khacken
Contributor
Knives of any length are not officially allowed in your carry on. Just check it in.
TSA: Prohibited Items
TSA: Prohibited Items
So How Large Can You Carry-On Knife Be?
- Thread starter DandyDon
- Start date
Please register or login
Welcome to ScubaBoard, the world's largest scuba diving community. Registration is not required to read the forums, but we encourage you to join. Joining has its benefits and enables you to participate in the discussions.
Benefits of registering include
- Ability to post and comment on topics and discussions.
- A Free photo gallery to share your dive photos with the world.
- You can make this box go away
Way back when I was a juvenile counselor I'd have to fill in on night shifts at a county detention facility. The industrious little deliquents housed there were great at manufacturing improvised weapons and you had to stay on your toes to stay ahead of them.
Looking at the TSA list, a would be deliquent/terrorist could carry on:
1. A toothbrush
2. A cigarette lighter or matches, and
3. a razor blade as long as it is in a cartridge (displosable, etc)
Now the average deliquent/terrorist could take the above items in the lavatory, remove the razor blade from the cartridge (easy to break them open) use the lighter to heat the end of the toothbrush and then insert the back edge of the blade into the soft plastic of the toothbrush. When it cools he or she will have a very nasty cutting weapon that will do far more damage than someone's 1.25" bladed Vitctornox pocket knife, nail clippers, or bottled water.
If I were king of TSA razor blades and lighters or matches of any type would be restricted and I would not be sweating bottled water and fingernail clippers.
I'd have a lot more respect for TSA and the whole security effort if they actually applied some common sense, stopped restricting the harmless stuff as well as the items that would contribute to an incredibily complicated to make or smuggle a bomb plot and instead concentrated on the legitimate threats that they still allow on a daily basis.
I'd probably hire some former juvenile deliquents and see what they could cook up from the list of approved items, then restrict at least one key item essential to whatever they produce.
Looking at the TSA list, a would be deliquent/terrorist could carry on:
1. A toothbrush
2. A cigarette lighter or matches, and
3. a razor blade as long as it is in a cartridge (displosable, etc)
Now the average deliquent/terrorist could take the above items in the lavatory, remove the razor blade from the cartridge (easy to break them open) use the lighter to heat the end of the toothbrush and then insert the back edge of the blade into the soft plastic of the toothbrush. When it cools he or she will have a very nasty cutting weapon that will do far more damage than someone's 1.25" bladed Vitctornox pocket knife, nail clippers, or bottled water.
If I were king of TSA razor blades and lighters or matches of any type would be restricted and I would not be sweating bottled water and fingernail clippers.
I'd have a lot more respect for TSA and the whole security effort if they actually applied some common sense, stopped restricting the harmless stuff as well as the items that would contribute to an incredibily complicated to make or smuggle a bomb plot and instead concentrated on the legitimate threats that they still allow on a daily basis.
I'd probably hire some former juvenile deliquents and see what they could cook up from the list of approved items, then restrict at least one key item essential to whatever they produce.
mikemill
Contributor
Wait, you want a government agency to use common sense?
And I'm still pissed about the unopened bottle of mountain dew they made me throw out.
And I'm still pissed about the unopened bottle of mountain dew they made me throw out.
diver 85
Contributor
About 5 years ago my pocket knife made it thru airport security in my carryon -------but that was in San Pedro Sula, Honduras....lol
Jan 2008 I walked right through the metal detectors in Burbank, CA with my big metal keychain (mini carabiner + lots of keys) still clipped to my belt. Forgot all about it. I was so disturbed I almost went back to complain, then I came to my senses and realized I DO want to reach my destination.
Cavs42
Contributor
I once had a personalised swiss army knife (maybe 1 1/2") confiscated, while I had a pool ball and a pair of socks in my bag that they didn't look twice at.
OP
- Messages
- 53,687
- Reaction score
- 7,868
- # of dives
- 500 - 999
I'm still amazed that a pony bottle can be carried-on as long as the valve is out. Nice ram.
OP
- Messages
- 53,687
- Reaction score
- 7,868
- # of dives
- 500 - 999
Ok, so I just bought a couple of pocket knives on Ebay - Schrade Old Timer knives* under 4" long that had been confiscated by TSA, donated to a midwest state, purchased by a speculating trader, etc. If I carry them on, is that double jeopardy? Nah, separate crime I suppose.
* USA made, pre-bankruptcy - not Chinese steel. Nah, I don't want to lose them.
Last edited:
Similar threads
