Open Carry?

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I don't have much of an opinion either way on those who open carry. I don't, but I could. My CC carries are much more convenient for me, because I don't have a desire to walk around with a large firearm. If I need a big gun, it's in the car. I think some of the people who OC are doing it for the attention, but I think others just want to carry a firearm. Remember, our forefathers forced a lot of issues. Was dumping tea in Boston Harbor a cry for attention?
 
Muss Muggins said:
I don't have much of an opinion either way on those who open carry. I don't, but I could. My CC carries are much more convenient for me, because I don't have a desire to walk around with a large firearm. If I need a big gun, it's in the car. I think some of the people who OC are doing it for the attention, but I think others just want to carry a firearm. Remember, our forefathers forced a lot of issues. Was dumping tea in Boston Harbor a cry for attention?
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Yes it was a cry for attention. It was also rebellious and a punishable offense. Is that how we want to be perceived?
 
Since I wrote my last post this morning I was kind of forced to OC this afternoon. It was a little unusual for me. Theresa and I went for a trail ride on our RZR. I was on a new trail for me. We got caught high in the mountains with a heavy cold rain. We made it to a small town, were cold and soaked. We went in a tiny cafe and took our wet jackets off to dry a little. I was carrying a 3" model 36 in a pancake. No way was I going to leave it on the UTV in the still pouring rain. I wasnt worried about it as I have the CC plus OC is legal here. It was in Circleville where butch cassidy was raised. No one seemed to notice, its in the heart of the finest trail riding and cowboy country. It was a stunning beautiful ride. Its called the Fremont trail. We did about 64 miles of it and definitely will be hitting it repeatedly. I knew we could get rained on when we went but thought it would be just temporary for a couple minuets but we got soaked. We dried off and hit some more nice country. I might post pictures later when Theresa puts them on my computer. We have been doing about two or three rides a week. This is the country for it.

http://www.utah-trails.com/Fremont-Trail
 
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I open carry when I am in a western state in a rural area and am hunting or fishing. However in Western Washington, there are too many lib tree huggers, so I use my CCA in town.
 
I open carry when ever I like, within the law....Like yesterday,

Carried the wife to the 'Mall' for a lit'l shopping.
when I got out of the pick-up I donned a sport coat on the way inside.
I don't concern myself all that much about concealment.

I did have, what I thought was an amusing 'open carry' encounter once,
while packing into the back country of southwestern Colorado.
Met a couple of hikers on the trail, exchanged greetings and as I pulled back out on the trail with my string of mules,
I over heard the lady say to her husband, "That man was carrying a gun!"

At that, I turned in the saddle and casually advised,

"You all might want to keep a sharp eye out, I've been seeing fresh bear sign for the last ten miles or so."




.
 
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Kanewpadle said:
You obviously didn't read the other thread on open carry.

You will never hear about problems with someone that carries concealed properly. But if you look around (google) you will find examples of people that became victims due to open carry.

Why do cops open carry? Come on man! Think!
EVERYBODY knows that cops carry guns. So why hide it?

To compare the average concealed carrier to cops is not realistic. A cop can execute a felony stop with gun in hand. Concealed carry or open carry folks have to WAIT until the threat presents itself.

To think that OC is a deterrent is wishful thinking at best.

The difference between OC and CC is common sense. OC is a bold in your face statement which says LOOK AT ME!! DON'T LIKE IT? TOUGH!!

Open carry is selfish and childish. It accomplishes nothing. It has done nothing to promote gun ownership. If OC was so right then why hasn't it grown? It hasn't. It has been stagnate.

OC does not represent me or my views about the responsibilities of owing a gun.

Just because it's legal to do in some areas doesn't make it right. Hey, they got nude beaches! So are we all going to walk around nude to promote it?:rolleyes::eek: You go ahead. Wait for me. I'll be right there.:p NOT!!
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So well said sir. Your wasting your breath on these open carry educators though. The term CLOWN usually comes to mind.
 
badge said:
So well said sir. Your wasting your breath on these open carry educators though. The term CLOWN usually comes to mind.
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So true. These clowns see themselves as "pioneers" or something. Look at the YouTube videos most of these clowns look like they still live in their parents basement, or should I call it a "command center"?

I recall the PA soccer mom OC incident And one guy who had an AR at the Obama rally. They get interviewed and they just blink into the camera and repeat "I'm standing up for my rights". Then the general public, most of whom don't really think much about guns, sees it and thinks we're ALL that way. And the OC crowd calls it a WIN for us! What kind of story would it make if the news had video of some guy wearing a gun while camping? No story at all. But the idiot strolling down the street with an AR slung across his chest because he's "standing up to tyranny"? Big one!
 
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Originally Posted by blujax01

Folks who stoop to name-calling have just checked their intelligence at the door. Anything they have to say after that is just babble...:cool:
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ladder13 said:
At least they no longer need to be "educated". ;)
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Yup there ya go^^^^^^^^^^^^ :D:D


We're all 'Educated' here 'bouts........On all things, large and small ;):D






*
I don't always open carry....But when I do, I prefer to carry an RM ;):D




.

Open Carry equals less mischief. ;)

.

If'n I had to CC a glock....I'd jest as soon stay home!

.
 
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elm_creek_smith said:
And if you aren't in your car when you need a big gun? :eek: I'm not particularly big, but I've carried full-sized 1911's and 4 inch barreled S&W Model 686's concealed on occasion. I didn't like it much, but it can be done.
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I have written several times on this forum in various threads that your little gun is always to be used to fight your way to your big gun . . .
 
I do both OC and CC depending on the situation, season and activity at hand. If I'm in an urban setting, it will always be CC, unless of course I am on my way out of town and need to stop for fuel or something, in which case I feel ok standing next to my truck with one of my OC rigs, but if I need to walk into the supermarket for stuff, then I just leave the holster on and put the pistol under the truck seat. Not so much because I am afraid that I will frighten or alarm folks by carrying in the open, but because I kinda feel like it makes me look like a poser, mall-ninja or a dork... For me OC doesn't have anything to do with making a statement or educating people… It has everything to do with having a sizable pistol close and easily accessible when I plan on being in an environment where dangerous encounters with 4 legged critters could be a real possibility. In the environments where encounters with dangerous 2 legged critters could be a possibility, which is pretty much anywhere and everywhere these days; I carry concealed.
 
Let's try this:

What do you think/feel when you see a FOLDING Buck-knife type sheath on someone's belt? Do you even give it a 2nd thought? Just a routine 'tool', right?

Ok, NOW you see a FIXED blade, sheath knife. Small, no more, say, than a 4" blade, & 9" OAL. You might give THAT one a bit closer look, right? If for no other reason than to satisfy your curiousity of the brand. Looking for the signature Buck handle and pommel, or admiring the piece of stag used. Perhaps the sheath is nicely tooled leather? Ok, but it's obviously not a Spec-Ops-Ninja-Stealth-Sentry-Eliminator, so you continue on. It's simply NOT that unusual.

For my third example, (you see where I am going) you note the giant black plastic kydex rig sporting some kind of Esse, Busse, TOPS, etc rugged survial-combat type blade of like 6"-9" and over a foot long. Looks out-of-sorts on the guy, right? Unless, of course, perhaps the rest of his garb is a full-on military BDU, LOL. This is definitely unusual, in your opinion. Here in the middle of my city, it would be unusual, also. Okay, granted.

Now, you might take issue with his choice, BUT, it is HIS CHOICE. The first examples are somewhat innocuous and everyday, but not the latter, right? SAME type of tool, SAME carry, otherwise the same guy. What matters is, are you fearful or uncomfortable BECAUSE of it? BECAUSE of his "LOOK AT ME" choice of cutlery?

I'm thinking the same way of open carry. An ordinary handgun, in a pedestrian, secure holster, SHOULD BE NO MORE worrisome than that BUck folder. Just a tool in case it's needed. A duty-sized gun, in a Blade-Tech, Serpa, Safariland, etc, projecting out away from the waist..that's akin to that fixed-blade tool. (Yeah, and I'll eyeball to see what the gun-du-jour IS, LOL). The large hi-cap, in a low-slung SWAT rig on the leg, that's the last knife guy. It's awkward, sure. Perhaps he's making a statement, sure. But, that's his choice...where otherwise legal.

I think we all need to get more comfortable with O/C, even IF WE, personally, choose NOT to O/C ourselves.
 
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I carry both open and concealed.It is legal here in New Mexico and it is not a problem to open carry.I'm retired police officer and can carry concealed in any state.It depends on where I go or what I am doing on how I carry.
 
OC seems to defeat the purpose of being armed. CC seems more logical to me. OC will make me a target, CC might give me a chance to survive. I've never OC, even where legal, prefer not to give a threat advance notice that I'm armed. A uniformed officer they know is armed and trained, I'm neither, only thing I can hope for is a serious tactical advantage if I have to draw a gun.
 
I'd like to see some hard facts/stats on the number of people who OC and are killed because of it.
Anyone?
lurk5.gif
 
ladder13 said:
I'd like to see some hard facts/stats on the number of people who OC and are killed because of it.
Anyone?
lurk5.gif
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I do believe it's jest one of those urban miffs...;):D



I have never heard of any one in my neck of the woods getting killed with their own sidearm in resent memory.

Think we had a city policeman killed with his own gun sometime back in the '20s by a prisoner he was escorting......

But nothing in the last several decades that I know of.


.

This thing of the concealed firearm giving one a tactical advantage is purty questionable at best.

Any of the lit'l dust-ups I participated in....I prefer'd to have my firearm in hand.

There no faster draw than having it in your hand when the devil comes a callin'.


.
 
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I agree with the opinion that OC can, at the very least, be highly inappropriate in most cases. However, how many of us would prefer to have it made illegal simply because we hold that opinion?

When I see some dope in the supermarket packing a 7 1/2 inch Super Blackhawk I amusingly wonder to myself if he realizes that the little old lady standing 10 feet away from him could easily drop him with the .380 she has in her purse.
 
gen3guy said:
could easily drop him with the .380 she has in her purse.
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That must be some more .380, aka 9mm kurz or short....

All I know is from personal experience with the dismal failure of the .380....

When it comes to life or death, death in final.

Always



if'n ya don't want to be lookin over yur shoulder the rest of yur days....;):D:eek:


.
 
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Only time I open carried was while traveling through Virginia. I was wearing a tanktop, a short sleeved button down shirt as a cover garment and my snubby in an owb on my right hip. It was warm out so I took off my cover garment and when I stopped to gas up my truck I forgot to put it back on. While my truck was filling up I went in to use the restroom. After I got back to my truck I realized I was walking around with my snubby hanging out. The world didn't end, I wasn't hit over the head and had my gun stolen and nobody called the cops. I figured with my long hair, brown skin, tattoos, silver tomahawk earring on my left ear and arrowhead and bead necklace, nobody noticed my snubby.
 
I can practice drawing my revolver and shooting, but I can't practice being assaulted. So I will defer comments on 'personal experience' to those who actually have it.
 
I've OCed, CCed in Angola, Auburn, Fort Wayne & Indianapolis, Indiana. On several occaisions when I was doing OC, people have walked up to me & thanked me for exercising my 2nd Amendment rights. Usually, people don't notice.
 
The eternal battle lives on...

For all those who condemn Open Carry, tell me something. Is your issue with the *OCIYFers, or all OCers in general? Aside from personal conceits, what-ifs, and speculation, do you actually possess a logical reason grounded in solid evidence to justify ostracizing all OCers as a public menace?

(*Open Carry In Your Face)

I've said it before and I'll say it again: Individuals who open carry a firearm but peacefully go about their day-to-day business do not make me feel threated, nor do they strike me as "attention-seekers." I do not go out of my way to judge or condemn their actions, because frankly, it's none of my bloody business what other people do so long as they're not acting in a threatening manner. If their sidearm stays secured in a retention holster and they aren't reaching for it or acting twitchy, what is their crime? What grave offense have they committed? (Incidentally, you also might live happier, longer lives if you stopped making other peoples business your business. ;))

I'm a bit afraid of what some of the people who've commented here would think if I was forced to OC in public for whatever reason. If I had to take off a rain-soaked sweatshirt or jacket, would I suddenly become an "attention seekers" or "idiot"? Would you suddenly doubt my mental faculties? Would you look upon me with jaundiced eyes? My point is: Consider the totality of the circumstances before you pass judgement.

For me, reading the daily paper gets more and more tiresome because I see political cartoons and editorials increasingly marginalizing anybody who would dare to own a firearm for private use (there's a name for it: "gun-shaming"). It's bad enough when I see pundits demonizing good, honest, peaceful people, but I'll be damned if I have to witness a gaggle of pecksniffian naysayers (who also happen to be fellow gun owners) joining the bigot brigade in their shrill chorus.

I also don't supposed it's occured to OC bashers that, just as OCers aren't representative of firearm owners as a whole, the more "embarrassing" examples of OCers also are not representative of OCers as a whole. Then again, I suppose it's easier to just wax self-righteous and make condemnatory blanket statements without looking at the bigger picture. :rolleyes:

I can't remember who it was, but I seem to recall another poster saying that bringing up the subject of open carry never brings about any good results. Maybe they were right.

God, we really are our own worst enemy...
 
I'll only be OCing when I'm out in the woods checking trail cameras or bowhunting.. Too many sows and cubs running around here. Other than that I can't think of a reason to do so in public. It's unwanted attention as far as I'm concerned. And possibly a target on your back. But I'm new to all this so what do I know!
 
baldboy said:
I live in a state where a man came into a beauty shop to see his wife after he had been hunting. He forgot about the revolver on his hip and someone called the police his firearm was confiscated and he was charged with a terroristic act.
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I feel for the guy but "I forgot that I was wearing a gun" is not much of a defense.
 
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