Virginia Gun Owners Forum - VGOF

A lot of my friends make fun of me for it but when I started carrying (got my CCW in the mail 3 weeks after my 21st b day, never OCd before then) I changed my whole appearance. I went from a buzzed head, gauged ears, peircings, metal band t shirts and skateboard shoes to button down shirts or less "flashy" t shirts, nice(r) jeans and carhart work pants, grew my hair a little and got a nice clean cut, took out all peircings and gauges. I pretty much went from some punk kid to grown ass man in a month. I'm a big fella with tattoos and a nice beard I'm not willing to let go of so I decided to make those sacrifices so I wouldn't be completely mauled by antis, gun shy folk, and LEO. best decision I ever made.

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SHMIV wrote:

jmicheals1984 wrote:
Its all how you carry yourself. Don't look nervous, and don't walk like you own the world either. I've walked right by Cops before and they mostly look at me and then go about their business. I've had to educate a few people on OCing in the state of Virginia though.

It's more than just how you carry yourself; it's the overall presentation. When people speak to you, be friendly. Remember your please's, thank you's, sir's, and ma'am's. I try to smile at people when I'm talking to the them. Remember, the anti-gunners have the impression that we are all barbaric, mean, uncouth rednecks. If we act contrary to that impression, you never know what sort of positive impression you might make. When I first started OC'ing, I went into Big Lots; the girl at the register mentioned that she got nervous when she first saw my gun, but realized that she'd seen me in there before, and remembered me as being a friendly guy, so she felt safe.

I've had close to a dozen people who, were ignorant of the law tell me they thought I was breaking the law by not having a license to carry while OCing. I politely tell them that in the state of Virginia, the law does not prohibit the open carrying of a Handgun by a person who can lawfully possess the weapon. I always be very polite, never looking impatient in line and never getting into any sort of confrontation.

allingeneral wrote:Just politely tell them that you OC because it's the only way that you can legally carry a handgun for self defense until you turn 21 and can apply for a CHP.

that's my response, I'm 18 and OC just don't make a big deal out of it and you should be good to go 99% of people won't notice
Joe


Look Sharp, Act Sharp, Be Sharp.

Also I don't know if you've graduated highschool or not(I assume since you said July this is irrelevant but just in case) but the school might freak out if they learn a student open carries
Joe

Ps go to forum.opencarry.org plenty of good info


Look Sharp, Act Sharp, Be Sharp.

Don't make a big deal out of it. If someone bugs you, just state that it's legal and drop it. If they continue, tell them to call the police and they'll straighten them out. I used to open carry on the way home from 3-Gun and IDPA matches, since I didn't feel like stripping off the holster afterwards. I actually open carried my GP-100 last week, no one said a word to me.