California Knife Laws

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goldenpie6

Joined
Feb 18, 2023
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So, I'm very new to knives and want to collect them, but live in California. Most of the websites I see with knife laws talk about carrying them around. I was just wondering if there were laws prohibiting the owning of specific knives without carrying them in public. Cause I'd love to be able to own a gravity knife or balisong and just keep it at home without carrying it anywhere.
 
Welcome to Bladeforums goldenpie6.

For starters, it is perfectly legal to possess "gravity" and "butterfly" knives in the state of California and keep them at home. You may already know that in order to carry such knives in public, or possess them in the driver/passenger area of a motor vehicle, that they need to have blades under 2" long.


Here is a list of the bladed items that are illegal to possess under any circumstances under California law (some are a bit strange)-

Air gauge knife (a knife designed to look like a tire pressure gauge)

Ballistic knife (any device that shoots a knife blade)

Belt buckle knife (but only illegal if the blade is 2.5" or longer. shorter than 2.5" is legal to own)

Cane sword.

Lipstick case knife (a knife designed to look like a tube of lipstick)

Shobi-zue (a martial arts type weapon with a blade hidden in a "staff, crutch, stick, rod, or pole" that is deployed by a flick of the wrist or mechanical action)

Writing pen knife (a knife designed to look like a pen)

Shuriken (throwing stars)


I got all of the information for this list from the official California state legislative website, which can be found here- https://www.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/home.xhtml

To search that site for knife laws, click on "California Law" in the banner under the site logo, then click "Text Search" (middle of the page on the left, next to "Code Search"), then use the search function to search for any word or subject you like (you'll need to click "PEN" at the bottom of the middle column to conduct your search. "PEN" for penal code).
 
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You can carry any blade length as long its folded( closed) and its manual folder knife. Under 2” blade rule only applies for switchblades.
 
killgar said:
Here is a list of the bladed items that are illegal to possess under any circumstances under California law (some are a bit strange)-

Air gauge knife (a knife designed to look like a tire pressure gauge)
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Say what? I am stunned. No idea that this even existed. Say, does it come in Maxamet?
 
sternum888 said:
You can carry any blade length as long its folded( closed) and its manual folder knife. Under 2” blade rule only applies for switchblades.
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To be clear, under California law, both gravity knives and butterfly/Balisong knives are considered "switchblades".

Here is how California state law defines a "switchblade"- https://www.leginfo.legislature.ca....aySection.xhtml?sectionNum=17235.&lawCode=PEN

Notice how that statute specifically includes "gravity knives", as well as knives that can be opened with a "flip of the wrist" (butterfly/Balisong).

And some cities/counties in California have their own blade length limits on knives that can be carried.


UncleBoots said:
Say what? I am stunned. No idea that this even existed. Say, does it come in Maxamet?
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I've never seen an "air gauge knife". My best guess is that someone made one, got caught with it, and it was added to the list of prohibited items.
 
killgar said:
I've never seen an "air gauge knife". My best guess is that someone made one, got caught with it, and it was added to the list of prohibited items.
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Somebody told me they were once a novelty type weapon you could buy like the comb knives and lipstick knives, but I could not turn up a single example online.
 
Get a kick out of hearing such ridiculous laws. Don't think I would purchase a 2 inch switchblade unless I had very dirty fingernails. Besides so many knives are just too cool not to own.
 
mauser9 said:
Get a kick out of hearing such ridiculous laws. Don't think I would purchase a 2 inch switchblade unless I had very dirty fingernails. Besides so many knives are just too cool not to own.
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The No. 1 California knife law is "if you like knives, get the hell out of California." I speak from experience here, because I did just that.
 
Hickory n steel said:
Somebody told me they were once a novelty type weapon you could buy like the comb knives and lipstick knives, but I could not turn up a single example online.
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It's a thing that happened in the 50s and 60s, back when gangs were things like Greasers. Hooligans would sharpen down the extendable gauges, then flick them out to deliver slices that were virtually guaranteed to be painful without being lethal. They got used a few times in rumbles, then politically-minded DAs would rail against them in the press. It's pretty much what happened with nunchuku, shuriken, and trendy martial arts weapons. They were pretty much a wannabe's weapon, the serious cutters would carry switchblades or barlows already open in cardboard sheathes in their pockets, so you won't find more than a couple of mentions here and there in esoteric writing on the era. I don't have a source to cite, just memory, so I could be remembering wrong.
 
UncleBoots said:
The No. 1 California knife law is "if you like knives, get the hell out of California." I speak from experience here, because I did just that.
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I love knives and this state has not been a problem for me except when it comes to " conclead " fixed blades.
That could be due to my mostly rural area in norcal and the fact that as a traditional knife lover the few laws we have don't really effect the knives I carry.
 
BitingSarcasm said:
It's a thing that happened in the 50s and 60s, back when gangs were things like Greasers. Hooligans would sharpen down the extendable gauges, then flick them out to deliver slices that were virtually guaranteed to be painful without being lethal. They got used a few times in rumbles, then politically-minded DAs would rail against them in the press. It's pretty much what happened with nunchuku, shuriken, and trendy martial arts weapons. They were pretty much a wannabe's weapon, the serious cutters would carry switchblades or barlows already open in cardboard sheathes in their pockets, so you won't find more than a couple of mentions here and there in esoteric writing on the era. I don't have a source to cite, just memory, so I could be remembering wrong.
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it would not surprise me one bit if thats the origin.
 
goldenpie6 said:
So, I'm very new to knives and want to collect them, but live in California. Most of the websites I see with knife laws talk about carrying them around. I was just wondering if there were laws prohibiting the owning of specific knives without carrying them in public. Cause I'd love to be able to own a gravity knife or balisong and just keep it at home without carrying it anywhere.
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You might want to check into any laws applying to things you simply want to collect. Here in Massachusetts, I keep a 6 ounce flat sap between the mattress and box spring under my side of the bed. Perfectly legal. If I were to pocket that sap and step out onto the street, I would be committing a felony under Massachusetts General Laws concerning dangerous weapons. Same with automatic knives. Just keep them at home. If in doubt, contact the Shouse law firm. They operate in Nevada and California and specialize in weapons law. Might be worth a C-note for a consultation if you are that worried about the knives you possess in California.
 
killgar said:
Welcome to Bladeforums goldenpie6.

For starters, it is perfectly legal to possess "gravity" and "butterfly" knives in the state of California and keep them at home. You may already know that in order to carry such knives in public, or possess them in the driver/passenger area of a motor vehicle, that they need to have blades under 2" long.


Here is a list of the bladed items that are illegal to possess under any circumstances under California law (some are a bit strange)-

Air gauge knife (a knife designed to look like a tire pressure gauge)

Ballistic knife (any device that shoots a knife blade)

Belt buckle knife (but only illegal if the blade is 2.5" or longer. shorter than 2.5" is legal to own)

Cane sword.

Lipstick case knife (a knife designed to look like a tube of lipstick)

Shobi-zue (a martial arts type weapon with a blade hidden in a "staff, crutch, stick, rod, or pole" that is deployed by a flick of the wrist or mechanical action)

Writing pen knife (a knife designed to look like a pen)

Shuriken (throwing stars)


I got all of the information for this list from the official California state legislative website, which can be found here- https://www.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/home.xhtml

To search that site for knife laws, click on "California Law" in the banner under the site logo, then click "Text Search" (middle of the page on the left, next to "Code Search"), then use the search function to search for any word or subject you like (you'll need to click "PEN" at the bottom of the middle column to conduct your search. "PEN" for penal code).
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This is interesting because I read Steve Jobs biography. In it the author talks about how Steve wasn’t allowed to bring his throwing stars he bought in Japan back on his private jet. Steve was pissed. Steve lived in California
 
Higgledy said:
This is interesting because I read Steve Jobs biography. In it the author talks about how Steve wasn’t allowed to bring his throwing stars he bought in Japan back on his private jet. Steve was pissed. Steve lived in California
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Welcome to Bladeforums Higgledy.

Yep, throwing stars (referred to as "shuriken" in the CA penal code) are completely illegal to posses anywhere in California.

I don't know, but it's also possible that there might be a law in Japan that prohibits the export of throwing starts that may have been involved. But I don't know Japan law.
 
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killgar said:
Welcome to Bladeforums Higgledy.

Yep, throwing stars (referred to as "shuriken" in the CA penal code) are completely illegal to posses anywhere in California.

I don't know, but it's also possible that there might be a law in Japan that prohibits the export of throwing starts that may have been involved. But I don't know Japan law.
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No. It was TSA that would not permit them in his carry-on. He felt that since it was a private jet (he owned the plane) then he should be able to carry what he wished on board.
 
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