Do you hide 'em from the neighbors?

[mack]

I don't hide my guns where I live now, kind of pointless since I live in the country and have a range that is visible from the road, not unusual to hear the neighbors out shooting. When it is spring, summer, or fall; I typically hear guns and 4 wheelers throughout the day.

However, when I lived in a small local town for a year when going through my divorce I had two pistols stolen from my apartment. I got them back in 24 hours from the police. The apartment was a house duplex set up. Seems the neighbor kid and a buddy saw me leave with the guns in their cases and then come home. I then left to go to my parents house for a family dinner and when I got back I checked the apartment and saw the guns were gone. I called the cops who quickly figured out that the kid had crawled up into the attic and then down into my apartment through an attic door on my side. He fessed up when confronted and they recovered them in a nearby city where he had given them to another of his friends to sell. Needless to say I then bought a safe for the apartment and kept only one rifle and one pistol there from then on. It was kind of sad to see a thirteen year old in handcuffs and leg irons at the courthouse when it came to trial. But he had a prior record and if you do the crime you have to do the time. I hope he learned. He pled out and I didn't have to testify.

So I can fully understand why depending where you live you would choose to be discrete about having guns in your home.

 

[JoseM]

Neither...I don't hide my weapons but I don't go advertising them either (i.e. "This home protected by S&W").

 

[preWWWIIbuff]

At times I ride the bus
So I put no undue attention on my self I use a golf bag
If anyone asks I say I shot a 7 handycap
no one asks what kind of 7 7.5X55 swiss 7.62X39 7.62X51 7.62X06 yea yea
I know the last one is 30.06 but who the heck shots a 30.06 handicap
See just what can be put into a golf bag Dr. Strange Love

 

[MassMan]

The neighbors I consider friends, know I own guns and I have taken a couple shooting. Those I am not close with, I don't advertise. I believe the fewer that know the better.

 

[jakeslife]

I usually try to keep mine CC, but sometimes you just can't help a shirt flapping up or something. I don't advertise it, but I know if anyone calls me on it the law's on my side.

When I go to the range, I walk straight from the door to the car at my apartment with my bag, body armor on, and gun on my hip.

 

[f4t9r]

I do not hide them and I do not make it a point to show them off either.
If Im going to the range I go out the back door to the truck and pile them in.

 

[aaronrkelly]

aaronrkelly,

Firstly, some synthetic stocks are far more costly than wood, but I guess you were just being sarcastic. I like wood, too. Guns are tools, but they happen to be tools that criminals really want, but can't always just go down to the store and buy (or steal). Oh, and I wouldn't really get that upset if a criminal used my circular saw in a crime. Can't say the same about my guns.

Yes, I was being sarcastic. In fact I own quite a few synetic stocked guns.

I think I would be more upset if a criminal took my circular saw to the little old lady down the street instead of a gun......thats a far more grisley way to die.

In the end you can spin it however you like but a gun is just a tool - it can be used to defend, kill, hunt, for entertainment etc. This depends solely on the person holding the gun, not the gun itself. Same could be said for almost any other tool, knife, saw, weapon etc. I dont see how you could feel any less upset if someone stole your circular saw and used it in a killing spree instead of your guns......but thats your choice. Myself, I will always blame the person wielding the tool, not the tool and certainly not the person whom he stole it from.

 

[Psssniper]

Let me tell you a little story, a very good friend of mine has a gun collection that would put 99% of us here at THR to shame, thanks to a very nosy neighbor he was visited, (guns drawn and lots of yelling and screaming), by ATF, Sheriff's, SWAT, dogs and even a helicopter, it was quite a circus. I went by at the time of the "raid" and personally saw the carnage. I was on the phone with a local gun attorney trying to get some advice on the situation and he told me not to get my arse arrested by charging into the scene and making waves. They tore apart his entire house and ATF ran every gun he had, meanwhile the locals had guns in his face and then handcuffed him and parked him in his front yard so the neighbors could see how the badass LEO's handle problems like this. Cut to the chase, every thing he has is legal, LEO's apologize and say "hey that just our job, sorry". My friend let the LEO's just run over him like a tank. So the question you gotta ask yourself is, do I want to meet a lot of LEO's up close and peronal and get to see their guns barrel first? or do I keep my gun hobby a close secret? the choice is yours.

 

[Eleven Mike]

aaron,

According to your last paragraph, if I use discretion with my weapons I must have bought into anti-gun rhetoric. I don't think that implication is called for.

Some people seem to think that this issue is one of civil rights or political correctness. It's not. It's a matter of protecting my guns from people I can't trust. Maybe you've never lived in a bad neighborhood, but I have. I was never afraid, even after somebody across the street got stabbed, but I did fear for my guns, cheap though they are.

 

[Double Naught Spy]

You know, it is harder to keep one's neighbors in a state of fearful submission if they don't see your guns.

 

[Eleven Mike]

I think I would be more upset if a criminal took my circular saw to the little old lady down the street instead of a gun......thats a far more grisley way to die.

Actually, I was thinking of someone using it to cut their way into a house, or some such. Even so, why should I feel guilty when the perp could have bought, borrowed or stolen a saw from any friend, neighbor, hardware store, pawnshop, or even Wal-Mart? Or do pawn-shop clerks in your town risk criminal charges when they sell a saw to a murderer? Guns just aren't as easy to obtain, and a stolen gun is more likely to be used to harm an innocent person. How many criminals really want to use a circ saw anyway?

Isn't a criminal going to get a lot more money for selling a cheap gun than he would for most high-end powertools? I would guess there's not much of a black market for 18V Drills. The point is, if criminals know you have a gun collection they are a lot more likely to think about stealing that than ripping off your tool-box. Just my guess. My tools were stolen once, and they were found in the basement at the apartment building next door. I doubt that would have happened if there were guns in that bag.

In the end you can spin it however you like but a gun is a certain kind of tool. One especially suited for hurting and killing people. One especially for giving a criminal a whole lot more confidence than he'd get from a screw-driver. They don't need to be plugged in, and they can be used against multiple targets at a distance.

Is gun control the answer? No. A little personal responsibility, such as not showing off to the criminal element, is all that is required.

 

[Eleven Mike]

You know, it is harder to keep one's neighbors in a state of fearful submission if they don't see your guns.

Funny, I don't have a problem with that. It's like a Western when I pull into my driveway. The old woman sweeping her porch hurries inside. Everybody in the saloon clears out and gallops away. Guess they can just tell I'm a bad hombre.

 

[PlayboyPenguin]

Most of my neighbors know I am a shooter but they still lik eme. it helps that I am the only one that own a construction business. I get alot of the old "could you look at our countertops", or "can you tell us if we can take this wall down and how" and so on and so on...

 

[aaronrkelly]

aaron,

According to your last paragraph, if I use discretion with my weapons I must have bought into anti-gun rhetoric. I don't think that implication is called for.

Some people seem to think that this issue is one of civil rights or political correctness. It's not. It's a matter of protecting my guns from people I can't trust. Maybe you've never lived in a bad neighborhood, but I have. I was never afraid, even after somebody across the street got stabbed, but I did fear for my guns, cheap though they are.

I dont think youve bought into anti-gun rehtoric....you apparently just have different views than me. For instance you say "It's a matter of protecting my guns from people I can't trust". For me me its a matter of my guns protecting me from people I cant trust. They are tools used by me for me.....I look at weapons for personal protection. They are simply items. I dont need to protect them from harm - I use them to protect me from harm. We just have different ways of looking at things. You see them as valuable items you fear may be taken away from you - I see them as tools use to protect me from fear.

Actually, I was thinking of someone using it to cut their way into a house, or some such. Even so, why should I feel guilty when the perp could have bought, borrowed or stolen a saw from any friend, neighbor, hardware store, pawnshop, or even Wal-Mart? Or do pawn-shop clerks in your town risk criminal charges when they sell a saw to a murderer? Guns just aren't as easy to obtain, and a stolen gun is more likely to be used to harm an innocent person. How many criminals really want to use a circ saw anyway?

You think of your saw anyways you like but your statement about not feeling guilty if someone killed another person with your power saw because they could have stolen it from any friend, neighbor, hardware store, pawnshop or even Wal-Mart is kinda humerious really. Not sure where you live but where I live you can steal a gun from a friend, neighbor, hardware store, pawnshop or even Wal-Mart........so why would you feel less guilty. The way *I* perceive it your villenizing the gun. Guns arent hard to obtain where I live, they are common as circular saws. I know alot of people that have guns that borrow my circular saw. But again, you look at guns however you want to.

Isn't a criminal going to get a lot more money for selling a cheap gun than he would for most high-end powertools? I would guess there's not much of a black market for 18V Drills. The point is, if criminals know you have a gun collection they are a lot more likely to think about stealing that than ripping off your tool-box. Just my guess. My tools were stolen once, and they were found in the basement at the apartment building next door. I doubt that would have happened if there were guns in that bag.

Maybe its all about location but high end powertools are worth alot of cash around here - criminals can really clean up on a small take of power tools from a job site. Ask the next contract you see how much his high end powertools cost - you might learn they are generally far more expensive then a cheap gun. There is a market for 18v drills. Most criminals are opportunists - they will take anything they can easily get ahold of. If thats your toolbox laying in the back of your truck then thats what they will take - if you leave your 12 gauge back there then its gone to. We arent talking about leaving guns out in the back of your truck though, we are talking about the need to hide your stuff while transporting it to and from a secured location (hopefully everyone keeps their guns somewhat secure).

In the end you can spin it however you like but a gun is a certain kind of tool. One especially suited for hurting and killing people. One especially for giving a criminal a whole lot more confidence than he'd get from a screw-driver. They don't need to be plugged in, and they can be used against multiple targets at a distance.

Guns are handy for hurting and killing people and your correct they can be used against multiple targets at a distance - thats one of the reasons I have such a tool.

 

[Templar223]

Nothing to be ashamed of!

Some of you who say you hide your guns almost sound as though you're afraid of others knowing you're a gun owner! I'll save the comparison to closets and persons of a certain sexual persuasion.

It's all about choices and risks. I live in a nice "suburb". First thing I did when I moved in to my condo was hang a couple of nicely perforated silhouette targets on the garage walls. I clean my guns in the garage in the summers with the door open for ventilation.

For several years after I moved in, the neighbors all thought I was a cop of some sort and that was just fine by me. The neighbors are all good people... it's the non-resident types (repair & delivery & questionable "friends") that worry me. I've heard them say "Yeah, he's a cop." when chatting with their guests on their respective patios before.

I also got a safe for my good thundersticks and other valuables. My immediate neighbors know there's a $1000 reward for each one that calls the cops if they see anyone carting my safe out without me contacting them ahead of time, personally, no matter if they have uniforms and look like professional movers or not. It took some special equipment, eight of us and an engineering professor half a day to get it in there, and I suspect even a half-dozen mopes would take all day getting it out, best case. That is if the safe didn't squash one or more of them if it fell over. It's really heavy, if you know what I mean.

Think you're gonna cut it open? My nosy neighbors are going crap a cow and call the cops if you run a friggin circular saw with a masonry blade for any length of time indoors - especially at night! They sometimes bang on the walls of the bedroom upstairs when the girlfriend spends the night. You think you're gonna run a noisy saw for a couple of hours and not meet Johnny Law?

Another benefit of being a gun owner in the eyes of the neighbors is when they have a relative pass away that has some ammo, reloading stuff or guns (!!) to get rid of. They often will come to you and either give you the stuff or let you make an offer.

John

 

[Just_a_dude_with_a_gun]

I actually had to use two neighbors as references just to get my FID card and pistol permits. Here in NJ, the Town PD states on the permit app that the
references 'should' reside in the same town you do, and are applying for a permit in....

My town is so transient, I was left with 4 or 5 aquaintences to choose from,
and most were standard partyline NJ liberals...

 

[JohnBT]

I don't flash expensive guns in my downtown neighborhood just like I don't flash big bankrolls or expensive jewelry. Therefore, I'm as discreet as I can be when I haul my stuff from the house out to the curb (or the alley) to put it in the car. I don't want the bums breaking in looking for easy pickings even though there aren't any easy pickings.

It's not the neighbors I worry about, it's the people passing through.


"I dont need to protect them from harm - I use them to protect me from harm."

Remind me not to loan you anything I value.

John

 

[PlayboyPenguin]

Templar223

Some of you who say you hide your guns almost sound as though you're afraid of others knowing you're a gun owner! I'll save the comparison to closets and persons of a certain sexual persuasion.

No need to be coy. Just come out and say it. It is okay. I happen to agree with you. I hate when straight people feel they have to hide who and what they are...I think they would find that most of us on the other side would be alot more accepting of their lifestyle choice than they expect if they would just come out and be proud. They really need a rally cry though. Perhaps "We're here, we're NOT queer, our belts don't match our shoes!"

 

[MechAg94]

I don't think I care if my immediate neighbors know I have a few guns. Lots of people down here do. But I would rather not advertise just how many I have.

 

[phoglund]

"We're here, we're NOT queer, our belts don't match our shoes!"

LOL ...you mean belts and shoes are supposed to match?

 

[Waywardmonk]

Some good points on this thread and I have to say that as far as my guns go I treat them the same as I do any item with value, which is I don't advertise that I have it because I don't want to add to temptation of any would be burglars. As far as neighbors go, it's not so much the " average joe " I'm worried about but his weasel ex-con brother or drug using cousin who happen to be there at the right moment to see me unloading whatever. What's ironic for me is that I recently moved from an apartment complex where I would be as discreet as possible in loading my guns in the car so as not to advertise and then a month before I left I was buying a gun at one of the local shops and after seeing my address the clerk says " hey I know that address I've sold a bunch of guns to people living there ! ". Who knew? apparently I wasn't the only one keeping to himself.

 

[Double Naught Spy]

In all seriousness after my comment about about fearful submission, I do have one set of neighbors whose side windows have a direct view of my garage and it bothers them, I have come to believe, that they see me load a rifle into my car each more (usually in a case, but not always) and that I take it out of the car each evening. They know I am not in law enforcement. They have yet to chat with me while I am loading up or taking the rifles back inside and when we do make eye contact, they seem bothered, like I just joined the Hell's Angels or something like that...so they don't say anything so as to not make me mad. I like the relationship.

I have another neighor who saw me loading up one morning and asked about my AR15. He laughed at me and suggest I move up from 5.56 to at least .308 since the car, not I, is tasked with carrying it all day long. He is the neighbor I like.