Sailing Knives and the law?

[Seagreen]

So what's the technical difference between a "folding" and a "locking" blade?

I have two knives I go sailing with - the decknife is 4"+, and though it comes with pliers and a spike, makes me paranoid if I even carry it about in a bag.

I also have a small 3" Currey Lockspike, which I always (until now, that is) wear on a lanyard round my waist. Now, should I be doing some ropework, and then walk along the marina pontoon to the chandlers (a place to which the public have access), technically I could be arrested. After all, right at that moment, I'm not "actually" working on the boat...

I've lost track of the number of cheap multitools I've got scattered about the place.

 

[rhinorhino]

When opened a "locking blade" is prevented from closing without some additional action other than folding (eg pressing a button) on the part of the user to close it.
Hence a Leatherman's main blades are locking blades but the traditional Scouts knife is a folding knife.

By the way

6. Bladed article - a butter knife with no handle, no cutting edge and no point was capable of being a bladed article, and as such was caught by the provisions of section 139 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988 (Archbold, 2005, § 24-125); although a sharp instrument was the paradigm case to which the provision was directed, section 139(2) applied the offence-creating provision in subsection (1) to "any article which has a blade": Brooker v. Director of Public Prosecutions, The Times, May 5, 2005, C.A.
Date of Judgment: April 13, 2005
Judges: Laws L.J., David Steel J.

 

[David_Jersey]

[ QUOTE ]
there are those who lack common sense and the law as it currently stands is wide open to abuse.


[/ QUOTE ]

It's also called the normalisation of stupidity. And once that happens who can say it is wrong? as it is "normal". and folk accept it as such.

Unfortunately UK plc is way past the tipping point on that one..........

 

[Slow_boat]

A forty five year old man walking his dog on a Scottish hillside is searched for weapons? Why? Under what authority or suspicion? There must be more to it (mustn't there?)

 

[rhinorhino]

I would be interested if you felt able to post the result.

Rhino

 

[davierobb]

Slow_boat, As far as I know there is nothing else to it, your assumption about the hillside is incorrect, he was walking on a public highway/path on the outskirts of town.

Rhino, will pm you the outcome.