OC in Charlotte: Sport Clips, Lowe's, Home Depot and Carolina Place Mall

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Had a bunch of errands to run today. Bought a bunch of stuff. Nothing to report, except an interesting conversation at Sports Clips.

Went in to get my hair cut and with no CCW (yet), I realized I would either have to leave my weapon in the car, or unholster it and put it on the counter at the "stall" where I was getting my hair cut. I decided to see how it would unfold inside.

I had to wait about twenty minutes as three other guys finished or went in ahead of me. There were two guys "behind" me, one with three kids, and no one said a word. I was glad the kids didn't bring it up.

When I got called . . .

Girl: We're right here in the first chair on the right.

Me: Okay. I'm going to draw my weapon and place it on the counter so it's not cconcealed while you're cutting my hair. Are you comfortable with that?

Girl (without hesitation, but a wided-eyed look as she hadn't noticed to that point): Yeah, okay, no problem.

I cleared leather, lay it down and take my seat.

Girl (grabbing a towel): We'll just have to cover it because of the children.

Me: No, we can't do that. It can't be concealed.

Girl: Oh really (genuine surprise)?

Me: Yes, in the state of NC, unless you have a license to conceal, the weapon has to remain in plain view at all times.

Girl: Oh, okay.

Then we went on to discuss the various laws. She lives in SC, but was very interested in NC law, and told me she keeps a weapon at home. Yada, yada, yada, it went from there.

But, I was glad she was so accepting and didn't freak out. She gave me a great haircut and I gave her a good tip.

As I left she thanked me for the "interesting and informative" conversation.

All in all a great experience.

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I OCed at Great Clips, same thing happend.....nothing. What might have attributed to that was my semi off duty look. It wasn't intentional, but it's a possibility. Either way I had no badge and nothing was said. I never thought however, about drawing my weapon and putting it on the counter as to not conceal it; that never crossed my mind. I guess for about 10 minutes I "broke the law". I don't care though. The Constitution says nothing about illegal CC so I'm fine. I'm so sick of the idea of having a permit to CC, that yesterday I was tempted to CC at church, but realized if something did happen I would have to explain to LEO why I was CCing without a permit. I am do for a haircut though

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Glad everything went well for you. I'm surprised you went through all that trouble to unholster just to get your haircut, though. Lord knows I would NEVER take my gun out and leave it on the counter in a public place, especially in a spinning chair where I have to keep my head still.

I can't honestly say whether you would be "illegally concealing" or not, but I wouldn't risk putting my gun out there like that.

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ShadowOfTheHat wrote:

Girl: We're right here in the first chair on the right.

Me: Okay. I'm going to draw my weapon and place it on the counter so it's not cconcealed while you're cutting my hair. Are you comfortable with that?

Girl (without hesitation, but a wided-eyed look as she hadn't noticed to that point): Yeah, okay, no problem.

I cleared leather, lay it down and take my seat.

Click to expand...

I'm kind of thinking that this was unnecessary gun handling in a public place - best avoided. I suppose you did this because the barber was going to cover you up and conceal your gun and you have no permit. If so, best to not carry at the barbershop till you get your permit.

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Mike wrote:

ShadowOfTheHat wrote:

Girl: We're right here in the first chair on the right.

Me: Okay. I'm going to draw my weapon and place it on the counter so it's not cconcealed while you're cutting my hair. Are you comfortable with that?

Girl (without hesitation, but a wided-eyed look as she hadn't noticed to that point): Yeah, okay, no problem.

I cleared leather, lay it down and take my seat.

Click to expand...

I'm kind of thinking that this was unnecessary gun handling in a public place - best avoided. I suppose you did this because the barber was going to cover you up and conceal your gun and you have no permit. If so, best to not carry at the barbershop till you get your permit.

Click to expand...

Instead of listening to everybody who will try to find a way to p*ss in your Wheaties about getting a permit so you don't have to OC - especially on a site dedicated to the proposition that OC-ing is a "good thing" :what:- how about I throw out a different idea?

If you know you are going to get a haircut and the apron/drape thingy they put over you will cause you toillegally CCW, get a gallon-sized zippered bag and stick it in your back pocket until you are walking to the chair. Remove your holstered handgun from your belt and put it in the bag. Hold the bag on your lap.

No illegal concealed carry. No little hairs falling down into your handgun making it itch or otherwise requiring you to draw it from the holster. It stays firmly in your hands, as opposed to sitting on a counter where it might be grabbed or get sticky.

stay safe.

skidmark

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DreQo wrote:

Glad everything went well for you. I'm surprised you went through all that trouble to unholster just to get your haircut, though. Lord knows I would NEVER take my gun out and leave it on the counter in a public place, especially in a spinning chair where I have to keep my head still.

I can't honestly say whether you would be "illegally concealing" or not, but I wouldn't risk putting my gun out there like that.

Click to expand...

I had her keep me positioned where I could see my weapon at all times, and the mirror gave me a clear view of everything behind me. I was probably safer than I normally am since I could see everything going on all around me!!

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skidmark wrote:

Mike wrote:

ShadowOfTheHat wrote:

Girl: We're right here in the first chair on the right.

Me: Okay. I'm going to draw my weapon and place it on the counter so it's not cconcealed while you're cutting my hair. Are you comfortable with that?

Girl (without hesitation, but a wided-eyed look as she hadn't noticed to that point): Yeah, okay, no problem.

I cleared leather, lay it down and take my seat.

Click to expand...

I'm kind of thinking that this was unnecessary gun handling in a public place - best avoided. I suppose you did this because the barber was going to cover you up and conceal your gun and you have no permit. If so, best to not carry at the barbershop till you get your permit.

Click to expand...

Instead of listening to everybody who will try to find a way to p*ss in your Wheaties about getting a permit so you don't have to OC - especially on a site dedicated to the proposition that OC-ing is a "good thing" :what:- how about I throw out a different idea?

If you know you are going to get a haircut and the apron/drape thingy they put over you will cause you toillegally CCW, get a gallon-sized zippered bag and stick it in your back pocket until you are walking to the chair. Remove your holstered handgun from your belt and put it in the bag. Hold the bag on your lap.

No illegal concealed carry. No little hairs falling down into your handgun making it itch or otherwise requiring you to draw it from the holster. It stays firmly in your hands, as opposed to sitting on a counter where it might be grabbed or get sticky.

stay safe.

skidmark

Click to expand...

Skidmark,

You 'bout got it right, you could post, "I carried today because the sky was blue," and someone somewhere would just have to tell you what you were doing wrong!! LOL!

Though I have to say, I think the baggie idea might be a little more attention getting than than simply laying it on the counter. But hey, each to his own, and now that I know the Girl's name and that's she's cool with it, guess who'll be cutting my hair from now on?!?!

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Mike wrote:

ShadowOfTheHat wrote:

Girl: We're right here in the first chair on the right.

Me: Okay. I'm going to draw my weapon and place it on the counter so it's not cconcealed while you're cutting my hair. Are you comfortable with that?

Girl (without hesitation, but a wided-eyed look as she hadn't noticed to that point): Yeah, okay, no problem.

I cleared leather, lay it down and take my seat.

Click to expand...

I'm kind of thinking that this was unnecessary gun handling in a public place - best avoided. I suppose you did this because the barber was going to cover you up and conceal your gun and you have no permit. If so, best to not carry at the barbershop till you get your permit.

Click to expand...

Mike,

You are correct - I did not want the weapon to be concealed by the "drape" they use. I plan to continue to OC once I get my permit, but to be honest, it's somewhat of a hassle in cases in like this. At the minimum being able to CC for convenience and not have to worry will be worth class.

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As the business could be consdered private property, couldn't you have asked permission from the manager (owner, acting owner) if they mind if the weapon is concealed under the drape?

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Well, I went to get a haircut after reading this. I sat in the seats listening to the depressing music while patiently waiting my turn. There were at least 4 people in the room who noticed my gun but of course didn’t say anything. While waiting there were some punks that came in with ipods blaring through their headphones, wanting a haircut. I slid my strong side slightly towards the door to let the punks know to leave me alone IF….IF….IF they were planning something. As soon as they saw me they sat down immediately and waited their turn, suddenly being very quiet. When the lady called me up, she asked if I was OK. I said I was fine and smiled.

Lady: Long day at work?
Me: Yeah, I work security at Target
Lady: (leans way to the left at my strong side) yep, (laughs) I see you still have your piece on!
Me: yeah, but Target doesn’t allow weapons so I am just carrying it for my safety
Lady: Yeah my daddy is going to take me to get a gun license.

I then explain the open carry stuff and she was surprised and thought it was cool. Overall it was a good experience. I didn't give a crap about drape concealment. Punks behaved while I was there as well.

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Godscreation wrote:

...I slid my strong side slightly towards the door to let the punks know to leave me alone IF….IF….IF they were planning something...

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So what you're saying is you displayed your firearm in such a manner for the purpose of intimidating someone? Kinda sounds like brandishing...don'tcha think? I know that wasn't your intention, but comments like that support the stereotype that we open carry because we think we're better than other people (like the punks) and we're trying to intimidate people. For all you know the punks you were referring to could have been intelligent young gentleman. Please don't think I'm trying to be rude...do you get what I'm saying?

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I should have worded it better, this is why forums and threads have weaknesses. Let me start off by saying I'm pretty sure I understood your tone to be devil's advocate/teaching and advice. I don't think you were trying to scold me. Again, forums and threads are super hard to judge tone, but assuming that's what you were doing, let me respond in that manner.

The "punks" that I saw were what I classify as punks. You may not be aware, but I work security at target, and I kick those type of kids out of the store frequently while receiving a hail of four letter filth words. The kids matched my suspicions. Is there a chance they were good kids? Sure. Anything is possible. However, judging by their mannerism, language and overall behavior my assumptions seem justified.

As for brandishing, I understand how my wording could have deceived you. Let's keep in mind the definition of brandishing (were all familiar with the law so I won't post the def. of brandish). Perhaps it would be better for me to say this: The door was slightly to my right. I'm a lefty, so I simply crossed my left leg over my right leg and adjusted my weight. Plenty of other people came in and didn't alarm me. By alarm I don't mean I thought I was going to get mugged, I was just in zone yellow and saw ahead of time who was coming in the shop.

So I guess when I said I slid my strong side slightly toward the door what I meant was I crossed one leg over the other and had to compensate my weight. However, it's easier to write "Slid slightly over". My message to the kids was the same message to everyone who sees my gun. That message is symbolized by my open carry and the message is this: "I've got nothing to hide, I don't want trouble, I just want to make it home to my family and I'm willing to defend myself." That's what open carry on a surface basis means to me.

Anyway thanks for the food for thought. I appreciate everyone here and I have learned a lot of OC and have more confidence than if I never found this site. In fact, I don't think I would be OCing at all if it wasn't for you folks.

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Well I totally agree with you to put your firearm in a direction to bring attention to those who may have the possibility to become a threat at anytime by mannerisms they present to you in your presence.

I do this quite often if I get the vibe. I also feel this is something we all do at one time or another, so Brandishing-Nope. Making people behave accordingly as if their mother was in the room- yes. So keep doing what your doing.

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burninsteeda04 wrote:

Well I totally agree with you to put your firearm in a direction to bring attention to those who may have the possibility to become a threat at anytime by mannerisms they present to you in your presence.

I do this quite often if I get the vibe. I also feel this is something we all do at one time or another, so Brandishing-Nope. Making people behave accordingly as if their mother was in the room- yes. So keep doing what your doing.

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What?!

That statement (in blue, obviously) is the problem I was referring to. The idea that you can make people do ANYTHING just because you have a gun is wrong, and it helps put open carriers in the bad light that some see us in. There are plenty of good reasons to carry, but to manipulate and control others is NOT one of them. Does that make sense?

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I don't really want to get into the discussion of whether you should OC as a means of intimidation. But merely by OC'ing in the first place you are going to "enjoy" a certain level of deterrent effect that a CC'er wouldn't.

The deterrent effect of OC can be helpful, but only if the potential BG is well aware that you are carrying. That being said, do I make sure in a given situation that my "presence" is known by choosing a certain path or facing a certain direction? Sure I do.

Does that mean I draw obvious attention to myself when a group of youngsters walk by wearing clothes and hairstyles I don't like? No, certainly not.

The fine line in-between the two is not only a grey area in terms of the laws, but is also a matter of manners, common courtesy and good taste. This is why I think we get a bad reputation sometimes - when people don't know how to tastefully walk that line.

Just my $0.02.

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I think I may have worded it wrong dreqo ; shadowofthehat I'm right there with you regardless of what others think. I think we all do this to a certain extent. The underlying factor of OC is that we want to intimidate. plain and simple but its the bad guys that we want to intimidate, and if showing my gun is a way to intimidate them they hell yeah I'm going do it. We all know that at onetime or another someone was nice to us just because we had a gun. Maybe we don't do it intentionally but it happens. To be honest I OC because I want to manipulate the behavior of a criminal by deterring him or making him or her act with sense and if it makes someone at customer service counter treat me better then so be it. I don't want to manipulate a law abiding citizen but it happens. I think it makes people act like they should, like they did 40 years a go with common courtesy and respect for everyone, the days when people actually had manners and held doors open for lady's and walked them to their front doors at night.

Again we all have our opinions. just my .02 cents.

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An armed society is a polite society.

Robert Heinlein's .40