Open Carry or concealed.... Tell me...

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Charlie98 said:
That's one of the reasons I'm glad TX went Open Carry... it takes the burden of accidentally flashing your piece away. I'm a concealed guy, but I'm tall... so when I bend over to reach something, and my shirt hikes up, or as you mentioned... my motorcycle jacket at a stop or something... it isn't criminal. Granted, some people see a motorcyclist and automatically assume we are armed criminal dirtbags... :rofl:
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Yep. Fl law states that an "accidental brief exposure" (which I guess is like a wardrobe malfunction) of a legally concealed firearm isn't criminal, but there is no definition of "brief". Travelling on a motorcycle at 60 MPH for 20 minutes with your pistol unintentionally exposed means not only a 20 minute exposure, but one that took place over 20 miles. Another portion of the law specifically states that if you are going to or from hunting, fishing, or camping, open carry is OK. Based on that, some genius will try to make the argument that "you only need your fishing license in your wallet" or "just keep a sleeping bag in your trunk". I just do my best to do the right thing and not place myself in a position where I have to explain myself to anyone.
 
I carry concealed 99.5% of the time. Indiana does not require me to do so, so a flap of the wind showing my gun doesnt bother me. However, i don't like drawing attention to myself. Unless it coat weather, i typically pocket carry. The smaller, the more likely i am to carry it. I only quasi open carry on the trail, and that has to do with the fact my hiking vest rides a bit high and will slip over the butt of my pistol. Out in the wilds, I don't mind OC as much. One, I may need it faster. Two, I don't mind broadcasting my danger/worth it level to strangers on the trail. Dad, mom, and young girl walking way out in the woods. I don't mind being sized up and left alone.
 
.308 Norma said:
I chose C also.
When we're out and about, I see no reason for anyone else (other than my wife who also carries) to know that I'm wearing a gun.

I'm the same way about that too, except the gun I carry when I'm "out and about" on our own property is actually less "substantial" than my "in town" gun.
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My 7 year old boy knows I carry too, but not to make a big deal of it and tell people. He's very bright, and I've made it a point to school him about the importance of the element of surprise.
It's kinda funny.... we went hiking through the woods one time when he was maybe 5, checking out tracks and scat, talking about the animals that live around us, and he asked, "Daddy do you have your gun?" and so I lifted my shirt to show him, and he said "Oh good, now I don't have to worry"

I'm so proud that I have it ingrained in him that it's a tool we use, because we don't have "tooth and claw" like the critters do.
We have brains and hands boy!
but I digress....
 
In some states it's legal for someone under 21 to have and or OC a pistol even though they can not purchase one. I know of no state where one can get a CCW if they're under 21. That's just one example of a real reason to OC.

I CC 99% of the time, however I have OC a few times just to test all of the negative things folks on the interwebs love to talk about. I also regularly see folks OC in the Richmond/Tri-Cities areas.

In either case there weren't, and so far have not been any of the stigma that's associated with what's heard online or in the MSM. For all intents and purposes no one notices.


It certainly doesn't bother me seeing someone OC. If it did I think I'd have to move quite a ways.
 
C. Situational.

First of all, in South Carolina there is no legal open carry. (Though person's hunting may, indeed, carry openly.)

If I'm carrying per my normal every day self-defense habit, I do not wish to advertise I'm carrying. Therefore, I conceal carry.

If I'm hunting or whatnot, then I'll open carry.

There are any number of reasons why, but it boils down to the following for me:

Concealed carry is out-of-sight, out-of-mind and does not place me in a "different" category from the general population around me.

Open carry as described above places my sidearm in a more readily accessable position in an environment where a reasonable expectation of encountering a natural predator exists. It also places it outside potentially encumbering protective clothing which may be utilized due to weather, briars, etc.
 
In the state where I live, we have concealed carry, constitutional carry and open carry. The only way for me is concealed carry with my CCW permit. I can carry this way in most of my neighbor states.
I feel that open carry is just becoming a target. Or the possibility of getting your pistol snatched.
 
I have the option to do either in Texas, and I do both, depending on the situation.

I keep handguns in all three of my vehicles and due to the recent events here in Texas, I now always carry one into places of business, usually concealed in my pocket or waistband. I live outside of town and always, always wear a revolver when I'm outside. As such, if I go to the farm/feed store, the auto parts store, Walmart, grocery store, etc., I wear my revolver in. If I'm wearing a jacket it mostly conceals it, if not I'll pull my shirt tail over it which typically partially conceals it.

I am by no means an "attention whore mall commando", and that's a STUPID term and assumption for those who choose to OC. I do it for convenience and honestly I believe most people around me never even notice. I occasionally see others OC and without exception, no one pays any attention to them. I personally couldn't care less how offended a snowflake becomes if they happen to see a revolver on my belt, it's my right and I'm not ashamed to exercise it, so get over it. After the recent events such as El Paso, I have no doubt that to most the sight of a person carrying a handgun would be more of a relief than a source of worry.

As far as OC-ing making one a target, utter nonsense. One's lack of their surroundings is what makes them a target.

35W
 
35 Whelen said:
As far as OC-ing making one a target, utter nonsense. One's lack of their surroundings is what makes them a target.
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Ummmm, no.

Honestly, that comment just straight-up tells me that you have no idea what you're talking about.

I actually work around some pretty shady people every single night and I've been doing it for a while.

I pay very strict attention to the people that are around me because a couple of them have tried to kill me.

You spend a little bit of time in that environment and then get back with me about how not paying attention is what makes you a Target.
 
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I honestly believe that most open carriers especially those that think that open carry is a "deterrent" have absolutely no idea what they're dealing with.

Remember this guy? He gave his victim absolutely no warning. He punched him out and took his phone. There are a couple videos that go into a little bit more detail on this particular incident and the guy went to that Best Buy looking for somebody to rob. He's stayed in that area of the store right around that emergency exit according to the witness accounts for 20 minutes, just walking in circles and eating his chips. He picked out the person that he wanted, decided how he was going to approach them and took them out.

Do you really think that your security 9 in your Uncle Mike's holster would have caused the guy to change his mind? The majority of people that I see open carrying aren't paying attention to their surroundings and the reason that you're not paying attention to their surroundings is because they believe that that Mighty Boomstick is a deterrent and it's not. Not to guys like the one in the video

 
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I agree. An open carried gun isn’t some talisman to ward off evil. Criminals don’t show good judgment and crazy people don’t know they are crazy.

Honestly to me, a mindset of open carry keeping criminals at bay is just as illogical as the notion that banning semiautomatic rifles will stop lunatics from trying to commit mass murder.

The logic doesn’t follow IMO.
 
My answer to the question is I always carry concealed when I carry, even when I carry open-which is only for hunting. (To and from, and in town during the day if I go into town then; I try not to.) Because of a well publicized incident that occurred between hunters here in WI some years back, I CCW when I hunt, whether carrying a pistol openly to hunt with or not.
 
In public? Always concealed. It's been long enough that I find IWB generally more comfortable anyway. No need to give up the advantage of surprise.

Doing strenuous work around the land or mowing I'll go OWB because my neighbors don't care. So usually open then unless I happen to be wearing a jacket.

I'm in the woods OWB and open.
 
ATLDave said:
Sometimes I feel like wearing gym shorts and a t-shirt... but I have to go to court or to meet a client. What I want/need to do is inconsistent with the clothing preferences I would rely on if I weren't going to do that thing. So I don't wear exactly what I want... I wear what is appropriate for the task at hand.
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i agree fully, and if you notes in several posts that I dont intentionally oc either. If i am going somewhere where its illegal to OC then i will make sure its concealed. Other places even though legal, i conceal out of respect. Such as my church, they allow you to oc but prefer cc. My opinion of that is though while they wont call the cops, really they “ban” oc. Which is fine.

There are many establishments that i frequent that dont allow oc, which is fine with me. In which case i make alterations to which gun i carry and how i carry it.

Its much harder for my wife when she is wearing her spandex shorts and halter top, if i am with her and i am carrying she will usually put hers in her purse. If im not she either OC’s or she puts it in her purse. Both have its bad points. Especially with her purse! Lol! Been trying to get her to get one of those CC purses.

Like i said though, for the most part i try to be respectful to revealing my gun depending on where i am going. If you see me out hiking or camping. Mainly cause i have hand canon with me. If im at the movies shopping etc.... then most of the time i do make somewhat of an effort to change the gun to a smaller gun that can be easier to conceal. My sig p238 or maybe my taurus g2c.

I’m retired my wife isnt. I make it sound like we are always scantly clad, but we are not always that way. Thats only if we are doing something outside for the most part. We do attempt to conceal as much as possible. But we are not about to bend over backwards either.

95% of the time when we are in OC mode its cause we are on the motorcycle or in the backcountry hiking and camping.
 
Trunk Monkey said:
Ummmm, no.

Honestly, that comment just straight-up tells me that you have no idea what you're talking about.

I actually work around some pretty shady people every single night and I've been doing it for a while.

I pay very strict attention to the people that are around me because a couple of them have tried to kill me.

You spend a little bit of time in that environment and then get back with me about how not paying attention is what makes you a Target.
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WOW! For a security guard you are quite the expert on this subject as well as judging others.

I was thinking about this subject a bit ago and it occurred to me that most of the OC-ing I see is by police, sheriffs and their deputies dressed in plain clothes. In fact in the last three weeks I've seen exactly four OC-ing. Two deputies in an eating establishment dressed in jeans and button down shirts, both wearing 1911's in custom leather holsters on western style belts. Since both wore their badges on their belts, from my angle of view from the rear they could easily have passed for civilians, but I recognized one as a 30 or so year veteran of the county SD. The other two were at wedding receptions, roughly 300 miles apart, both were dressed much like the wedding attendees, jeans, starched shirt, boots and cowboy hats. Both were off duty, hired by the wedding parties, were carrying openly and these two were not wearing badges. Yet no tried to steal their handguns, no one was offended, no one was frightened.

So I can "just straight-up tell you" that believe it or not, how things work in your world are not necessarily how they work elsewhere.

35W
 
Open carry on my hip just like I did all evening at the Persimmon Festival this evening.

The Moms Demand Action booth looked pathetic as a melting snow cone tossed to the curb. I never saw a single person even look at them as they passed.
 
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Only time I open carry is when out hunting or in brush country. Lots of rattle snakes and bobcats in the area. That doesn't really count though. I have driven home from said woods trips with holstered gun still outside of clothing. Never thought anything of it until I stopped once for gas and clerk refused to sell me a candy bar or gas since I had a gun safely holstered but visible.

Only other time outside of the house I had gun visible was once after I bought some revolvers at a gun show out of town. I had to stop at a store and wasn't going to leave them in the trick with a busted door lock. So I stuck them in a just bought cowboy holster and took them with me. It freaked people in store out, even though the cylinders were empty, but 5 inch barrels in a cowboy belt I guess look bad in a big city.

I don't care if people open carry or not. But I choose not to. It's not worth the possible bad reactions from jumpy people.
 
I live in Florida and am a uniformed LEO. I carry my gun to work, at work and on my way home openly. The catch is that my gun rests in a security holster. That makes a HUGE difference to me. When I was a teenager, every year 1 out of 3 Florida cops were killed with their own gun. That stat has gone down for Law Enforcement across the board because of a combination of training and most importantly (in my opinion) the use of secure holsters. You can try a gun grab, but it is awkward if you have to unlock the holster and time consuming which gives the officer a chance to stop you.
During a training session, before my agency went to a secure holster, I had a trainer get my gun away from me. It was a bit of a shock, but afterwards, I understood just how vulnerable I (and every open gun carrier is).
One of my co-workers had someone get his gun out a a breakfront holster, back when revolvers were still the standard issue. He was saved by the other officers immediately jumping on the bad guy and putting a gun to his head.

Even if you get knocked down, the assailant will not have an easy time of getting your gun, which improves your chances of survival.
If you are working, camping, fishing or hunting in a rural area or in the woods, it is one thing, in a urban area, it is just plain dangerous.
How many open carriers use these type of holsters?
If you are not willing to use at least a secure level II holster, you should not carry openly.

Jim
 
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