The laws are so different from state to state, it’s crazy, @luke_ouellette! In some states the laws vary from county to county. Knowing what the laws are when you travel is crucial for your physical and legal protection!
One of my 19 yo sons just moved to TN - before he moved, I checked out all of the gun laws for TN. He’s got a shotgun for hunting and wanted to take it with him. He asked how he was supposed to transport the gun in his car. I looked it up and didn’t tell him the answer I made him look it up too so that he knew how to find the information. He found it easily and asked some great questions about terminology.
Double and triple check the laws, even if you’ve been taking the same cross country trip for years - the laws can change at any time.
For many reasons, I keep my firearm on me not in my vehicle.
One of the practical reasons is that if I have a passenger in my vehicle who does not have a concealed carry permit, such a firearm within their reach or even knowledge can lead to them being charged with illegally concealing a firearm.
Vehicles can be stolen, if my vehicle were to be stolen from me, I’d much rather loose my vehicle than also loose my firearm and my vehicle.
I think you misunderstand the question I’m asking. I’m not talking about leaving the gun in the vehicle but rather while you’re in the vehicle you have a way to access your gun easily without having the restrictions of the seat belt and having to reach around your body to get your gun in an emergency.
And no one can be charged with illegally concealing a handgun if the owner with the permit is in the vehicle with them. That’s my understanding at least.
So this topic comes up a lot! I was a private investigator when i was in college and at the time was not a conceal carrier, but always had a weapon with me. There have. een 2 times that i felt as though i needed to draw my firearm and one time i did. Where was it? In tbe side of my drivers door. I nearly dropped it trying to get a good grip on it! All the while there is a man trying to climb through my window! I bave since started carrying appendix and for those that can i strongly recommend it. Your firearm is literally at your fingertips and not goint to go flying in case of an accident or something you are gonna have fish for whe. a threat is in your face.
That’s an interesting point but all my guns have 4" barrels and I don’t think that’d work for appendix. Just putting the holster there is uncomfortable.
I just miss how we had rifles mounted in the trucks when I was in the Army… they have these retention clips that hold the weapon in place with spring tension… super nice for when your on the go… wish I had access to them on this side, I’d re-enginer it for use with carry weapons…
I put mine between the emergency brake and the seat in while still in my sticky holster. They do make holsters that attach under your steering wheel but the reviews on Amazon say that they slip and do not stay in place. I have bought the magnets but have not mounted them yet, my truck has been in the shop awhile getting the engine rebuilt. I always thought under the steering wheel while while driving because you can grab it without anyone outside the car seeing what you are doing if you are slick. I never leave a gun in my car though. Too many have been stolen.
They do slip a little, but i fixed one up for a buddy of mine at work, granted he drives a older truck and doesnt care… But i used two self tapping screws at the bottom of it so the clip stayed snug in his steering colum
Been carrying for about 20 years now,and have always had a pouch or bracket for my pistol mounted in my car.im now using a cell phone holder mavde of plastic mount mounted to the driver side console for my kimber ultra or my ATI fatboy easily accessible if need be.
I live in Nevada, which allows you to carry anywhere in the car, so I mounted a rubber coated magnet, which is made just for that purpose, under the dash, above the gas pedal. When i lived in South Carolina, which only allows carry in the glovebox or center console, I had a cheap, Walmart holster mounted to the side of the console. That was in a truck that had room for that, most cars probably wouldn’t. I never liked the idea of the glovebox because it was too far to reach and obvious to anyone watching, also, if you keep your registration and insurance info in the glovebox, you’ll probably end up having to open it in front of a cop someday, I probably don’t have to explain why a gun sitting there wouldn’t be ideal.
I made him look it up too so that he knew how to find the information. He found it easily and asked some great questions about terminology.