Has carrying a sgian dubh ever caused anyone problems?

[Macman]

I've worn one whenever I've worn hose and flashes. The only problem I've ever had is at a couple of bars where I've been asked to turn it in to the bartender until I've left.

[Perldog007]

However, I guess people don't feel threatened when a guy in a wheelchair rolls up with a sgian dubh in his sock.

Quite right, most people....

A vicious band of pickpockets in D.C. circa 1990 were all wheelchair bound. They eventually started snatching people, throwing them on the ground and taking their goods with a stealth factor near zero.

A lone individual in a chair , kilted or not, with a visible weapon may have garnered some attention anywhere those guys were known.

But at an event with a whole rack o' folk in highland dress, much less likely to draw any attention. Still for me, I would eschew the blade and go with the bottle opener or other "sgian don't" in a whole bunch of places.

Philosophically, that runs against my grain. But the point of wearing the kilt for me is to make me happy, not to slay any dragons. When we read about the posters in other parts of the US that wear one frequently with no hassle, makes us rethink our GPS coordinates...........

[Kid Cossack]

Quite right, most people....

A vicious band of pickpockets in D.C. circa 1990 were all wheelchair bound. They eventually started snatching people, throwing them on the ground and taking their goods with a stealth factor near zero.

A lone individual in a chair , kilted or not, with a visible weapon may have garnered some attention anywhere those guys were known.

But at an event with a whole rack o' folk in highland dress, much less likely to draw any attention. Still for me, I would eschew the blade and go with the bottle opener or other "sgian don't" in a whole bunch of places.

Philosophically, that runs against my grain. But the point of wearing the kilt for me is to make me happy, not to slay any dragons. When we read about the posters in other parts of the US that wear one frequently with no hassle, makes us rethink our GPS coordinates...........

"Because we're free, yo."

Texas is one of the states that is death on knives. Most cops still understand the tool/weapon distinction, but by the strict letter of the law . . .

[Jaggy thistle]

I have worn mine in USA (Florida) and all over Europe with never a problem was examined by costoms at Switzerland border but handed back whithout comment Ihave never tried to take it on a plane however !

[beloitpiper]

As one of the younger members of the forum (20 y.o.) I have not had a problem as long as it stayed in my kilt hose. That's the key. Don't even take it out to show people what it is.

People frequently ask me "Is that a knife in your sock?" and I reply, "It's a sgian dubh". And they just say "Oh..." and forget about it.

I don't unsheath the sgian dubh, and it has never caused me problems.

[Archangel]

I have never had any problem. The knife laws David talks about specifically exempt these traditional weapons i.e. a sgian dhubh and probably a dirk as well. I'm surprised at USA attitudes - OK to pack a Smith & Wesson there but heaven help you if you have a tiddly knife in your sock. How do Sikh people manage over there as I believe their customs involve carrying some quite serious knives.

Phil: we're strangers in a strange land so we'll be polite and let the mods relax. For the Americans, understand that the gun culture is really foreign to us. You live there, you don't see it. The end of my comments on that.

The Sikh in Canada just won the right to carry Kirpans in schools, adults had been allowed to wear them in court. It's an interesting study and lesson for us both in terms of rights and media manipulation. How do we reconcile religion with zero tolerance? The young man in the Canadian case had, with his religious leaders guidance, already agreed to carry a Kirpan without an edge; in a sealed wooden box/sheath; wrapped in a cloth bag; under a cummerband type belt; and would be accountable at any time to show this to the principal or the vice-principal. It went to court when the school raised the ante to having to show any teacher that asked. He won.

Obviously, courts and cultures recognize limitation. The media, of course, portrays it as a teenager with a giant curved blade in the classroom.
(Disclaimer: I've kept it brief, court case is here.

The British Parliament debate over skean dhus and the knife law is a lot of fun to read. There's good, witty, tongue-in-cheek dialogue. Here and here.

Note to Mods: I'm trying real hard not to stir things up, not my intention. These are informative links but the bottom line to the thread is in the original poster's local laws, and his mom (who is the LAW).

[Archangel]

As one of the younger members of the forum (20 y.o.) I have not had a problem as long as it stayed in my kilt hose. That's the key. Don't even take it out to show people what it is.

People frequently ask me "Is that a knife in your sock?" and I reply, "It's a sgian dubh". And they just say "Oh..." and forget about it.

I don't unsheath the sgian dubh, and it has never caused me problems.

Good advice, that you'll see in the debates in my earlier post.
I was raised with the skean dhu almost as a holy knife, like a kukri, and you can't unsheath it without drawing blood. I'm not advocating that, but the respect behind the teaching is worth keeping in mind. It's not a toy.

[Mr. MacDougall]

I'm surprised at USA attitudes - OK to pack a Smith & Wesson there but heaven help you if you have a tiddly knife in your sock.

The thing you have to remember is that the USA is not a monolithic culture. We're the third largest nation in the world in terms of land area, behind only Russia and Canada, and the third largest nation in the world in terms of population, behind only China and India. We're made up of fifty individual states, many of which are larger than most European nations. Each of those states is made up of several counties -- and again, in Arizona, many of our counties are larger than some European nations... and I'm not talking about Monaco. Each of the counties has towns and cities. And at each level of administration, national, state, county, and municipal, there are laws and ordinences regarding carrying weapons of whatever kind.

The laws which someone in the Borough of Manhattan, in New York City, Queens County, New York has to observe are likely to be completely different from those someone in Flagstaff, Coconino County, Arizona must obey.

So you have to know what your local laws are, and how your local officers of the law enforce them. If you're uncertain, ask a cop... most of them would be happy to discuss the matter with you.

[Monkey@Arms]

The laws which someone in the Borough of Manhattan, in New York City, Queens County, New York has to observe are likely to be completely different from those someone in Flagstaff, Coconino County, Arizona must obey.

So you have to know what your local laws are, and how your local officers of the law enforce them. If you're uncertain, ask a cop... most of them would be happy to discuss the matter with you.

I agree with everything Mr. MacDougall said except for two small points. First, Manhattan (what is commonly thought of as New York City) is in New York County, not Queens (I only found this out last week), and two, asking a cop about knife laws. Sadly, public safety officers are often ill-informed as to the actual state of the law where edged tools are involved, but that is another story.

Best regards,

Jake

[Don Patrick]

...and whats even more interesting is when even the locals don't fully know or understand the laws and they are blindsided. They tend to try and err on what they consider the safer side of things.

Then again it can make some people jumpy. Twice, when pulled over by law enforcement, they became wary, once they noted a large knife in my rear seat. Inviting me to step out of the car and then asking me about the knife.

Some Cities, such as New Orleans have laws on the book, that weapons must be exposed and not hidden (At least they did when I last lived there). Unfortunatley, the same law indicated if the display of the weapon created a commotion or trouble, the owner of the weapon was liable for any harm or damages incurred.