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View Poll Results: Do you answer your door armed?
Night and Day - I pack and show my M60 8 5.93%
Night and Day - but it is hidden from view 69 51.11%
Night only or stranger only - condition yellow 42 31.11%
Never - If you can make it past the bear traps and land mine - you can knock on my door. 16 11.85%
Voters: 135. You may not vote on this poll

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Old May 6, 2005, 01:44 PM   #1
Duxman
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Answering your door (day and night) armed or no?

Folks, need some pearls of wisdom from you:

When you answer your front or rear door during the day and night - are u armed? And is it visible to the person knocking / ringing the doorbell?

I walk around armed in my home, and check the peephole to see it was my neighbor, so I shifted the firearm so he could not see it, and then answered the door.

How do you do it?
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Old May 6, 2005, 01:52 PM   #2
stephen426
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I live in a pretty good neighborhood which is in a gated community. I know that things can happen anywhere but find carrying all the time unnecessary. If I get an unexpected knock at night then I will grab a pistol first. I will find out what they want before opening the door. During the daytime, I will assess the threat before grabbing a weapon. If it is a girlscout, I find it unnecessary to scare her so bad she makes a "brownie" in her pants. If it is a guy, I might grab one but always keep it concealed.
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Old May 6, 2005, 02:00 PM   #3
Valkman
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I also live in a gated community in a nice area, but we have installed steel security doors that no one is coming through short of hooking up a truck and pulling them off. I don't walk around armed and normally do not get a gun to answer the door as it's either a neighbor or family.
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Old May 6, 2005, 03:27 PM   #4
USP45usp
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Day and Night. If it's a relative then I just reholster. If it's someone that I don't know then the chain lock is kept in place and I open the door with left hand, gun in right.

At night I get kind of rude (if it's someone I don't know). I shout through the door, "What do you want?" (I have an outside light that comes on when someone comes up so I can watch their actions).

"uh, dude, is XXXXXX here".

"Wrong house, go away".

Hey, it's my house and I don't have to be nice if I don't want to

Wayne
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Old May 6, 2005, 03:30 PM   #5
2002gti
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i have a steel gate/door that encloses my porch so i dont have to worry about someone kicking in the wooden/front door when i open it.
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Old May 6, 2005, 03:34 PM   #6
ATW525
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Hell, I'd install a firing port on my door in place of the peephole if my condo association wouldn't have a fit.
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Old May 6, 2005, 03:37 PM   #7
tjhands
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During the day, no. At night I have the little Tomcat hidden in the palm of my hand while I look through the window. Easy to pocket real quick if it's someone I know.
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Old May 6, 2005, 03:49 PM   #8
Dre_sa
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my pistol is always in my holster on my belt. at home my shirt is behind the butt of the gun. if someone comes knocking and i need to conceal its a simple matter of pulling my shirt over the butt.
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Old May 6, 2005, 03:50 PM   #9
novus collectus
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Almost never and only when there is a strange knock late at night.

But during the day, I will make a point of having a gun when it is Jehovah's Witnesses at the door. Maybe they will leave quicker then. (no offense to anyone who knows a JW, but I hate it when they won't take a hint and keep me busy for an hour talkng just because I am too polite to tell them to leave me alone)
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Old May 6, 2005, 04:27 PM   #10
glock19er
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ccw in house

Where i live is inner city ghetto area that i cant afford to move out of because of the money issue iam having now.but anyway the whole area is going down the drain fast from crack houses to section 8 apartments across the street so i dont have to worry about knock at the door but they rather come thru your window instead,so i carry one all the time and my wife has one on her also.Had one try to come thru my kitchen window about a year ago and he met the front side of a 1911a1 in his face that made him jump out the window so fast that to this day i still have one of his shoes that he left behind running after seeing the 1911 at his face coming thru my window.other than that havent had much problem out of the non working community coming thru my windows and doors here lately.
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Old May 6, 2005, 04:45 PM   #11
cyf7tkwl
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I voted, but my usual practice was not one of the options. I observe the visitor first. If the knocker has a FedEx, UPS or USPS uniform, I will open the door. If the person is holding a clipboard or carrying a plastic tub of sales items, I do not open the door or respond in any other way. After they leave, I check the porch to discard any ad materials that may remain.

On the rare occasion when I do open the door, I am covertly armed, because I always carry at home and anywhere else it is legal to do so.
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Old May 6, 2005, 04:49 PM   #12
Daniel964
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Quote:
Hell, I'd install a firing port on my door in place of the peephole if my condo association wouldn't have a fit.
Here's a thought. Could you install that gun port and call it a mail slot? Would that be allowed?
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Old May 6, 2005, 05:11 PM   #13
TallPine
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Always armed at home (see the carry at home thread) so always armed when answering the door. It may or may not be concealed depending on the weather and my mood.

We almost always hear vehicles drive into our 500' long drive and/or the dogs bark. I look out to see who it is by what they are driving. If I don't know them, then I am on high alert. Usually, I am out the door to greet them before they reach it anyway.

In Montana, nobody seems much concerned about open carry anyway. Just the day before yesterday, the realtor who sold our old house dropped by to tell us he had sold one of our neighbors' place and to thank us for recommending him to them. No mention or panic on his part . I often wonder what the UPS and Fedex drivers think but it doesn't matter. I am always jolly and friendly with them.

edit PS: A friend came by to talk about some insurance options yesterday morning. Still cool and I had my sweatshirt over the butt of my gun. Come to find out he has a MT carry permit
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Old May 6, 2005, 05:45 PM   #14
Bullrock
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During the daytime, I will assess the threat before grabbing a weapon. If it is a girlscout, I find it unnecessary to scare her so bad she makes a "brownie" in her pants.
LOL

I also live in a condo. :barf: It's a senior community. :barf: I seldom answer my door for any of the old gossiping bags who live here. I don't answer my door after dark. If the intruder insists I will open the inner door carefully with my P01 in hand down by my side.

If anyone is at the backdoor, then they have tresspassed through my fence gate onto my well-lit deck, in which case they may be met with any number of weapons, including my 22" 8 Round Winchester 12ga. pump!
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Old May 6, 2005, 05:54 PM   #15
BatmanX
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Apartment here, so yes, all the time.
Since looking through the peephole is a prime way to get yourself in a heap of trouble, I usually stand to the side of the door in the kitchen and yell out.
There is a small space of light that comes under my door, so I assume they can see me if I can see them.

I usually have the conversation through the door - from the kitchen - racked and decocked (DA), as there is NO ONE that comes to my door that I haven't talked to on the cell phone before they get there. If you are knocking on my door, you shouldn't be.

And I live in a "good" hood.
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Old May 6, 2005, 07:51 PM   #16
Bob41081
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Answer

I answered never but I have a hand on the collar of my all black 120 lb Shiloh Shepherd when I open the door.

Bob
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Old May 6, 2005, 08:31 PM   #17
S.E.R.T.SGT
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This one really depends for me. Usually first thing I do is look out a window and see who is at the front door. Maybe I'm paranoid but being an officer you get used to looking for the "shadow" when someone comes up to the "peephole". I've always had this "fear" of someone seeing the shadow and putting a bullet in my eye...so I'll check from a window first. If I do go down and check the door, I will keep the gun positioned behind the door out of view of the individual. Hope this helps, this is kind of my "routine".
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Old May 6, 2005, 08:34 PM   #18
Dwight55
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We have three doors on the house: front, back, and side.

I do not open to any knocks to the back door.

Front and side have 9 lite windows in each door, so I have advance warning as to who it is.

We also have a 600 ft gravel driveway, which usually gives away the fact that someone is coming in, . . . allowing me time to get my 1911 if it looks as though it may warrant it.

Fortunately, . . . we live "off the beaten path" so to speak, . . . so just about anyone who comes up the driveway has made up their mind to do so.

May God bless,
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Old May 6, 2005, 08:44 PM   #19
Sylvilagus Aquaticus
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Yep, always. P229 in the IWB holster or in hand, behind back.

I don't have much unplanned company. If they come around to the back door, the dog greets them, loudly.

Regards,
Rabbit.
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Old May 7, 2005, 01:18 AM   #20
mikikanazawa
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I live in a condo with a gated entry and open (uncovered) courtyard. People ALWAYS call from the gate before knocking, so I'm kinda skewing your survey there. ;-)

Normally if I'm on the road (for business etc.) I'm always packing and always ready to "slice the pie" when I hear a knock on the door.

Is such behavior a necessity for me? No. It's fun.
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Old May 7, 2005, 01:34 AM   #21
univtxattorney
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We live in a nice neighborhood, but I am always carrying when someone knocks on the door. If I am expecting them, I usually have the gun tucked away. If not, then it is in my hand. I don't look through the peephole--I just talk to the person through the door.

Can never be too safe.
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Old May 7, 2005, 02:44 AM   #22
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I carry whenever I'm not at work and at home is no exception. My area is pretty safe as far as non-domestic violence goes but there have been a fair number of burglaries over the last few months. What's mine is mine, and if someone wants it they have to go through me first.

I also tend to be a bit of a hermit, and almost never answer the door unless I'm expecting a delivery. If I do choose to answer, it's because the schmuck pounding on my door doesn't get the hint and won't go away. I figure at that point I might having my gun ony me isn't a bad idea.
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Old May 7, 2005, 03:48 AM   #23
PzGren
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When I am at home I am only the back-up for my Doberman and his Rottweiler girlfriend. We have a wall and automatic steel gate that is 7ft high.
A security camera is another convenience. I am usually also armed.
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Old May 7, 2005, 08:48 AM   #24
GUNSMOKE45441
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When we lived in rural Wolf Creek Oregon, I went to help a Sheriffs deputy,that was calling for backup, but couldn't be heard by the dispatcher,(I picked it up on my scanner,called 911, and told them I was going to help)
He was kind of nervous when I pulled up, told him I was on his side ,and he just grinned.
Back to the thread, That made me a marked man in that drug oriented area, so from then on it was condition red at all times, the sound of tires on gravel was all that was needed to put a shotgun in my hands, carried a .45, even slept with it on. Now in Ne Wa.it's condition white, no gun unless it's the middle of the night.
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Old May 7, 2005, 09:03 AM   #25
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Gunsmoke...What can I say? You sound like a true American. Not a lot of people would do that. Thanks, from someone who can appreciate the spirit of your actions.

Yeah, I answer the door armed. There is no demilitarized zone and it's a dangerous planet. Things happen every day.
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