Walking Sticks, Canes, and Airports (TSA)

[italiansport]

Is anyone on the forum aware of a training class that us oldsters can take on using a walking cane as a defensive weapon? I've looked and not come up with anything.
Jim

 

[WR Moore]

To answer a question posed above, most metal detectors are free standing and trying to use one for support will result in you and the detector being on the ground.

Explosive detectors and possibly the see through gadgets (no experience with the see throughs) may be substantial enough to support you. Kinda depends.

 

[H Richard]

For defensive information, check the internet for Defensive Canes, and there are some designed specifically for that, and the company (I don't recall the mane) has information on their website.

 

[Conklin]

Some people don't need them to walk. They play like they need them so they have a legal weapon. Larry

They are also a traditional accoutrement for a well-dressed gentleman regardless of (dis)ability.

 

[fredj338]

Although this may or may not be true wrt TSA in the US, back in 2000 we had a 4 hour (middle of night) stop-over in Zürich and I watched them wheel in this monstrous machine. While they were setting up I asked one of the (I assume) Zürich police officers if it picked up gun powder residue from shooting and the answer was no. When we went thru that checkpoint they were swabbing bags and the machine read the results. No issues.

Current tech picks up fired gun powder res. i git tagged in atlanta once from just packing my shooting gear after a weekend match.

 

[diyj98]

They are also a traditional accoutrement for a well-dressed gentleman regardless of (dis)ability.

Or the stereotypical pimp.

 

[BE Mike]

Question.....if your at a stag in your life where you need a cane. How effective are you defending yourself with one ????

Unless highly trained in the martial arts involving a cane, I tend to think that it is false security to have one for self-defense. It actually may give an aggressor a weapon (as he takes it from you) and increase your chances of serious injury. Same thing with a knife. A weapon is only as good as the training/ skill a person has wielding it.

 

[LoboGunLeather]

I sometimes need to use a cane, and I keep one in the truck in case of need.

Not as long or heavy as the pugil sticks we trained with in the Army, nor as effective as the M14 for vertical or horizontal butt strokes, but certainly longer and heavier than the batons we trained with as young cops.

I suspect that I would be better off defending myself with a cane than trying to do so bare handed.

 

[riverrat38]

If an assailant took a cane away from a senior citizen, and commenced viciously assaulting said citizen with said cane, the citizen might need to defend himself with a CCW.
"I knew that I was in danger of grievous bodily harm".

Best,
Rick

 

[Chazman1946]

Their used to be a defensive Umbrella that people had taken on flights with no problems, thus thing was almost indestructible, they demo it by having in a 250 lbs man jump up and down on it while it was propped up between two chairs.

The then showed a video of how to use it as a club, the guy beating a punching bag with it, them turning the pointed tip and jabbing an penetrating the cavass on the bag. This was probably more effective then a Police Riot Baton. Forget the name though!

 

[saltydog452]

Cane at Airports

Next time you visit your family MD, ask for a statement on their letterhead staying that 'Mr??? has medical need to use a walking aid such as a cane.'.

Sign, date, etc. Mine has the Doc's typed signature block and her handwriting is legible.

I keep mine with the Passport.

 

[Imissedagain]

Question.....if your at a stag in your life where you need a cane. How effective are you defending yourself with one ????

Great topic and links to find answers would be helpful to all.

 

[diyj98]

Question.....if your at a stag in your life where you need a cane. How effective are you defending yourself with one ????

I'm sure more effective than just using your bare hands.

 

[elm_creek_smith]

Cane fighting for gentlemen?
Bartitsu - Wikipedia

Sent from my XT1710-02 using Tapatalk

 

[HardToHandle]

Greg Ellifritz has a great cane summary
http://www.activeresponsetraining.net/can-a-walking-cane-be-an-effective-weapon

I have kept my eye out for one of his classes. We are all getting older, right?

 

[Rubone]

You guys are lucky. I am of Spanish/French/English descent and get scanned , poked, and prodded every time I get in line due to Mideastern/Mediterranean profiling. Sniffed for explosives, X-Rayed, etc. And my family has been on this continent since before Jamestown existed! And the political climate has made it much worse.

 

[AZretired]

Next time you visit your family MD, ask for a statement on their letterhead staying that 'Mr??? has medical need to use a walking aid such as a cane.'.

Sign, date, etc. Mine has the Doc's typed signature block and her handwriting is legible.

I keep mine with the Passport.

AFAIK according to the ADA the TSA (nor anyone else) has ti right to question your need for a cane. Medical info is protected under HIPAA.

 

[ISCS Yoda]

Since this very thread is a parallel to a new one I thought I should resurrect it one more time and hook them up.

And the Cold Steel Blackthorn literally screams "weapon" - not my choice for a discreet cane.

Canes for self defense

 

[StrawHat]

At the lab for a blood draw I ran into a guy carrying a shillelagh who told me that the Irish invented golf. He said they used their shillelaghs to hit sheep droppings into gopher holes.

It was the Scots. But we Irish perfected it!

Kevin

 

[elm_creek_smith]

Fine, but then did they let you ride inside the plane?

I think, technically speaking, the cargo bay is "inside."

 

[fatcat3]

Smokeless powder is a propellant, not an explosive. The airport sensors aren't calibrated to pick it up. They have no reason to. As others have said, they are mainly looking for nitrates.

What about good old black powder? Most of my plinking/hunting is done with muzzle loaders

 

[Muss Muggins]

So, this just happened. As a result, I've got a Cold Steel 5' and 3' Blackthorn ordered . . .

Niles Man, 81, Chases Off Burglars With Antique Irish Shillelagh | Niles, IL Patch

 

[Flattop5]

I have a home-made walking stick that has a masonry hammer head on it. I have never been hassled by any security agency while carrying it. Obviously, it could be a weapon, but I keep it held in my hand and no one has said anything to me yet.


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[Flattop5]

I go back and forth to the middle east a few times a year and always have my "Cane Master" made of hickory. About as formidable as a Louisville slugger, and no one dares ask about it. It's the only deadly weapon that they have to let you take on an airplane.

Even in the states it's an EDC.

Cane Masters!, Walking Canes for mobility, self-defense, exercise and rehabilitation

There's a reason why they make canes out of hickory. They don't break. It's very tough wood. My home-made walking stick is hickory. I researched the matter first. I could have chosen either ash or hickory. I chose the latter. Glad I did.


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[YkcorCal]

Personally, I like Cane Masters canes and I am planning to get a custom one to my specs made for me. Not a lot of bells or whistles but the essentials for what I can do with a cane. I actually walk with a cane at 70 years old and due to a neurological condition that affects my balance especially at night. I invite others to check out what is available from this exceptional cane company.

If you plan to use a cane in defense of yourself then by all means get some training because under stress you will revert to your training and if you have none then you may hesitate when you need to act to save your life.

 

[Hairtrigger]

I travel weekly for my job, TSA has gotten better but is still a joke. For 3 years or more I carried a S&W tactical pen... one time an agent pulled it out and another said to him"it's ok, it's a tactical pen" and gave it back to me
3 weeks ago it was discovered and taken away. LOL
ATLEAST now they no longer act like you are a criminal when you forget to remove a bottle of water

 

[Flattop5]

I knew a guy who worked for TSA. I could tell you some horror stories. These TSA people are, very often, NOT the smartest people in the room. Fly on a plane today? No thanks. I'll talk to my uncle on the phone. Safer and way cheaper.


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[smoothshooter]

The Cold Steel Blackthorn may get you in a little trouble in some countries as it is essentially a reproduction shillelagh.

Maybe a non-threatening looking cane could be bought after entering one of the stricter countries, and then disposed of before arriving at the airport.

 

[fredj338]

TSA can argue just about anything to be a potential weapon. Shortly after 911 I took a trip out of country & took a collapsible, alum monpod for camera work. I had to chat the tsa guy out of making me put it in my check bag, which in hind sight I should have. It got on the plane with me but tsa can decline anything you want to bring on a plane. Fwiw, I fly 4-5x a year, I always have a tac pen & small alum flashlight in my carryon.

 

[Hairtrigger]

Tactical pens can easily be purchased for under $50, if I have to buy two or three a year it does not bother me

TSA can argue just about anything to ve a potential weapon. Shortly after 911 I took a trip out of country & took a collapsible, alum monpod for camera work. I had to chat the tsa guy out of making me put it in my check bag, which in hind sight I should have. It got on the plane with me but tsa can decline anything you want to bring on a plane. Fwiw, I fly 4-5x a year, I always have a tac pen & small alum flashlight in my carryon.