Off Topic Air gauge knife ?

[Hickory n steel]

California law says they're illegal , but I've never seen one, never heard of one, and am really not sure what they are.

I'm assuming that it's along the lines of a pen knife, probably like you're standard pocket tire pressure gauge but has a spike or blade that pops out instead.
BudK always had the comb , pen, and lipstick knives, but never these.
We're they something you could buy, or were people just sharpening their tire pressure gauge into a spike ...ect ?
They must've been enough of a thing to be made illegal, but did California basically make unicorns illegal here ?

If anyone knows exactly what these are or has ever even seen one could you possibly link some info or a picture ?
I'm just curious what this " mythical " weapon is that California felt the need to specifically call out as illegal.

 

[Mahoney]

If you google "air gauge knife", there are a couple of results that link to the text of the law, and it's basically what you've described above, a sharpened spike that comes out of something that looks like an tire pressure gauge and locks in place. I've been in California for decades and I've never seen one. The closest I've seen is a drafting pencil with a retractable metal scribing point, but that doesn't look like an air gauge...

 

[Danke42]

It's a knife that looks like an air gauge so you can tuck it in your shirt pocket and fool the police while you're still ready for a fight with the other gang.

Or you could just pop a cap in em' with your AK. Whatever works best.

 

[Hickory n steel]

If you google "air gauge knife", there are a couple of results that link to the text of the law, and it's basically what you've described above, a sharpened spike that comes out of something that looks like an tire pressure gauge and locks in place. I've been in California for decades and I've never seen one. The closest I've seen is a drafting pencil with a retractable metal scribing point, but that doesn't look like an air gauge...

I've been told that they're from the 30's to maybe early 60's which would explain why I've never seen one, but if they're not specifically illegal in every state id think someone might have a picture of one in a weapon collection or something.

 

[SpySmasher]

I used to have one of these but I had to ditch it in a river after I accidentally killed a gas station attendant while filling up my tires.

 

[Lapedog]

Guardfather retractable spike.

 

[zzyzzogeton]

Lapedog,

That looks a lot like the collapsible pointer I used during Navigation briefings the day prior to entering ports. 32 inches of whippy stainless steel Made a really solid "thwack" when I would smack a chart taped to a steel bulkhead to emphasize a particular hazard to navigation.

 

[Hickory n steel]

Guardfather retractable spike.

I've seen the godfather spike before.

 

[knarfeng]

Straight answers, please. This was an honest question.
Silliness belongs in Whine and Cheese.

 

[Danke42]

The question may straight but the law itself is very silly and deserving of mockery.

 

[JJHollowman]

I once had a single shot .22 "pen gun" that looked kinda like an air pressure gauge. The guy I got it from told me it originally fired a .22 blank, but somebody "modified" it. The end screwed off, and you put a round in it, screwed it back on, retracted a lever on the side and either lowered it to "locked", lowered it back down all the way-slowly and gently- or held it back and let go, which fired the thing. Being fond of my fingers, I fired it in a vise once and it worked and looked none the worse for wear but truthfully, it was illegal and I was just helping the guy out by buying the thing. It had no barrel to speak of, the head of the round protruded just slightly from the end, you'd have to literally put it right to the targets body (meaning the head) like an assassination. Like a lot of stuff like that, you play with it a bit knowing it serves no purpose for you other than being a guaranteed prison sentence and confiscation of your legal stuff so I took it apart and trashed it by cutting it in half. Anybody with some tools in the garage could probably make one in a few hours, it wasn't complicated at all. A tube, a spring, a plunger with the "firing pin" (which was a little protrusion off center to hit the case rim), the screw on part that held the round and a slot with a couple holes drilled to hold the lever.

EDIT: I googled it and by golly here's the exact thing:
https://imgur.com/a/ZD0Vf

 

[danbot]

Could they possibly be referring to something like this? https://www.knifecenter.com/item/WI...-fixed-bead-blast-blade-black-neoprene-handle

 

[lieferung]

Could they possibly be referring to something like this? https://www.knifecenter.com/item/WI...-fixed-bead-blast-blade-black-neoprene-handle

That's the first thing I thought of. Nasty looking contraption.

 

[danbot]

Nasty looking contraption.

Isn't it though! Good luck explaining why you need to carry that thing around in the shopping mall!

 

[Hickory n steel]

Could they possibly be referring to something like this? https://www.knifecenter.com/item/WI...-fixed-bead-blast-blade-black-neoprene-handle

In the description they talk about how it looks like an air gauge, so it's definitely not this which I believe is a shark defense tool for divers.

 

[danbot]

In the description they talk about how it looks like an air gauge, so it's definitely not this which I believe is a shark defense tool for divers.

Well, maybe its just in case someone invents one someday then.*shrug*

 

[Icehawk]

I dunno, according to this training video ANYTHING can have a knife hidden in it ready to murderize an unsuspecting officer:

Next time you are putting air in your tires, be prepared!


*please note video does have some autopsy photos in it

 

[tltt]

"(18) As used in this section, an “air gauge knife” means a device that appears to be an air gauge but has concealed within it a pointed, metallic shaft that is designed to be a stabbing instrument which is exposed by mechanical action or gravity which locks into place when extended. "

That's the definition and it dates back to 1987, and is in reference to the old Guardfather spike and certain gravity knives that were similar in build. The old Guardfathers were very slim

, and sometimes hidden in air gauges or adventurous machinists would build their own using air gauges as the body, albeit very, very rarely. This came around the big push to ban martial arts stuff, and lots of other stuff, so many states were tossing all types of odd things into various bills.

The Guardfather was one the particularly went after all over the place, but most just lumped them under the auto / gravity portions.

 

[SkrufKnifer]

That guardfather looks just like a metal scribe. I suppose you could get away carrying a metal scribe?

 

[lreed]

"(18) As used in this section, an “air gauge knife” means a device that appears to be an air gauge but has concealed within it a pointed, metallic shaft that is designed to be a stabbing instrument which is exposed by mechanical action or gravity which locks into place when extended. "

That's the definition and it dates back to 1987, and is in reference to the old Guardfather spike and certain gravity knives that were similar in build. The old Guardfathers were very slim

, and sometimes hidden in air gauges or adventurous machinists would build their own using air gauges as the body, albeit very, very rarely. This came around the big push to ban martial arts stuff, and lots of other stuff, so many states were tossing all types of odd things into various bills.

The Guardfather was one the particularly went after all over the place, but most just lumped them under the auto / gravity portions.

Just curious, which category on knife laws does the "guardfather" fall into? Switchblade knife? But it isn't a knife. Also how about if I remove the spring? Again, it doesn't have a blade so it cannot be classified as a gravity knife. Does that make it legal to carry?