Open Carry?

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Pvt. Pyle

New member
I believe the state I live in, IA, allows open carry or is talking about allowing open carry. I have heard things about it. Now I am not saying that I would want to, but dressing around a gun in my eyes kind of seems a bit tough as I would almost have to change my wardrobe for summer. But carrying a gun always adds responsibility, and dressing around a means of safety and protection is something that goes along with a CCW.

Anyway...

Basically what I am asking, if you could open carry, would you?
Or do you think it would just escalate any situation you may be in that much faster?
 
You can do a search for 'open carry' and get hours of reading.

In my experience, having OC'ed in VA and KY, it's generally accepted by the public but you *will* get attention from doing so, positive or otherwise. Being the introverted type that I am, I really don't like chatting with the general public about the practice so I CC most of the time.

I had an old-timer pat me on the back in WalMart for carrying. "We need more of you guys around" or somesuch.

A woman at a gas station got really nervous and asked if I was an LEO. Things went downhill from there, and I left. It was the only negative encounter I've had.

I am not familiar with Iowa's tolerance to OC, but suspect you may also have to deal with the infamous "man with a gun call" we're so fond of.

Ironically I'm a fair proponent of open carry and like to attend OC meet -n- greets at a designated restaurant whenever possible (got one Saturday actually).

http://forum.opencarry.org/forums/
 
I have open carried extensively throughout Virginia and in North Carolina for about five years now. Never a serious difficulty to report. Never a negative or hostile encounter with law enforcement. I did have the police summoned to a "man with a gun" call in Prince William County - the County officers merely explained the law to the complainant without ever contacting me at all (I was seated about 20 feet away).

Citizen reactions are largely non-existent. Most people do not notice it, believe it or not. Those that do often assume I'm in law enforcement. A few may sniff disdainfully, but no one has ever tried to argue with me or accused me of "compensating" or any other asininities. Those that actually speak to me are either (a) curious - didn't know it was legal, or (b) back-clappingly supportive.

As to escalating a situation, my experience has been just the opposite. True low-lifes tend to cross the street and get the hell away from me. Street criminals like low-hanging fruit - the distracted, the tired, the drunk, the physically weak. A confident, alert guy, aware of his surroundings and looking people in the eye - who also happens to have a pistol on his belt - is the antithesis of these. Of course, decent folk have nothing to fear from a lawful open carrier.

YMMV. By open carrying, I see myself as protecting a right by exercising it. I also try to act at all times as an ambassador, if you will, for responsible, legal self defense. Not everyone is interested in either of those roles.

Good luck and God bless

Bob James
 
Good for you, Bob. Florida will probably get OC this year and at first I wasn’t too interested. I’ve been carrying concealed since ’88 and never had a problem. The more I think about it, though, the more I agree with those who think OC is a good idea, if only to let the regular folks know that not everyone with a gun is going to shoot somebody.

In the movies and on TV, if a character has a gun, you just know he’s gonna shoot somebody. Otherwise, they’d have left the thing in the prop room. In the real world, that’s not the way it is and we (IMHO) need to get the word out.

An armed citizen is NOT a threat to normal people. BGs --- that's a different story!
 
In Tn we can, most don't.
Click to expand...
I believe you will find that in time, that will be the case, in Iowa. I now understand that this is really not a new change and that those who could legally carry, could always do so. Last week I saw my first open carry at a local Gun Show. I noticed it right off but I suspect most didn't or paid little attention. Even the LEO's at the door paid little or no attention when he walked out. ..... :confused:

Shall issue in Iowa, is a new experience for all and time is needed in order to get use to it. Right now, Open Carrry would be more of a shock to most folks in Iowa on top of Shall Issue. .... :eek:

Basically what I am asking, if you could open carry, would you?
Click to expand...

If and when I can, I won't and for a number of good reasons. ...... :)

Be Private, Protective and Safe !!!
 
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We can open carry here... but I have a permit to conceal so I dont open carry. ...

... open carrying here always gets too much unwanted attention....typically leading to a long talk with the local police...nothing happens...just time wasted talking about rights that everyone knows you already have.
 
OC is legal here across the Muddy from you ....... I OC'd for awhile in places that had local ordinances prohibiting CCW ..... most people did not notice, to be honest. The few that did asked if I was "some kind of police". I explained the deal: I concealed it where I could, and OC'd where I could not conceal. In less than a year, the Legislature put the kibosh on local ordinances (except Omaha's- that took another year and another law, and threats of a lawsuit) .... so now I don't OC. No need to.

It is nice to know that since OC is legal, inadverdantly printing or allowing your gun to be seen is not a crime here ...... just unwise.
 
Here in Tucson I do "98% concealed". I carry a big gun, OWB, crossdraw, very "high and tight" and covered by a light jacket. It might poke out once in a while but very few notice. The legality of open carry means this isn't a problem...and both comfort and fast access are exceptional.

I couldn't carry this way in Texas, Florida, etc.
 
OC is legal in MI. I really like having the option. Say it's a hot summer day and I just need to go to work. I OC on the way to my car, disarm before walking into work, OC on my way into the apartment (or into the grocery store if I need). Or out and about, wearing my usually untucked, unbuttoned dress shirt that I use to conceal (carry OWB), and it's hot out. Take shirt off, only in a t-shirt, I'm still legal.

Also in MI if you have a CPL you can OC in PFZ (weird I know). Do that frequently.

Never had a bad interaction, 99.99999% of people never notice.
 
Whew! I thought I'd somehow missed the open carry of the week therad.

Seriously: if you believe the Second Amendment means what it says, there's not much left to debate. We could, to be sure, debate whether open carry attracts criminals, though that would be an exceedingly small debate if it were conducted by people who actually carry openly.

Here's the real issue: are openly carried guns more or less likely to get dirty quicker than concealed?
 
My thoughts on open carry:

I don't need to be seen with a gun to be non-selected by a BG. Attitude and how you carry yourself goes a longer way toward not having to use a gun than OC. In my AO, in my experience, concealed carry is a better tactic than OC. For myself. YMMV.

Really, I don't see the need to have a gun hanging off my belt for the whole world to see anymore. There is a reason I don't and it has nothing to do with being hassled by the police or losing a right. I don't want ANYONE to know I'm armed. Not the neighborhood gossip, not the thugs, not the everyday folks going about their business.

If I am going outside of the house at night, I do open carry but that's about it. If I am going anywhere else I would rather have my gun concealed.

I would only OC if that were the only legal way to carry.

I am sure that some of the criminal element will just pick another target, but some is not all. The visible gun will not make you the bane of criminals and solve all your problems. And most people are not as tuned in as they think they are.

Weapon retention is more of an issue with open carry. If you have had at least academy-level retention classes or a comparable private class, all the better. How many OC'ers have? Now how many do you see OCing in a $5 holster from the bargain gun show table?

There are a multitude of reasons for and against open carry. If that's your thing go for it. I simply prefer not to.
 
I probably wouldn't do it very often, if at all. I would like to be able to carry a gun in a way that accidental exposure wouldn't get me arrested though.


The discussion about the tactical differences between open carry and concealed has been had over and over again. No one can show that there is any difference beyond opinion.
 
Texas is approaching 500,000 current CHL (concealed handgun licenses). I predict Texas will, within a few years, have open carry with the same licensing as now required for the CHL (just call it a Handgun Carry License).

Many of the CHL licensees will probably opt to continue to conceal most of the time, but it will ease the fear of their gun being accidentally seen. The public should be educated that these people have walked among them for years, armed, without issue, and that now some of them will be seen with exposed handguns. I believe that once they understand that half a million of their fellow Texans have had the guns for years, the shock will be less and it will be a non issue.
 
Off and on for 8 years, never a problem in NC. I don't buy into many of the pro-OC arguments, but I do have personal political reasons for doing it.
 
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