Gun carry protocol?

Daniel Moore

Daniel Moore

Joined
Jul 28, 2003
Messages
2,790
I can't buy a gun yet (15 years old) but I'd like to get into guns when I'm older. What red tape do you have to go through to get a handgun? I'm from Massachusetts.

Thanks

-Dan
 
First thing you do is to move...your in the wrong state to make anything easy, you could move to Vermont to make it really easy, than you don't even need a permit. Secondly,research about certain guns, go to ranges find what fits you, find what you shoot the best and what you can make disappear. And now i can only speak for Virginia so i don't know the rest of the states but in VA you need to be 21, take a course, go to court and fill out some paper work, and wait a really long time. Packing.org is a great site with lots of info for all the states.
 
In Massachusetts everything depends on your local police chief. If your local chief is one of the good guys it's not that big a deal; though you'll have to take the NRA safety course. If your local chief is not one of the good guys you might have to take him to court.

Things are likely to change by the time you turn 21, but how they'll change ... at this point it's hard to predict. It could go in either direction....

Currently, once you get a License To Carry you're all set. In a lot of ways Massachusetts is better than many other states ... if the police chief of the town you live in is one of the good guys.
 
Thanks for the responses. I want to own a gun, but thinking of all the possible trouble was discouraging.
 
And that is exactly the way the anti-gunners want it. If they can't get them banned they want it to be a terror to own and carry one.

I wonder what would happen if the 1st ammendment was treated this way? :eek:
 
NeedleRemorse,

Greymoor is right. But everything I like to do is verboten in the politically correct town in The Peoples' Republic of Madison.

Since I was 5 years old I've liked guns (my coonskin cap went everywhere), knives, motorcycles and beautiful women. (No kidding. There was this buxom platinum blonde who was the emcee for western movies in Milwaukee in 1955, Our Gal Sal. I sent her birthday cards.) My mom found stilettos in my pockets, and just put them back. Most kids hit record stores; I hung out at 'West Side Cycle,' a shop that catered to custom Harleys in Milwaukee.

I was a C.C Rider, wearing his colors amongst 40,000 leftist students during the war years in Madison. Yikes, most times I got shunned. A professor made sport of my hobby in front of 400 students during a lecture.

I got to tell you, being 53 is great in some ways. I get to buy all of the stuff I missed as a boy! You should see my knife collection now, or try to beat me on my PS1!

I think maturing is over-rated.
 
I think maturing is over-rated.
Click to expand...

Amen!

I can't wait to have kids so I can support their hobbies. My parents think I'm a little strange for my knife and tarantula obsessions.
 
Wow, our Gov't sure trusts us now... when I was your age I used to carry a rifle openly to and from hunting small game. It was certainly acceptable then, even encouraged. Now it's not PC to do anything like that. Look how far our society has come in a few short years! Apparently it's gonna get even better. :barf:
 
Packing.org describes some of the laws and the hoops you'll have to jump through. As always, be sure to double check their info as it ma have changed.
 
Needle - if you're interested in firearms, or may be interested in acquiring one in the future, you would likely be well served by getting in touch with a local gun club. Many have junior rifle teams. Mike Yacino, the head of Goal, is currently in charge of the Taunton team, and has organized some inter-club competitions recently.

In case you're unfamilliar, goal, http://www.goal.org, is the Massachusetts state gun rights organization. IIRC dues are $35 per year, and worth it. Their website has much good info on the MA gun situation.
 
Thanks for the information, Benjamin. I'll be taking a safety course to go hunting with my uncles in Texas, hopefully.
 
but in VA you need to be 21, take a course, go to court and fill out some paper work, and wait a really long time. Packing.org is a great site with lots of info for all the states.
Click to expand...

The procedure here in VA(to get a consealed carry permit) is really not that bad to go through.
The class can be any NRA sponsored course(or a copy of your DD214) but is prefered to be the NRA personal protection course.
You dont actually have to go to court. More like the court house to fill out this paperwork in front of the county clerk to be noterized.
pay your fee(something like 50 bucks) and then wait about 3 weeks.
The nice thing about it is VA is a shall issue state which means they have a deadline they have to follow in processing your licence. If they dont process the paperwork within a certain ammount of time they Have To issue you the licence(by a certain date). Which keeps the liberal courts from repeadedly shuffling all the ccw permits to the bottom of the pile.
Virginia is one of the better states compared to say California.
On a side note, Va has no blade length limit on knives either. Which is nice on thoes days when you want to carry your big country kampr.
 
Dan, an an NRA Life Member i appreciate your honesty in stating your age. I am concerned about why you want to "get into firearms". The Constitution and the Bill of Rights does give you the right to acquire one without question. The three main reasons are generally, hunting, target shooting and concealed carry/self defense. The current crop of 'Video Games' makes using a weapon a 'cool' thing. The effects on video of what a handgun can do are a far cry from the actual effects. I suggest that you contact your local NRA and as other have suggested, join a rifle club to become familiar with firearms amd firearm safety. I joined a rifle club at 13 and shot in competition for many years. The NRA trained people will give you the correct training and outlook on weapons. Good luck! -Dick
 
I've just always been drawn to knives, and I also realized what an attraction I have to firearms, however it was always covered by the thought in the back of my mind that made me think I could never get all the licensing etc. As I think about it, I really don't know if I'd want a handgunm except to keep locked up in the house as a precaution, and I really want to get more and more into hunting.

Also, I understand what you mean with the video game aspect. I've noticed that the only people I know with paintball or BB guns are the ones who are very avid gamers. I'm not a gamer myself, except for a select few games. I have to admit that while I don't think that's what's influencing me, I'd really have to think about it more closely. By "get into" I meant to try, even though in retrospect it seems like I meant something along the lines of "force myself to get" guns.

After what you've all suggested, I really think that before I'm even old enough to get a gun I should take your advice and go to a class. That will allow me to make sure it's really for me. Also, if I go through safety classes I can go hunting.

Thanks for all of the great responses. I really respected Dick's post because of the fact that not only did he give me good advice, but he also wanted to make sure of my motives. Looks like the name the anti-gun people give NRA and other gun enthusiasts is just as much as a far cry from reality as those video games.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top