I’m interested in carrying a fixed blade knife for defensive purposes. I feel blades are an asset in conjunction to a firearm and also essential in times when firearms cannot be carried.
I’ve carried a ka-bar tdi, but the awkward shape of the knife made it hard for me to comfortably conceal.
I really like the socp dagger from bench made. In my opinion it’s designed well for a defensive blade, and the finger hole allowing manipulation of a firearm or magazine appears to be a great feature.
My issue is that it’s considered a “dagger” even the model with a single edged blade.
I’ve spent hours reading up on federal local laws and most state that daggers are illegal to carry. However in attempts to find the definition of a dagger it appears to entail the qualities of most fixed blades.
In my opinion the single edged socp is essentially a fixed blade knife. Am I right, or just being too biased for my own good? I can’t find any qualities the single edged socp has over a fixed blade knife that should make it a dagger. My only connection falls in the characteristic of having a sharp point that aids in thrusting. Isn’t that every blade???
I know trying to make sense of laws is only going to make me go crazy, but I would love to add the singled edged socp to my edc without being paranoid about being bound up on illegal knife charges simply because the laws are so poorly worded.
I looked into this a little and here are my thoughts. My understanding is that any self defense with an edged weapon can be very hard to defend legally. For instance even in self defense the attacker will have what look like defensive wounds. If I decided to carry a fixed blade I’d want something as non-aggressive looking as possible and preferably something with a clearly defined/marketed utility role ala ESEE survival knives. SOCP knives are designed for SF Assaulters, not CCW. Carry a knife for its general utility.
I wouldn’t be concerned with how a blade appears. As long as it’s within the bounds of the law, go for it.
Self defense is self defense. A malicious prosecutor will not be swayed by a traditional looking knife vs a “tactical” one. So, might as well carry what works best for you.
Otherwise, forget about CCW’ing a Glock or any semi-auto, and opt for a wheel gun.
My approach has been to carry a knife that’s good for utility use, but also good for defense. A straight, double-edged blade is going to look bad to anyone, prosecutor or juror. Since I carry a knife that’s versatile, I use it whenever I can. Just at my workplace I have a long list of people who have seen me use my knife to open boxes, cut cables, release hard to reach levers, etc. I carry a utility knife and have multiple people who will back that up. It just so happens to be a great shape for defense if necessary.
I asked that question of a Police Chief, what makes a dagger, and thus illegal, a dagger, his quick answer was officer and prosecutor interruption as it wasn’t clearly spelled out in state law. Thus what is a regular hunting knife in a rural area, becomes a dagger in an urban area, and there was no clear metric to define it so it was all in the eye of the beholder and what you could convince them.