Checking for guns in unexpected places...

When I went to France I got checked at every museum and the Eiffel Tower and the train and you name it. In the Metro staion one morning there was a anouncment and then a whole herd of national Police showed up and herded us down the train sideing and then we heard a loud bang and then they left. Turns out the blew what ever it was up and then left.
I have been checked for guns going into a couple of national Parks also.

No, didn't run into that. But your comment about rent-a-cops was interesting. I was suprised a few years back when visiting the folks in Kansas. My dad's retired military and a Vietnam vet who lives close to Ft. Riley in Kansas. In any case, went shopping with my mom and dad at the Commisary and PX on base and saw the blocked off check points with the same rent-a-cops in black wearing glocks. These were the checkpoint-inspection guys. I guess they bussed on the military folk to the wars and hired out for gate security. That was indeed odd!

Most bases now use rent-a-cops for the entry gates now my base uses Dynacorp. I believe it had to do with the "War on Terror" and how many MPs and SPs were deployed, we even had a few DOD civilians do LE patrols. I hope when the rest of our boys come home I can see more personnel dressed like me tending to the base than the "blue suiters" as we call Dynacorp. As for the search wouldn't be very unexpected to me, however I have been traveling to various DOD installations for some time.

I live in North Central Montana and being retired Navy, I patronize Malmstrom Air Force Base and utilize the facilities. I was surprised to find that this base security is maintained by Air Force personnel and being an ICBM support base there is a lot of AF security in the area. The Navy had hired DOD and civilian security years ago, clear back in the 60's on some bases.

Yeah,at the emergency room of the Children's Hospital in Birmingham. Got berated (by a real cop)for having a 2'' knife in my pocket.

I thought this thread was going to be about a body cavity search...

At the Knob Creek Machine Gun shoot one year. Car full (jammed full) of guys, gals, and machine guns. Had the bright idea of going to the Gen. Patton Armor museum. Didn't really stop to think that it would be on the grounds of Fort Knox. Didn't really think about that until we were on the off-ramp with nowhere to go but right up to the main gate and guard house.

After a fairly interesting few moments with a fairly stern gentleman in fatigues, we were directed to another guard farther down who got our car turned around and headed in the opposite direction.

After we were pointed in the appropriate direction, the guard finally cracked a smile and offered that we could take the guns to the local Sheriff's office for safe keeping and then could come back and visit the museum. Apparantly, this happens quite often several times a day during the big MG shoot weekends.

This passes for entertainment for those boys, I think...

-Sam

Last summer, while at a family reunion for the weekend, we went to The Casemate Museum in Virginia Beach. (Or it might be Hampton, VA.) The museum is on Fort Monroe, an active Army base. The MPs waved us on through, and slowed us down long enough to place a parking pass on the dash. We were puzzled by this because the car in front of us was stopped and searched. But after thinking about it a second, our host for the weekend had us follow him to the base, and he talked with the gaurds. After all, he was a Retired Col. that served 30-35 years. We just chalked it up to that. But I was still surprised we weren't stopped, just out of policy.

I was also surprised by not being stopped/asked/searched everytime that I've driven through the Savanna River (nuclear) Site.

Anyway, I've never been surprised by being stopped/searched at a restricted site. (Actually never been searched in the manner described by the OP.) But I've been amazed how many sensitive places I've gone and not been stopped.

Wyman

I thought this was going to be a "When you go to [location], do you search for hidden guns?" thread.



Q

I patronize Malmstrom Air Force Base and utilize the facilities.

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When I lived in Browning I went down there every 6 weeks or so.

I called several times and was always told the same thing, just unload it and lock it up in a case while you are on base. If staying overnight, the weapon had to go to the armory. The lodge at Malmstrom is one of the best deals going if any one who is eligible to use it is passing through there.

bob

Regarding the rent-a-cops, I live next to Ft. Bragg/Pope AFB, collectively one of (the?) largest military installations in the world. Immediately following 9/11, public highways into and through the base were checkpointed by MPs, who were backed by squads of enlisted guys in fortified positions with their service rifles, shotguns, and - this is the best part - Mk.19 and M2 equipped Hummers guarding the road. It was like that for months until the permanent checkpoints were put into place.

They're now guarded by the pajama-clad civvies with Glocks. But those months after September were indeed pretty surreal.

The range I shoot at it is on base, and it can be interesting at times at the gate. Civilians can carry on the base, but the transportation rules are very different than the state rules, so you have to be careful.

When I went to France I got checked at every museum and the Effial Tower

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At the Rodin museum they confiscated my knife. The one in the rucksack, for cutting cheese, maybe 3 inches, serrated, non folder.

They then gave it back to me at the main desk, and I wandered out, past the thinker on the left, veered off to the gates of hell on the right, before leaving.

I honestly have no idea what purpose all of this served.

Understandable about knives in museums. Don't want nutters slicing up the artwork.
About a year after 9/11 we went to the museum at Ft. Lewis with our two boys, about 3 and 6 at the time. We were selected for the random car search by the contract security. As we stood on the sidewalk and watched 5 of them probe every nook and cranny of our Honda CRV my youngest asked me in a loud voice, "Are they cleaning our car?". Only one of them cracked a smile.

Statue of Liberty/Ellis Island. Pass through a metal detector after being channeled like cattle. Pepper spray wasn't even allowed, and I had to leave it in the car. No worries though, well worth the hassle.

Sam1911 wrote

At the Knob Creek Machine Gun shoot one year. Car full (jammed full) of guys, gals, and machine guns. Had the bright idea of going to the Gen. Patton Armor museum. Didn't really stop to think that it would be on the grounds of Fort Knox. Didn't really think about that until we were on the off-ramp with nowhere to go but right up to the main gate and guard house.

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Ft. Knox has been a favorite stop of mine for 15 years. When I stopped there in 2002 (shortly after the museum re-opened post 9/11) I was surprised that they didn't search my car, I had clothes and stuff thrown everywhere on the back seat and figured I was a likely subject for a search. I was wearing a t-shirt with a Jagdpanther on it and was questioned a bit. The guy knew his German tanks and the museum. He kept saying "they don't have any Jagdpanthers, but they've got a bunch of Stugs", with a big smile on his face. He let me pass and when I made the left turn up the hill and around the curve I looked back and realized they were inspecting an SUV, all the doors were open and everything that was inside now outside all over the ground. They were also searching all bags entering the museum as well. they've got a nice new parking lot now, pull in straight off the main road and park.

Post 9/11 I've been searched at Ft. Knox, Aberdeen Proving Grounds, the ST. Louis Arch, airshows, and if my memory serves me right at a drag race.

I work for a poo colored delivery company. One day while delivering Next Day Air packages to the airport the TSA thought that we looked like a threat in our company uniforms with our federal SIDA badges. They had us step out and compared our ID to our drivers licenses and searched our truck with mirrors.

I'd rather deal with rent-a-cops than the TSA and their massive waste of resources.

Sault St. Marie, the Soo Locks. They had a guard station there and were checking everyone who came in, with a NO GUNS ALLOWED sign.

They didn't check real closely, however.

Drag Races. Rocky Mountain Raceway out by SLC has public racing some Friday nights in the summer. All spectators are lined up, wanded, and then patted down by security before you get into the stands. They confiscated the 3" folder I had in a pocket, and I never saw it again. I was told that they didn't need to return confiscated weapons, because I should have had the good sense not to bring one. Thank God I wasn't carrying my 1911 that night!

Spent a lot of time on military bases. I'm not military. Once you get a pass, there are seldom questions about firearms unless you do something stupid. Visiting a museum on base property is another matter and does not require a formal pass. The formal pass requires a background check and so forth.

The only places I have run into serious gun or drug checks has been in Colombia SA and traveling into Canada. In Colombia, they even checked things like shaving foam cans for false bottoms and so forth. It really depended where you were going. A large knife would have been an issue at some of the public functions. They even search you at times.

Went to the Hoover Dam with a 3in flip open knife. Didn't realize that was "banned" (according to the sign above the metal detector) until we went to enter the entrance building. Seeing the sign/metal detector I pulled it out and asked the guy wanding people what they want to do with the knife. He took it, opened, measured it and said "it's under 3 inches, you're OK to enter with it". I was very surprised, to say the least. I didn't take the gun that day, it stayed in the hotel room safe.

Dang I guess I live a quiet life I have not been searched in years. I went to a MLB park this summer 09 and walked right in with my cane and my 4 inch S&W folder plus pepper spray in the other cargo pocket. I guess I was limping bad enough that they pittied me and let me alone.

Went to the Hoover Dam with a 3in flip open knife. Didn't realize that was "banned" ... He took it, opened, measured it and said "it's under 3 inches, you're OK to enter with it".

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That should be pretty obvious, actually. There's no way you're going to stab through the Hoover Dam with a knife that's only 3" long. You'll need AT LEAST 3.5", and probably 4" to puncture that bad boy!

-Sam

I got searched at the STL Arch about a year ago. Saw a sign banning speed safe knives. Apparently my Al-Mar Sere 2000 was acceptable. Go figure.

And my hands, being registered deadly weapons.