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New to opencarry.org

56reaper

New member
Joined
Jul 8, 2012
Messages
1
Location
Colorado
Hello fellow coloradans/opencarry enthusiast!
Found this website on my quest to find as much info on opencarry laws (As the State of Colorado makes it very difficult to find concrete and clear laws on opencarry!)
in the state of colorado, and i am very impressed on the knowledge and friendlyness of the people on this forum.

I live in Weldcounty (specifically Greeley), and have seen very few people openlycarry their firearms around local walmarts, restaruants, etc. (As i work the evening shift and stay up late in the morning.)
and am very interested in openlycarrying my firearms (My main is a Glock 22 .40 s&w) with a On-The-Waist holster.
and my main concern is the "Loaded/Unloaded" rule, i have read/heard people say that having a Round in the Chamber qualifies as "Loaded"
as to having a loaded magazine/clip in the pistol WITHOUT a round chamber is considered "Unloaded", just wanted to see if i could get some clarification.

Also i recently aquired a Ruger LCR with a Leather Holster (But without a thumb break, from what i have read, specific holsters are not specified for opencarry use.), and wanted to know how the "Loaded/Unloaded" rule applies to
Revolvers style handguns (Specifically a hammerless revolver, as the Ruger LCR is Hammerless and it is only double action) i.e. can i have the revolver's cylinder loaded fully with 6 rounds when opencarrying, even though it doesnt have a hammer(I guess this would be the equilevant for a pistols ability to pull the slide back and chamber a round as to a revolver with hammer being able to pull back the hammer to fire (If it is single/double action)).

Thanks for the future inquires, hope to get some advice, so that my experience can be more smooth in this great state of Colorado!
 

JamesB

Regular Member
Joined
Jan 13, 2010
Messages
703
Location
Lakewood, Colorado, USA
Sounds like you're specifically looking for an answer to what is legal regarding loaded/chambered, while open carrying. If I'm wrong, please correct me.

Having a loaded firearm in general only comes into question legally in two circumstances.
First, rifles cannot be loaded while in a vehicle.
Second, is carrying a loaded gun on or near a bus (paraphrased).

more information available here: http://www.rmgo.org/gun-law-faqs/
 

wmodavis

Regular Member
Joined
Apr 25, 2012
Messages
109
Location
CO
Welcome to OCDO. An excellent place to tun in.

I OC with one in the chamber. MY G23 has multiple safeties and in addition my holster has a trigger guard completely covered. I consider that an excellent safety. And it is also ready to be used with a minimum of delaying fuss should the need arise.

Nothing in CO prohibits OC or CC with loaded handgun.
 

M-Taliesin

Regular Member
Joined
Apr 22, 2011
Messages
1,504
Location
Aurora, Colorado
Howdy Amigo!
Welcome to the herd! Great that you found your way to the OCDO ranch.
Now on to the questions you ask.

>Colorado makes it very difficult to find concrete and clear laws on opencarry

The basic reason you find it hard to find concrete laws about open carry is because open carry is not illegal. They don't generally make laws that tell you what IS legal, because they're far too busy making up laws to make stuff folks enjoy doing illegal. Simply stated, our laws tell youi what you cannot do, and do not lend itself to telling you what you can do. Kinda like the Ten Commandments say "Thou Shalt Not"... not what Thou Shalt Groove on! For example, the law does not say a citizen may wear those nasty plastic shoes... Crocks. Sholuld they be outlawed? You'd think so, but there they are... all over the beautiful state of Colorado, Tawdrying up the place. The law does not say anything about a driver of an automobile giving himself an enema while driving a car, but I supposed they could go for it if they could manage the logisitics. Point being, the law doesn't exist to say what you can do, but what they'll take issue with. Some such laws having been created by certain individuals who could surely use a nice, relaxing enema or several!
So you will find all manner of laws telling you what you cannot do with firearms, but little to nothing about what you can do.

>my main concern is the "Loaded/Unloaded" rule

What rule is that? I ain't never seen such a particular rule. I've seen a Colorado Revised Statute or two regarding transporting a rifle in a car, prohibiting doing so with a round in the chamber. But this forum is about open carry of handguns, so the topic of long guns is actually frowned upon by the moderators. But before we get all herniated about that aside, let's discuss a real basic rule of firearms handling.
ALL FIREARMS SHOULD BE TREATED AS LOADED.
When an accidental shooting happens, the claim is always "I didn't know it was loaded!" So far as any firearm is concerned, it should always be regarded as loaded. This ain't even a debatable issue. "I knew it was loaded, but it just went off..." has a sort of ring of stupid to it. Every firearm should be considered loaded by anybody hankering to handle it. Period, end of sentence! Basic stuff that.

When carrying a firearm, it is technically considered loaded if there is a round in the spout. The presence of a magazine in the well may also be considered loaded, but as mentioned already; a rifle is not to have a round in the chamber if you are transporting it in a car, truck, moped, etc. That doesn't mean it is unloaded. Just that it ain't ready to fire. Same with a pistol. You got rounds in the weapon, it can certainly be construed as loaded; whether or not it has a live round in the tube, ammo is present in the gun. There isn't specific language on what specifically constitutes loaded or unloaded (per se), but the specific prohibition against having a round loaded into the chamber that you'll see. A pistol may be carried with a round in the chamber and a full magazine to back it up!

>WITHOUT a round chamber is considered "Unloaded", just wanted to see if i could get some clarification

When the weapon is cleared, it is unloaded. We don't treat the weapon that way (i.e., feel free to point the muzzle at something we aren't willing to destroy, play pretend Russian roulette, etc) We continue to regard and handle the weapon as if loaded and ready to fire. So in essence, from a firearms safety point of view, the weapon ain't never 'unloaded'. If I seem to be stressing on this point too hard, it is intentional.
Moving along, like a herd of gerbils....

>having a loaded magazine/clip in the pistol

There is no such animal as a pistol clip. Automatic pistols have a magazine for the cartridges. They do not have clips. Neither do the majority of rifles. Now if you have an M-1 Garand, call that device for feeding in rounds a clip, because that is what they used. A clip is a specific device, or illegal hit on another player in football. It ain't what goes into a pistol. Sorry, but just hadda get football in there somewhat. I'm Jones-ing for a change in pace from watching the Rocky's lose game after game.

>can i have the revolver's cylinder loaded fully with 6 rounds when opencarrying, even though it doesnt have a hammer

Yes. But your choice of holster should be such that the trigger is covered so it cannot be tripped without drawing the pistol out of it.

If you'd like to meet up with another OC'er, and maybe tag along on an outing, I'd be happy to help deflower you! LOL! I work up in Brighton, and Greeley ain't that much out of my way. Drop me a P.M. if you would like somebody to help you get over newbie jitters. The way things have been going for me lately, you'd likely get through that first LEO encounter while we're at it too!

Blessings,
M-Taliesin
 
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O2HeN2

Regular Member
Joined
Jan 23, 2012
Messages
229
Location
Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA
There is no such animal as a pistol clip. Automatic pistols have a magazine for the cartridges. They do not have clips.
Au contraire!

761px-Mauser_C96_M1916_Red_4.JPG


O2
 

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Beau

Regular Member
Joined
Dec 6, 2007
Messages
672
Location
East of Aurora, Colorado, USA
O2, you beat me to it. Oh well.

To the OP. Welcome to OCDO. Lot's of good info here and every now and then some heated debates. All around a good place.
 

eBratt

Regular Member
Joined
Jun 4, 2006
Messages
271
Location
Fort Collins Area, CO
Welcome to OCDO! I don't tend to post too often but frequently read to stay current on anything happening in Colorado.

I OC frequently in the Greeley area and have had some positive encounters and mostly nothing at all. No second glances, no shocked looks, no scream or anything. Either a non-issue or a pleasant conversation. I do OC at the Greeley Walmart but 9 times out of 10 it is on a Saturday, not an evening.

Hope to run into you sometime!
 

LoneEchoWolf

Regular Member
Joined
Apr 6, 2012
Messages
285
Location
Alamosa,Colorado
since the guys and girls already covered the unloaded/loaded question ill leave that one alone. Welcome to OCDO Hope to see you at a M&G sometime!
 

O2HeN2

Regular Member
Joined
Jan 23, 2012
Messages
229
Location
Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA
Back on topic, welcome to the board, 56reaper!

I too, am unfamiliar with any loaded/unloaded rule. One of my open carry guns is a 1911 cocked and locked (hammer back, safety on) with a round in the chamber. Perfectly legal.

In my opinion (note: opinion), the only difference between a concealed carry holster and an open carry holster is that an open carry holster MUST have an active retention device, such as a thumb break, lever, button or whatever that needs to be actuated to release the gun. A concealed carry holster can be friction retention only. This open carry holster requirement (again, my opinion) is because your gun is visible and can be grabbed -- you want some kind of retention device to give you that fraction of a second required to retain the gun.

Now, there's no law that says that an open carry holster must have a retention device, but it just makes good sense to me.

O2
 
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JamesB

Regular Member
Joined
Jan 13, 2010
Messages
703
Location
Lakewood, Colorado, USA
Now that I have another few moments free to contribute, the two statutes I was refering to in my previous post are:

33-6-125. Possession of a loaded firearm in a motor vehicle.

It is unlawful to possess any firearm, other than a pistol or revolver, in or on any motor vehicle unless the chamber of

such firearm is unloaded. For the purposes of this section, a "muzzle-loader" shall be considered unloaded if it is not primed, and, for such purpose, "primed" means having a percussion cap on the nipple or flint in the striker and powder in the flash pan.

and:

18-9-118. Firearms, explosives, or incendiary devices in facilities of public transportation.

A person commits a class 6 felony if, without legal authority, he has any loaded firearm or explosive or incendiary device, as defined in section 9-7-103, C.R.S., in his possession in, or carries, brings, or causes to be carried or brought any of such items into, any facility of public transportation, as defined in section 18-9-115 (4).
(this one means a bus or bus stop)

Carry On
 

Hamans-gallows

Regular Member
Joined
Mar 24, 2012
Messages
62
Location
Colorado Springs
18-9-118. Firearms, explosives, or incendiary devices in facilities of public transportation.

A person commits a class 6 felony if, without legal authority, he has any loaded firearm or explosive or incendiary device, as defined in section 9-7-103, C.R.S., in his possession in, or carries, brings, or causes to be carried or brought any of such items into, any facility of public transportation, as defined in section 18-9-115 (4).
(this one means a bus or bus stop)

Carry On[/QUOTE]


I wonder if you could argue that a CHP constitutes legal authority.
 

JamesB

Regular Member
Joined
Jan 13, 2010
Messages
703
Location
Lakewood, Colorado, USA
18-9-118. Firearms, explosives, or incendiary devices in facilities of public transportation.

A person commits a class 6 felony if, without legal authority, he has any loaded firearm or explosive or incendiary device, as defined in section 9-7-103, C.R.S., in his possession in, or carries, brings, or causes to be carried or brought any of such items into, any facility of public transportation, as defined in section 18-9-115 (4).
(this one means a bus or bus stop)

Carry On


I wonder if you could argue that a CHP constitutes legal authority.[/QUOTE]

yes, kind of...
if you look at the statute dealing with concealed (18-12-214) a permit grants the ability to carry in ALL areas of the state except...
bus station is not on the list of exceptions. But, does it constitute legal authority to carry openly? i believe it does not. A concealed permit DOES constitute authority to carry CONCEALED, but it does very little in regard to OC.
 

since9

Campaign Veteran
Joined
Jan 14, 2010
Messages
6,964
Location
Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA
You can OC while walking on the public sidewalk past a bus stop. You cannot OC while waiting/standing at the bus stop itself, or within a bus station. I've OC'd while walking south past the bus station in downtown Colorado Springs, along the public sidewalk to the west of Nevada, just south of E. Kiowa. Got some stares, but it's legal.
 
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PFC HALE

Regular Member
Joined
Jun 20, 2012
Messages
481
Location
earth
welcome! im south of ya 30 miles and learning stuff as well, once i get the holster that will fit me well ill be OC here in town
 
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