Thread: Ivory scaled razors

Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

Question is would Robert risk selling elephant ivory after the new regs go into effect ? My guess is anyone selling ivory goods after July 1st would only do so face to face.

What are the new regulations, and what type of ivory do they apply to?

Originally Posted by Splashone

Aware of the possible risk of confiscation, I "rolled the dice" on a nice pair of very old razors out of France a while back. Seller was willing to ship...arrived fine. Customs label stated "used razors." I seriously doubt prosecution of the buyer. First of all, they would have to prove that you knew the scales were ivory without you ever seeing or handling them.

If you ever look on ebay, some sellers have listed their ivory scaled razors as being "creamy white natural material which is not bone," and some have listed genuine tortoise as celluloid. Although a few of them may not have known what they had, I'm fairly sure that a lot of them describe them like that to avoid legal issues.

Because there's quite a lot of mythologies surrounding straight razors, almost suggesting that they're some kind of concealed weapon like a switchblade, I usually describe them as "men's toiletries." Even in places like the UK where the knife laws are quite strict, straight razors are completely legal, so doing that isn't illegal or anything, it's just to prevent inconvenience to those who live in shared/ temporary accommodation and may not receive their mail directly from the postman.

Originally Posted by Amenrab

What are the new regulations, and what type of ivory do they apply to?

See these two posts ;

http://straightrazorpalace.com/conve...ml#post1290861

CITES treaty for guitar collectors | The Fretboard Journal: Keepsake magazine for guitar collectors

I was able to find these two links as well. Pretty good information.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/21/ar...-concerns.html

Interior Announces Ban on Commercial Trade of Ivory as Part of Overall Effort to Combat Poaching, Wildlife Trafficking

I also spoke to the Agriculture Specialist in my office and I was told that currently, until the new regulations come into effect, that you as the buyer needs to have the proper certificates to import the ivory into the US and the seller would need any certificates required for their country to export the ivory.

From what I read, some US states don't even allow intra-state sales of ivory to happen. So pretty much if you have it, your stuck with it.

Sorry for the double post. But if people are interested, I am doing some research to see if I can buy and form Walrus Ivory into scales. The local shops have tons of it, but only local natives can harvest it, and to sell it, it needs to be considered artwork (carved, painted, etc.) and I don't know if I can re-sell it. I will try to see if this is something I can do and to see if it would be a worthwhile endeavor cost wise. Walrus Ivory here isn't cheap.

Originally Posted by RezDog

You can't make it either, IT"S BANNED

They banned Irony? Half our posts will have to be removed...

I really hope that typo doesn't haunt me on here forever.

Originally Posted by Saxxon

I really hope that typo doesn't haunt me on here forever.

We would never do that, and your post has helped brighten my day...
I suspect that others feel the same.


Smooth shaving...

Post-ban Ivory has always been illegal the problem is there is this unending supply of pre ban stuff out there which means you know what. That is why the new regs.

Under the old regs there were certain categories you could import if you had the documents to prove it. Personal sanctioned hunts and heard culling are examples of valid ways to import.

Otherwise you need to understand most enforcement action is taken by U.S Customs not Dept of Agriculture for a variety of reasons but Customs has two separate enforcement avenues. They have Criminal and Civil. if you brought some illegal ivory into the U.S for personal use and it was a small quantity they would never even attempt to prosecute you because the burden is on them to prove you knowingly imported the stuff in violation of law and that's near impossible. However under the civil statutes they will confiscate what you have and that's the end of it. if you have a large quantity then they would go after you for civil money penalties. In civil proceedings the burden shifts to you the importer.

Of course under the new statutes it simplifies things cause it's now plain illegal with a few exceptions.

As to differences between elephant and mammoth it's very easy to tell with some magnification cause the lines that run through the material run differently. One is at 90 degree angles and the other is at different ones.

I've bought and sold ivory scaled razor for a few years now and never had a problem. I doubt that anyone is really going to spot that razor scales are actually ivory anyway

i feel a little bit out of the loop. i didn't realize that ivory was banned. is that an american thing?
i'm pretty sure you can still get it up here in canada.