Open Carry in PA

[mike from st pete]

Does my FL CCW allow me to open carry in PA?

 

[fifty_cent_solution]

Go to paopencarry.org . I'd like to say yes, but I don't want to mislead you, either. From the site..........


Who can open carry?
Any persons 18 years of age and older whom are not prohibited by law from owning firearms may openly carry a holstered handgun in plain sight with no license except in vehicles*, cities of the first class** (Philadelphia) and where prohibited specifically by statute.

* Open carry in a vehicle requires a valid PA License to Carry Firearms (LTCF) or a carry license from ANY other state. Ref: Title 18 §6106

** Open carry in a city of the first class requires a valid PA LTCF or a carry license from ANY other state. Ref: Title 18 §6108

 

[PDL]

i gotta ask, if you've got a CCW why open carry? CC is reciprocal between FL and PA.

http://www.usacarry.com/ is usually pretty good for CCW info. But like anything else, I'd check the State's info directly.

 

[jj2am44]

In Pa., anyone can open carry-even non-residents. You do have restricted areas-government buildings, airports and the like but it is generally unrestricted. Go to www.pafao.com

Only in Philadelphia is open carry illegal unless you are licensed. Concealed carry is permitted with a license.

 

[fifty_cent_solution]

i gotta ask, if you've got a CCW why open carry? CC is reciprocal between FL and PA.

USA Carry - Open and Concealed Carry Information and Community is usually pretty good for CCW info. But like anything else, I'd check the State's info directly.

Some people just prefer to open carry, and in PA an LTCF is needed to open carry while in a vehicle or in a city of the first class (ie Philadelphia).

 

[USAF385]

PA is open carry, but you really got to know the area to know if you'll be hassled or not. In certain areas you'll have an LEO coming up to you in a matter of minutes... most likely because people start calling 911 when they see you. Other places, people won't even think twice about it.

I guess what I'm saying is, there are many areas where even though it's legal, it's not accepted by the gun fearing public, and it's possible it will turn into a pain. I would just carry concealed.

 

[flop-shank]

PA is open carry, but you really got to know the area to know if you'll be hassled or not. In certain areas you'll have an LEO coming up to you in a matter of minutes... most likely because people start calling 911 when they see you. Other places, people won't even think twice about it.

I guess what I'm saying is, there are many areas where even though it's legal, it's not accepted by the gun fearing public, and it's possible it will turn into a pain. I would just carry concealed.

Good advice. I once read that Pennsylvania is Pittsburgh in the west, Killadelphia in the east, and Alabama in the middle. That would certainly explain widely varying attitudes regarding open carry in different locales.

 

[PDL]

I'm sure you also all read, if you didn't know her, about the 'soccer' mom who was brutally killed by her husband in PA just a couple of months ago. The murder had nothing to do with open carry except in the papers. She'd gotten notoriety by open carrying at a kids soccer game.
Our UT, CCW instructor was a friend or hers, and we went thru the class a couple of days after her husband killed her.
It's as was said, some places its more acceptable, regardless of legality.

 

[USAF385]

Good advice. I once read that Pennsylvania is Pittsburgh in the west, Killadelphia in the east, and Alabama in the middle. That would certainly explain widely varying attitudes regarding open carry in different locales.

Where I live in northeast PA, I'm right in the middle of two very different areas. To the east a few miles I have a very snobby upper class town. If I were to open carry there people would be running and screaming. I can guarantee the cops would be called.

A few miles to the west is the total opposite. It's the "hick town" (as the local kids like to call it) where I went to high school. There I could walk down main street with a gun on each hip and nobody would care. The only thing is there isn't much going on as far as shops, so I don't go there often.

Unfortunately, I do a lot of my business in the first town....

 

[fifty_cent_solution]

If I were to open carry there people would be running and screaming.

It would almost be worth it just for the laughs.

 

[mike from st pete]

Thanks

Open Carry is so much more comfortable.

 

[The Big D]

Open Carry is so much more comfortable.

How so, Mike?

If it is, in fact, physically "more comfortable" for you, then perhaps you need a different holster(s) and/or carry position.

I have seen many posters who prefer open carry. Though I do not agree with them, never have I seen them cite your reason.

Be safe.

 

[PDL]

Open Carry is so much more comfortable.

I'd also ask, under what conditions? If you're talking bathing suit or nylon shorts - ok.
But under a jacket, vest, or loose shirt it can amount to open carry - covered as it were. Also in winter, pocket carry works just fine.

 

[5BeansintheWheel]

If Mike wants to legally OC in Pa., so what? Personally, this time of year OC is kind of a mute point for me. But I think outside the waist is more comfortable and if my gun is printing or showing, so what?

 

[PDL]

A couple of other points that haven't been mentioned. You give any potenntial BG access and knowledge of your weapon if you're OC. That can very easily work to your disadvantage.
I can understand the comfort angle etc. I used to OC my 1911 in a shoulder holster while in the outback of northern CA. But I also had a .38 J frame tucked behind my hip. An encounter in the woods that way gave them the impression of confidence since they could see I was nowhere near my OC pistol. Little did they know my right hand wasn't in my back pocket, it was on the .38.
A supprise presentation of a weapon gives you advanges that out weigh legalities. It's also legal to OC a rifle, but that wouldn't be my first choice.

 

[Greg R.]

You give any potenntial BG access and knowledge of your weapon if you're OC. That can very easily work to your disadvantage.

Just curious if you can cite a single circumstance where this has occurred? It's just as likely (and maybe more likely) that when discovering an armed person in the vicinity of their intended target, the BG will simply move on to easier prey. BGs are opportunists. Most of them don't want to work any harder than they have to.

 

[JWiley]

PDL, I hear what you're saying, but everyone has a 'tell'. To the observant, no one carries concealed.

Personaly, I prefer OC as I find it more comfortable and, to me, not sneaky. OC is my 'badge of Citizenship' if you will.

 

[PDL]

Just a note to say I've been reading the current comments. But we've hijacked the OP's thread enough. Open vs CCW should go in a new thread.

 

[USAF385]

PDL, I hear what you're saying, but everyone has a 'tell'. To the observant, no one carries concealed.

I disagree. If my girlfriend can't tell I'm carrying, some guy on the street sure as heck can't.

 

[David Sinko]

The administrators of my large, dysfunctional PA city are torn between the "Guns are bad!" mentality and the "We must not harass those who practice open carry because we will be sued!" mentality. Anti-gun as they are, money is still always the bottom line. Most of our large cities are bankrupt or very close to it and nobody wants to get sued. We are constantly reminded to be very cautious in how we treat those who carry openly, lest we offend them. We are aware that there are some citizens who carry openly just to provoke contact with us and see if we cross the line. And the last thing our administrators want to see is yet another fatal accident caused by a police response to a gun call, especially if that gun call turns out to be unfounded or does not merit a police response in the first place.

Dave Sinko