Rate your state

[G.I.Bill]

Texas.
very gun friendly
-shall issue
-No AWB
-NFA ok
-No magazine restrictions
-No limits on number of purchases
-No waiting period
-Excellent hunting

However, many people complain of "small" deer and something like 90% of Texas land is privately owned so you need a lease or a good friend with some land. As far as tacticool weapons you can own whatever you can afford. Most gun ranges are friendly to all shooters but some have restrictions on military type firearms, however there are complete ranges dedicated to tactical shooting with 500 yard ranges, bays, shoot houses, etc. People are friendly and the job market is good with several large cities to choose from and there is still open land available for purchase. The houses and cost of living is generally very affordable.

 

[DouglasW]

Colorado -- follow-up

Reading posts about other states reminded me:

Additional Colorado points:

• 'castle' doctrine
• thousands (millions?) of acres of public land -- lots of hunting options, in addition to phenomenal camping/hiking etc.
• only restrictions on CCW is public elementary, middle, and high schools, courthouses and other buildings with permanent metal detectors.
• Open carry allowed statewide...though you're sure to get hassled in the Denver-Boulder area

 

[MountainBear]

Adendum to Playboy's Oregon comments:
Ther is NO AWB in Oregon.
All the class three toys are legal if you follow the fed laws.
If you get on the other side of the state from Portland (read anywhere east of the I-5 corridor), the hunting is both varied and exceptional.
Lots of public land to hunt on, both BLM and USFS.

Only downside is we have a jackass Democrat as a govenor at the moment and even though the republicans carry something like all but five counties in the state, those five we don't carry are ultra liberal and highly populated (Portland area(at least 2 counties) Salem, and Eugene, Corvallis urban areas). So just how long we can count on having all these good things is in question.

 

[kungfuhippie]

My sister moved to Washington state from Monterey (hippie land) So glad at least I'm in a red county (San Bernardino)

Anyway when I went to visit her, my first time in Wa. I went to a store called Ranch and Home or something like that. I could just pick up any ammo I wanted and go buy it! Hunting supplies were plentiful! I didn't check to see if the Wal Marts there sell rifles (I'm left handed and they can get a L.H. rifle easier than the local guys who don't want to bother)

I may go there, if I avoid Seattle (Kind of reminded me of San Francisco ). But I may just move away from the left coast to get back to reality. Here talking on a lunch break discretly with a fellow hunter/co-worker about hunting results in threats of termination from the anti-gun nazis in HR.

I got a new job about a week later and my new boss has a .50 BMG and loves to hunt upland game.

My supervisor owns a shotgun for !!!GASP!!! home defense.

The Secretary's Boy Friend loves to target shoot

I like my new job it makes it tolerable here until 2008

 

[AF_INT1N0]

The Peoples Republik of California.. F--

"But as the locals say... At least the weather is nice..:banghead: :banghead:

 

[kludge]

INDIANA
1. pros-good people, really good lookin' girls and plenty of 'em, lots of stuff to do outdoors, decent job opportunities(especially around Indy).

cons- small town syndrome kicks in sometimes. Not many clubs to party at(except for Indy). Can't rifle hunt(you can in KY)

2. I like all of our laws, nothing bad that I can think of. Hardly any restrictions.

3. Tennessee- I was born there, some family there, similar culture there(a little too religious for my tastes)

Your entire list of wants (A crap load of deer and fowel) and more (Lifetime permits for CCW) are all met here in the Hoosier state!! GO COLTS!!

I'll just add that the deer in Indiana are corn fed. None of that gamey acorn fed Michigan deer.

 

[v8stang289]

north carolina

NC is the place to be

pros- shall issue, no weapons ban, no waiting period, no purchase limits, no registration, and best of all good hunting.

the hunting varys from place to place in the state but there are some large deer in N.C. i live in lenoir county, and we have average deer around here. They arent monsters by any means, but they are respectable. we have a couple 10 pt bucks on the wall that weighed around 200lbs and have over
17" inside spread.

 

[Hogfan1911]

ARKANSAS

Shall-issue. Recoginzed by/recognizes most other states. No AWB. Carry in restaurants that serve booze. Permit process is pretty quick & straightforward. No gun/month limit. Best areas are central or northwest parts of the state (NW is growing like mad...all that Wal-Mart $$$). Outstanding hunting & fishing opportunities, lots of public land, easy to get away from everyone else if you're willing to put in a little effort. TONS of gorgeous women, especially if you're in a college town. Great food in the South, despite what some yankee transplants might think. Cons? None I can think of as far as guns are concerned. Culturally, it depends on you & your personal preferences, & I can't speak to those.....

 

[FTF]

Georgia

Georgia good, with a couple exceptions

Pros:

*You can buy anything including Class 3 (may vary with CLEO by county)
*Don't have to wait to buy anything
*Carry permit exempts you from NICS check
*Generally friendly locals although ATL is becoming socialist.
*Lots of land but you have to get away from the main cities to get to it/buy it.
*Job market is good, but you have to be close to the stupid cities (good/bad)

Cons:

*Carry permit can take up to 6 months to issue even though the law says 2.
*CCW laws vague... no carry in publicly owned buildings, places that serve alcohol for consumption, NO CARRY ON PUBLIC TRANSIT OR ADJACENT PARKING LOTS (that is a freaking dangerous part of ATL), no "public gatherings" which is vague and basically up to officer discretion.

But... it's really gun friendly in my opinion. I think FL would be better though given it's proximity. I'm not complaining, I like it here, but I DO wish the CCW laws were worded more clearly and the stupid alcohol factor was limited to bars and mass transit was removed. Of course, closer to Atlanta you're going to run into more resistance, but a few of us are bucking the system and trying to draw attention (good attention) to the cause.

 

[real_name]

The South is winning so far...

 

[Axman]

I'm with wingnutz on this one, AZ is awesome. Plus we are allowed open carry! Hunting is a good mix of game like bighorn sheep and bison along with the variety of deer and other various game.

 

[CRAZY-G]

Montana

Montana meets all your requirements as far as I know

 

[.38 Special]

California

1. a shall issue state
Uh, no.

2. No state AWB
You didn't really want one anyway.

3. No waiting period
Suffering is good for the soul.

4. No purchase limits
Your wife would just yell at you if you bought more than one a month.

5. No registration
All the good guns are on the banned list anyway, so you might as well buy private party.

6. Good hunting opportunities
In all seriousness, pig hunting in California is pretty outstanding.

 

[carlrodd]

Delaware

+s:

-open carry legal
-no purchase limits
-no AWB
-no hi cap ban
-TAX FREE SHOPPING!

-s:

-may issue

 

[got cope?]

Georgia (more cons)

no carry during primitive weapons seasons

no carry on WMA's or state parks.

no carry in church.

and I agree the "public gathering" is very vague in description. Needs to be more defined.

and a good, open carry is allowed.

 

[EvisceratorSrB]

California:

Pros:
Howitzer cannons allowed
Fully-auto MG's are REQUIRED
CCW ... or else
No magazines with capacities UNDER 10 rounds
Grenade launchers anyone?

Cons:
I really can't think of anything...

 

[crazed_ss]

Let's see...

1. a shall issue state - NOPE
2. No state AWB - NOPE
3. No waiting period - NOPE
4. No purchase limits - NOPE
5. No registration - No registration for long guns. Handguns are registered when bought/transferred
6. Good hunting opportunities - ???

D-

 

[Keith Wheeler]

More on Arkansas

NFA friendly, though there's this bizarre state law that you have to inform the state police if you have a full-auto of over .30? I can't remember, it's arcane.

Hunting? More white-tail than you can shake a boom-stick at. Plenty of small game. Ah yeah, and we're the duck hunting center of the universe. Plenty of good fishing too, as well as lots of other wonderful outdoors type things to do -- hiking, camping, caving, searching the swamps for the Fouke monster. Arizona is great, but all that openess freaks me out. I like being able to get lost in the woods.

The big cities are big enough to have "big city" things to do without being overwhelming.

Downside? Well, there are a couple of towns that I don't go through without having "any firearm, other than fully-automatic, with barrel length of less than 12", designed or adapted to be fired with one hand..."

 

[thumbody]

kludge

I'll just add that the deer in Indiana are corn fed. None of that gamey acorn fed Michigan deer.

If you stay in the southern third of the state the deer are fed better than the cattle around here. Once you get north of West Branch then you get less farmland and more forest.
I have had venison from both areas and I'll agree the farmland deer do taste much better.

 

[The Drew]

I give PA an A-

mainly for the keeping of sales records by the state police for all handguns. And you must transfer a handgun through a dealer. Although according to the state supreme court... It isn't registration (which would be illegal)

 

[Protein anchor]

MA

I agree with Cb...MA has some strange issues.

I really do not like that I cannot order ammo from other states...can somebody tell me the logic behind this? As long as you have a LTC or other card, should you not be able to do so? Even if there is a rigorous application process...it would save some bucks. Do not get me started on the super-secret approved weapons list...what a crock.

 

[American By Blood]

MARYLAND

1. a shall issue state

May issue. If you're very lucky and special. Even then your permit will only be valid while you're engaged in certain activities (IE taking a large cash deposit to the bank, assuming that's why you were granted the permit).

There's a growing movement for shall-issue, but the state is very politically volatile. We have an incredibly important gubernatorial election in a few weeks. If the result is red the forces of light will have a few more years to gain momentum. Should the race go blue then we have a very dark four years (at least) ahead of us.

2. No state AWB

A little from column A, a little from column B. Most "assault weapons" are legal here. AKs, ARs, FALs, you name it. However, "assault pistols" such as Tec-9s and non-carbine Uzis are out.

We also have a rather weak high capacity magazine ban that prevents us from buying any mags over 20 rounds in-state or via mailorder/the internet. However, hicaps are legal to possess and there's nothing stopping us from heading to PA and VA to outfit our rifles. We cannot, however, trade mags with our friends or ask them to pick some up for us on their next VA/PA run. Any transfer of hicaps is illegal.

Unfortunately, "assault weapons" are treated differently from other rifles here. Pump actions, bolt guns, etc are all considered "unregulated" firearms under our laws and buying them from an FFL requires only the proper money and a clean NICS check. Cash and carry, assuming the ATF doesn't delay you. Paperless private transfers are good to go as well. Pistols and AWs, on the other hand, are "regulated" and require a special check by the State Police and a waiting period. You can only purchase one regulated firearm a month and private transfers are illegal. I'm pretty sure the State Police keep records of these checks, thus creating a backdoor registration of some guns. Lots of folks who owned ARs got "the knock" when the Beltway Sniper case was still under investigation.

Not sure about class IIIs. Out of my price range and I hate legal hoops.

All of this could change very soon, though. If Mayor O'Malley is elected governor in a few weeks a state AWB is almost guaranteed. We only narrowly defeated one recently.

3. No waiting period

See above.

4. No purchase limits

One per month on the "regulated" firearms. As many as your paycheck, gun safe, and significant other will allow for the "unregulated" stuff.

5. No registration

Nada on the "unregulated." Likely backdoor on pistols and EBRs.

6. Good hunting opportunities

Can't say. Not a hunter. Great countryside, though.

All in all, I'd recommend staying away unless you like leftists, crime, and humidity. Stick to the first world.

 

[Srigs]

For Minnesota,

1. a shall issue state? YES
2. No state AWB? None
3. No waiting period? None with a purchase permit (free and good for a year with no limit on number to purchase) or a carry permit good for five years
4. No purchase limits? None
5. No registration? None not even with the carry permit.
6. Good hunting opportunities? During Deer and Duck/Goose/ other upland bird we have 600 to 700k hunters out shooting things every weekend. Over 12% of the total population of the state!
7. Carry Open? YES
8. Brandishing Laws? NO
9. Can own sound reducers? NO
10. Carry in schools? Post secondary Yes. Primary maybe with permission of the principle or supper!
11. Can carry in bars? YES
12. Can carry in State Parks? YES
13. NFA OK? YES

All in all Minnesota rates about a A-!

 

[moewadle]

Iowa

I do not know what AWB means but will summarize Iowa gun laws: For handguns you have to go to the local Sheriff's office and acquire for $15 a "permit to acquire a handgun." The office simply checkes NCIS records to make sure you are not a felon, etc and issues the permit to acquire. Note this is NOT a permit to carry. Then for one year you can buy all the handguns you want with not limit and no waiting period. You do not otherwise have to register these handguns. You can legally sell these privately to a NON-FFL if you wish as long as that person has a current permit to acquire. At the end of a year you have to get another permit that lasts a year.

As far as permit to carry a concealed weapon you have to apply at local sheriff's office. I do not CCW. I was told by a gun dealer that every county is different in how permissive the sheriff's office is in issuing these. In some counties it is very hard to get one without real proof such as "I am a guard for armored car service." or "I have to transport large amounts of cash to the bank at night." In other counties it is really easy apparently.

For purchase of long guns it is simply a matter of the dealer filling out the federal form and you can sell long guns to private individuals with no restriction if you are a private individual.

Hunting in Iowa is White Tail Deer, mostly with slug shotguns but in a narrow strip of southern Iowa can use centerfire rifles. Also, wild turkey, pheasant, small game. Some coyote hunting apparently.

I like Iowa because there is open space, little pollution, friendly nice people, very educated populace. If I moved from Iowa I would move to Oregon.

 

[rangerruck]

texas fits all your criteria, plus lots of reciprocity, lots of gun shows, lots of gun ranges, and you can hunt literally anything here, including lots of hogs and exotics. Plus , come on , I mean , we are talkin about Texas! Desserts and Plateaus in the west, rolling hills and pine in the East, Mountains and snow up Norht , The gulf coast and great fishing to the south.