Posted by Oregon is not only the unofficial capital of craft beer and athletic shoes, it is also the unofficial capital of specialty knife making in the US. Among the companies that call Oregon home are Gerber, Benchmade, Kershaw and Leatherman. Some of the best sporting and utility knives are made right here in the Portland area. But a change in the definition of what constitutes a switchblade could mean real trouble for this burgeoning industry.
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection is seeking a change to the federal law that bans switchblades. The proposal changes the definition of a switchblade to include knives with assisted opening and has been called “so broad and uses virtually every term ever applied to any knife that opens with one hand” by the American Knife & Tool Institute.
The change to federal law concerning customs may not sound like it has an impact on domestic production but it historically has. Most states and local governments follow federal customs guidelines for items like guns and other weapons. A change to federal law would likely result in changes to local law.
ThePortlander contacted both Gerber and Benchmade today for their thoughts on the proposed change. They both refered us to their industry group, the AKTI, while Benchmade also offered this statement:
“Benchmade is first and foremost a manufacturer of high quality, US made edged tools designed and produced at our factory in Oregon City. Our concern with the U.S. Customs proposal at hand is primarily based on the potential expansion of the restrictions on the ability to purchase and carry different types of knives. This proposal, if passed, could lead to a reduction in the number of quality manufacturing jobs that we provide in Oregon.”
Clearly this could have a large effect on Oregon’s already struggling economy. The four companies mentioned here employ approximately 1,000 people…mostly in Oregon. This news comes as the State of Oregon reported the highest unemployment rate ever on record at 12.4%.
To learn more about the proposed change, visit the U.S. Customs and Border Protection web site at http://www.cbp.gov/. To learn more about the AKTI’s stance on the issue, visit their web site at http://akti.org.
I believe you and many people have miss understood what is happening. The "new" law is simply a revision of the wording to make it more clear what constitutes a switchblade which is illegal vs. an assisted opening folder with a detent system which is legal. A lot of people think the latter is a switchblade when they see it, but when one understands the differences it becomes clear. Knife manufacturers know this difference and if anything else they should be glad to be protected by more distinguishing letters to the law. California's PC653K law is an example of a well worded version on knife code and is what the Federal Government is aiming for. Also you might refer to http://zknives.com/knives/articles/law/caknifelaw... for an easy to understand explanation of knife code.