Using a gun

[Pete Nice]

I believe if you have a legally purchased gun, in a case, in the trunk of your car, UNLOADED, you will be fine. In my experience, if you get pulled over, and the officer asks if you have weapons, tell them you have weapons, and where they are at in your vehicle. They really appreciate the heads up in that situation.

Sometimes it's good to tell the officers that you do have a gun in the trunk, even if they don't ask. Around here anyway. Probably alot different in the more populated states.

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In some states, even with a CCW, you are required to tell a cop you have a weapon as soon as he comes to the window and if you do not, you can be arrested for not telling him right away. You need to look into each state to know what the rules are.

[Pete Nice]

Joe, start off going to the gun club with your Father. You will love it. You will learn locality rules from there, and get more comfortable, and confident about guns overall.

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What he should do is get "permanent" residence at his dad's place b/c NJ is one of the hardest places to get a CCW. A resident can do it though. Make yourself a second "home", get a NJ drivers license and get a CCW. That would be huge. I can carry in 39 states, NJ is not one of them.

As far as transporting the weapon, lock the weapon in a box with NO ammo. Place the ammo in another box, and lock that, then put them both in the trunk. You should be OK in every state BUT NY with that.

[Pete Nice]

I believe you can take the gun to NJ as long as it's unloaded and locked in your trunk. But, if you only have a permit issued by PA and not NJ, the gun cannot come out of your trunk outside of PA.

You can at a range or gun club.

[Pete Nice]

Damn, handguns are expensive! My father picked up a Beretta 9mm with a 16 shot clip for $550 a few years ago, but that same gun is like $700 now. I like the feel of that one.

He's also got a Ruger 375 revolver which I've fired before. Its pretty bad ass, but its like holding a cannon.

What do you think a good pistol would be to look for? I don't want something tiny, but I don't want anything huge. Good priced ammo would be a good selling point too.

What's your take on places to buy? Gun shops, gun shows, online or what?

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I am going to HIGHLY recommend a Smith and Wesson .40. They are durable, reliable and under $400 used. And they have stopping power, more than a 9mm, .380, .38 , .22 etc. pretty much more stopping power than anything but a .45, .50., .44 or .357, but it is easier to put multiple shots on target b/c there is less recoil than those.

I have one, got it in 2006 for $300 used. Couldn't be happier.

I just got a Walther PPK for a backup piece, WAY more expensive, new it was almost $600.

[Pete Nice]

A few places you can not carry in PA, and almost all states:

Anyplace that sells alcohol for consumption on site.

Anyplace that clearly has ALL entrances marked that it is gun free or no carry.

Any police station.

Any courtroom or courthouse.

Schools, including Universities.

[eddieyourdj]

[Chip]

[Pete Nice]

That is AWESOME.

If I lived nest to a liberal asshat, I would totally get that sign made.

[DaveP]

Very clear and easy to read info on CCW in PA

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.handgunlaw.us/states/pennsylvania.pdf">http://www.handgunlaw.us/states/pennsylvania.pdf</a><!-- m -->

[bdinva]

All States have different laws and with the internet, its pretty easy nowadays to figure out where you can and can't carry, and what sort of permit you need (or don't) to carry open or concealed. And then, some localities have ordinances which alter state laws, so it gets even more confusing.

In NC, I had to get a CCW permit to carry concealed. It involved taking a class, passing a test, and demonstrating basic proficiency at 3, 5, and 12 yards at the firing line. With that done I had to apply in person at the Sheriff's office, get fingerprinted, consent to release (mental health) mental records, and wait 3 months for the background check to go through.

Regarding self-defense laws, again, that varies state by state. In NC, while in public, you have a "Duty to Retreat," meaning that if you are in a self-defense situation and have an opportunity to retreat, you are required to. All said that can be very subjective in a self-defense situation. At home, NC follows the "Castle Doctrine," as do many other states, which assumes your home is your castle and there is nowhere to retreat to, so the use of deadly force against an aggressor who intents to commit a felony against you or your property (again...subjective) is permitted.

On to gun choice...

If you've never shot before, it would be a great idea to buy a .22 semi-automatic pistol to learn the basics of sight alignment & picture, breath, and trigger control, etc. .40SW and .45ACP can get expensive to shoot, whereas you can buy 500 rounds of decent .22LR for $20. Eventually, for your carry weapon, you are going to want something decent in 9mm, .357, .40, or .45. There was a lethality study where .22LR actually performed quite well, considering most people don't consider that a serious defense round, but due to the penetration factor of the small projectile - it was actually as deadly or more deadly than the larger calibers.

Whatever gun you choose the most important weapon you have is your mindset. Train often. A gun you can shoot well is more important than what type of gun or round you are using. Be situationally aware at all times, sometimes just your posture is enough to deter a bad guy from messing with you.

Honestly, if you are in a situation where you have a gun already pointed at you, gun in your belt or not you've already lost the initiative, and escalating the situation is probably going to end badly for you. At that point you do what you can to appease the assailant and diffuse the situation, or get some distance in between you and the bad guy so you can fight back. Handguns are not easy to shoot accurately, despite what "The Walking Dead" would have you believe (weakhanded headshots back to back over 10 shots...SEALS couldn't do that), so every inch you can get between you and the attacker in that instance could make the difference.

[Beckster]

So, last Thursday someone stole my Starmate out of my car. I found out last night that a couple neighbors around the corner also had their cars broke into. I officially moved our dogs into the front room. There is no way you can enter into our house without 2 pitbulls greeting you. Hopefully they will protect the house, but their presense alone should ward off intruders. We also have been turning on all the outdoor lights at night. One of the cops I spoke with said there has been a rash of these incidents and things like leaving lights on and such may scare off the trouble-makers to some level.

Jim's aunt has an elderly neighbor who's house was also broken into last week... while he was home asleep... They took his wallet and his Purple Heart. His aunt already has a gun to protect her and her daughter and she's is working on becoming reaquainted with it. I am thinking we need to do the same. The crime from Flint has been moving more and more outside of the city into the little (formerly safe) areas like ours and it's scary.

[Donginator]

So, last Thursday someone stole my Starmate out of my car. I found out last night that a couple neighbors around the corner also had their cars broke into. I officially moved our dogs into the front room. There is no way you can enter into our house without 2 pitbulls greeting you. Hopefully they will protect the house, but their presense alone should ward off intruders. We also have been turning on all the outdoor lights at night. One of the cops I spoke with said there has been a rash of these incidents and things like leaving lights on and such may scare off the trouble-makers to some level.

Jim's aunt has an elderly neighbor who's house was also broken into last week... while he was home asleep... They took his wallet and his Purple Heart. His aunt already has a gun to protect her and her daughter and she's is working on becoming reaquainted with it. I am thinking we need to do the same. The crime from Flint has been moving more and more outside of the city into the little (formerly safe) areas like ours and it's scary.

whoever steals a purple heart deserves the death penalty :riot: