Complete newbie that needs a knowledge base.

FAChaseUSMC · Aug 23, 2012

I just registered on this forum and I've spent some time clicking around, but I would really like one single thread to teach me what I want to learn.

My Info/Background:

I am a 22 year old Marine Corps Reservist from Hampton Roads, about to come home from Afghanistan. I have no genuine experience or knowledge of VA's gun laws and permit shenanigans.

What I want to learn is:
1. What do I need to do when I get home so I can OC a sidearm in public (Is there a permit I need or can I carry as soon as I buy a pistol?)
2. What do I need to do for concealed carry permit (Is Military experience a substitute for a safety class?)
3. Can I just walk into a store and buy a sidearm? (Waiting periods?)
4. Good places to purchase and shoot a pistol in Hampton Roads area?

Appreciate your help and patience.

acfreddie · Aug 23, 2012

I'm relatively new here also, so I will defer commenting as this board/forum is filled with a large number of not only qualified/intelligent members but also helpful members who are patient with newbies and will answer questions. One piece of advice I will put out there from one newbie to another is for you to make every attempt to make a meeting (dinner/breakfast, the information you will be able to learn is worth more than a thousand postings and an added benefit is that you can make some friends in the process.

67GT390FB · Aug 23, 2012

FAChaseUSMC said:
I just registered on this forum and I've spent some time clicking around, but I would really like one single thread to teach me what I want to learn.

My Info/Background:

I am a 22 year old Marine Corps Reservist from Hampton Roads, about to come home from Afghanistan. I have no genuine experience or knowledge of VA's gun laws and permit shenanigans.

What I want to learn is:
1. What do I need to do when I get home so I can OC a sidearm in public (Is there a permit I need or can I carry as soon as I buy a pistol?)
2. What do I need to do for concealed carry permit (Is Military experience a substitute for a safety class?)
3. Can I just walk into a store and buy a sidearm? (Waiting periods?)
4. Good places to purchase and shoot a pistol in Hampton Roads area?

Appreciate your help and patience.

start by reading the two sticky threads at the top of the page OC in a vehicle w/o a chp and OC flyers and info cards. Those two posts will have the answers to most of your questions and a few you haven't though of yet.

but simple answers to your questions.
1. nothing.(no)
2.an application (yes dd214)
3.yes if resident of state or have permanent orders to base in Virginia same applies to 2 above
4. that one would need a local to answer

MainelyGlock · Aug 23, 2012

First, thank you for your service!

I was in the same boat as you when I joined, but just do as much reading as you can on your state's forum, and don't be afraid to ask questions. The majority of people on here are super friendly and helpful, and there's an incredible amount of information floating around.

Stay safe.

peter nap · Aug 23, 2012

67GT390FB said:
4. that one would need a local to answer

Welcome to the site.
I have no idea in Hampton but Greentops near Richmond probably has the best selection in the state and are moving into a much larger building. I expect sales.

At the Gun Shows, Dark Sun, whom I genuinely hate, but 67GT390FB, who is more even tempered than I

, likes...do have a big selection and probably the best prices.

kord · Aug 23, 2012

peter nap said:
At the Gun Shows, Dark Sun, whom I genuinely hate, but 67GT390FB, who is more even tempered than I, likes...do have a big selection and probably the best prices.

I would have to agree at the gun shows Dark Sun has a great selection, and there is one coming up Sept 22, 23 in VA Beach. I think they give a dollar or 2 off admission with your Military ID.

Superior Pawn has 4 locations that sells guns (3 with range) in the VA Beach/Norfolk area, I hear Bobs in Norfolk has a good selection (I have never been there/I think has a range). Another place I haven't been but hear is nice is Camp Allen Gun Range located somewhere near NAS Norfolk (Its a Military range and has low range fees) C2 is an outdoor range a little outside of the city areas but offers rifle ranges. In Chesapeake there is Battlefield gun something on ... Battlefield Blvd (only been there once but very nice staff/no range) and the Armory (usually good ammo prices, sometimes better then the gun shows/no range) I know there are some others out there too.

I usually go to the Superior on VA Beach Blvd (VA Beach) or the one on Little Creek Blvd (Norfolk). I have been to the one out Lynnhaven Blvd (used to be A&P, VA Beach) range is larger then the other 2 it has 3 bays.

va_tazdad · Aug 24, 2012

The more, the merrier!

Welcome!

Your questions were answered quite well above.

I would also recommend joining VCDL or at least signing up for the alerts. The weekly Saturday morning breakfasts and the monthly dinners have good food, good companionship and generally bring the newest changes and potential problems into focus.

Marines are welcome, we even allow Skidmark to attend. ;>)

Grapeshot · Aug 24, 2012

A hearty and sincere welcome - thanks for your service

Why wouldn't we accept the likes of Skidmark into the fold? We openly embrace coasties and submariners - they're really the same thing :lol:

mbhudson · Aug 24, 2012

Hi and welcome Im fairly new to actually posting here myself but have carried a long time and study law on the issue alot. The simple answer is VA is an open carry state not quite the same as being a constitutional carry state meaning they dont just defer to the second amendment but they do have some of the countries best laws on open carry. No you dont need a permit unless you are a felon or under 18 you can carry a firearm openly on your side almost anywhere you would normally go. BUT you need to research your area and find out where you cannot go.

There are only a few places that are flatly illegal to carry. Such as courts k-12 school grounds federal buildings but there are private businesses that post NO GUN signs as well. I choose to not go to gun free zones personally because criminals have no respect for such signs and I dont like being an easy target. You can decide that for yourself but the fish in a barrel analogy comes to mind for me.Its also helpful to look up VA code and be aware of law here because if/when your stopped by police asking (why you have a gun) your going to want to know your rights better than they do.

I highly recomend a video to all who carry on youtube titled DO NOT TALK TO THE POLICE its a 48 min video from a VA attorney and police officer and well worth the time. It is also a good idea to watch some of the videos on youtube on open carry so that when your stopped you have a working knowledge of properly responding to police. You will see that sometimes all that is necessary is asking the officer (am i being detained or am i free to go ) is all that is necessary for them to back down and in other cases they may violate your rights anyway but you have laid the groundwork for legal action if that happens. Knowledge is power not a gun in this case.

As far as concealed carry you do need a permit to conceal but open carry in your vehicle is not concealing. Your locality does except military service as firearms training but it never hurts to take an official course that requires shooting the firearm your going to carry. Ill explain a little if you have documentation showing that you are safe with and trained with what your carrying it can help you if you ever end up in court. You can end up in court for things other than shooting someone btw such as handling a firearm in an unsafe manner and thats why training is good.
Its also a good idea to keep record of when you shoot and targets you shot for the same purpose. You can show in court that you knew it was (safe to fire threw training) so to speak. So if you take a course you have that cost plus the cost of your permit $50 in most localities in VA.

And lastly for me anyway yes you can just walk in and buy a gun. there is sometimes a wait because of the background check they do for me its 30 seconds and for a friend of mine whose name is the same as a local felon its overnight. the criteria changes alot from what i understand as far as what the feds are looking at but you shouldnt have to wait more than a day normally. They are interestingly enough currently putting a short hold on veterans from what ive been told hours in most cases Iguess they might figure you guys are pissed off for being dissarmed in a war zone recently. Hope this is helpful and good luck in your endeavors!

Grapeshot · Aug 24, 2012

mbhudson said:
--snip-- So if you take a course you have that cost plus the cost of your permit $50 in most localities in VA.

Total cost for a permit (CHP) is limited by statute to $50.00 and no fingerprinting anymore. Maximum of 45 days processing time too.
http://leg1.state.va.us/000/cod/18.2-308.HTM

Virginia enjoys one of the best of the preemptive laws - the state controls what municipalities may say and do regarding guns. This makes for a much more consistent environment.
http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+15.2-915

mbhudson · Aug 24, 2012

Grapeshot said:
Total cost for a permit (CHP) is limited by statute to $50.00 and no fingerprinting anymore. Maximum of 45 days processing time too.
http://leg1.state.va.us/000/cod/18.2-308.HTM[/U correct and some are less

va_tazdad · Aug 24, 2012

You forgot

Grapeshot said:
Why wouldn't we accept the likes of Skidmark into the fold? We openly embrace coasties and submariners - they're really the same thing :lol:

the Wing Waxers and Ground Pounders. ;>)

LOL All are welcome!

SouthernBoy · Aug 24, 2012

peter nap said:
Welcome to the site.
I have no idea in Hampton but Greentops near Richmond probably has the best selection in the state and are moving into a much larger building. I expect sales.

At the Gun Shows, Dark Sun, whom I genuinely hate, but 67GT390FB, who is more even tempered than I, likes...do have a big selection and probably the best prices.

Trader Jerry's has the largest selection when he comes to the Dulles "Nations Gun Show"... quite a bit larger than Dark Sun. I agree that Dark Sun somehow seems to have a problem, or an attitude, with folks who stop by their tables and are potential buyers. Kinda silly, if you ask me. Jerry's prices are generally comparable to Dark Sun's and he and his people are far more friendly and nice.

Tanner · Aug 24, 2012

As acfreddie said try to make it to the breakfasts or lunches or anything. A good bunch of people here. I like many others started a similar post about needing some info for OC. here are some links

Read the post from Grapeshot about the dillon rule! its a biggie

http://forum.opencarry.org/forums/showthread.php?102853-Share-your-wisdom-with-me!

This should take care of any OC in the car questions.

http://forum.opencarry.org/forums/showthread.php?103814-Carrying-in-car

These should be good places to start! And a trip down memory lane. Looking back I cant belive how green I was, and its only been something like 6 months. Dont get me wrong im still chasing my tail around but at least I know it my tail and not some dang critter!
Anyways welcome to the forum welcome to OC and most importantly welcome home.

Grapeshot · Aug 24, 2012

Tanner said:
--snip--

Read the post from Grapeshot about the dillon rule! its a biggie

http://forum.opencarry.org/forums/showthread.php?102853-Share-your-wisdom-with-me!

These should be good places to start! And a trip down memory lane. Looking back I cant belive how green I was, and its only been something like 6 months. Dont get me wrong im still chasing my tail around but at least I know it my tail and not some dang critter!
Anyways welcome to the forum welcome to OC and most importantly welcome home.

Direct link to "Dillon Rule" yes it is a biggie, both in size and importance to Virginians:
http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/dmb/fcpos/dillon.pdf

skidmark · Aug 24, 2012

FAChaseUSMC - Welcome to OCDO, welcome home, and semper fi!

Open carry requires that you have a handgun - a good holster on a good gun belt (as opposed to some wimply dress belt than cannot hold the weight) is a good addition but if you want to play Plaxico Burress just give everyone advance notice - especially Peter Nap, our resident handsome young videographer, who will capture your ND in its full glory.

While the folks in your AO are not as active in getting together as the folks around Richmond, they do manage to put together meet&greets regularly. Check the stickies at the top of the web page regularly.

When you go to the gun shows (you will be going, won't you?) be sure to stop at the VCDL table and introduce yourself as well as ask any questions you might have been holding on to. None of us are experts (not even User - he still practices law instead of doing law) but we will point you to where the best information is so you can make up your own mind.

Along with joining VCDL (or at least signing up for the free VA-ALERT newsletter), put the MLK holiday on your calendar to come to Richmond for Lobby Day. There might even be talk of car pools as that day gets closer.

As you can probably guess, there are some inside jokes that you need to figure out as you spend more time here. I am tolerated because I gave the security guard the finger (No, not that finger!) in spite of being probably the only former Marine in existence. It's a long story but bolis down to them refusing to let me reenlist even if I had wanted to.:uhoh:

stay safe.

scouser · Aug 24, 2012

skidmark said:
....
As you can probably guess, there are some inside jokes that you need to figure out as you spend more time here. I am tolerated because I gave the security guard the finger (No, not that finger!) in spite of being probably the only former Marine in existence. It's a long story but bolis down to them refusing to let me reenlist even if I had wanted to.:uhoh:

stay safe.

You tell me the story about the elephant gun (which I must admit was funny the way you told it), but you never bothered to tell me the re-enlistment story ?????? You'll have to correct that sometime

Grapeshot · Aug 24, 2012

scouser said:
You tell me the story about the elephant gun (which I must admit was funny the way you told it), but you never bothered to tell me the re-enlistment story ?????? You'll have to correct that sometime

There is the flip side to that story. When his enlistment was up, they almost would not let him go - wanted to keep him "for the good of the service". :lol:

peter nap · Aug 24, 2012

skidmark said:
FAChaseUSMC - Welcome to OCDO, welcome home, and semper fi!

As you can probably guess, there are some inside jokes that you need to figure out as you spend more time here.

Speaking of the daily insider, check your secret email.:lol:

skidmark · Aug 24, 2012

Grapeshot said:
There is the flip side to that story. When his enlistment was up, they almost would not let him go - wanted to keep him "for the good of the service". :lol:

Almost?!? 15 months, 14 days, and 15 hours is not "almost" fella! There is a vast difference between "for the good of the service" and "convenience of the government"! Had it been the former they would have let me continue with my "early out" just to get rid of me.

Let this be a lesson to all of you - if you ever get to the point where you are indispensible to the organization you will be very sorry.

stay safe.

PS - Peter, that was not nice. Hilarious, but not nice. Burned before reading. Three copies made and filed with appropriate security classifications attached. One copy, with security classification, forwarded to GHQ for review of security classification. All just like they taught me in Uncle Sam's [strike]Mastur...[/strike] uh, ... Motorcycle Club.

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