Concealed Carry While ON The Range

[armoredman]

I shoot at an excellent city maintained, un-monitored range. I carry. So does just about every single person I see shoot there. It's pretty rare to not see someone armed, mostly openly on the firing line. I can't easily replace much of my stuff, so I prefer not to see it go bye-bye, as has happened to others in the past. The nice thing is the LEO range next door, (literally right next door, separated by a berm), and it's used by about 6 different agencies at all hours of the day.

 

[Tactical Jackalope]

Lots of people feel the need to be armed anytime they are out in public.

Amen. And I always am too. Even when I am home, my weapon is holstered and on me.

The range really isn't any different.

It is a little far fetched to call someone carrying at a range "paranoid". That's usually what the anti-gunners say about us all in a general sense.


It's simple:

If you're allowed to carry concealed at the range, do it or don't. It's your choice.

If you're not allowed to carry concealed at the range, do it or don't. It's your choice.

If you have a chance of getting trouble for the latter, that's an option you have to weigh yourself. The RO's at one of my local ranges all keep and eye on waistbands anyways. It's allowed, but they want to know.

This is more a matter of preference to the individual. No right or wrong answer. If you feel there is, it isn't our place to say.

There's a local mall here that has signs on the entrances "No Weapons Allowed" that no one I know, myself included, follows.

 

[Jim243]

There's a local mall here that has signs on the entrances "No Weapons Allowed" that no one I know, myself included, follows.

Interesting, I do not know what the laws of Florida are but here in Illinois if you are caught doing this, your ccw is revoked and given a nice big fine. So, you want to lose your carry privileges and possible your right to purchase or keep any firearms since you are now a criminal. (FOID required here in Illinois as well).

Well that just seems like a lose, lose proposition. You could just go into a stores that does not post those little no firearms signs. I do not shop at any store that posts those signs.

In my opinion, you should not be able to get a driver's lic as well since it would seem that anyone that does not want to follow the law is more of a hazard on the road than in a store. Just my opinion.

Stay safe and follow ALL posted signs included stop signs. Respect OTHER peoples rights not just the ones you think apply to you.
Jim

 

[Stevie-Ray]

Interesting, I do not know what the laws of Florida are but here in Illinois if you are caught doing this, your ccw is revoked and given a nice big fine. So, you want to lose your carry privileges and possible your right to purchase or keep any firearms since you are now a criminal. (FOID required here in Illinois as well).

Here in Michigan, if discovered, you will be asked to leave. If you refuse, you are trespassing and can be charged. I'm pretty sure none would refuse, and would simply, and loudly, tell them they will get no more of their business. Enough of that can get those signs taken down, depending on locale.

 

[armoredman]

Sign posted - I don't shop there. Dang near anything I need is also available online, as well.

 

[Tactical Jackalope]

Interesting, I do not know what the laws of Florida are but here in Illinois if you are caught doing this, your ccw is revoked and given a nice big fine.

=

Here in Michigan, if discovered, you will be asked to leave. If you refuse, you are trespassing and can be charged.

Same here in Florida.

 

[thump_rrr]

Being In Canada I am unable to CCW and have no problem with it.
I am also a member at a small range in the USA where you unlock the gate and drive in and shoot.
There is no big fence surrounding the place just the gate to keep unauthorized cars from entering.
One day last year a person showed up by bike and walked around the gate and approached me asking questions about the club.
I was shooting rifles that day and wasn't carrying a pistol.
As the questions went on they became more and more strange such as what the combination is for the gate.
He finally left once another club member showed up but since then I carry a loaded pistol in my IPSC rig or battle belt if I am there alone.
If another club member shows up and will be shooting in the same area as me I will revert to what I consider normal IPSC rules. Cleared, hammer down, holstered.

 

[Rifleman1952]

My range allows concealed carry, but one is not permitted to pull that pistol/revolver and practice with it. All guns to be used at the range must arrive unloaded. If I want to practice with my main CCW weapon, I bring it unloaded in a case and conceal carry one of my other pistols.

Only an idiot would try to rob someone at a gun range. But let's face it; the world is full of idiots.

 

[thump_rrr]

Only an idiot would try to rob someone at a gun range. But let's face it; the world is full of idiots

That's because you don't think like a criminal.
Ranges are typically far from populated areas.
Nobody will think twice if they hear a gunshot or gun shots.
You are not surprised or alarmed at seeing someone else carrying a gun.

I'm not one to be paranoid or an alarmist but that strange encounter had me thinking about my safety more than living over 40 years in the big city has.
I had a precision rifle with nice glass, an M1A National Match, and 2 Noveske's with me. That's about $10,000 in rifles and optics.

 

[Rifleman1952]

I live in a small midwestern town. Even in an area not known for crime, criminals could be lurking around, waiting for that opportunity to make an easy score.

Several years ago, I had an outboard motor, worth about $2000 stolen off of my fishing boat. It happened in an area not known for crime. That incident made me much more security conscious. I no longer take things for granted when it comes to security. I even lock my car when it's in the garage.

At my range, I always carry concealed, and will keep my firearms within a few feet. I use a spotting scope, and multiple paper targets on a 2 1/2 ft wide by 5 ft tall wooden framed target holder. After reading about the OPs experience, from now on, I'll carry my long gun with me when it's time to walk down to the target.

I grew up in a time when people didn't feel the need to lock their doors at night. Sadly, that's just not the case anymore.

 

[hbhobby]

Just a question after reading the above posts. Are you guys really going to shoot someone ove a few $$$ worth of guns? I know here in AZ we have some of the most gun friendly laws around and you still cannot use lethal force to protect "stuff". Lethal force is only justified if you fear for your life. Someone stealing an unloaded gun is not what any jury would consider life threatening especially in this day and age of the current anti gun sentiment. IMO

 

[TailGator]

hbhobby, you are presuming that a person who would steal guns at a range would come to the range unarmed, without ammunition, and with the intent of leaving unharmed those from whom he stole valuable items. Stealing guns from someone at the range is a pretty brazen act, and I for one would not make those presumptions; as a matter of fact, I would expect the possibility for violence in such a situation would be pretty high.

To answer your question more directly, would I shoot someone over property? No, I wouldn't, but neither would I let them take my guns without being challenged, and I would be very alert to the possibility that such a situation could rapidly develop into an event that threatened death or serious injury.

I am not a lawyer, but it seems to me that a person who steals a gun instantly becomes an armed person, and thus comes very close to that threshold of being an immediate threat.

 

[Rifleman1952]

hbhobby Just a question after reading the above posts. Are you guys really going to shoot someone ove a few $$$ worth of guns? I know here in AZ we have some of the most gun friendly laws around and you still cannot use lethal force to protect "stuff". Lethal force is only justified if you fear for your life. Someone stealing an unloaded gun is not what any jury would consider life threatening especially in this day and age of the current anti gun sentiment. IMO

Just to be sure, I went back and re-read all of the posts in this thread and no where did I see anyone state they would "shoot someone ove a few $$$ worth of guns" That sentiment is not even inferred by any post I read. The gist of this thread is that we should take precautions in making it more difficult for our firearms to be stolen, and that just because you are at a range does not mean you can't become the victim of a robbery or worse. I belong to a range that permits concealed carry. The same state laws apply regarding a justifiable use of a firearm, whether I'm at the range or in a mall parking lot. And no one in this thread has inferred otherwise.

 

[DMK]

The range I go to is about 10 miles out of town and probably covers a good square mile....Because it is remote it seems to me that it would make an excellent target and as a result I make a point of never being caught with an empty gun

If the OP feels he absolutely must carry a loaded concealed weapon, everywhere, every minute of the day, he might be just a bit paranoid and must recognize that if he is caught he will be banned from the range.

The public range I go to (the only one available within 100 miles) is outdoors and 20 miles out in the middle of nowhere. Many times I am the only one there. Oh, and there is no cell phone service. There wouldn't be any cavalry coming and even if I could call someone, it would take them 30 minutes to get there.

People in authority want to cover their own butts. Nobody gives a damn about your safety you except you.

So yes, I carry a loaded concealed sidearm at all times on the range. I never remove it from the holster and I never show it to anyone.

Sometimes I'll have another one that I practice with drawing from IWB or pocket holster, but there will then be a BUG that stays loaded and holstered.

 

[Onward Allusion]

Kind of pathetic, isn't it? My club has the same rules. My interpretation? Concealed is concealed. It's a friggin gun club.

As an aside, our club is in the middle of nowhere. On weekdays, it is pretty much empty except for 1 or 2 old timers on a 700 acre piece of land. Who ya gonna call?

 

[DMK]

Kind of pathetic, isn't it?

It is. I get that there are idiots out there that do stupid things, but that's no reason to disarm everyone. Sometimes our fellow gun owners are nearly as bad as the anti-gun crowd.

 

[JohnKSa]

Just a question after reading the above posts. Are you guys really going to shoot someone ove a few $$$ worth of guns?

There are a couple of things to consider when assessing a situation where a criminal comes to a range to steal guns.

First of all, one presumes that such a criminal expects that persons at a range are armed and would therefore be either prepared to meet any resistance with deadly force or might plan to forestall any resistance by using deadly force prior to taking the firearms.

Second, once a criminal steals a gun, they are armed even if they weren't armed in the beginning. An armed criminal in the process of committing a crime should be considered to be very dangerous--potentially a deadly threat depending on the circumstances.

Shooting someone to prevent simple theft (snatch & grab in daylight) would certainly be illegal, but it wouldn't be wise to assume that the criminal was purely benign in all other respects besides his desire to steal a deadly weapon. It makes sense to be prepared for trouble in a situation where you are dealing with high-value items which are a common target for robbers. Especially when you are your own backup.

 

[Glenn E. Meyer]

The Miami Shootout killers took guns from people out plinking, IIRC.

 

[Sharkbite]

The Miami Shootout killers took guns from people out plinking, IIRC.

And shot him and left him for dead. He crawled out of the Florida swamp to a hwy and was picked up by a passing motorist.

Im convinced that most people dont have ANY clue how ruthless some criminals are. Just no idea of the cruelty inside of some folks

 

[Rattlehead]

I frequently pocket carry for that exact reason. Never been to a range where such requirements existed, but nobody needs to know about the one in the pocket.

I also keep a mag loaded in the back pocket for whatever pistol I'm shooting... nothing like an empty gun and an empty mag if you need it. Worst comes to worst, I can throw a full mag in the pistol and be ready to go - it's not as fast as a loaded gun, but it's a step up from the one in the pocket.