One of those big milestones in a new gun owners life
- Thread starter Mars5l
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JJFitch
Member
Congratulations! Carrying any restricted weapon legally is an awesome responsibility. Approached properly you will never have to "pull" you firearm!
"Don't go to stupid places where stupid people do stupid stuff"!
I'm a retired Deputy and carry frequently but working a a public school has it's own issues!
1. Get proper training! Be safe at all times!
2. Join a club and explore action pistol games. This helps to develop skills and confidence!
3. Understand your rights and responsibilities as a CCW carrier!
4. Understand that the attorney you want to hire is $800 an hour.
Sorry for the "buzz kill" but It's my responsibility as a retired LEO, competition shooter and certified firearms instructor and knowledge of use of deadly force instructor!
Smiles,
"Don't go to stupid places where stupid people do stupid stuff"!
I'm a retired Deputy and carry frequently but working a a public school has it's own issues!
1. Get proper training! Be safe at all times!
2. Join a club and explore action pistol games. This helps to develop skills and confidence!
3. Understand your rights and responsibilities as a CCW carrier!
4. Understand that the attorney you want to hire is $800 an hour.
Sorry for the "buzz kill" but It's my responsibility as a retired LEO, competition shooter and certified firearms instructor and knowledge of use of deadly force instructor!
Smiles,
AlexanderA
Member
The premise of the thread is that new gun owners go directly for concealed-carry permits. I don't believe that that is the case at all. There are lots of intermediate stages.
Trunk Monkey
member
Truth. There are even a couple people responding who don't carry
Trunk Monkey
member
Why?
Harriw
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I'm not sure there is a "normal" progression, as we all get here by different paths. Personally, I had my carry permit for well over 2 years before I ever did carry. I had long guns for many years before getting that permit as well.
Part of that is due to the peculiarities of the way my state and county handle permits. Carry permits and pistol ownership permits are one and the same here. With that one card you go from the gentleman at the gun counter telling you "sorry, i can't show you that pistol until you get your permit," to legal concealed carry.
AlexanderA
Member
There are reasons for getting a carry permit when you have no intention to ever carry. For example, in some states, carry permit holders can bypass the point-of-sale background check, and they may be exempt from waiting periods and one-gun-a-month purchase limits. On the other hand, this does put you into a police database, and the fact that you have a carry permit (and thus, presumably, might be carrying) might automatically be known to any cop conducting a routine traffic stop. A minority gun owner might legitimately be worried about this. So you have to balance the pros and cons. Getting a carry permit is not an automatic or easy decision.
I find it amazing the number of people who have to practice bolstering a handgun safely to avoid shooting themselves. I mean come one how hard is it to keep you fingers out of the trigger guard until on target. It does not take training it takes common sense. I have carried loaded pistols since age 11 open and concealed and no one ever said "ok dan you need to keep your finger out of the trigger or bad things would happen".
I find that often I can tell, but I'm quite certain that I'm not seeing everyone. But it definitely seems that *I* notice when others have no idea.
I think that for most of the general public, it's simply not something they ever think about, so it's not something they see.
I owned long guns and one or two hand guns for years before I decided I wanted to carry. 12 or 13 years ago when my girls were 1 1/2 & 3 we were at a Wal-Mart. We also had their little boy cousin that is a month younger than the older girl with us. I started thinking about how hard it was when you had a woman & 2 or 3 kids with you to get everyone to understand you needed to move & all going in the same direction. It occurred to me that since I had been grown I mostly used avoidance to keep out of unpleasant situations. It also occurred to me that by the time I got my family to move & get out of an area whatever was going to happen would already be over with. i know i couldn't bail on them so I decided I wanted something to defend them with.
The first gun I carried was a .40 caliber Ruger P94. It became immediately obvious the holster I had was crap. I wound up getting a Don Hume belt slide holster that worked pretty well. I have went through a few different carry guns & holsters. Now I carry a M&P 2.0 Compact .40. I like that it is small enough to conceal yet large enough to be easy to shoot well. I use an inexpensive We The People kydex holster to carry IWB most of the time. I also have a Galco GLS paddle holster if I want to do OWB. I am one that usually just leaves the gun in the holster when putting it on or taking it off. There are times when I go shoot that I might practice from the holster but as it is striker fired without an external safety I take pains to make sure no clothing or strings get hung up when reholstering.
The first gun I carried was a .40 caliber Ruger P94. It became immediately obvious the holster I had was crap. I wound up getting a Don Hume belt slide holster that worked pretty well. I have went through a few different carry guns & holsters. Now I carry a M&P 2.0 Compact .40. I like that it is small enough to conceal yet large enough to be easy to shoot well. I use an inexpensive We The People kydex holster to carry IWB most of the time. I also have a Galco GLS paddle holster if I want to do OWB. I am one that usually just leaves the gun in the holster when putting it on or taking it off. There are times when I go shoot that I might practice from the holster but as it is striker fired without an external safety I take pains to make sure no clothing or strings get hung up when reholstering.
Harriw
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It's not hard at all. I'd just rather be ridiculed for practicing holstering an empty gun than be ridiculed for giving myself "glock leg." I wanted to be absolutely certain there weren't any shirt tails, or anything else that could possibly wind up in the trigger guard on its way into the holster. If you've been carrying since you were 11, you clearly were raised into gun culture from a young age, and presumably had a mentor(s) to help you along the way. As a result you have a certain comfort level with firearms that I believe only comes from being raised around them from a young age. I can't speak for others, but personally I got into this on my own later in life, and have had to figure it all out largely on my own (with lots of help from a multitude of sources - including this forum). That sometimes means taking things a bit slower. As I said earlier, we all get here by different paths.
GBExpat
Member
Welcome to the Club, Mars5l!
Here is my first carry permit in a long series:
My initial carry piece was a 9x17 Walther PP or PPK/S (I do not remember which I acquired first) in a Roy's Leather Goods black leather pancake holster (which I still have & use sometimes).
As I recall, it took as much as a year for me to become completely acclimated to the weight on my belt so that it simply felt "normal" ... about the same amount of time as it took me to solidly work thru, and become truly comfortable with, the psychological & "questions" part of carrying.
I hope that you never have to "clear leather". In all of these years, while I have come close a few times, I never have, thank God.
JJFitch
Member
How about when you can legally use deadly force!
Trunk Monkey
member
How about it?
People make this a lot bigger deal than it needs to be.
Less than one percent of Americans will ever use their firearms in self defense.
Less than one percent of that number will actually fire a weapon in self defense.
Carrying a gun requires a little common sense but it's not some ""awesome responsibility".
Trunk Monkey
member
Perhaps.
I have carried a gun in some form or another for the last 32 years and I'm going to say it again, people make a lot bigger deal out of it than it needs to be.
It's not a lightsaber , it's a gun. It doesn't make you a Jedi Knight. It doesn't make you a sheepdog. It doesn't make you an initiate in the Brotherhood of The Traveling Tactical Pants It just makes you a guy who's carrying a gun.
A little common sense goes a long way.
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Trunk Monkey
member
I'm really not trying to be a smart-ass here but I really think that we overhype (if that's even a word) this concept of carrying a gun.
I think we'd be better off if we were more matter of fact about it. I understand that it's a gun. I understand that it's dangerous if it's mishandled or if it's handled properly. I understand that Glock leg is a thing but I don't feel this Mantle Of Awsome Responsiblity descend upon me when I put my gun on in the morning.
I'm not an agent of The State (anymore) the person whose life I am most likely to screw up do to irresponsible or improper gun handling is me.
Again, a little common sense will solve most of the issues that come up when you're carrying a gun.
I think we'd be better off if we were more matter of fact about it. I understand that it's a gun. I understand that it's dangerous if it's mishandled or if it's handled properly. I understand that Glock leg is a thing but I don't feel this Mantle Of Awsome Responsiblity descend upon me when I put my gun on in the morning.
I'm not an agent of The State (anymore) the person whose life I am most likely to screw up do to irresponsible or improper gun handling is me.
Again, a little common sense will solve most of the issues that come up when you're carrying a gun.
Not to hijack the thread... have you ever considered the Sig P938 SAS model? (Sig Anti Snag). It's "melted" or "dehorned" and is much nicer (IMHO) than the typical P938.
JJFitch
Member
Post: #41, #42 and #43
"Awesome"! Exchange it for whatever adjective that floats your boat! Or "down play" the responsibility all you want but the misuse of a firearm may be the worst day of your life.
What is at risk when a firearm is used without regard to use of deadly force laws or the political landscape of your demographics?
Loss of wages, jail doesn't pay well!
Loss of retirement savings, home and other possessions. The attorney you want to hire is the $800 and hour guy! You may need this guy to defend your legal right to defend yourself!
Loss of family and friends due to the stigma of criminal charges.
There are other responsibilities that must be understood as well.
You are responsible for the dominion and control of the firearm wherever you go or where your firearm goes.
Leave your firearm where someone gets it and used it in a crime makes for a really bad day!
I could go on but if this doesn't "create apprehension" you shouldn't be carrying!
It's your gun, your life! Go in peace.....!
"Awesome"! Exchange it for whatever adjective that floats your boat! Or "down play" the responsibility all you want but the misuse of a firearm may be the worst day of your life.
What is at risk when a firearm is used without regard to use of deadly force laws or the political landscape of your demographics?
Loss of wages, jail doesn't pay well!
Loss of retirement savings, home and other possessions. The attorney you want to hire is the $800 and hour guy! You may need this guy to defend your legal right to defend yourself!
Loss of family and friends due to the stigma of criminal charges.
There are other responsibilities that must be understood as well.
You are responsible for the dominion and control of the firearm wherever you go or where your firearm goes.
Leave your firearm where someone gets it and used it in a crime makes for a really bad day!
I could go on but if this doesn't "create apprehension" you shouldn't be carrying!
It's your gun, your life! Go in peace.....!
Trunk Monkey
member
Old Dog
Member
Assuming you mean "holstering" and not "bolstering" ... so what you're saying is that you don't practice holstering your handgun? Do you actually practice drawing your handgun? And you carry a loaded handgun on a regular basis, do you?
Just sayin' ... if you carry a handgun, and you don't practice your drawstroke, as well as re-holstering your handgun ... well, good luck should you ever need to actually use your handgun. And no, it's not simply "common sense." For me, I don't want to be on a range with someone handling loaded firearms if they haven't had a modicum of practice drawing and holstering said firearms. I work with people who carry handguns for a living, and trust me, everybody needs to practice this stuff.
As far as the OP ... I kinda get what he was saying, and I don't see the "premise" of his thread-starter as every new gun owner aims to quickly get a license to carry. It is a milestone, and it is a responsibility. And no, I don't think we can overthink the topic of carrying a firearm, it should begin with understanding it's a serious thing.
JJFitch
Member
Trunk Monkey
member
It's hard to find The Eagles on YouTube. Their lawyers are usually pretty quick about getting that stuff taken down.
I do understand the point that you're trying to make. I just tend to think we make a mountain out of a molehill when it comes to carrying guns.
If you don't do stupid things you're never going to need that $800 an hour lawyer. BTW I've heard Andrew Branca say that he costs considerably more than eight hundred bucks an hour
JJFitch
Member
From my original post 27!
"Don't go to stupid places where stupid people do stupid stuff"!
Smiles,
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