I was forced to do the unthinkable.

twinboysdad · #21

I have heard of similar situations and the knife owner found a Police or U.S. Soldier to gift it to.

bh49 · #22

I am sorry about what happened with you. That is bad. UI can feel your pain.

damonh · #23

Just got home from finishing up the last minute Christmas shopping. Thanks everybody for the kind words and for not telling me what a fool I was. If only I had stopped and thought to break my routine for that one day, I'd still have the knife. I did ask at both airports whether there was a Post Office or locker area, as I was determined to not have to ditch that knife in particular. I was told no at both locations or I would have tried to stow it or mail it back to myself.

And a special thanks to Sal for the reply. I've seen you occasionally post on these forums to answer peoples' questions, but that was unexpected. The fact that you read the post through and took the time to reply is a testament to what kind of company Spyderco is and what kind of man is at its helm. I'm proud to support such a company.

SpyderNut · #24

Welcome to the forums, damonh. I too am sorry for your loss.

I've never personally lost a knife to the TSA, but my father-in-law did. He ended up having to throw away a first gen black Ladybug--the exact one that I'd given to him shortly after my wife and I started dating. He really loved that knife and carried it with him every day. Anyway, I'm going to give him a new Manbug (G-10) for Christmas. It's high time he has another Spydie in his pocket. :D

Hang in there, brother.

Doc Dan · #25

I have nearly lost a good knife just this way. I was able to get out of the airport and mail it to myself. Now, when I travel, I throw a cheaper Spyderco in my check in bag or not at all. Currently this is a Cat. If I lose it, I have lost a $40 knife instead of a$100+ knife.

zhyla · #26

I'm sure the Mexican customs agents find pocket knives all the time. I doubt it's that big a deal. I would have just let them confiscate it if they found it.

Johnny88 · #27

Won't be in a Landfill, it will be in a TSA employees pocket.

TheRaven · #28

I don't think it's worth the risk. TSA can be overly serious sometimes. I probably would've tossed the knife too.

Evil D · #29

Sucks to lose a knife, but that situation could have ended much worse than having to send it off to the dump. Ideally, you would want to find a bush outside somewhere and stash it deep inside when nobody is looking, and then pick it up on your way out.

damonh · #30

Evil D wrote:Sucks to lose a knife, but that situation could have ended much worse than having to send it off to the dump. Ideally, you would want to find a bush outside somewhere and stash it deep inside when nobody is looking, and then pick it up on your way out.

Yeah, that's what I was attempting to do immediately after getting it back at the gate. Try to get outside the secure area of the airport and find a way to mail it home or find somewhere safe to stash it so I could pick it up on the return trip. Unfortunately the airport was large and unfamiliar and I only had about half an hour until my connecting flight. I didn't want to hide it in the secure area of the airport for fear that the wrong person may find it. If some nutcase stumbled across it after passing through security and hurt somebody with my knife, I'd never forgive myself.

I just figured that the best case scenario would be that Mexican customs would simply confiscate the knife. Worst case scenario could have been something that I really didn't want to have to deal with. Whether I binned it in the US or had it taken in Mexico, there was no way that I could think of that I was going to be able to get home with that knife. It just sucks to have to lose THAT knife, as it had sentimental value.

GTP2K1 · #31

That story makes me wanna remember to carry (or put in a carry on bag) enough black duct tape to help stash/secure a knife somewhere good in an airport just in case. Perhaps in a stationary trashcan that just the bag get's replaced.. Or the planter idea was pretty good.

damonh · #32

GTP2K1 wrote:That story makes me wanna remember to carry (or put in a carry on bag) enough black duct tape to help stash/secure a knife somewhere good in an airport just in case. Perhaps in a stationary trashcan that just the bag get's replaced.. Or the planter idea was pretty good.

Once I arrived in Cancun, I thought of an even better solution that I will employ should I ever find myself in that situation again. Though I was told that both airports did NOT have lockers or a post office, I do know that most if not all US airports have a lost & found section. I'm sure that if I had explained my situation to the folks there, I'd have been able to surrender my knife to lost & found and pick it up upon my return. Live and learn, I guess.

kbuzbee · #33

damonh wrote: I'm sure that if I had explained my situation to the folks there, I'd have been able to surrender my knife to lost & found and pick it up upon my return. Live and learn, I guess.

That might have worked but I wouldn't count it a 100% solution. Most likely no one would know anything about your knife or your discussion when you returned. But that could just be the cynic in me

Ken

elena86 · #34

Well, maybe something good will turn out of this ....Maybe a new Endura signed by Sal himself ! My dream is to have a Spydie signed by Sal.Any Spydie !