SAKs / MTs on ebay.co.uk ... get 'em while you can

[Neil]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7877688.stm

The worrying bit...

The spokesman added: "We recognise we need to do more to protect our members. Therefore, we are reviewing our position with regards to the sale of all knives on eBay, including those currently permitted by law."

So how long until us collectors can no longer mine eBay for those rare knives/tools? 

Neil

[Benner]

That really blows.    Especially with the state of customs ATM, we could be limited to either new from the couple of shops that we have, or used from guys in the UK that advertise on forums.

[Craig]

Just seen the program. Blanket ban on all knifes except domestic cutlery to be brought in in a few weeks.

Will they include multitools as knives?

[Neil]

The irony being that domestic cutlery is what is almost always used in crime 

Update: This from eBay web site....

    ***Change to policy regarding sale of knives on eBay.co.uk and eBay.ie***     
      
09 February, 2009 | 08:00PM GMT

We wanted to inform you of a change to our policies regarding the sale of knives.

All knives except cutlery will be banned from sale on eBay.co.uk and eBay.ie.

This will impact UK, Irish and international sellers who currently list knives for sale to buyers on the eBay.co.uk and eBay.ie sites.

Over the last year we have made several changes to our policies regarding sales of knives and also Samurai swords to ensure that only legal knives are available on the UK and Irish sites. However, the criteria for what constitutes a legal knife are increasingly complex, and this step is necessary to help further protect our members and provide them with the highest safety standards.

We will be updating this AB post shortly to ensure that any sellers of knives have full notice, details and timings for the changes.

Thank you for your support in continuing to make eBay such a vibrant and trusted marketplace.

Regards,

The eBay Team

Neil

[DaveK]

I'm staggered by this. This surely can't happen can it?

[Benner]

Looks like it is.

[DaveK]

Thinking about this, they (the man, ebay, etc) are only going to reconsider this hysterical, knee-jerk, blinkered view of knives if there is sufficient pressure from businesses. Businesses are the only organisations in the UK with the understanding and resources to mount any sort of campaign that could be heard above the hysteria, let alone be considered.

And there lies the problem. Most of the quality manufacturers have agreements with a handful of importers in the UK. For example, if you want to buy a new product in the UK from Buck, Wenger, Leatherman, Opinel, Tool Logic or Kershaw, they have to be imported by Whitby and Co.

Along with a few other organisations, who have similar agreements with Victorinox, Spyderco etc, these companies have the knife business pretty well sewn up in this country.

Now, ask yourself, who stands to benefit most if the import / used market for tools in the UK is dealt a huge blow by the ebay ban? Who will profit most from us being forced to buy new knives?

These rip-off smurfs are going to make a fortune at our expense, whilst appearing to the population to be acting responsibly and "part of the solution".

And as was pointed out previously, the knives that really do the damage and give knives a bad rep, will remain available...

Anyone been on British Blades yet? That should make for interesting reading.

[DaveK]

http://www.britishblades.com/forums/showthread.php?t=74124

Guys, this is really bad 

[Mike, Lord of the Spammers!]

Oh for crying out loud, just how bloody difficult do the smurfs want to make it for us

[DaveK]

Oh for crying out loud, just how bloody difficult do the smurfs want to make it for us

I think we need to be clear here, this isn't just difficult, this may very well be over.

It's not just ebay is it? Other US sellers will very quickly get pissed off with complaints from UK customers about things not getting through customs, and eventually stop selling to the UK.

This is very, very bad.

[Mike, Lord of the Spammers!]

Oh for crying out loud, just how bloody difficult do the smurfs want to make it for us

I think we need to be clear here, this isn't just difficult, this may very well be over.

It's not just ebay is it? Other US sellers will very quickly get pissed off with complaints from UK customers about things not getting through customs, and eventually stop selling to the UK.

This is very, very bad.

Couldn't agree more mate, and with customs becoming ever more involved, this could very well spell the end

Certainly where getting a good deal is concerned at the very least

[Benner]

It is bad as knife wise, we really only have heinnies, BKCG and Moonraker knives.  These 3 stores plus trades from other UK knife owners will pretty much be our only options.

[Mike, Lord of the Spammers!]

It is bad as knife wise, we really only have heinnies, BKCG and Moonraker knives.  These 3 stores plus trades from other UK knife owners will pretty much be our only options.

And let's face it, there prices have been creeping up a good wee bit of late too

[DaveK]

It is bad as knife wise, we really only have heinnies, BKCG and Moonraker knives.  These 3 stores plus trades from other UK knife owners will pretty much be our only options.

And let's face it, there prices have been creeping up a good wee bit of late too

That's simple market economics. You are now a captive market. You watch Leatherman prices soar now.

[Mike, Lord of the Spammers!]

It is bad as knife wise, we really only have heinnies, BKCG and Moonraker knives.  These 3 stores plus trades from other UK knife owners will pretty much be our only options.

And let's face it, there prices have been creeping up a good wee bit of late too

That's simple market economics. You are now a captive market. You watch Leatherman prices soar now.

Mate, there's this little knife called a U1 I've been after for ages, well before xmas it was £93 now it's a whopping £138 , and that was an overnight mark up

[Roadie]

Now i'm not one to swear lightly but for flying monkey smurfing sakes what is it with people Surely the BBC were committing an illegal act by importing some of the knives there though? Looks like i'll be getting all my "dangerous weapons" from you guys from now on

[Mike, Lord of the Spammers!]

Same as the rest off us mate

Looks like stocking up on everything might be a good idea from here on in

[DaveK]

I still can't get my head around how disproportionate ebay's reaction is! There are people who make their living selling perfectly legal knives on ebay who's businesses will be destroyed.

How hard can it actually be to filter out the knives that are truly illegal, from say, a SAK? FFS - How can they ban the sale of a Vic Classic, but allow the sale of a meat cleaver 

There's a part of me that's starting to think that this is so badly thought out, it might not actually happen. Friggin' idiots.

[Craig]

Bad news indeed. All the more frustrating because the impact on crime will be negligible.

BUT we can live without them. Airguns were banned from ebay a while ago and airgun collecting still thrives - it got a bit more challenging and more expensive but it is still possible to enjoy the hobby.

We can manage without them.

[Neil]

It'll be interesting to see where they draw the line.  Will pliers based multis be prohibited?  If so what about chisels, saws, pencil sharpeners, shavers?

SAKs I suspect don't stand a chance, a multi they may be but they have knife in their name 

What's the betting eBayUK block UK buyers from accessing eBay.com next 

Neil

[Craig]

I still can't get my head around how disproportionate ebay's reaction is! There are people who make their living selling perfectly legal knives on ebay who's businesses will be destroyed.

How hard can it actually be to filter out the knives that are truly illegal, from say, a SAK? FFS - How can they ban the sale of a Vic Classic, but allow the sale of a meat cleaver 

There's a part of me that's starting to think that this is so badly thought out, it might not actually happen. Friggin' idiots.

Good points. As it stands, what they are planning to do is plain daft -maybe they will use a little common sense in the end.

[Poncho65]

  Man I don't even live over there and I think it's friggin stupid what they are doing to you ppl

Take away the decent people's guns and knives and it makes it easy for a criminal to come in without fear of being shot or stabbed by the home owner Maybe you guys need to take HC up on his offer Man so sorry to hear it guys

[DaveK]

Bad news indeed. All the more frustrating because the impact on crime will be negligible.

BUT we can live without them. Airguns were banned from ebay a while ago and airgun collecting still thrives - it got a bit more challenging and more expensive but it is still possible to enjoy the hobby.

We can manage without them.

Well, we're all entitled to our opinions Craig, but I can't be satisfied with that myself. Why the hell should I pay more?

There's a big difference with the airgun scenario though, in that the law changed, so availability had to change to keep step with the law. Tonight's farce is simply a misguided "gesture" for political purposes, that unwittingly plays into the hands of UK companies who have been screwing us blind for years. A knee-jerk reaction, made by loonies to deflect from the real issue. I.e. they dropped a massive clanger when they declared enay.co.uk "safe". Sack whoever's responsible, fix the software, let's get back to normal.

And what's next? Scissors? They are every bit as dangerous as a SAK. Knitting needles?  

[DaveK]

It'll be interesting to see where they draw the line.  Will pliers based multis be prohibited?  If so what about chisels, saws, pencil sharpeners, shavers?

SAKs I suspect don't stand a chance, a multi they may be but they have knife in their name 

What's the betting eBayUK block UK buyers from accessing eBay.com next 

Neil

I hope (perhaps naively) that when whichever idiot executive starts to look at this properly, that some rationale might creep in. But, said idiot has stated on the BBC that "all" knives are to be banned, so he may have painted himself into a corner.

smurf.

[Nikos]

Does this ban also hold for items sent into the UK from EU member countries?

[Nikos]

"Although the UK site did not have any illegal knives for sale by UK sellers, it was possible for UK buyers to see or purchase knives from international sellers.
This should not have been possible and we have taken steps to close that loophole."

LOL you guys... No more peeping on knifes either!  What's with the British legislation and government? Do you actually vote for these people?

[Craig]

Bad news indeed. All the more frustrating because the impact on crime will be negligible.

BUT we can live without them. Airguns were banned from ebay a while ago and airgun collecting still thrives - it got a bit more challenging and more expensive but it is still possible to enjoy the hobby.

We can manage without them.

Well, we're all entitled to our opinions Craig, but I can't be satisfied with that myself. Why the hell should I pay more?

There's a big difference with the airgun scenario though, in that the law changed, so availability had to change to keep step with the law. Tonight's farce is simply a misguided "gesture" for political purposes, that unwittingly plays into the hands of UK companies who have been screwing us blind for years. A knee-jerk reaction, made by loonies to deflect from the real issue. I.e. they dropped a massive clanger when they declared enay.co.uk "safe". Sack whoever's responsible, fix the software, let's get back to normal.

And what's next? Scissors? They are every bit as dangerous as a SAK. Knitting needles?  

Dave, I didn't mean to imply that you shouldn't be annoyed about what being proposed (I'm really p*ssed off myself), and I apologize if my post gave that impression.

It is in fact still legal for private seller (but not a trader) to sell non firearm certificate airguns by post - ebay just banned them on their own.

I'm still hoping that this time they will apply some sense - but like you said, chummy's gone and said on TV that there will be a blanket ban and they won't want to be seen to be backing off

clowns>

[DaveK]

Dave, I didn't mean to imply that you shouldn't be annoyed about what being proposed (I'm really p*ssed off myself), and I apologize if my post gave that impression.

Absolutely no apology necessary mate, I actually envy your ability to find the positive in the situation, even though it affects you just the same as me! For once in my life I was being sincere

This has got me spitting teeth though, I'm sick to bloody death of people telling me what's good for me and the society we live in 

[Craig]

I'm sick to bloody death of people telling me what's good for me and the society we live in 

It seems like even though most of us are law abiding adults we're all treated like children with criminal tendencies.

How can ebay justify trusting Americans buy knives from ebay but not us Brits? I thought certain kinds of knives were illegal in some states.

[Gareth]

"Although the UK site did not have any illegal knives for sale by UK sellers, it was possible for UK buyers to see or purchase knives from international sellers.
This should not have been possible and we have taken steps to close that loophole."

LOL you guys... No more peeping on knifes either!  What's with the British legislation and government? Do you actually vote for these people?

What we have to keep in mind is that this has nothing to do with legislation.  This is a private company making a decision about what they will and wont sell.  The fact they are total ******* idiots is a bit out of our control.  I'm thinking of all the UK based guys I have bought SAKs from that are suddenly going to have totally rethink their business.

I want to see the people at Watchdog prosecuted to the full extent of the law for importing banned knives.  Last time I looked "in the interest of journalism" is no kind of defence.

Words cannot express just how angry I am at the moment.