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Open Carry

5K views 69 replies 21 participants last post by  sinac84 
#1 ·
Are any of you bold enough (or crazy enough) to simply let it all hang out?

Yes, I know there are strong opinions on both sides of the issue. Open is the only way I've carried as stuffing a gun in my pants just never sounded appealing to me. I also don't own a gun that's small enough to realistically hide, with a Glock 34 being my least bad choice for carry.
 
#2 ·
You've opened quite a can here....Sounds like you are against concealed carry for some weird reason...

I don't know that I would call open carrying an act of boldness or "craziness".... I'm not against open carrying, but I'm not for it either. I consider it a tactical disadvantage. Not to mention that open carry isn't legal here,yet.

While I don't "stuff a gun in my pants," I do carry iwb concealed in a quality holster. A Glock 19 is easily concealable.
 
#6 ·
You've opened quite a can here....Sounds like you are against concealed carry for some weird reason...

I don't know that I would call open carrying an act of boldness or "craziness".... I'm not against open carrying, but I'm not for it either. I consider it a tactical disadvantage. Not to mention that open carry isn't legal here,yet.

While I don't "stuff a gun in my pants," I do carry iwb concealed in a quality holster. A Glock 19 is easily concealable.
Brian wins.
 
#8 ·
....Sounds like you are against concealed carry for some weird reason…
Nothing could be further from the truth. I fully support carry, be it concealed or open. It's a personal choice and I fully understand the many reason why most people would not wish to openly carry.

I don't know that I would call open carrying an act of boldness or "craziness".... I'm not against open carrying, but I'm not for it either. I consider it a tactical disadvantage. Not to mention that open carry isn't legal here,yet.
It's a political statement. And it's fully legal in Wisconsin, having been legal long before concealed carry was approved.

While I don't "stuff a gun in my pants," I do carry iwb concealed in a quality holster. A Glock 19 is easily concealable.
Clearly I meant using an IWB holster. I didn't literally mean stuffing a gun in your waistband like gang members do. A Glock 19 would be quite nice for open carry too I'd note -- a 34 muzzle rams into the seat cushion when you sit, and the butt of the grip rams into to back of the seat. The more modest dimension of the G19 would come in handy for any type of carry -- concealed or open. And the G19 is still big enough that I can still get all three fingers on the front of the grip & have a serious capacity at 15+1.
 
#9 ·
I'm glad open carry is legal where you live but also wish gun owners would use some sound judgement and carry concealed. All we do is hurt our cause by wandering around a Starbucks with our AR's over our shoulders.
 
#21 ·
While I own an AR, I would avoid bringing it to the grocery store. My understanding is that was a protest by Texans upset that they could not lawfully open carry handguns, something we can do in Wisconsin. Well, since Texas allow one to carry long guns, they decided to make their point dramatically. It made the pro-gun side look like a bunch of lunatics.

I don't think a Glock on my belt has that effect, unless one already views gun owners as nuts, in which case it wasn't my Glock that indoctrinated them to be anti-gun.
 
#10 ·
I do not typically open carry, but I have plenty. I have open carried a 1911 a lot and I open carry my XDs fairly often. The way I dress, especially this time of year, very few people seem to even notice.
 
#12 ·
I am not a thug, but I will confess to wearing a hoodie almost all winter. I work outdoors so I dress in layers. Most often a hoodie is the last thing that goes on. When I open carry I do not in any way try to conceal it with the hoodie but just having it on seems to camouflage it quite a bit.
 
#13 ·
Same here. When it's cool enough to wear a jacket or something to conceal an OWB holster, my favorite concealment wear is an Under Armour hoodie. They don't put elastic in the bottom of their hoodies, so they are fairly loose and are damn near snag-free for drawing. When it's hot, I carry IWB, but it's just not as comfy as OWB.

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#16 ·
Kansas is the land of extremes. We range from negative to single digits in the winter, to 105 in the summer, so I prepare for both. Winter is OWB, like I said with my XDM compact. Summer gets the Sig 938 in an IWB holster and covered with just a dark t-shirt.

That being said, I wouldn't complain if it was 60 degrees and sunny year round.

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#18 ·
I always have a sidearm when I hunt here, openly.

Fishing, occasionally.

I wish open carry was legal here all the time, and I would open carry more than I probably would anticipate. Go for it. But always be aware of what's going on.
 
#23 ·
I personally don't open carry in populated areas just because I prefer the tactical advantage concealed carry provides like Brian pointed out already but still think it's a good idea to open carry to get people used to seeing guns in society so they don't make a bigger deal out of it than it should be. It needs to be good ambassadors for gun owners though, ones that dress and carry themselves well and not some trashy looking person that is going to make us look worse as a whole. The whole Starbucks incident is a perfect example of what we don't need. Dress nicely, carry a side arm IN A HOLSTER, and act respectfully and professionally. It's the only chance we have of changing the public's skewed opinion of gun owners that the media has painted.
 
#24 ·
I don't believe we should be getting the public "used to seeing guns in society". We should be professional and law abiding and if we choose to carry it's nobody's business but our own. Walking around Walmart or Target with our Glocks on our hips for all to see does nothing to educate the public but does make gun owners look bad. There's no reason to open carry in public except to draw attention to ourselves and because we can and we're not helping our cause when we do so.
 
#28 ·
Good article and yeah, Bloomie is a lying sack-o-crap. We knew that the anti gun guys will lie their asses off to attack us, but at the same time why give them ammo? Why walk down the street in Germantown with your shotgun over your shoulder? If my family was at Baskin Robins and a guy walked in with his tactical 870 in his hand my wife would take the kids and walk out. Is it legal for Joescmoe to walk into BR with his 870? Maybe, but should he? No.
 
#29 ·
I can agree with some of what Snaphook is saying.
Some guys I have seen that open carry, Have set off my red flag.
Its usually the way they are dressed or the way they are interacting with people.
On the rare occasions that I open carry , I am always polite and pleasant!
Plus, I try my best to use all my manners!
 
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#35 ·
I agree with Snap on long guns. It's legal and it should be but, people need to use discretion and common sense.

If I was in BR eating ice cream with my wife and son and a guy walked in with a shotgun I would definitely be on edge.

Not being able to get your CCL until you are 21 is stupid law. If you are old enough to fight for this country you are old enough to have pistol for self defense.
 
#39 ·
It's legal in AZ to open carry and I do it when I am coming back from a range or showing up to an AZCDL event. I would prefer to CC since open carry tells you which hand is dominate, how much ammo they could be carrying, which caliber/type of gun they are carrying, etc.
 
#41 ·
I think the problem here is debating idealism vs reality. Open carry has been legal here for a long time. I live in one of the only red counties left here. With our recent gun control our sheriff flat out said he would not enforce the new laws. Very pro 2A where I live.... And with all that, I can't tell you the last time I saw someone open carrying.

It isn't because it isn't legal, or its taboo, or ambassadorship... People don't do it. So regardless that we are pro 2A, and can do... Seeing a gun in public just isn't "normal". Those that want to carry do so concealed. So when you see one... It's just abnormal, and sends up an alert. Sure, you can see the difference between a businessman and a kid in fadish clothing, but neither are breaking the law... And it could be a thug on a hit, or it could be a business man that is about to be indicted on embessalment walking into his office building to shoot everyone. You just can't tell.

So regardless how nice it would be in an ideal world where everyone was carrying around guns and that was completely normal... That isn't the world we live in. Regardless of legality.

I have open carried... I found it caused more problems than it solved. I found no point in it.
 
#46 ·
Surprisingly we have OC in this Communist state! CC or OC you need a carry permit here. I have OC a few times but I prefer CC for the element of surprise, why show the bad guy you are armed, people who see guns freak out this isn't exactly "out west", there is very little hunting here. I support OC but personally for me I think CC makes more sense but I have to admit it is fun to OC.
 
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#48 ·
Yeah, I'm clearly the minority here. So respectful to all my friends and fellow gun enthusiasts I'm not a fan of open carry especially in cities or urban areas. I'm not advocating for laws banning it but at the same time simply because we can do it doesn't mean we should do it. It doesn't help out image and encourages our natural allies that are generally conservative or libertarian to view us as a safety concern rather than advocates of our constitution and freedom, which is in reality what we are.

Again, I'd never advocate for taking away your right to OC, but while shopping with my family the OC guy in the cereal isle with the Glock on is going to be watched closely by me.
 
#49 ·
Yeah, I'm clearly the minority here. So respectful to all my friends and fellow gun enthusiasts I'm not a fan of open carry especially in cities or urban areas. I'm not advocating for laws banning it but at the same time simply because we can do it doesn't mean we should do it. It doesn't help out image and encourages our natural allies that are generally conservative or libertarian to view us as a safety concern rather than advocates of our constitution and freedom, which is in reality what we are.

Again, I'd never advocate for taking away your right to OC, but while shopping with my family the OC guy in the cereal isle with the Glock on is going to be watched closely by me.
That's definitely your right, but if there are no indications of him being intoxicated or otherwise in a bad state of mind, and he didn't dress like a hood, I wouldn't pay him much attention at all. Just a citizen carrying a gun. There are thousands of cc'ers around us that we don't see, so a rational looking guy oc'ing doesn't seem to crazy to me. Just my thoughts.
 
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