a817d7cf8c50b1/fbe4fbf3.jpg
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid65/pb67f02718361a483412d43c6141df756/fbe4ffb4.jpg

[Soap]

Nice knives! Who did the sheaths? Also, do you find it hard to get a keen edge on your MkII? I can't get a great one on mine because of the bevel.

[AK103K]

I got the sheaths back in the early 90's, I think it was the Cutlery Shop, or something like that. They were one of the only places making them at the time. Both those knives still have their original edges on them and both will shave your arm. I have sharpened my Gerber MK I and Guardian using my Lansky sharpener with good results, but their blades are shorter and I can still get a lock on them with the clamp. I guess if I ever have to do the MK II I'll figure something out. I cant stand dull knives. :)

[Don Gwinn]

Bix, municipalities MAY have more restrictive ordinances, or they may not. It always pays to consider Chicago and Cook County to be separate states with their own laws, as well as many colorful and exotic local customs. ;) I live in Illinois, not Chicago.

My point was that I've been told Illinois' laws on carrying knives many, many, MANY times by well-meaning people who just didn't want to see me get into trouble, and not one of them was ever correct. I'm talking the state's law here, not the law in Chicago, which is 200 miles away from me.

And I don't think the guys busting Eurohacker's chops mistakenly thought he lived in Chicago, either. ;)

Anyway, I don't think I overstated anything. Your information is valuable, but it doesn't contradict what I said. If I'd said ". . . . and all the local municipal laws are more or less the same, too." then that would have been an overstatement.

[Mr.BadExample]

A bit pricy, but the Mad Dog Panther's "Dundee Rig" hides the big blade well.
As mentioned, Mike Sastre's River City sheaths have a great reputation.
I've carried a 10" Bowie when hiking, IWB, it wasn't uncomfortable.
A shoulder rig by Kenny Rowe or Survival Sheath Systems would also do the trick.

[Bix]

Don,

"I live in Illinois, not Chicago"

Point taken :D. Here's where I think you overstated things:

"In Illinois, for instance, you can legally carry any size knife you want, concealed any way you want, as long as you're not carrying it 'with intent to illegally harm another.'"

I think someone could take the phrase "In Illinois" to mean that you statement applies to the entire state of Illinois. It simply does not. It applies only to those areas where there is no local ordinance to the contrary.

Chicago is one example. Johnsburg is another (Section 46.03(A) of the local code outright prohibits carrying a knife with a blade three inches or longer). Carbondale (330 miles south of Chicago :) ) is yet another example. While surely no model of statutory construction, section 14-4-5(A)(3) of the Carbondale code seems to prohibit possession of a knife of any blade length in a place licensed to sell intoxicating beverages, or at a public gathering where admission is charged (among other places, with exceptions).

I found these examples in a pretty quick search - I suspect I could find additional, similar provisions with more time.

I think this is important because, in my experience, a lot of folks don't realize that a state statute may be trumped by a more specific, obscure local regulation. It is completely reasonable to assume that if you are in compliance with ILCS, then you are good to go in the state of IL - - but the truth is, if you are not familiar with the idiosyncratic local rules in your area, you may expose yourself to prosecution.

A fantastically lousy system, to be sure. But one that I think people should be aware of and understand.

My apologies to the board for the thread drift :o

[MICHAEL T]

In Ky with my CC permit I can carry any size I want or switchblade. I often carry a spanish Navaja that 19 in open and about 10 closed just tucked into waist band shirt over.. I carry a CS Trail master IWB with no real problems.
I have seen Mike at River City draw that Bagwell and couldn't belive he was carrying it first time. He isn't what I would call a real big guy. In fact its because of him I made up a sheath to carry my trail master.The CS mod 1 is easy to carry in fact I would rather carry it than any of the other CS fixed blades other than the Bowies.

[1911JMB]

Here in michigan its legal to carry any single edged knife in any manner. My favorite methods for big knives are: IWB, in a boot sheath I made, in a shoulder holster I made, on my belt and down my pocket with the bottom of th pocket slashed, and in a backpack.