So why do you open carry?

[Pierce8468]

I am not looking to open the ever so tiring subject of open vs cc. I am just curios why some of you do open carry, knowing that you have a good chance of bieng hassled. Is it just because you can? Is it because your looking to get hassled, so that you can educate the ignorant on the laws? What is your reason for open carry?

If you have no ltcf then No need to respond. I don't intend to seem rude, but I am looking for the reasons of the people who have a choice to carry open or concealed.

[Pa. Patriot]

I don't know anyone "looking to get hassled"
There are lots of answers posted in the "Concealed and Open Carry"section.
Also on opencarry.org. You could be reading a while after doing a search there.

But, in a nutshell, some of the most popular reasons are:

Comfort
clothing
ease of access/tactical advantage
deterrent
education/normalizing guns
carry bigger gun
no LTCF/under 21

[MarcS]

I don't know anyone "looking to get hassled"
There are lots of answers posted in the "Concealed and Open Carry"section.
Also on opencarry.org. You could be reading a while after doing a search there.

But, in a nutshell, some of the most popular reasons are:

Comfort
clothing
ease of access/tactical advantage
deterrent
education/normalizing guns
carry bigger gun
no LTCF/under 21

I'm going to take issue with that one alone. First off, the tactical advantage of carrying openly is arguably deterrence, the countering tactical advantage to carrying concealed is inarguably surprise.

As for ease of access, if you are carrying openly, then the possibility of dealing with a gun grab is exponentially larger. For that reason, a minimum level 2 retention holster made of leather or a reinforced synthetic (most injection and heat molded plastics on their own are not sturdy enough) secured to your belt with a sturdy mounting system (no paddle is up to the task) should be absolutely mandatory. Weather that's any quicker is arguable.

All your other reasons are absolutely valid.

[Emptymag]

Hey, who let the "hater" in?




I believe the question was "So why do you open carry?"

[Pa. Patriot]

I'm going to take issue with that one alone. First off, the tactical advantage of carrying openly is arguably deterrence, the countering tactical advantage to carrying concealed is inarguably surprise.

It's just your opinion. I have one too. Mine is that OC is faster (which is a tactical advantage). I also think there is little to no advantage to "surprise" in regards to CC. A surprise you may not be able to get to before your dead. A crime deterred by OC is a crime that no "surprise" is needed for


The question was why do you open carry, not why you don't. I listed some of the reasons some people will OC. Are there disadvantages. Sure.
As for gun grab that's a real and valid concern. Again, not the question though.

I am not looking to open the ever so tiring subject of open vs cc. I am just curios why some of you do open carry

[MarcS]

As i stated, all the other reasons are valid, so the answer to the question "why open carry?" is: "All the other reasons"

[Emptymag]

Sorry, I was so busy jaggin' Marc, that I forgot to post why I OC!

For me, its a few things and I'm tired, so this probably won't make a lot of sense.

I mainly OC when I walk in the evening.(with my wife and the dog)
For me, my G19 or even my newer G27 do not conceal well at all in warm weather clothing, and I prefer to have the larger handgun with me instead of my smaller Colt pony or tiny P32.
Having the handgun on the outside also eliminates the need to use both hands to draw. (I'm holding a dog on a leash with my left hand) I don't need to move clothing out of the way, and it's right there if I should need it.

Another reason is because I am allowed to. I wanted to experience that freedom and by doing so, I learned how much more comfortable it was to not have a chunk of steel stuffed in my waistband.
Ahhhh... feels much better now.


Note: I OC daily (for about 6 months now) while walking the dog. I've only OCd in a retail environment about 5 times

[axmdr40]

As for ease of access, if you are carrying openly, then the possibility of dealing with a gun grab is exponentially larger. For that reason, a minimum level 2 retention holster made of leather or a reinforced synthetic (most injection and heat molded plastics on their own are not sturdy enough) secured to your belt with a sturdy mounting system (no paddle is up to the task) should be absolutely mandatory. Weather that's any quicker is arguable.

All your other reasons are absolutely valid.

Every tried to take a Serpa paddle off? its hard enough when trying to do it, let alone in a grab situation. Part of open carrying is tuning up your situational awareness.

As for the gun grab scenario being exponentially larger...show me some evidence...sure the obvious, DUH, they can see it. But if you make that kind of claim, then back it up with some proof. I'm sick of people saying this, because I haven't seen anything that supports it. If you can, then fine, I'll believe you and drive on with my open carry habits, if you can't, then stop claiming it as anti-open carry evidence.

....what the patriot said, its comfort, ease of access, education. I conceal in most situations, but I think open carry is one of the number one ways to educate people about firearms ownership. It isn't challenging authority or causing a scene, its exercising a right we have as Pennsylvanians. Who gives a flying rats ass if someone doesn't like it.

[reverserboy]

Every tried to take a Serpa paddle off? its hard enough when trying to do it, let alone in a grab situation.

Yes....I have one for my Glock 32. I would not OC with it in public but that's just me. I think if the bottom were grabed & pulled outward while lifting the holster it would come right off leaving an agressor with both gun & holster.

I'm not calling you helpless & I'm guessing you have learned some retention techniques,but I would feel better with a leather holster that attached to a sturdy belt. I weigh 230 & my feet would come off the ground before a leather belt holster came off my belt.

I don't OC in public but have no problem with those who do. I do however have a problem with cops who don't know the law or abuse their authority and harass OCers.

[lildobe]

Yes....I have one for my Glock 32. I would not OC with it in public but that's just me. I think if the bottom were grabed & pulled outward while lifting the holster it would come right off leaving an agressor with both gun & holster.

You realize that would require the aggressor to use both hands as well as have a hand inside your pants?

I use a Blackhawk SERPA with the belt loop, and I can imagine anyone being able to just "snatch" by gun. For someone who doesn't know the workings of the holster, I doubt that they could work the latching mechanism quickly, and even someone who DOES know the system, take two hands to remove the weapon when they are facing you.

Additionally, the re-enforced carbon-fiber construction of the holster is extraordinarily strong. I've been able to hang my entire 280 lbs of weight off of the guns butt and not have it come out of the holster. (And no, I didn't do that intentionally!