Recommendation? Knife Centre Experience

[NovaKnife]

Hi all;

I recently had a knife seized by CBSA. I found Knife Centre was not helpful in warning other Canadians about the specific knife and it deemed a prohibited weapon. Namely not to order the knife knowing its fate at the border. Has anyone else experienced this issue and what if any help did Knife Centre offer.

 

[gadgetgeek]

Sorry to say that its not really a knife center problem. Since CBSA is pretty "temperamental" as to what they will seize, its impossible for a dealer to know what might be considered a prohibited weapon on a given day. The best they can do is go by their interpretation of the law, and try to restrict blades as they can. That being said, mistakes can be made, and it is the responsibility of the buyer to know what they can buy. Just so others can also add advice, what knife was seized? Sorry to hear that you lost a knife, and it seems you are out funds. Having been there, it does suck.

 

[Rich S]

Not a KnifeCenter problem. It is up to the buyer to know the laws of his/her area. I don't order autos from KC as I know they are illegal in my state. I've dealt with KC for years and dozens of knives and have only had great service from them.
Rich

 

[NovaKnife]

That it does, and agreed, it's all on me. My research wasn't up to scratch and I wasn't able to get clarity from on-line sources. CBSA I understand will not list prohibited knives. I did discuss the issue with Knife Centre and as expected "caveat emptor" is their operating principle. It would be an unmanageable task to interpret and implement another country's laws; no argument there. However in the case of a know design or make, I feel the company should note the issue on the order page, and advise the customer to decide. It's not an interpretation but a known identification of a model and design confirmed prohibited. The knife in question is the Michael Zieba MS3 Flipper.

 

[NovaKnife]

Not a KnifeCenter problem. It is up to the buyer to know the laws of his/her area. I don't order autos from KC as I know they are illegal in my state. I've dealt with KC for years and dozens of knives and have only had great service from them.
Rich

KC is great; I have purchased fixed and folders of this type before. The law in Canada recently changed and I should have been more cautious. See the remainder of my reply in an earlier thread.

 

[NovaKnife]

Not a KnifeCenter problem. It is up to the buyer to know the laws of his/her area. I don't order autos from KC as I know they are illegal in my state. I've dealt with KC for years and dozens of knives and have only had great service from them.
Rich

That it does, and agreed, it's all on me. My research wasn't up to scratch and I wasn't able to get clarity from on-line sources. CBSA I understand will not list prohibited knives. I did discuss the issue with Knife Centre and as expected "caveat emptor" is their operating principle. It would be an unmanageable task to interpret and implement another country's laws; no argument there. However in the case of a know design or make, I feel the company should note the issue on the order page, and advise the customer to decide. It's not an interpretation but a known identification of a model and design confirmed prohibited. The knife in question is the Michael Zieba MS3 Flipper.

 

[NovaKnife]

Sorry to say that its not really a knife center problem. Since CBSA is pretty "temperamental" as to what they will seize, its impossible for a dealer to know what might be considered a prohibited weapon on a given day. The best they can do is go by their interpretation of the law, and try to restrict blades as they can. That being said, mistakes can be made, and it is the responsibility of the buyer to know what they can buy. Just so others can also add advice, what knife was seized? Sorry to hear that you lost a knife, and it seems you are out funds. Having been there, it does suck.

That it does, and agreed, it's all on me. My research wasn't up to scratch and I wasn't able to get clarity from on-line sources. CBSA I understand will not list prohibited knives. I did discuss the issue with Knife Centre and as expected "caveat emptor" is their operating principle. It would be an unmanageable task to interpret and implement another country's laws; no argument there. However in the case of a know design or make, I feel the company should note the issue on the order page, and advise the customer to decide. It's not an interpretation but a known identification of a model and design confirmed prohibited. The knife in question is the Michael Zieba MS3 Flipper.

 

[gadgetgeek]

We can all read the entire thread, the "+quote" button lets you multi-quote.
Flippers have been on the hit list by CBSA for a couple years now, so its not a recent thing, but they are still legal so far as actual law is concerned. Yep, it makes that much sense, but such is the way of life. I'm also certain that KC has successfully shipped at least one of those knives to Canada in the last couple years, because not everything gets checked, and some things are allowed to pass, no real reason why.
The CBSA ruling are technically public, but they are hard to find, and so there is also a lot of misinformation regarding this out there. Most of what we know for sure here is what has been learned the hard way. As far as CBSA listing prohibited folders, that's just not going to happen, the market is just too wide. What they do is list some very vague guidelines and then let us figure it out from there. There are a few threads here, and in the canadaian connection sub that go over this in more detail.

 

[NovaKnife]

We can all read the entire thread, the "+quote" button lets you multi-quote.
Flippers have been on the hit list by CBSA for a couple years now, so its not a recent thing, but they are still legal so far as actual law is concerned. Yep, it makes that much sense, but such is the way of life. I'm also certain that KC has successfully shipped at least one of those knives to Canada in the last couple years, because not everything gets checked, and some things are allowed to pass, no real reason why.
The CBSA ruling are technically public, but they are hard to find, and so there is also a lot of misinformation regarding this out there. Most of what we know for sure here is what has been learned the hard way. As far as CBSA listing prohibited folders, that's just not going to happen, the market is just too wide. What they do is list some very vague guidelines and then let us figure it out from there. There are a few threads here, and in the canadaian connection sub that go over this in more detail.

I guess I can be counted as one of the unlucky ones. Pretty certain they (CBSA) won't let us know their methodologies but suffice to say "any chance taken is caution to the wind". Unfortunately, the last few years most of my purchases have been fixed blade or pocket knives without the assist or flipper. Took my eye off the ball. In any case, the tribunal ruled in favour of CBSA but did not assist with an interpretation of the law. In January 2018, CSBA unilaterally applied the provision. Thanks for the help with this discussion. I'll look for the Canadiana section.

 

[Xero Xero]

I was queried by Canadian Customs about the Kershaw SpeedSafe 1650 I had clipped in my pocket. (On a Harley, full leathers, crossing the border at Blaine WA.) "It's a TOOL, for kitchen chores, opening packaging, etc."

They had no problem with "tools" -- but I didn't bring up the 24 oz ball pein hammer in the saddlebag, which is a WEAPON, not a tool for working on the bike. Of course had they asked about the hammer, it suddenly becomes a TOOL.

 

[NovaKnife]

I was queried by Canadian Customs about the Kershaw SpeedSafe 1650 I had clipped in my pocket. (On a Harley, full leathers, crossing the border at Blaine WA.) "It's a TOOL, for kitchen chores, opening packaging, etc."

They had no problem with "tools" -- but I didn't bring up the 24 oz ball pein hammer in the saddlebag, which is a WEAPON, not a tool for working on the bike. Of course had they asked about the hammer, it suddenly becomes a TOOL.

Hey - I think that was the knife showcased at the hearing of an appeal of the seizure and the tribunal finding this model as prohibited. CBSA then applied the ruling the same and similar knives. Your encounter I think was before the determination of the tribunal. If after, I'd wager the officer involved was very reasonable in his/her application of the law. I find the officers at the crossing are a bit more flexible when compared to those at handling facilities who "select" packages for inspection. Might be good to leave the knife at home on your next trip.

 

[Xero Xero]

Hey - I think that was the knife showcased at the hearing of an appeal of the seizure and the tribunal finding this model as prohibited. CBSA then applied the ruling the same and similar knives. Your encounter I think was before the determination of the tribunal. If after, I'd wager the officer involved was very reasonable in his/her application of the law. I find the officers at the crossing are a bit more flexible when compared to those at handling facilities who "select" packages for inspection. Might be good to leave the knife at home on your next trip.

This was some time ago. Customs didn't physically look at the knife. I was aware of the tools/weapon distinction that is made with knives. I stated it was for "food prep" and "opening packaging." There may have been some other factors: My last name is the same as Canada's super-star hockey player -- French-Canadian. I was pushing 70, disabled veteran with US military ID. Day trip to Point Roberts, which is US but only accessible through Canada. And yes, I speak pretty fair French. Canadian about three generations removed.