My grandfather introduced my brothers and I, the youngest was going to join the military so he got a handgun and a rifle, combined with my grandfathers guns, we went out shooting more and more…
I bought my first handgun and got my concealed carry license.
From there my growth was slow but there…
When I was younger, i was kidnapped and told it was to be my last day. I escaped it. My family was not into firearms so no guns at home. Given the circumstances, had guns been in our home and my brothers and I trained to use and be safe, that trama could have been potentially avoided…
I carry so that should something happen again to me or my family, I have a chance to do something about it rather than being helpless…
These days I have a substantial collection and am still expanding.
In the next couple months, i hope to pickup a firearm which will be a first of its kind for me, something that is hardly practical and more of a because I can and a BLAST.
Got my wife into it a little, I spend 1 weekend a month helping out at a gun store, I get to handle and see more firearms than most other people so i get a feel for what i may want next…
Something similar for me, I lived in New Orleans in the 80’s and lived through several major landfall Hurricanes. So watching what happened I knew no one was going to save me, except me.
As far as Self Defense and the 2nd Amendment. I can thank someone who pulled a gun on me and made me believe I was about to die, so much so I jumped off a 40" bridge rather than stay and find out. I’ve had to be my own first responder way to much. I’ve had to much taken from me.
What started my 2A lifestyle? I like to talk to muslims for a twofold reason. First to bring them out of the cult. Second to show them the truth of Jesus Christ. The day I gave out too much personal information is the day I got a call from moslems saying they will kill me.
Within two weeks I had my CCDW, set up my backyard range and bought a quality pistol and holster. I carry everywhere except sharif’s office the post office. Except for those two places its only a trespass and when asked to leave I will never to return.
I was given my first gun as a Christmas present when I was 15. It was a Savage-Stevens .22 with a tube magazine. It’s a great little gun that I still have. I went to Army Basic in 1985 at Fort Benning. GA. Thus began my lifelong love of firearms in earnest.
Fast foward to 2002, when my future wife and I started a small PI and security company. It was then that I first got a concealed handgun permit. I have carried every since. We closed our company due to physical limitations, but by then I was totally hooked on carrying concealed.
After three deployments to the Middle East, my decision to carry every day was strongly reinforced. A year on the Border was another eye opener. When you see real evil up close, carrying every day without fail is a no-brainer, at least it is to me and those like me.
My first EDC was a nice little Sig P232-SL .380. I still have it too. It is a terrific little pistol that is very similar to a Walther PPKS. I retired from the Army-Army Guard in 2014. I carry my new best buddy, the Sig P365. She has not had any stoppages after around 800 rounds. It is a fantastic carry pistol.
It is quite interesting to read about the many varied reasons that folks take up concealed carry. We are a very diverse and fascinating group of citizens. Thank you all for sharing your stories.
I’m thinking it may have been when I started seeing concealed carry magazines on the shelf along with guns and ammo. With all that reading other stories of self-defense situations. Also add news coverage in the past over riots and such… But I don’t think it was one thing in particular.
Dad spent 3-4 years working on them during Vietnam. My grandfather did 20+ years USAF (also an airplane mechanic) and retired just before 'Nam. Both were robust examples of American manhood. A dying breed, I’m afraid.
Isn’t that the truth. My dad severed in Nam and an Army Drill Sergeant a long time before being a DS was limited to a few years. He served 22 years. He was wounded when he drove over a land mine. He was still pulling out shrapnel the day he died.
Old family firearm family heirloom left. Was only one of few things I never let go. I neglected it. One day, began working on restoring it. Learned having it was not legal so I applied for a FOID card, and then it became a hobby, collector, beginner hunter, and now active EDC, and USCCA member.
I didn’t grow up in a firearm family. My father was with a group that had a negative firearm related experience when he was in college and wanted nothing to do with them. In high school I shot my friends .22 rifle a couple times and we had several paintball contests in the woods. That was my only hands on experience for the first 3 plus decades of my life.
But for as long as I can remember I have always had an interest in firearms and feeling that I should own one and learn to use them for self defense and for hunting. It just took a long while with my nomadic lifestyle to finally be in a place where my drivers license matched the State I was living in long enough and for my bank account to have enough money in it to purchase one. I knew very little about firearms aside from the internet and some less than practical advice from the couple coworkers I had who owned some. That and the fact that I was living in CA at the time led to my first choice not being the best choice and I didn’t end up shooting much my first couple years as a firearm owner.
Around 2006 I started getting wind of the upcoming economic crises and started to get a little more serious about self defense and preparing to take care of myself, family and friends. I made a couple more practical purchases and most importantly lucked into finding a very good instructor who offered low cost training to locals. I eventually got connected with the USCCA and shortly after won one of their gun give aways which at the time was a gift certificate to an online shop. That allowed me join the world of semi auto rifle self defense tools. And here we are today:)
I started back in 2010 while I was in Northern California working in the money room of a privately owned car auction. There was a lot of cash and a few shady characters at the events. I asked the off-duty police officers that I worked with and sheriff if they minded if I carried during the auctions. There were no objections as long as it wasn’t concealed, plus it was at the discretion of the owner, who approved. It is almost impossible to get a California CCW, so I got CCW’s from both Utah and Arizona. Moved to Vegas in 2012 and got my NV CCW. My wife and I never leave the house unarmed, no matter where we go.
Friend of mine and I in high school were both real into firearms and it just kinda stuck. I didn’t really start to get serious about it until my son was born though for obvious reasons. A combination of that, threats at work and just a genuine love of firearms is why I’m here lol
In fact, I actually panic bought a (legal) HiPoint 45 when I turned 21 back in 2012. At the time we weren’t supposed to have guns in the house so I hid it under my bed. Eventually my mom found it and it went to live with my uncle for awhile. Still have it too! Haven’t shot it in years but I figure I might as well keep it because a) it’s illegal to sell or transfer in Illinois and b) people always laugh when I tell them I have a Hi Point or go 'is that a Hi Point?!?!" Whenever they see it lol.
100%! I bought it because I was 21 and it was about $220 for a .45. Couldn’t afford a Glock then like I can now. There’s a lot of folks in the same boat. There’s others I’d recommend to them for a little more than that over a Hi Point just because the metal but hey if that’s what you can afford that’s what you can afford. I’d rather someone spend what the can and be a gun owner like I did than not and be completely unarmed!
I feel your pain Brother. Money is hard to come by these days and it’s getting harder and harder for an honest man to make a living. Gotta keep those purse strings tight.
I have a weapon in my arsenal that has brought many a giggle to some of the folks I have been shooting with and that is my KelTec Sub2000 Gen 2. It is chambered in 9mm and accepts the same magazines my sidearm does. Perfect companion weapons.
There is one guy I catch up with from time to time who was a genuine Tier 1 Operator in another life and he laughed himself to tears when I brought it out the first time. I put it in his hands and let him shoot it. He didn’t laugh any more. Mine has a compensator on the muzzle which stretches it out a couple inches, so it folds up into about a 20 inch package. Perfect for a backpack. It’s light, accurate and shoots anything I feed it.
Take your ribbing where you get it and prove to the nay sayers your economy weapon works just as well as their higher priced weapon.
I have been wanting a take down or folding rifle that uses the same mags as my pistols for a long time. My funds just keep getting pulled away in other directions. The new Keltec Gen 3 that allows you to fold it without a red dot getting in the way is an interesting option.
I actual have a folding .223 Keltec SU16 that makes a good backpack rifle. It is pretty much all plastic outside of the barrel and the bolt. It occasionally has an issue feeding lighter rounds if I am not pulling the stock firmly back into my shoulder. But it has no trouble with 75 grain soft points and packs a lot of punch for its size and 4.5 pound weight. It may be on the cheap side and not overly pretty but it should get the job done.
. I feel dirty.