My First OC

**frankie** · March 6th, 2011, 07:42 PM

OC'ed for the first time ever in my life at Giant in Bartonsville. Went there to get a few cooked lobsters. Placed the order then walked around the store for awhile. Caught some people looking so I just looked at them and nodded my head, they nodded back. Nothing was said, nobody freaked out.

Went in the cafe in Giant for a coffee and that was uneventful as well.

At checkout the girl asked "is the gun real"? I replied yes and stated that it was legal to open carry like I am. Her response was "very interesting"

The OC felt good and will be doing it from now on.

**Mr.FiredUp** · March 6th, 2011, 07:50 PM

Glad to see everything went well on your first OC experience. Beware though, you may find out you like it better than CC and then won't be able to quit

.

**Curmudgeon** · March 6th, 2011, 08:01 PM

Awesome. I hope all your carry experiences go this well.

About the nodding... I do that as well. I'll bet it's somewhat reassuring to the observer to make eye contact with you and then get the nod. If you were up to no good, eye contact would likely end differently, and there would be no nod.

Keep in mind that some of the Giants do not appreciate the carry of firearms, so you could have an issue with that in the future.

Rep inbound for putting it all out there. All off my experiences have resulted in a positive encounter, I'm glad yours was too.

**frankie** · March 6th, 2011, 08:20 PM

Originally Posted by Mr.FiredUp

Glad to see everything went well on your first OC experience. Beware though, you may find out you like it better than CC and then won't be able to quit

.

I will say it felt great!

Originally Posted by Curmudgeon

Awesome. I hope all your carry experiences go this well.

About the nodding... I do that as well. I'll bet it's somewhat reassuring to the observer to make eye contact with you and then get the nod. If you were up to no good, eye contact would likely end differently, and there would be no nod.

Keep in mind that some of the Giants do not appreciate the carry of firearms, so you could have an issue with that in the future.

Rep inbound for putting it all out there. All off my experiences have resulted in a positive encounter, I'm glad yours was too.

I agree 100% on the nodding as you can look at it as a form of a greeting.
Bartonsville Giant is the only one I go to but will keep it in mind.

Thanks.

**algoesfast** · March 6th, 2011, 08:53 PM

Good for you. All went like it should. Rep inbound

**Rollon18wheeler** · March 6th, 2011, 09:39 PM

Great job and positive encounters on your first OC!

My first open carry was yesterday, also in a Giant. New Hope, PA

I read the sign on the door before I entered, nothing about firearms so I proceeded inside, shopping cart in hand!

I Hope everything goes the way it did there, everywhere.

It is a way to help yourself by exercising our rights, and also a way teach others. If more people see us OC'ing - they will learn that its okay, and will 'accept' it as something they will see in everyday life- and not be shocked.

I haven't done it enough to know much, but I would imagine that OC'ing in rural areas would probably not draw as much attention as if you were to OC in a city/suburb. It seems people are not so uptight about things in rural/less populated areas. Just my thought on it - time will tell, and I hope to not have anything but positive encounters with citizens and police alike.

**Mr.FiredUp** · March 6th, 2011, 09:50 PM

Originally Posted by Rollon18wheeler

It is a way to help yourself by exercising our rights, and also a way teach others. If more people see us OC'ing - they will learn that its okay, and will 'accept' it as something they will see in everyday life- and not be shocked.

This part of your post I honed in on. Very intelligent. I put the one word in red because it is a word that we should all use more often. We shouldn't just say it is "my right" we should say "our" when talking to people about firearm ownership. Good job.

**DaveFromPA** · March 7th, 2011, 12:07 AM

Originally Posted by Rollon18wheeler

I haven't done it enough to know much, but I would imagine that OC'ing in rural areas would probably not draw as much attention as if you were to OC in a city/suburb. It seems people are not so uptight about things in rural/less populated areas. Just my thought on it - time will tell, and I hope to not have anything but positive encounters with citizens and police alike.

I find this to be true almost exactly. I prefer Open Carry but the Mrs. shuns away from me doing it while out with friends or going into a crowded area. Most of the people I spend time with carry as well but she likes it being a secret to those not in the know. I don't think that I have ever had an issue in Giant. Only time I ever had someone notice and mention the OC was at a bank and it was the teller. Someone last night while out though noticed my spare mag in holder and was staring at it intently but never said anything.

Sorry for the ramble, Cities are generally less gun-friendly than rural areas.

**B2Luv2Hunt** · March 7th, 2011, 04:16 AM

Originally Posted by DaveFromPA

I find this to be true almost exactly. I prefer Open Carry but the Mrs. shuns away from me doing it while out with friends or going into a crowded area. Most of the people I spend time with carry as well but she likes it being a secret to those not in the know. I don't think that I have ever had an issue in Giant. Only time I ever had someone notice and mention the OC was at a bank and it was the teller. Someone last night while out though noticed my spare mag in holder and was staring at it intently but never said anything.

Sorry for the ramble, Cities are generally less gun-friendly than rural areas.

Something like that happened to me at a Walmart check out line. My wife and I were both OC. The check-out girl was staring at my two spare mags for my 1911. I turned to load the cart and she saw the gun and said something along the lines of "OH, you have a gun." My wife ask if it bothered her. She laughed and said No. She said she was wondering why someone was carrying round extra ammo without a gun. Then she saw the gun. We had a big laugh.

**NuclearSociety** · March 7th, 2011, 11:45 AM

Originally Posted by B2Luv2Hunt

Something like that happened to me at a Walmart check out line. My wife and I were both OC. The check-out girl was staring at my two spare mags for my 1911. I turned to load the cart and she saw the gun and said something along the lines of "OH, you have a gun." My wife ask if it bothered her. She laughed and said No. She said she was wondering why someone was carrying round extra ammo without a gun. Then she saw the gun. We had a big laugh.

I find it funny that she didnt mention the mags with no gun in the first place haha