Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[kevin2306]

It always seemed to be that my granddad and father in law carried a pocket / pen knife.
Has this practise now died out or do you still carry one, perhaps a Swiss Army knife or similar?

Kev

[Uncle Alec]

Never without one, or a piece of string, or a small wad of toilet paper.

[Bitumen Boy]

Always used to, until one day I went into a supermarket in scruffy old clothes on my way to work on a dirty building site. Security didn't like the look of me and, worse luck, had some matey coppers on hand. Got pulled into a back room and searched to find whatever it was they thought I'd nicked - they were so disappointed not to find anything, but not to worry as I ended up being dragged off to the local cop shop and cautioned for posessing an "offensive weapon" - an ordinary pocket knife, just like all the other blokes on the site had in their pockets. This is something that wants watching as the law is so vague, basically anything with a blade or a point can be classed as an offensive weapon if the rozzers feel like doing so, and of course it's so much easier than going after real criminals...

It still smarts as, although I could just have put it down to experience at the time, two or three years later the Blair government invented the SIA - until which point I had a nice little job in security - and tightened up on criminal record checks for all sorts of other things, and that caution still blocks me from doing many jobs to this day. It's especially galling as although I'm barred from, or unlikely to get, a particular job, someone from eastern Europe who's just got off the ferry can walk straight into the job whatever they did at home. The only thing that matters is they have no criminal record here in Britain, no real effort is made to check up on them before they arrived and some countries (Poland, for example) simply refuse to play ball in any case.

The SIA, incidentally, is still going strong, although it was one of the quangos that Scameron promised to abolish should the Tories get in at the 2010 election...

[clan chieftain]

I still have an old scout knife with screwdrivers,scissors,bottle opener,corkscrew and a couple of blades. I have had it for years but I don't carry it with me.
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The Clan Chieftain

[exbmc]

I always have a small (31/2") lock knife in my work bag, and a cheapo swiss army type knife in my outdoor coat. As BB says, the law is so vague, that I sometimes wonder if I am out of order.
There is a man in the local paper, who, while being treated at the hospital for an overdose, had a lock knife found in a pocket. He was not threatening anyone, but was charged with possession in public.
They may have been over zealous, as he also lay in front of a train while drunk. This stopped the train departing the station until he was removed.
Anyway, £300+ fines and a 12 month community order with curfew, is what he got.
I have wondered whether to call at the police station, and ask if I am ok to carry my knife, but may not like the answer.

[lowdrag]

I still have my old wartime family jack knife, but in my travelling bag, in my golf bag, in the car and the kitchen drawer are various Swiss army knives I've collected or been given over the years. The one without the corkscrew stays at home, the most prolific in the car, and the standard in my travelling bag. I'd hate to forget to put it in the case one day and have it seized at the airport customs since we have probably done more than 70,000 miles together over the years. As an aside, I've never seen anyone with the bigger than standard variety. I mean, what would you do with this for example?

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Wenger-Giant-Swiss-Army-Knife/dp/B000R0JDSI

[Penman]

Hi
From .GOV.UK

[clan chieftain]

Definitely a mine of useful information Penman. My grandfather always carried a small penknife as he was a pipe smoker.
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The Clan Chieftain

[Penman]

Ho Chief
No not a mine of info, I just have this inquisitive gene that, when someone asks a question or wonders about something, makes me think "I wonder if I can find that?"
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Bristols should always come in pairs.

Any 2 from:-
Straight 6
V8 V10

[Peter_L]

[lowdrag]

[winchman]

Due to the Bladed Instrument law after 30 years of carrying a knife I no longer carry it when out and about.
I have one in my car tool kit though and one on my belt at work that I remove if we pop out as its all to easy to be caught out
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It will come in handy even if you never use it.

[Bitumen Boy]