Confused and annoyed by Norwegian knife laws

[Andreas]

I'm getting more and more frustrated by the knife laws in Norway. I was about to buy a Farmer the other day, but cancelled the deal because I read somewhere about a limit on blade length of 6.5cm. After further looking into the actual law now, I only wish it had been that simple. Apparently, carrying any knife in public is illegal, except if you have a "reason to carry it" - like for recreational use, work etc. Now, there is absolutely no yes/no answer for what is a good reason to carry it. If you're caught with a 2.5cm long pocket knife cutting an apple and say you have it for recreational use, the police officer in question might very well arrest you. If you are caught with a 50cm machete by another police officer and say the same thing, he might let you go.

It's simply ridiculously unclear what you can and can't do, and the bottom line seems to be "we're not saying it's legal, or illegal, so carry one at your own risk". I guess this kind of messed up laws is the result of having a country where not even policemen are armed with as much as a knife, you're bound to end up with laws that outlaw wooden sticks because you can spank people with them.

Any fellow Norwegians here that have any experience with dealing with this messed up system?

[Medic82]

I sure have! I live in Oslo and I carry a multitool almost every time I’m out and about well aware that it might get me in trouble if I’m stopped. If I’m stopped I will play the ignorant guy in the street and say that I didn’t know that or that I didn’t think it meant a MT. I think it depends on where you live and the police in the area, just look at VG and the police in Kristiansand is on the way other end than the police in Oslo when it comes to having a beer in the park. I have talked with several police lawyers about this and they can’t give me a straight forward answer either.

My conclusion is that if you carry a MT or SAK and not a samekniv, you look straight edge and don’t attract any attention and have a clean rap sheath then you are in the clear. I have been stopped once by the police with a MT on me in a weapons control on Karl Johan and he didn’t care.

[Andreas]

That's good to hear, that they don't care too much I mean. I work maintenance at a museum each summer and have my Skeletool CX clipped to my belt strap, and for months after I'm done you can see me "scratching my ass" every once in a while as I reach for something that isn't there. I have a Squirt P4 on the way now, a 6 cm multitool should at least be a lot less scary looking than a 91mm pocket knife, and a lot less scary looking than the OH Skeletool. it's ironic, the people who are affected by this law aren't those who carry attack knives as they don't care anyways, it's the people who actually mean no harm.

[Medic82]

It really depends on the LEO that stops you, if you have a cop fresh from the academy or a police student that is on his second year then they probably will smack every law they can find on you.

[AHB]

We having nearly the same issues here in Denmark, but we're alloved to carry a non-locking folder with a max. 7cm blade everywhere.
Except at nightclubs ect. of course..

[John]

Except at nightclubs ect. of course..

That's because there's a ready supply of knives in clubs and restaurants anyway 

[Turnstone]

It's quite the same here in Germany with locking one-hand opening blades. You can carry them "with good reason", but no one knows for sure what these reasons are. If you ask one, he tells you this, if you ask another, he tells you just the opposite   One might let you go, the other one not. I just leave my Benchmade Griptillian at home and carry a SAK instead, because that should cause no problems here.

[Medic82]

If you carry a SAK and use the magic word MacGuyver they will lett you go right away.

[AHB]

If you carry a SAK and use the magic word MacGuyver they will lett you go right away.

[Andreas]

We having nearly the same issues here in Denmark, but we're alloved to carry a non-locking folder with a max. 7cm blade everywhere.
Except at nightclubs ect. of course..

At least that's a definite line you can stay behind at all times. Wish they could make a rule like that here, so we'd have something to go by

[AHB]

We having nearly the same issues here in Denmark, but we're alloved to carry a non-locking folder with a max. 7cm blade everywhere.
Except at nightclubs ect. of course..

At least that's a definite line you can stay behind at all times. Wish they could make a rule like that here, so we'd have something to go by

Yes, but you're still allowed to own OH knives/MT's, sadly they're illegal here.. 

[Andreas]

Good point... I have two Skeletools and a C33L on the way so that would be very bad for me

[Lasse Eskildsen]

It's quite the same here in Germany with locking one-hand opening blades. You can carry them "with good reason", but no one knows for sure what these reasons are. If you ask one, he tells you this, if you ask another, he tells you just the opposite   One might let you go, the other one not. I just leave my Benchmade Griptillian at home and carry a SAK instead, because that should cause no problems here.

But you can carry fixed blades    I cant wait till I move permanently to germany.

[Turnstone]

It's quite the same here in Germany with locking one-hand opening blades. You can carry them "with good reason", but no one knows for sure what these reasons are. If you ask one, he tells you this, if you ask another, he tells you just the opposite   One might let you go, the other one not. I just leave my Benchmade Griptillian at home and carry a SAK instead, because that should cause no problems here.

But you can carry fixed blades    I cant wait till I move permanently to germany.

Yes, that's true, if the blade is shorter than 12 cm. I can't understand why a 11 cm fixed blade is less dangerous than a 5 cm locking blade, but that's politics 

[Lasse Eskildsen]

I guess it has something to do with if you take a knife to town or such its easier to conceal a folder, but still
Also if you are going to attact someone with a knife you wouldnt need it to be OHO, since you would have the knife out before you attacked someone 

[Turnstone]

Don't start to think about it, it doesn't help  And it doesn't make any sense. I could still carry a one-hand opening folder all the time as long as it doesn't lock. And a locking folder as long as it isn't one-hand opening. It just doesn't make sense

[Lasse Eskildsen]

  it makes no sense! 

I'd still rather carry fixed blade with a 5cm blade than a folding knife with a 15cm blade. Only four years 

[Styerman]

Laws are often intended to be unclear , and not intended to confer any well defined "rights" , which all the Goblins would then invoke .

Chris