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Open Carry experience thread.

asubae

Regular Member
Joined
Apr 10, 2014
Messages
18
Location
Phoenix, AZ
Open Carried at First Friday tonight, from Jefferson to McDowell all the way in Downtown Phoenix. It was very crowded, and I was kinda all over the place.

Numerous cops. Only one comment from a LEO (Phoenix PD) who was doing traffic control:

Him: "Whatcha got?"
Me: "Smith and Wesson M&P9."
Him. "Nice."

Large police presence. Stopped by a few stores, checked out some of the street merchandise. Zero issues.

Happy carrying everybody, and be safe this weekend!
 

Rusty Young Man

Regular Member
Joined
Jun 19, 2013
Messages
1,548
Location
Árida Zona
OCed at the CVS near U of A campus today with no issues. I did, however, receive a compliment on my "Guns save lives" button.:cool:

Related to OC: Recent events have brought up my OC in conversations with my colleagues (four of them had already seen me OC), and I'm slowly trying to address each of the myths they have picked up from Hollywood. (I'll give everyone a pause to finish their facepalm)
facepalm.gif

Now, I have succeeded in igniting a little interest in heading to the range to experience firearms. We'll see how things work out, seeing as that day is about half a month away.:)
 
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PeterNSteinmetz

Regular Member
Joined
Apr 20, 2014
Messages
177
Location
Tempe, Arizona
Thus, there is no state or federal law which prevents OC/CC on campus, but rather the state has artfully handed that over to as you put it, the Arizona Board of Tyrants (ABOR). The change needs to comes from the students and active voters. Thanks for the reply Rusty Young Man!

One of the big problems is that ABOR is a self - perpetuating corporation so is not very responsive, even to the legislature.
 
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Rusty Young Man

Regular Member
Joined
Jun 19, 2013
Messages
1,548
Location
Árida Zona
This weekend:

OCed on the bus ride home after the OC lunch and got a few curious glances and two or three stink eyes from other commuters, and a few stolen glances (but no contact) from an LEO; no issues, even if it was Scottsdale.:)

OCed at Sam's Club in Chandler and met with a CC-mostly guy who says he OCs every once in a while. He seemed knowledgeable in terms of the law here in AZ, but didn't know the definition of "Public establishment", which (if I understood correctly) reduced the number of places he would carry; hope this means he will now carry with confidence in more places.;)

I also made sure to give him an AzCDL card with the link to OCDO and the title of Alan Korwin's book "The Arizona Gun Owner's Guide".:)

Except for the one place (in my following post), no issues regarding OC.:cool:
 
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Rusty Young Man

Regular Member
Joined
Jun 19, 2013
Messages
1,548
Location
Árida Zona
Asked to "leave your firearm in your car"

Asked to "leave your firearm in your car". Happy ending though.:)

OCed at an establishment my parents tended to frequent because it carried the best tortillas (that we know of) in the area. I know we shouldn't patronize anti-Rights businesses, but this was my parents spending their money for their groceries; at least I had convinced them some time back to buy ONLY what they couldn't buy elsewhere.

I didn't want my parents being at the mercy of an armed thug who saw the place as easy pickings, so I OCed. We were there for a good 5 minutes and already had about $20 worth of tortillas in the cart; several looks, glances, and whispers had been taking place, unlike the last time I was there. A small group of men came up and the following exchange took place (with my parents' dialogue translated to English for your convenience:D):

Lead guy: Hey, just so you know, we don't allow firearms in the store, so if you could go outside, leave your firearm in your car, and come back, that would be ok.
Me: Oh. I'm sorry you feel that way. I'll simply wait outside then.
Guy: Yeah, we just don't want firearms in here.
Me (to parents): I'll wait right outside while you guys finish up, then we can go home.
Dad: In that case, let's just leave them all (starts pulling the tortillas out of the cart and onto the shelf). *scoffs and smiles* We always come to buy these here.
Mom (to dad, but loud enough for the spectators to hear): Don't waste time putting them back. Let's leave and buy the things elsewhere. Leave the cart too.

The three of us then left peaceably. The reason I prefaced with "Happy ending though" is because this is the first time my parents have taken the initiative on not patronizing anti-Rights businesses.
I'll count it as a win in my book.:)
 

Javelina

Regular Member
Joined
Mar 13, 2014
Messages
125
Location
East Valley
Asked to "leave your firearm in your car". Happy ending though.:)

OCed at an establishment my parents tended to frequent because it carried the best tortillas (that we know of) in the area. I know we shouldn't patronize anti-Rights businesses, but this was my parents spending their money for their groceries; at least I had convinced them some time back to buy ONLY what they couldn't buy elsewhere.

I didn't want my parents being at the mercy of an armed thug who saw the place as easy pickings, so I OCed. We were there for a good 5 minutes and already had about $20 worth of tortillas in the cart; several looks, glances, and whispers had been taking place, unlike the last time I was there. A small group of men came up and the following exchange took place (with my parents' dialogue translated to English for your convenience:D):

Lead guy: Hey, just so you know, we don't allow firearms in the store, so if you could go outside, leave your firearm in your car, and come back, that would be ok.
Me: Oh. I'm sorry you feel that way. I'll simply wait outside then.
Guy: Yeah, we just don't want firearms in here.
Me (to parents): I'll wait right outside while you guys finish up, then we can go home.
Dad: In that case, let's just leave them all (starts pulling the tortillas out of the cart and onto the shelf). *scoffs and smiles* We always come to buy these here.
Mom (to dad, but loud enough for the spectators to hear): Don't waste time putting them back. Let's leave and buy the things elsewhere. Leave the cart too.

The three of us then left peaceably. The reason I prefaced with "Happy ending though" is because this is the first time my parents have taken the initiative on not patronizing anti-Rights businesses.
I'll count it as a win in my book.:)

If it wasn't so sore for the eyes I would BOLD this whole post! It makes me happy seeing them take your side and not wanting to support a business that supports criminals and unarming citizens who want to defend themselves. The best part about this story is not putting the stuff back and simply walking out the door, I hope management was informed on what all took place, and understands that they lost money. FOR THE WIN X10!!! :monkey:banana::monkey:banana::cool::dude:
 

MAC702

Campaign Veteran
Joined
Jul 31, 2011
Messages
6,331
Location
Nevada
I can't imagine the high it must give defenseless people to order armed people around like that. They KNOW they are dealing with a good person, else they would have screamed and ran. So they form this dichotomy in their ignorance that if it's not a bad guy making them run away screaming, it must be a good guy, and therefore they get to order him to leave and get to REALLY feel good about themselves!

Makes me sick.

Awesome experience with your parents! If you don't think management was in on it, you should definitely write to them. Enclose the receipt from their competitor.
 
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Rusty Young Man

Regular Member
Joined
Jun 19, 2013
Messages
1,548
Location
Árida Zona
Thank you for the kind words.

@MAc702: I've also found it interesting that the antis feel victimized by the predators in our society, yet turn around and bully the law-abiding citizens who've decided not to be easy pickings.

OT: OCed around Tucson (Burger King), at Three Points (a 7-11; just west of Tucson), and on the original A mountain (Sentinel Peak).:p
I also introduced a colleague of mine to the sport of shooting!:D
She'd never shot before, but absolutely loved it (her words). Using my 1911 (the one with the POA-POI discrepancy :cuss:), she was shooting some decent groups at ~5 meters. She didn't particularly like the SKS, but sent out some nice "snap chats" (akin to "tweets") of her targets afterwards. Hopefully a conversion is being made (she did mention asking her parents to buy her a gun:)).

While I was at Sentinel Peak, I saw what I presume is a grossly outdated sign stating that carry of firearms is prohibited unless the carrier possesses a permit pursuant to ARS 13-3112?

http://www.azleg.gov/FormatDocument.asp?inDoc=/ars/13/03112.htm&Title=13&DocType=ARS

Must be from the "carry is CC because we couldn't see it through your body mass", permit-only days; then again, it IS in the bastion of liberty known as Tucson.:rolleyes:
 
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HolyOrangeJuice

Regular Member
Joined
Sep 26, 2010
Messages
221
Location
AZ
Well I just moved to Arizona and made it to Prescott on Thursday. Was staying at Motel 6. I OC'd when I left my room and hadn't had any real encounter with people until today. As I was checking out 3 prescott officers rolled up for an unrelated incident. Not sure what it was but they were huddled up ready to do whatever. After I checked out and went to my car an officer was heading to his car and 100% without a doubt saw my firearm. We exchanged hellos and we were both on our way. Was awesome to get that out of the way. Also carried all day long and to Walmart without issue. As it should be.
 

Rusty Young Man

Regular Member
Joined
Jun 19, 2013
Messages
1,548
Location
Árida Zona
Well I just moved to Arizona and made it to Prescott on Thursday. Was staying at Motel 6. I OC'd when I left my room and hadn't had any real encounter with people until today. As I was checking out 3 prescott officers rolled up for an unrelated incident. Not sure what it was but they were huddled up ready to do whatever. After I checked out and went to my car an officer was heading to his car and 100% without a doubt saw my firearm. We exchanged hellos and we were both on our way. Was awesome to get that out of the way. Also carried all day long and to Walmart without issue. As it should be.

Yes, the first walk by LEOs is quite nerve-wracking. Glad to hear you had no issues.:)

OT: Glad to report that I've had no issues with carry since the last time I posted.:)

OCed enroute to the Peacemaker gun show here in Tucson both Saturday and today. On Saturday, the only person who made a comment was a petite little blonde (who should have been ticketed for being too cute with her fuzzy lap dog and all:p). Her first comment was "nice gun", followed by an introduction to her "baby" (the fuzzy dog). The best part was when her dog started yapping and she said "looks like my dog is more deadly than your gun"; I took that as a good comment because it showed she understood that as a tool, my 1911 was an extension of myself and therefore presented no threat to her (or passerby, for the matter).
No comments were made on Sunday.

Other than the itty bitty blonde lady, the little ones at the gun show seemed entranced by all the eye-level holstered weapons walking around with their masters; it may have helped that some were non-Tupperware and pretty shiny.:p

Great time tabling with the AzCDL folks; Cap, Tom and Duke were present as well (only the latter was able to stick around until the end), and all seemed in good spirits and good health.:)

As an aside, I was able to pick up some .45ACP ammo from Triune Defense; 37 cents per round after taxes seems good for plinking ammo. The brass itself is not much to gawk at, but the projectiles and primers all look pretty uniform. If my ride comes through, I should be able to post a range report tomorrow. For comparison, I will take along some WWB, Fiocchi, and my trusty S&B.:)
 
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Rusty Young Man

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Joined
Jun 19, 2013
Messages
1,548
Location
Árida Zona
OCed on the way to the range and back, stopping at a Quick Trip and a local eatery; great food and service from some very friendly folks, and I got a chance to thank them for allowing their patrons to keep a reasonable means of self defense (keep their sidearms:D). Gave them an AzCDL card, told them I'd like to come back (maybe even with a few more patrons) and I was invited to return!

Got a few looks from other patrons, but they all seemed to be looks of curiosity, not fear or stink eye.
No issues there.

Ran about 135 rounds of Triune Defense remanufactured .45 ACP ALMOST without a hitch; I had one primer fail to fire.

Here's a more detailed report on the Triune Ammo:
http://forum.opencarry.org/forums/s...shoot-around-the-Valley&p=2087611#post2087611
 
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FreeInAZ

Regular Member
Joined
Oct 15, 2012
Messages
2,508
Location
Secret Bunker
Hey Rusty - you get your sights adjusted? Hope so, so we can finish our match of your shiny Springfield 1911 - against the lowly hi-point 45. Something tells me it will be hi-point in the winners circle, with no excuses of technical malfunction from the Springfield. ;)

On topic OC'd around today & as usual - no one cared... Just as it should be. 8)
 

Rusty Young Man

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Joined
Jun 19, 2013
Messages
1,548
Location
Árida Zona
Hey Rusty - you get your sights adjusted? Hope so, so we can finish our match of your shiny Springfield 1911 - against the lowly hi-point 45. Something tells me it will be hi-point in the winners circle, with no excuses of technical malfunction from the Springfield. ;)

On topic OC'd around today & as usual - no one cared... Just as it should be. 8)

Not yet, unfortunately.:(
I did consult with the sages of the Internet who agreed the wear on my barrel's lower lugs could be part of the problem; the left "foot" seemed to be slamming into the slide stop pin while the right foot only had minimal contact (always an omen of things to come in the life of the barrel:uhoh:), not to mention that this contact was made at an earlier part of the feet than should be the norm.:confused: It would also account for the asymmetrical wear on the barrel's locking lugs.

At any rate, the tentative work I did on it seems to be doing the trick in miminmizing the POA/POI discrepancy. Contact seems closer to the original specs, wear is ever so slightly better, and a replacement barrel is on order should my work result in destroying reliability (which the range trip served to test). Even if I don't use it for this 1911, it may be the start of a build?:)

But I am looking forward to a rematch. Maybe this time the end score won't be as askew.:p

OT: forgot to mention the invite was from the Cindy Lou eatery on Ajo Highway, near Three Points; great atmosphere and decor, and my burger was amazing (the friend I was there with had nothing but good things to say of their baby back ribs).
 
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FreeInAZ

Regular Member
Joined
Oct 15, 2012
Messages
2,508
Location
Secret Bunker
Sorry to hear of the issues Rusty. Hey CDNN has a para-ordinance 14.45 expert on sale for $699 in stainless all the bells & whistles & comes with two 14 round mags ;) Just thought I'd mention it.
 

TexasOC

Regular Member
Joined
Jun 27, 2014
Messages
41
Location
Texas
Visiting Phoenix, been carrying everywhere. Gas stations, grocery stores, restaurants, etc. No problems, as is usual in AZ. In particular, the people at Sands Kia out in Surprise were very supportive as I was helping a friend buy a new car. If you're in the market, check them out... it's important to make big ticket purchases at OC friendly establishments.

I always enjoy my time here in Phoenix :)
 
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Rusty Young Man

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Jun 19, 2013
Messages
1,548
Location
Árida Zona
Visiting Phoenix, been carrying everywhere. Gas stations, grocery stores, restaurants, etc. No problems, as is usual in AZ. In particular, the people at Sands Kia out in Surprise were very supportive as I was helping a friend buy a new car. If you're in the market, check them out... it's important to make big ticket purchases at OC friendly establishments.

I always enjoy my time here in Phoenix :)

Glad to hear you've been having a good experience in the sunny state of AZ!:)

I wholeheartedly agree with the bolded portion above; businesses are more likely to allow OC if they notice it is OCers that actually pay money whereas the antis only make a ruckus without spending a dime.
 

FreeInAZ

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Oct 15, 2012
Messages
2,508
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Secret Bunker
Glad to hear you've been having a good experience in the sunny state of AZ!:)

I wholeheartedly agree with the bolded portion above; businesses are more likely to allow OC if they notice it is OCers that actually pay money whereas the antis only make a ruckus without spending a dime.

Yep! I always tip well and give praise to good service when I OC though out my days. Why? People talk & they may spread the word that we OCers are a decent lot. Big ticket or a taco off a truck, it all adds up. Not saying bribe people, just saying be generous, when the situation calls for it. I know a couple back in MI who often leave a $5 bill towards the person(s) meal behind them in line at Taco Bell, it is a simple gesture and often leads to friendly conversation. Suddenly the "gun people" are seen as a nice & friendly couple. Hearts & minds..that's where we shine often..IMHO. :cool:
 
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Rusty Young Man

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Joined
Jun 19, 2013
Messages
1,548
Location
Árida Zona
OCed on the bus as I tried (in vain) to find a suitable replacement for my old backpack (2009-2014, RIP:lol:). I've broken down and just ordered one off Amazon that is the same make and model, but more recent "version" of it. Seems things just keep getting more expensive.:(

Had a brief encounter with the recipient of 3-4 bullets (".40 cal", he said); the man asked "is that a .45?" and then showed off his old scars (to half the bus).:confused: One of my stranger encounters, but not necessarily unpleasant. The guy showed no animosity, at any rate.

No stampeding women or feinting horses at Sam's Club or Walmart, but woeful selection of quality backpacks to be found at either. I did converse with two Hispanic ladies looking for an air mattress, and they didn't even bat an eye at my OC; we parted with smiles.:)

I later struck up a conversation with a man on the bus who wanted to know who made my leather holster (Galco). The conversation turned to his usual CC and the fact that his employer forbids their employees from carrying any weapons when visiting the homes of clients DESPITE the fact that one employee has already been robbed at knifepoint.:uhoh: I sympathized with the man (seeing as I'm disarmed while on campus) and wished him the best of luck.:(

Overall, no issues regarding my OC, but not the best note to end on.

NOTE: The links appearing in the text are not my own, but much like the asterisks that tend to crop up in my posts, seem to resist all attempts to remove them.
 
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azcdlfred

Regular Member
Joined
Dec 10, 2006
Messages
901
Location
Tucson, Arizona, USA
OCed on the bus as I tried (in vain) to find a suitable replacement for my old backpack
Showing my age.....and veering off subject.

I don't understand the backpack craze. I see grade schools kids with backpacks, stuffed with more crap than they weigh, struggling to move. Makes me want to invest in chiropractic stock. Those kids will have the backs and legs of 80 year olds by the time they are old enough to start binge drinking in college.

Back in the olden days when I went to school (walking 10 miles in 3 feet of snow and it was uphill both ways :D), I just carried my books in my arms. When I went to college, I used a briefcase. Everything else was in my pockets, but that wasn't much more than a handkerchief, comb, wallet, and money if I had any.

But, that was before cell phones, tablets, laptops, etc. We didn't even have hand held calculators back then.

OK - Got that off my chest. We now return to your regularly scheduled programming.

Fred
 
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