I did write a long reply to this but lost it! Short version is that there are very few places to buy a pocket knife in London. If you go to one of the few outdoors stores it will cost you something like $30 for a basic SAK. If you can, bring an SAK with you in your checked luggage. Same goes for any other EDC gear you need, as it is hard to obtain in physical shops here.
I bring my SAK in my checked luggage, it was more about souvenir hunting. But if it's too expensive, I'll find something else.
I am always fascinated by the cultural differences between the US and other countries. You'd be hard pressed to find a store without knives here. Almost every gas station and corner store even sells, allbeit cheap, knives.
nowhere that I'm aware of in london. only real places I can think of to go would be heinnie all the way out in wales (mostly imports from the big US market companies anyway) or a couple of companies out in sheffield, neither of which is that close, but you'd be finding locally made knives. everything else is usually fairly expensive compared to the US and you're mostly looking at nothing quality outside of leatherman, gerber, victorinox, and maybe the occasional wenger, opinel or mora.
If you did happen to come across a knife shop in London and buy something worthwhile you'd effectively be breaking the law as soon as you stepped out of the shop. Happy days.
If you were going to Sheffield you might have been able to get a nice knife souvenir, Sheffield is the home of British knife making! It used to different I'm sure, although I'm too young to remember! These days no shop owner wants the hassle of police sending people to try to buy a knife without proof of ID (need to be over 18 apparently) as well as being branded as 'that evil shop that sells knives!!!'. Not quite right. You have 'good reason' to have the knife, as you are transporting it from the place of purchase. How do people buy kitchen knives and take them home otherwise? Or the postman bring me a knife I have ordered. Honest transport of knives is perfectly legal.
I'm not sure it really was much different. I think the kind of shops that sell some anyway (kitchen suppliers, outdoors shops, hardware stores and so on) sold a wider variety, and there where a few more specialist places in and around sheffield, but I don't think we ever really had shops like the french "coutellerie"* *as a side note, it's quite something to see a french coutellerie. I can remember seeing one that had an old style shop window, crammed full of everything from benchmade balisongs to glock field knives to some beautiful french lanigoules. each was just sort of shoved wherever there was space, so you might see a top-end auto next to a bizzare bit of kit with four blades in a star shape.
I bet if there was a store over there like Smokey Mountain Knife Works, it would make so much money and be renowned.
You got me there mate, I was being purposefully devils advocate-ish. But still, get caught by the wrong policeman on a bad day and you could still get locked up. It is after all up to them and the courts as there is no solid concrete rule of what a "good reason" is.
But if you show him the bill and you bought it 10 minutes ago, I don't think anyone complains as fas as you carry the knife in you backpack.
Would anyone even know that you had the knife if you were to buy one and then go home? Do people get randomly stopped on the street and searched?
It's ironic what different cultures villify. In the UK, you can buy tritium vials very easily, but, in the US, tritium is consider an evil, dangerous item.
Legally the police can stop and search you without your permission under the prevention of terrorism act if they suspect you of doing/planning/whatevering terrorist acts. Out of all the people that got searched most were not white, most were doing absolutely nothing wrong, none got prosecuted under counter-terrorism laws and I think maybe 1 or 2 were eventually prosecuted for possession of cannabis or something. So yes, technically and legally they can, but the chances of that actually ever happening are minute. It's just a legal loophole that legitimised the police harassing kids that have been racially profiled into being suspects.
I don't know if it has been recommended or not, but you might consider a Moleskine London City Book. I've never had an opportunity to try one, myself, but, form what I hear, it can make a great trip journal and travel guide in one.
I revive this thread as I will go to London in the coming monthes : are "rescue hook" considered as knives under UK law (and in the rules of some places) ? Like the blades on a CRKT KERT, or on a ResQMe ? I understand non locking blades under 3 inches are legal in theory but I don't want to have any problem, yet staing able to do some cuts
ResQMe will be fine, kert should be too, although I'm not a London cop. TO be honest, if they were on your keychain, they wouldn't get a second look. That on top of hearing your accent, bobbies won't be too fussed. Tourists tend not to be in the habit of mugging folk, so I very much doubt you would even be stop checked, unless you dress like a local chav, which I very much doubt!
Lived in London for six great years, there is always something to do. Never saw any serious crime, and that was even wandering about night clubs in dodgy areas in the middle of the night, just have your wits about you. I did look after lots of yanks who would look the wrong way crossing the road and get wiped out by buses and taxis. You will be lucky to even see a cop there your whole time.
This is surely not the case, especially if you are in the central areas and around tourist attractions. Every time I'm in London it feels like it's crawling with bobbies.
