(…)
I appreciated
@YesIHaveAHammer ’s post because it demonstrated self awareness in the form of what is socially acceptable and legal to carry.
Pull a 3.5” fixed blade knife out in a Western European city these days and you are liable to get shot and killed. Or have the police called on you and then need to explain yourself.
In Europe, you often need to demonstrate justification as for why you have a knife and self defense is not a legitimate reason as it is in the U.S., in many states.
Since we have members who post from Europe and the U.S., it’s important to acknowledge what works in small town, rural areas in the states won’t fly in European cities.
Since this was posted by
@CGarage I have pondered wether or not I should post an answer to it or not. I respect the forum rules that no political discussion are to be had, and obviously discussions like this interrupt the flow of otherwise lighthearted picture/ show’n’tell threads. But thinking about this for quite some time now, I don’t want to leave this standing on it’s own - and while what I’m about to write won’t be news to CGarage - I still think the post needs a bit of diversification/ clarification.
First, when it comes to, what I’m going to call “weapon laws” for the sake of keeping it simple, there is no Europe.
Every member country has their own set of rules & laws, sometimes those can vary within “states” of each country.
This is no different than in the US where different states have different rules/laws. And it’s a common mistake on both sides of the big pond, especially when it comes to “weapon law”, to refer to either “The USA” or “Europe” when in fact there isn’t that one set of rules/laws within the country, and speaking of Europe, member group.
When it comes to the UK, it is my understanding that the “divide” between what goes in rural places vs. (big) city perimeters is equally big - besides yet another whole different set of rules/laws and policing. But that is not my field of expertise.
In Germany I could legally carry not only a 3.5 inch, but up to 4.7 inch blade length fixed blade. And I won’t get shot for either carrying or using that in public.
There are areas and times where/when it is not legal, but generally speaking, if I wanted to carry my Randall #25 right now (that was specifically altered to a 4.7” blade length, from 5”) while going to the city center, I could do that and I could use it there - 100% legal.
There would likely be people that wouldn’t appreciate it, but from a legal standpoint I wouldn’t be breaking any law - and to stress this, I wouldn’t be shot. It would in fact be highly unlikely, in the event of being approached by a Police Officer, that he/she would have his/her firearm drawn while making an initial contact to someone who is not an active threat. In fact, I’d be surprised if anyone called the Police “on me” or when Officers patrolling would approach me just for the heck of it. This is not my reality of living here, and yes that might be different depending on location.
In other words, any tradesperson or DIY’er could carry as many of the larger Mora/Hultafors fixed blade knives as they wish, they are just not common here. Instead you will see a variety of “stanley knives” being carried in work pants or on the belt. Fixed with sheath or folding - it’s a common, far spread, sight. Accepted and unchallenged. Until some time ago, it wasn’t even uncommon that tradies, or blue collar workers in general, commuting to/from work by public transportation would still have their ”stanley knife” clipped to a pocket or on their belt. This is no longer possible.
One remark on the topic of “stabbings” - yes they happen, mostly as singular, isolated events and that did set new precedent in more recent years. But it is not nearly as frequent or “epidemic” as some media outlets would like you to believe. And once the dust, spread by rapid fire “breaking news”, settles, most of these incidents present themselves as crimes that didn’t happen out of the blue/ inside a vacuum - but have well documented history.
I won’t deny you could feel like they are on the rise, but at the end of day, outside specific clientele, you don’t need to wake up everyday fearing for your life. The whole world has seen elevated threat levels for years, sadly, sometimes viable threats are not neutralized in time. This is not the world I grew up in, probably also because news never spread faster and further than today, but it is the world I live in today. It is what it is. My home is my castle. And when not at home, I rarely exercise - if at all - the “my way for no way at all” approach.
Back in the day, I have carried (large) fixed blades regularly because I wanted to. I’ve been to industry specific trades shows traveling by train, carrying a fixed blade. I went to walk the dog, ride my bike, go for a hike in the city forrest ... all while carrying a large fixed blade whenever and if I wanted to. And to this day, I put my Randall #25 on my belt when I feel like it - and no matter how silly I think recent law changes & those over the years have been - I respect them and the fact that it is 2026 and I (hopefully) still have a couple of more years to live on this crazy little planet and I‘m sure I haven’t seen the last change in “weapon law” and “public opinion” on what is deemed acceptable or not.
In hopes of this passing the forum rules, not being deleted and seen as nothing but a polite response to some very generalized statements that I did not want to leave uncomment.
Kind regards,
Olli
