Hey Ben
....
Actually.., going over there to get them is best (in my opinion).., so I'm not surprised you got them through without any problem.
In Batangas Province.., mainly around the outskirts of Taal.., there are still some very talented Balisong makers of the "Old School".., but sadly I don't believe the tradition will be carried on. Most of the young folks move towards Manila now.., or Cebu City ~~> simply because they can make more money, and no one can blame them in that regard.
They have tightened up the Customs stuff quite a bit given what's going on in the World ~~> and also because of the Abu Sayyaf (obviously).....
It's really a combination of bad dynamics with the politics and varied economic structure in the Philippines currently.., and very sad to me. It's such a beautiful country.., and very nice people.
I hate to see the true Filipino style Balisong die out (or become a "PRODUCTION" type product).., but I do think that is what will happen over the next 20 years.
One FACT will always remain true for the folks of Filipino heritage. The Balisong knife (in design).., certainly didn't originate there. The Euro-Folks beat them to the two-handled stuff by quite a few years ~~~~~> [BUT].., there is no doubt in anyone's mind about [WHO] made the knife famous...., and the Philippines will always have that distinction far above all others.