Originally Posted by
tfar
Thanks! One might want to bring a certain kind of soap that is not available in the destination country. Same for chocolate. BTW, interesting for the soap. I wouldn't have thought of that.
International travel, OK that makes sense. Taking chocolate is an “iffy” proposition since the temperatures are anything but consistent, melting is going to be an issue.
Why the weight thing? I mean I once had a big copper saute pan as a gift in my checked luggage. I was pretty certain they might pull it and indeed they did. Still it was very easy to see that it was a frying pan. You probably mean big metal objects not because of their weight (which the x-ray can't see) but because of their density, right?
Usually weight has something to do with density. Pots and pans are pretty easy to figure out on the x-ray, shape gives them away. But if they are real dense, cast iron or something like that, they can cause problems. Nothing that cant be cleared by a quick look under them, it only takes a minute.
What about powders? Say I wanted to bring 2lb of finely ground almond flour. Would that throw a flag?
Till
Powders are a new focus point for us. Depending on the size of the package, and I cant think of a use for a package of flour under 3.4 ounces, we will most likely pull the bag for a quick chemical test.
I have had a passenger bring a good sized package of powered gold through the checkpoint. As soon as my eyes widen upon seeing such a dense object (densest object I have ever seen on the x-ray) the passenger was already asking for a private screening. The bag could not have been any larger then my two hands but must have weighed 40 pounds. Ya gotta love experienced travelers. This guy said he travels every 6 months or so with packages like that, and loves to watch the face of the x-ray TSO. One finds entertainment where one can I guess.
