How do you CCW? (Poll)

[ronaldrwl]

I'm the original poster. I feel very comfortable carrying un-chambered with no safety. That's the way I started out and have practiced (a lot). If I were in Iraq or an officer, it would be a different story; but my calculation is with a chambered round an accident is more likely than needing the weapon. I think that may be true for most newbs.

[Irving]

Hmmm, I can certainly see the logic of negligent discharge vs. self defense.

Have you had any ND's? (You don't have to really answer).

Have you done anything that has really spooked you yet? I remember the first time I dropped a loaded gun.

[Daniel_187]

all 5 chambers loaded no safety(sorry no wheel gun option)

[hurley842002]

I voted Chambered safety on, Glocks are safe action pistols and therefore the safety is always on until you decide to pull the trigger.

[Ranger]

If I recall, it's illegal to have a chambered weapon in your car, CCW or not. Loaded is OK, but chambered is not, so I've always kept mine un-chambered (and have no safety). If I had a safety on my P3AT I might keep one chambered but the possible legality makes me hesitant to say I would for certain. One exception to the rule is that I would chamber one if I was in a seedy area or thought my likelihood for reaching for my weapon would be increased.

Like it or lump it, the CCW is a privilege and I don't want to risk losing that for any reason. Besides, I think that CCW carries with it a sense that the carrier is a safer gun owner, I wouldn't want to make headlines about how the moron CCW carrier accidentally discharges his chambered weapon .

[Irving]

That's not true. It is only illegal to keep a long gun (shot gun or rifle) chambered while in a vehicle. This is a DOW regulation to prevent poaching and you can supposedly get an exemption if you are in a wheel chair. You can have a pistol in the car with you in any condition, in any location, in Colorado. Just keep in mind that not all state laws are the same.

I've been pulled over at a DUI check point with a loaded (and chambered) gun in my car (wearing it in an IWB holster) WITHOUT a CCW and it was no issue.

In before someone challenges you on your stance of CCW being a privilege.

[ronaldrwl]

Hmmm, I can certainly see the logic of negligent discharge vs. self defense.

Have you had any ND's? (You don't have to really answer).

Have you done anything that has really spooked you yet? I remember the first time I dropped a loaded gun.

No unintended discharges but I've witnessed one by another newb. I will admit to having it fall to the floor in a changing room. That about stopped my heart. And having moments of thinking to myself about myself “Dang, did you just do that?” So, I know accidents are possible. When I started the thread I didn't think about other options like wheel guns.

[TFOGGER]

If I recall, it's illegal to have a chambered weapon in your car, CCW or not. Loaded is OK, but chambered is not, so I've always kept mine un-chambered (and have no safety). If I had a safety on my P3AT I might keep one chambered but the possible legality makes me hesitant to say I would for certain. One exception to the rule is that I would chamber one if I was in a seedy area or thought my likelihood for reaching for my weapon would be increased.

Like it or lump it, the CCW is a privilege and I don't want to risk losing that for any reason. Besides, I think that CCW carries with it a sense that the carrier is a safer gun owner, I wouldn't want to make headlines about how the moron CCW carrier accidentally discharges his chambered weapon .

You can carry in your car openly or concealed, loaded and chambered, without a permit, in any part of the state where not prohibited by state or federal law:


18-12-105.6. Limitation on local ordinances regarding firearms in private vehicles.










(1) The general assembly hereby finds that:








(a) A person carrying a weapon in a private automobile or other private means of conveyance for hunting or for lawful protection of such person's or another's person or property, as permitted in sections 18-12-105 (2) (b) and 18-12-105.5 (3) (c), may tend to travel within a county, city and county, or municipal jurisdiction or in or through different county, city and county, and municipal jurisdictions, en route to the person's destination;








(b) Inconsistent laws exist in local jurisdictions with regard to the circumstances under which weapons may be carried in automobiles and other private means of conveyance;








(c) This inconsistency creates a confusing patchwork of laws that unfairly subjects a person who lawfully travels with a weapon to criminal penalties because he or she travels within a jurisdiction or into or through another jurisdiction;








(d) This inconsistency places citizens in the position of not knowing when they may be violating local laws while traveling within a jurisdiction or in, through, or between different jurisdictions, and therefore being unable to avoid committing a crime.








(2) (a) Based on the findings specified in subsection (1) of this section, the general assembly concludes that the carrying of weapons in private automobiles or other private means of conveyance for hunting or for lawful protection of a person's or another's person or property while traveling into, through, or within, a municipal, county, or city and county jurisdiction, regardless of the number of times the person stops in a jurisdiction, is a matter of statewide concern and is not an offense.








(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no municipality, county, or city and county shall have the authority to enact or enforce any ordinance or resolution that would restrict a person's ability to travel with a weapon in a private automobile or other private means of conveyance for hunting or for lawful protection of a person's or another's person or property while traveling into, through, or within, a municipal, county, or city and county jurisdiction, regardless of the number of times the person stops in a jurisdiction.






None of which means anything if the cop that pulls you over does not know the law(and many of them do not). With a permit, you are covered pretty much anywhere not specifically restricted by law. CCW is a RIGHT, not a privilege, as affirmed by CRS 18-12-206 . CRS 18-12-204 (3) (a) specifically gives you the right to carry without a permit as long as "The handgun is in the possession of a person who is in a private automobile or in some other private means of conveyance and who carries the handgun for a legal use, including self-defense".

[Ranger]

I stand corrected! I knew there was SOME law about a chambered weapon, I didn't realize it was only rifles.

[CO4x4]

I don't have a safety, I think I would be afraid I'd end up with a premature gun-jaculation!