travel warning: TSA took my allen wrenches

About two weeks ago I left for Hawaii from the
Denver airport. I was carrying a small photo backpack
with my usual gear, including 2 small allen wrenches
for the screws on my Wimberly mounting plates.
These are small, ~1 mm and ~2 mm, allen wrenches.
I've carried these for a couple of years without a
problem. I was flagged for carrying a potential
weapon, my bag went through secondary screening, including
taking it all apart to find the wrenches.
In discussing the issue with TSA, they said there is a
"New" rule that says no tools of any kind are allowed as
carry-on. A TSA guy said you could poke someone with
these wrenches. I pointed out how much smaller and
less effective small allen wrenches were than keys
or nail clippers (which are allowed). His answer was
that the higher ups know more than we do, and the
allen wrenches were banned.

So don't take any tools on board any more.

Roger

Denver TSA has always been pretty lame I have a small razor knife that is
the size of a key it has gone thru the screenings dozens of time in my
carryon and in the little tray for keys. However when I tried to use an
expired passport for an ID they said no.
http://custom-studios.com/keytags.htm. I checked the TSA site and could not
find anything as far as ID is concerned

Wayne

"Roger N. Clark (change username to rnclark)" wrote in
message ...
About two weeks ago I left for Hawaii from the
Denver airport. I was carrying a small photo backpack
with my usual gear, including 2 small allen wrenches
for the screws on my Wimberly mounting plates.
These are small, ~1 mm and ~2 mm, allen wrenches.
I've carried these for a couple of years without a
problem. I was flagged for carrying a potential
weapon, my bag went through secondary screening, including
taking it all apart to find the wrenches.
In discussing the issue with TSA, they said there is a
"New" rule that says no tools of any kind are allowed as
carry-on. A TSA guy said you could poke someone with
these wrenches. I pointed out how much smaller and
less effective small allen wrenches were than keys
or nail clippers (which are allowed). His answer was
that the higher ups know more than we do, and the
allen wrenches were banned.

So don't take any tools on board any more.

Roger

They took my PDA stylus. It had come loose and was at the bottom of
the bag. They told me if it was in the PDA it wouldn't have been a
problem - the fact that it was on its own was the problem. Didn't
matter that I showed them that it belonged to the PDA by slotting it
back in - they said it was too late. Ironic thing I also had a full
size pen/stylus combo in my bag! Where is the logic?

wayne wrote:
Denver TSA has always been pretty lame I have a small razor knife
that is
the size of a key it has gone thru the screenings dozens of time in
my
carryon and in the little tray for keys. However when I tried to use
an
expired passport for an ID they said no.
http://custom-studios.com/keytags.htm. I checked the TSA site and
could not
find anything as far as ID is concerned

Wayne

"Roger N. Clark (change username to rnclark)"
wrote in
message ...
About two weeks ago I left for Hawaii from the
Denver airport. I was carrying a small photo backpack
with my usual gear, including 2 small allen wrenches
for the screws on my Wimberly mounting plates.
These are small, ~1 mm and ~2 mm, allen wrenches.
I've carried these for a couple of years without a
problem. I was flagged for carrying a potential
weapon, my bag went through secondary screening, including
taking it all apart to find the wrenches.
In discussing the issue with TSA, they said there is a
"New" rule that says no tools of any kind are allowed as
carry-on. A TSA guy said you could poke someone with
these wrenches. I pointed out how much smaller and
less effective small allen wrenches were than keys
or nail clippers (which are allowed). His answer was
that the higher ups know more than we do, and the
allen wrenches were banned.

So don't take any tools on board any more.

Roger

They took my PDA stylus. It had come loose and was at the bottom of
the bag. They told me if it was in the PDA it wouldn't have been a
problem - the fact that it was on its own was the problem. Didn't
matter that I showed them that it belonged to the PDA by slotting it
back in - they said it was too late. Ironic thing I also had a full
size pen/stylus combo in my bag! Where is the logic?

wayne wrote:
Denver TSA has always been pretty lame I have a small razor knife
that is
the size of a key it has gone thru the screenings dozens of time in
my
carryon and in the little tray for keys. However when I tried to use
an
expired passport for an ID they said no.
http://custom-studios.com/keytags.htm. I checked the TSA site and
could not
find anything as far as ID is concerned

Wayne

"Roger N. Clark (change username to rnclark)"
wrote in
message ...
About two weeks ago I left for Hawaii from the
Denver airport. I was carrying a small photo backpack
with my usual gear, including 2 small allen wrenches
for the screws on my Wimberly mounting plates.
These are small, ~1 mm and ~2 mm, allen wrenches.
I've carried these for a couple of years without a
problem. I was flagged for carrying a potential
weapon, my bag went through secondary screening, including
taking it all apart to find the wrenches.
In discussing the issue with TSA, they said there is a
"New" rule that says no tools of any kind are allowed as
carry-on. A TSA guy said you could poke someone with
these wrenches. I pointed out how much smaller and
less effective small allen wrenches were than keys
or nail clippers (which are allowed). His answer was
that the higher ups know more than we do, and the
allen wrenches were banned.

So don't take any tools on board any more.

Roger

They took my PDA stylus. It had come loose and was at the bottom of
the bag. They told me if it was in the PDA it wouldn't have been a
problem - the fact that it was on its own was the problem. Didn't
matter that I showed them that it belonged to the PDA by slotting it
back in - they said it was too late. Ironic thing I also had a full
size pen/stylus combo in my bag! Where is the logic?

wayne wrote:
Denver TSA has always been pretty lame I have a small razor knife
that is
the size of a key it has gone thru the screenings dozens of time in
my
carryon and in the little tray for keys. However when I tried to use
an
expired passport for an ID they said no.
http://custom-studios.com/keytags.htm. I checked the TSA site and
could not
find anything as far as ID is concerned

Wayne

"Roger N. Clark (change username to rnclark)"
wrote in
message ...
About two weeks ago I left for Hawaii from the
Denver airport. I was carrying a small photo backpack
with my usual gear, including 2 small allen wrenches
for the screws on my Wimberly mounting plates.
These are small, ~1 mm and ~2 mm, allen wrenches.
I've carried these for a couple of years without a
problem. I was flagged for carrying a potential
weapon, my bag went through secondary screening, including
taking it all apart to find the wrenches.
In discussing the issue with TSA, they said there is a
"New" rule that says no tools of any kind are allowed as
carry-on. A TSA guy said you could poke someone with
these wrenches. I pointed out how much smaller and
less effective small allen wrenches were than keys
or nail clippers (which are allowed). His answer was
that the higher ups know more than we do, and the
allen wrenches were banned.

So don't take any tools on board any more.

Roger

"Roger N. Clark (change username to rnclark)" wrote in
message ...
About two weeks ago I left for Hawaii from the
Denver airport. I was carrying a small photo backpack
with my usual gear, including 2 small allen wrenches
for the screws on my Wimberly mounting plates.
These are small, ~1 mm and ~2 mm, allen wrenches.
I've carried these for a couple of years without a
problem. I was flagged for carrying a potential
weapon, my bag went through secondary screening, including
taking it all apart to find the wrenches.
In discussing the issue with TSA, they said there is a
"New" rule that says no tools of any kind are allowed as
carry-on. A TSA guy said you could poke someone with
these wrenches. I pointed out how much smaller and
less effective small allen wrenches were than keys
or nail clippers (which are allowed). His answer was
that the higher ups know more than we do, and the
allen wrenches were banned.

So don't take any tools on board any more.

That is right, the prohibited items list (conveniently available in .pdf
format on the TSA web site) includes tools, but specifically says nail
clippers and safety razors are allowed.

Furthermore, if you attempt to bring Allen wrenches to a checkpoint again,
you can be fined $250 - $1500, because now you are supposed to know better;
you have been flagged. Do it again and they will assume it is intentional.

Perhaps Homeland Security believes that the best way to protect US citizens
is to lock them up on any pretext possible in order to keep them out of
harm's way.

I am firmly convinced that TSA is the best possible argument for learning to
fly. You can carry anything you want on your own airplane.

I drive, saves an awful lot of trouble and I get to carry anything I
want...

Dave


On Sat, 18 Dec 2004 09:30:23 -0800, "C J Campbell"
wrote:

That is right, the prohibited items list (conveniently available in .pdf
format on the TSA web site) includes tools, but specifically says nail
clippers and safety razors are allowed.

Furthermore, if you attempt to bring Allen wrenches to a checkpoint again,
you can be fined $250 - $1500, because now you are supposed to know better;
you have been flagged. Do it again and they will assume it is intentional.

Perhaps Homeland Security believes that the best way to protect US citizens
is to lock them up on any pretext possible in order to keep them out of
harm's way.

I am firmly convinced that TSA is the best possible argument for learning to
fly. You can carry anything you want on your own airplane.

From: Dave Fouchey

I drive, saves an awful lot of trouble and I get to carry anything I
want...

Roger would have had a hard time driving to Hawaii though ...

On 18 Dec 2004 18:06:31 GMT, dy (Bill Hilton)
wrote:

From: Dave Fouchey

I drive, saves an awful lot of trouble and I get to carry anything I
want...

Roger would have had a hard time driving to Hawaii though ...

True, but then a Yacht sounds nice for that...G

Dave

"Dave Fouchey" wrote in message
...
I drive, saves an awful lot of trouble and I get to carry anything I
want...


Bah! Clogging up the roads with yet another automobile, endangering
everybody around you while you in turn are at the mercy of every drunk
driver and vehicle operator who just had a fight with his wife, dodging 18
wheelers on icy roads -- next thing you know you've run into a school bus
full of children, one of whom would have grown up to discover a cure for
cancer, but now he's dead and IT IS ALL YOUR FAULT! Beast. :-)

(I dunno, was that over the top, or what?)

Seriously, I find flying to be very convenient, fast and comfortable. If I
want to visit the grandchildren I can be there in 3 1/2 hours, instead of 11
hours of driving over two major mountain passes in winter. And I get some
great photos out of the trip, too. Sigh Even so I still have trouble
finding time to get away.