Can anybody point to me to relevant articles in past issues of Concealed Carry magazine that address the topic of motor home camping and living?
The state reciprocity map is handy, but how can I harden my RV?
And how to secure it ?
Also, is a 380 and a backup 380 in an ankle holster good enough? We have a hotel safe to secure them when not carrying, but no real way to secure a Remington 870, so probably leaving it home.
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Excellent question. I have wondered about this myself. Solid doors. Cameras with 2 way audio and recording. I would probably go with 2 identical high capacity 9mm with several backup magazines. Two in case one fails and not having to fiddle with different magazines. Also a 12 ga shotgun with multiple rounds. I would try and āhardenā some central location where you could view both doors. A couple of cell phones. Let people know where you are going, and let them know when you arrive. Communication. I would think about possible situations and plan how you might respond. What if they set the RV on fire? What is your plan? You are VERY vulnerable in a vehicle of any type in my opinion. If you are parked, set up furniture you might use as cover. I would highly recommend night vision and a FLIR scope, handheld or attached to a firearm. It almost takes all the fun out of traveling huh?
I would be very curious to hear other peoples ideas.
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Unfortunately the reality of motor home living is space is at a premium and that is only second to weight. So when you are speaking of āhardeningā your RV you must be very careful not to be counter productive to the efficiency that you desire from the RV on the 99.9% of the time you are rolling it. Face it RVās are concealment not cover much as mobile homes are. Can you box in the drivers compartment with A500 steel, sure at 13lbs per sq/ft for 1/4".
With a little imagination and some carpentry skills you can fashion a very passable wall that doubles as a gun locker for your 870/AR/AK/M1A or what ever. My first suggestion is to ālook upā. As to the caliber you stated, it is marginal at best. I wont offer suggestions as to platforms or other more high performance calibers as I donāt know your situation or capabilities.
An 870 is not that hard to handle or hide and if you break it down prior to going into the hotel it fits in a gym bag. Not an option to leave it home for me.
Cheers,
Craig6
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First off Iāve seen some lock boxes for shotguns that attach to walls also seen a cell phone app where someone can see your location.(family perhaps) have seen some videos on yt & on uscca about camping & rv info.
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Here are a few conversations in the Community that you might find helpful:
While they might not 100% address your question, they can definitely give you some additional safety tips to think about.
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Just as entertainment for the mind, I wonder what level of protection one could muster using kevlar, ceramics, clay, and thin sheet metals designing a ābolt holeā in the basement storage area? Thereās nothing that requires one to stand and deliver from the living space. In fact, it would be the hardest, most expensive application required only if you or your family could not make it through a hatch in the deck and crawl into a poly tub. Add remote cameras, an app on your cells, and the ability to exit the motorhome on either side after surviving any design level of enfilading fire. The area would also be ideal for the storage of your long weapons and at hand as you make your bid to escape and evade. I wonder how much area/volume/weight youād need from a composite defense to provide Lvl III equivalent on six sides?
A couple of resources to start, by no means a definitive opener.
Opportunities in Protection Materials Science and Technology for Future Army Applications
Ballistic Resistance of Body Armor NIJ Standard-0101.06
Oh, and I am by no means joking here, you may want to approach the folks who do the Presidentās vehicles, if youāre serious and have the resources to proceed. Theyāve done all this - many times - before.
There are ways to secure an 870 shotgun. A mount that locks the shotgun.
Iāve located more robust deadbolt door locks for the main door, as well as premium toggle locks for all the storage compartments. I was a bit concerned to learn that your average RV storage compartment key would probably fit 10% of the other RVās in any give RV park!. The challenge is to find 12 or 13 of them all keyed alike.
Also, there are GPS based transmitters so that if your RV is stolen, the chances of recovery is much higher than LoJack, which only has coverage in certain urban areas (that was a surprise). The price is under $100, and the monthly subscription is not bad either.
More to follow as I dig deeper
Hey Craig6,
You appear to have some knowledge here; how thick must a piece of steel plate be to stop a 9 mm bullet?
I was thinking that if I cut a piece and trimmed it to fit, I could slip it in the PC sleeve of my backpack and it would offer some level of protection in an active shooter situation.
Please advise.
@James583 9mm is a fairly easy thing to defeat so Iām not sure that you would want to bother with steel as a Kevlar panel out of a Level 2 vest would serve you well. When you get into rifle rounds (ie:pointed things) Kevlar doesnāt work so well nor does it work against knives and awlās. Thatās where you want to go to a plate. I use A500 steel for my targets and most of them are 3/8" and I know for a fact it will not even be marred by a 210gr boolet hitting the target at roughly 2950 fps (.300 WM @ 25ā). I donāt think Iād like to have it on when hit but I would be alive to complain about it. For a back pack I would consider a ceramic trauma plate to fit a āplate carrierā as they are much lighter and can be had rated for 308 rounds (Level 3) for fairly cheap. A500 steel is VERY dense and VERY heavy and Iāve never seen it less than 3/8" thick and my 12" x 16" plates weigh north of 20 lbs each.
A quick Duck Duck Go search popped this up at 4.2 lbs but is a bit spendy at $219.
Cheers,
Craig6
A lot of people are making backpack shields today. You have a benefit of mass production to provide a clean grey man design with traceability and possibly free replacement of a ātestedā device if presented with a police report. 
Why play around get a body armor plate and be done. Saw these for kids backpacks. Adults. All that
My thinking on my own MH is to really do a whole lot of nothing. RV Parks provide āsecurityā in just the numbers and close proximity of other RV owners. For the most part we are older, we are armed, and quietly staying aware. Iāve found other RV owners, for the most part, to be very protective of each other.
As to harding my RV I figure itās mostly a waste of my money and time. Afterall, Iām in a vehicle that is easy to disable, carries a large tank of propane, a single fire bomb can cause me much grief, and I have limited means of exit.
Travel and stops for me mean avoiding high population centers, high traffic, and always knowing my escape route to avoid problems ahead. I like using Waze Navigation & Live Traffic. Even when āboondockingā I have a quick exit the area plan.
Like most everything I do I plan to minimize my risk profile and avoid higher risk situations. One or two against higher numbers is not a good recipe for success.
Still what I have written here is just information on what I choose to do, nothing more, no advice.
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Be careful what kind/brand of lock you chooseā¦
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I cant wear my tactical vest in corporate America, so I am looking for a plate of steel I can get from the fab shop, trim it to fit on the band saw, and slip it into my backpack. Just looking for a steel plate thickness to stop a 9 mm. Does 223 pack that much more punch? (my only other benchmarks are the 12 ga 870 and my 3006). Maybe we should factor in the amount of stopping power a DELL laptop PC providesā¦