Open Carry at the NRA Annual Meeting in Indianapolis, 2023

AmmoLand ^ | April 17, 2023 | Dean Weingarten

[marktwain]

Image Courtesy Dean Weingarten

On Friday, April 14, at the first day of the NRA Annual Meeting in Indianapolis in 2023, this correspondent rode the shuttle from the Gate Ten parking lot to the Indiana Convention Center.  A passenger was openly carrying what appears to be one of the Springfield XD series of pistols in a thumb-break outside the waistband holster. Notice the clip on the right front pants pocket. It is almost certainly attached to the ubiquitous folding pocket knife. The gentleman was perfectly willing to have this picture taken of him openly carrying. His comment was to the effect: Never leave home without it.

The next morning, on Saturday, this correspondent had only been off of the shuttle for a few minutes when another gentleman was seen openly carrying a 1911 clone of some manufacturer, of which there are many. The open carrier informed this correspondent the pistol was loaded with Hornaday Critical Defense loads in .45 ACP. In this case, the pocket knife is a simple folding box-cutter knife.

Image Courtesy Dean Weingarten

One of the reasons open carriers were more difficult to spot at this meeting is the ubiquitous carry of cell phones. With so many people carrying cell phones, it is much more difficult to “make” an open carrier or a concealed carrier. With so many people carrying bulges on their belts or in their pockets, it is very difficult to know who is armed and who is not.

[marktwain]

Now that Constitutional Carry has been restored in Indiana, there is less incentive to open carry.

[digger48]

It was fairly quiet in Indy this weekend

4 shot, one killed

But they started back Monday morning at 6:30 AM with a murder by gunshot at a gas station

[MtnClimber]

I prefer concealed carry even if open carry is an option. Currently Sig P365XL in a Desantis Nemesis pocket holster.

[Terry L Smith]

The reportter’s last sentence is the beauty of the whole pickle.
If a ‘seasoned eye’ cannot discern, with any surety, who is and who is not armed, then ‘the general public, both nefarious and well-minded, may not either, and be a bit more respectful on the street.

[Vaquero]

“An armed society is a polite society”. Robert A Heinlein

[Yo-Yo]

I don’t really have an issue with open carry in public, especially at the NRA Annual Convention, but I’d much rather see a retention holster used, even if it is only a thumb-break style like in the first picture.

It’s a security issue of not having someone sneak up behind you and snatching your weapon.

Not as big a deal in rural areas, or on BBQ night, but when in big crowds, or in a Walmart, etc., it can easily happen to even the most alert person.

[lee martell]

“Discern” That’s the word he should have used in his last sentence.
Instead of “make”.
Other than that, the writer is very observant and knows his guns well.

[marktwain]

The third carrier had a very good retention holster which did not look like a retention holster.

[Sicon]

Nothing screams "Boomer" as much as this does:

[Puppage]

Agreed. No one needs to know I am carrying.

[Yo-Yo]

I have a Safariland ALS retention holster for my Glock 26 that looks very similar. It has a positive lock retention that has the release button on the back side of the holster that is released by the side of your third finger when you grip the firearm. Very discreet, and very hard for someone not familiar with the holster to know how to unlock it.

However, my sin is that I have the holster set up with a paddle, which is another open carry "no-no" due to the ability to snatch the entire firearm and holster. But it does retain on my belt very well, so I'm not as worried about it.

[Manuel OKelley]

That model has become my primary as well but how the hell do you fit it in a pocket ?

[Manuel OKelley]

Wonder why more people don’t carry their knives on the opposite side?

[Manuel OKelley]

Lolz very true

[marktwain]

The last open carrier in the article had a spare knife attacked to a pouch on the opposite side.

[MtnClimber]

Cargo pants usually have pockets that are large enough. I wear 5.11 and similar brands alot.

[Paal Gulli]

If someone were looking to stir up trouble, logic dictates that they target the open carriers first because they have chosen to broadcast the fact that they carry the potential to disrupt their plans.

The gray man, OTOH, takes pains to go unnoticed, be invisible. When trouble breaks out, he has more options at his disposal because he has neither drawn attention to himself nor displayed his threat potential.

Yet.

However, if you choose to carry openly, what better place to do it than in the midst of a congregation of the converted?

[Manuel OKelley]

Good

Over the years ve spent far more time (because I can while doing other things) practicing deploying knives both hands/sides until it become natural to have a pointy thing facing down/out in left hand under my pistol to deter anyone from grabbing it

Haven’t timed myself lately but confident I’m still under a second or two for both pistol and knife

[PROCON]

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[gundog]

...it can easily happen to even the most alert person.

A coworker in the AF was kind of a weapons nut. We were stationed in Florida, and he hit on diver’s knives, with their retention system. One night at a party, we made it a mission to swipe his belt knife as many times as we could. We got over 30.