New to Group, Introduction

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I just came across this board. As a new member I wanted to say hello to all and thank the creator and participants for being here.

I have been walking my dogs for years with only pepper spray to fend off the occasional stray aggressive dog that I encounter. Although I have thought about carrying a gun, the neighborhood seemed safe and I never had a problem.

Recently I had an encounter with someone while out for a walk. I won't get into the details but suffice it to say, had I not been able to get away, pepper spray would have been a poor defense option and things may have turned out very badly.

So I looked into getting a CCW permit and gun. Besides the expense of the permit and the required course, it seems guns and holsters designed for CCW are more expensive too. I realize you can't put a cost on safety but in these tough economic times, people do have a practical limit on what they can afford. Then there is the long wait involved in getting the CCW permit and wondering what I would do in the meantime.

While researching, I came across this board. OC seemed to be a good option to CCW. My first thought was that a neighbor who sees me walking around OC would call the cops and I would be setting myself up for nothing but constant harrassement. However, after reading the posts here about OC in Nevada and people's experiences, even in public businesses, it appears this won't be the case. I don't have plans to open carry in public businesses. I just want something for when I am on my walks. If it serves as a home defese weapon too, that's fine but not critical.

So I have have some research to do on what type gun to get, ammo,training, tactics, laws, etc which would best be done elsewhere so as to stay on topic, but I do have a question regarding OC.

First. Does anyone have any general insight into how the criminal element reacts to OC? In otherwords, is OC a deterrent in and of itself?

For example, if I am out walking and a criminal looking for trouble sees me OC. Is he more likely to go find another potential victim or am I giving him an advantage by letting him know I am armed? Is he more likely to just come up and shoot me because I have a gun, where he might only try to rob me if I was CCW?

Thanks again to all. Any tips for a new OCer welcomed.

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Ocguy wrote:

First. Does anyone have any general insight into how the criminal element reacts to OC? In otherwords, is OC a deterrent in and of itself?

For example, if I am out walking and a criminal looking for trouble sees me OC. Is he more likely to go find another potential victim or am I giving him an advantage by letting him know I am armed? Is he more likely to just come up and shoot me because I have a gun, where he might only try to rob me if I was CCW?

Thanks again to all. Any tips for a new OCer welcomed.

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You just opened a HUGE can of worms by asking these questions, there's a lot of debate on OC being a deterant there's a good number of stories from people who have been OCing and a potential bad guy give them the :what: look and moves on.

It all depends on how ballsy the potential bad guy is.

All in all welcome to OCDO! Hopefuly the nevada folk can help you more than I can

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Welcome aboard, OCGuy.

Always glad to have another Nevada member.
YMMV, but it has been my experience that once you get used to it, OC is like carrying a cell phone on your belt that is one hell of a lot more dependable and time-effective for the personal protection of you and yours...

I personally don't think having my pistol in plain sight makes me any more or less a target to ultra crazies who would just up and shoot, while it does in fact make me a harder choice for those who would attack. Others may disagree. Bottom line is you must weigh all the potential possibles for yourself and make the best choice for yourself.

For what it's worth, I am a Native Nevadan, and have carried more or less OC for my whole adult life. I no longer leave my home without my pistol, and with very very few exceptions, I do not alter my business out in the world in order to keep it with me. I carry in 99% of the places I frequent and patronize. I do not visit where my firearm is not welcome, unless I have absolutely no choice.

Take some time.. read everything you can, here and elsewhere.. and Keep the faith. Whatever you decide, know that you are supported by far more than you are condemned by.

I will be looking forward to your participation in this forum.

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Welcome to the forum.

I open carry a lot with very little issues. You won't constantly be harassed by police but it is possible that you could encounter law enforcement occasionally who are ignorant in the law. If you are just going on walks I'd say it is quite unlikely.

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Howdy guy, welcome to the boards.

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Ocguy wrote:

First. Does anyone have any general insight into how the criminal element reacts to OC? In otherwords, is OC a deterrent in and of itself?

For example, if I am out walking and a criminal looking for trouble sees me OC. Is he more likely to go find another potential victim or am I giving him an advantage by letting him know I am armed? Is he more likely to just come up and shoot me because I have a gun, where he might only try to rob me if I was CCW?

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Welcome!

One of the problems with answering your first question is it's often difficult to know the criminal element. Plus, general advice when OC is to not put yourself in any situations you wouldn't put yourself into if unarmed. If you wouldn't walk downtown at 3am unarmed, don't do so armed either. This keeps you out of many of the situations in which the criminal element is present.

Next, police get shot by bad guys all the time. They are obviously armed, have vehicle cameras, armed backup, helicopters, dogs, you name it. And they are sometimes targets themselves. So, logic would dictate that if an armed, armored, reinforced police officer does not deter all criminals from targetting them, neither will your OC weapon.

But my personal opinion is that my OC weapon will deter most criminals from selecting me as their personal victim and move on to an "easier" victim. For any criminal to whom my OC weapon is not a deterrent, nothing is. And I'd rather have my weapon at ready access in that situation.

Tim

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timf343 wrote:

Next, police get shot by bad guys all the time. They are obviously armed, have vehicle cameras, armed backup, helicopters, dogs, you name it. And they are sometimes targets themselves. So, logic would dictate that if an armed, armored, reinforced police officer does not deter all criminals from targetting them, neither will your OC weapon.

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I think that we should be careful when trying to compare police OC vs. regular guy OC. Cops tend to get attacked because they are going after criminals. While it does happen, how many times have you heard about a cop getting attacked out of the blue? It's extremely rare, most time cops get hurt it's after they try to apprehend the criminal.

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Point taken. I was merely pointing out that since police are targetted, an OC weapon is no magic shield against being a target.

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Ayoob talks a lot about the possibility of a bad guy going to do a "job" taking out the OC person first, but I've never heard of a documented case of it. Except for if the OC person is a cop or guard, as happens in some bank robberies. I haven't open carried in a bank yet, but plan to, but only a bank where they know me. I know people who have done it.

Theoretically, however, you could end up arming a bad guy who isn't armed. A "gun grabbing" bad guy.

When OCing with friends, we have a pre-arranged agreement that if we encounter anyone who feels the least bit hinky, we separate by about 20 feet. Especially if there's more than one hinky person there. Increases the odds of one of us being able to defend if someone grabs at one of our guns.

Another thought: avoid dangerous neighborhoods if you can, even if you're armed. Make that especially if you're armed. I know there are criminal people everywhere sometimes, but don't go out of your way to take a stroll in South Central LA or South East DC just because you're packing. (Oh wait, you can't open carry in those areas, which is part of why they're crappy neighborhoods!)

But anyway, don't go out of your way to go places that invite trouble, just because you're packing. Some unarmed bad guy might think "Nice, someone brought me a gun, now I just have to take it!"

MWD

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timf343 wrote:

Point taken. I was merely pointing out that since police are targetted, an OC weapon is no magic shield against being a target.

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Ah, ok. Makes sense.

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Thanks for all the replies and warm welcome.

I understand and agree with the excellent point about not putting yourself in any situations you wouldn't put yourself into if unarmed. Anyone who is going to do that shouldn't be armed in the first place.