Virginia Gun Owners Forum - VGOF

Hi all - So I am thinking of going camping in MD (Catoctin Mountain state park) and would like to bring my sig but I need to find out the laws. I'm hoping open-carry is ok. Does anyone have a good link for the MD gun laws? I'm googling it and must not be writing the right keywords to get decent results. I'll keep lookin' too.

Md. state police website

enjoy the area and be sure to go to Cunningham Falls

Doesn't matter what words you write, MD isn't very firearms friendly so I doubt you can OC or CC. handgunlaw.us usually has fairly up to date information as does opencarry.org. According to opencarry.org you have to have a license to open carry in MD. Wanna pick another state to camp in? VA has a lot of National Forest land (not park land) where you can carry as well as state forests and wildlife management areas (may require a CHL because of hunting regs). WV is about the same as VA.

Here's the link for the MD gun owners board just like this one. They have plenty of resources and am sure you could find the info you are after.

http://www.mdshooters.com/forum.php

Guess I'll bring the security guards instead...

I still say go camping in VA. OC is (generally) legal in WV and PA giving you a couple more alternatives. VA CHL is legal in both of those states also. Hard to tell how the "security guards" will react to a threat. It really is BS though. I'm going to PA (Pittsburgh area) for a reunion next weekend and will have to disarm (3 of 4 adults will have to) for a whole 2 miles when I cross MD.

What type of rifle are you considering?

Yeah I've never had these dogs camping so I'm not sure how they would do but the black german shepard is female and really well trained. I'm confident in her. I do love camping in front royal though. I might go there next time.

As for a rifle, I'm really looking at the Ruger Mini ranch rifle or the 10/22. The ranch rifle says it was designed for horseback etc... so it appeals in that respect. I'd like to someday take my horse on overnight camping trips and having a scabbard under my leg while riding just seems way too cool! (Besides the extra protection would be nice)

Deciding on which rifle comes down to what you want to do with the rifle. The Ruger Mini is a .223 rifle while the 10/22 is a .22lr rifle. BIG difference between the two. .223 is a centerfire cartridge (nearly the same as 5.56Nato) while the .22lr is a rimfire. If you are depending on your Sig for SD I'd suggest a .22lr first for a rifle. There are many different types you could buy, 10/22 is just one of them.

If you want to carry a gun I'd highly recommend you stay out of MD unless your purpose their is to hunt.

Moccasin wrote:Deciding on which rifle comes down to what you want to do with the rifle. The Ruger Mini is a .223 rifle while the 10/22 is a .22lr rifle. BIG difference between the two. .223 is a centerfire cartridge (nearly the same as 5.56Nato) while the .22lr is a rimfire. If you are depending on your Sig for SD I'd suggest a .22lr first for a rifle. There are many different types you could buy, 10/22 is just one of them.

I like the idea of having something that can share ammo with my other firearms (.22lr) which is why the 10/22 appeals to me. I really just want to have a rifle if I need to make longer accurate shots if tshtf. I do someday want to learn to hunt turkey also but I have no idea what you use for that (a shotgun?).

Do you have any suggestions/favorites for a .22lr rifle?

You can't beat a Ruger 10/22. Or since you like horses you could go with a lever gun like a Henry .22 for the cowgirl look. For turkey you can use rifle, pistol, or shotgun but most people including myself use a shotgun when calling them in.

Howdy, Sweetpea,

It's pretty country out there. My daughter is going to church camp up that way this week. Hope you have a good time. Just be careful not to wander into Campsite #3 by mistake. You'll upset the Marines whether you're packin' heat or not.

Regards,

George

The 10/22 is a good rifle, most all .22lr's are. You almost have to try to find one that isn't a good plinker but they are like anything else, the better they are the more they cost. It's hard to go wrong with any .22lr if it was made by a well known company. A .22lr isn't really a shtf type of rifle though. I would suggest getting a .22lr (any make) just to use for practice, a lot cheaper to shoot than any other rifle. I have 2 different .22lr's, one is a Marlin 60 (semi-automatic) that I've had for 35+ years, the other is a Savage MKII (bolt action) that I just recently bought. If you want something for shtf I'd say look at centerfire rifles but get one you can handle, some have pretty heavy recoil.

Generally a shotgun is used for turkey, spring gobbler you have no choice but to use a shotgun. In the fall season you can use a rifle or shotgun, I know several people who use .223's in the fall and I have shot a turkey with a .30-06.

gfost1 wrote:Hope you have a good time. Just be careful not to wander into Campsite #3 by mistake. You'll upset the Marines whether you're packin' heat or not.

Thanks!! Hmm, no #3/Marines, got it. Hope they wont mind if I oogle a little as I pass by.

Thanks for the advice on the rifles. I'll take all the wisdom I can get! I like that the 10/22 has autoloading too. I used to shoot my ex's bolt action .22 rifle and it was fun but having to cycle the bolt each time seems like it would waste time if you are really trying to hit something fast?

Sweetpea - if you really want a good SHTF rifle go with an AR in 5.56 or an AK/SKS. IMO 5.56 chambered AR is a wee bit better as you can shoot 5.56 or .223. With a .223 chambered rifle its not recommended to shoot 5.56. There are differences in the 2 cartridges. And the AK/SKS is a reliable weapon with plentiful ammo to be had. Either caliber is easy to shoot, accurate, and has plenty of punch. Plus they are a blast to shoot.

zephyp wrote:And the AK/SKS is a reliable weapon with plentiful ammo to be had. Either caliber is easy to shoot, accurate, and has plenty of punch.

Thanks DK! I'll look into those. I wonder if they come in pink. LOL just kidding!

Sweetpea wrote:Thanks DK! I'll look into those. I wonder if they come in pink. LOL just kidding!

Just for you, Sweetpea! It's not an AK/SKS, but I'm partial to the AR-15 platform...
And just in case you wanted to know - that's a REAL rifle!!

Read about it here:
http://blog.riflegear.com/archive/2007/ ... e-and.aspx

Oh, and if anyone has a suggestion for a sling for an AR- what they like and why - I'm interested in hearing...

OMG I LOVE HelloKitty! That is actually really cute!

Sweetpea wrote:OMG I LOVE HelloKitty! That is actually really cute!

You'd be surprised at how far they go to customize some of these things. First Hello Kitty I've seen though. Plenty of pink ones to be had.