how many people know you carry?

[OuTcAsT]

Question 2. Yes. I actually walk around in crowds and such. If by "in crowds" you mean restraunts, convience stores, "on the street" and such places as that.

Pretty much the same here, I OC most of the time, conceal under "certain" circumstances.

So to answer the original question...pretty much anyone!

[kkb]

Well, there's my fellow classmates with whom I took CCW instruction, along with brush up classes over the years.

Folks who's brains I've picked for a "nice" weapon/holster/light.

My barber (there's a story for another time).

I help out when my gun club hosts a "First Shots" seminar for newbies on occasion. I'll remove my cover garment and let folks notice I'm carrying.

So I guess that adds up to lots of people that know.

[dberry]

My family, a couple friends and some coworkers. I try and not advertise it.

[H&K MAN]

My girlfriend knows because, she is accustomed tpo always walking on my weak side, holding my weak hand, etc. I believe my instructor put it best when he said "The only one who needs to know you have it is you. Until it goes off, then everyone knows, so you better have a very good reason for it going off!"

[cwok]

Cannot see any benefit.
People you discuss it with know you carry and anybody that they talk to may also hear about that you carry.

Worst case result.
Standing in line at 7-11 type store -- two guys pull guns to rob the place and some idiot looks at you and says:
............."You've got a gun, do something".
.

[indykappa]

My wife...my mother/father...a couple REALLY close friends.

But sometimes I actually WANT people to know I'm carrying. Let me explain...

I am a 30 year old black male, who started carrying about 7 years ago. I won't go too far into it, but the image of a "(young) black man with a gun" doesn't conjure up a lot of warm, fuzzy feelings among people. I understand that most of the folks here on TFL could care less, but I choose to open carry at times in order to hopefully begin to dispell some of the stigmas attached to guys that "look like me".

I'm sure that some of you may "get" what I'm saying, and that others won't...and I'm okay with that. You may see me open carrying with a suit on. I may have on jeans and a button-down shirt. I may have on shorts and a cutoff tshirt. I hope that it serves to educate people, and I love it when people ask me questions ("can you just carry it out like that?"..."Why do you have a gun?")

...I will now place my flame-retardant suit on...

[CorpITGuy]

@indykappa

Good for you! Be thankful you live in a state that hasn't taken away your right to open carry (as mine has done).

[CorpITGuy]

I'm a pro-gun activist. Every one knows I carry. It's in my bios on the web.

[rattletrap1970]

Everyone I know, knows I shoot avidly and I carry. They just don't know how many.

[FireForged]

My Wife and thats it........ No reason for anyone else to know.

[Steve2334]

My wife, that's it.

[golfballshootr]

My wife, twos sons and 1 friend......he wanted to know how hard it is was to carry a concealed weapon. I said not too hard, lifted the tail of my shirt and showed him. He already had the permit (about one month), but was worried people might notice. Asked how long I had carried around him, I said the past 7 years! So now he is carrying and is still trying to get over the worried someone might see part.

[n7qvu]

I agree with the above "they didn't have any reason to know".
Nobody knows if I am or not at any given time.
About 6-8 folks know I have a CCW, but many more when I start teaching CCW soon.

[orionengnr]

Well, there's the one who gives me a kiss as I leave the house...and she locks the door after I leave.

I suppose the three dogs who are witnesses to the above.

Other than that, my CHL instructor, my friend who took the class with me, and a couple people to whom I have referred my CHL intructor...

And now, you.

[Maromero]

My wife, family, inlaws and office personel.

[orionengnr]

sigh...another double tap...

[riggins_83]

My wife and a few close select friends (all of them gun nuts themselves).

And my coworkers, too, since I work as an armed guard part time.

[americanworkmule]

My family, a friend. I try and not advertise it either

[Sefner]

Originally Posted by "indykappa

My wife...my mother/father...a couple REALLY close friends.

But sometimes I actually WANT people to know I'm carrying. Let me explain...

I am a 30 year old black male, who started carrying about 7 years ago. I won't go too far into it, but the image of a "(young) black man with a gun" doesn't conjure up a lot of warm, fuzzy feelings among people. I understand that most of the folks here on TFL could care less, but I choose to open carry at times in order to hopefully begin to dispell some of the stigmas attached to guys that "look like me".

I'm sure that some of you may "get" what I'm saying, and that others won't...and I'm okay with that. You may see me open carrying with a suit on. I may have on jeans and a button-down shirt. I may have on shorts and a cutoff tshirt. I hope that it serves to educate people, and I love it when people ask me questions ("can you just carry it out like that?"..."Why do you have a gun?")

...I will now place my flame-retardant suit on...

You sir, have my respect. Should we ever meet on the street, I would like to shake your hand.

[Shotgun Don]

As few as possible. Got a guy i`v been friends with 4 a couple yrs and he just found out 4 the first time leaving a bar the other night lol

[indykappa]

CorpITguy/Sefner...thanks a lot!

I totally understand the idea behind keeping our choice to carry a secret, but I think it's our responsibility to not only be trained with how to use a gun...but also be well-versed about why we choose to carry (laws, statistics, trends, etc).

I get some funny looks from time to time when I open carry, but it serves as a teaching moment. I love it when people have a "eureka" moment and realize that "regular people" carry guns

[pax]

Well, let's see.

There are 30,000 people who subscribe to Concealed Carry Magazine, and 150,000 who read our newsletter.

Then there are about a gajillion on the internet who could read these words.

There's also my mom and (through her) my entire extended family. My husband and (through him) his entire extended family.

Everyone on staff at FAS, plus all the students that have passed through classes I've helped with over the past 7 years or so.

My kids' teacher at the homeschool co op (who thought it was cool, and allowed us to do a firearms-safety presentation for all the kids in the program).

My teenage sons and who knows how many of their friends...

The guy across the street, who asked me to teach his wife to shoot a few years back.

A friend of a friend, who was just starting to think about concealed carry and convinced he'd never be able to conceal. I commented that I could help him work through that, and he replied, "You? But I've never seen you carry a gun." I grinned and retorted, "You've never seen the gun, but you've never seen me without one..."

The sensei at the local danzan ryu dojo who has often watched me disarm ...

Our old babysitter, who was around when I was first getting into it and who asked me, "Why do you like guns? Guys like guns, girls don't!" -- and who understood perfectly when I replied, "Girls get raped, guys don't."

Oh, better add everyone on any of several email discussion lists where I participate, and of course the members of at least a dozen gun forums...

My firstborn's best friend's family -- who for a long time made a habit of dropping by to visit without calling first, and often caught me cleaning my teaching gun on Sunday nights. In fact, once they stopped by and I didn't have a gun in pieces on the kitchen table, and one of them immediately said, "Who are you and what did you do with the people who lived here before?! There's no firearm on the table!"

Nope. I haven't told anyone. I keep it a carefully-guarded secret because I'm terribly worried that if anyone finds out I carry a gun, they might think less of me....

pax

[HighStrung]

My wife for sure, a couple of my close and trusted neighbors, a handful of my family memebers, and very small select group of my co-workers whom also carry daily. Other than that, I don't advertize it.

[vince972]

my wife, mom, my job, all my friends... i want them to know i carry, cause if something ever happens and im always around someone i know, if something happens their my witness.

[(BH)]

Well let's see...

My wife
my parents
my inlaws
a few close friends
my boss
and most of the guys at my LGS

oh yeah and everyone that was in aisle six at krogers the day that my shirt got hung up over my sp101 while reaching for the top shelf.