Observations after my first week carrying

[newbie06]

1. Most people don't recognize what you are carrying when you are printing. At first I was going around paranoid that I was printing all the time. After three days of carrying and nobody noticing (including my wife), I started to relax. Now accidental flashing the gun is a whole different matter.

2. Most places don't have a clue as to how to post a 30.06 or 51%. I can't begin to tell you how many times I actually walked into a place armed because they did not have the sign posted at the front door. This mainly happened in restaurants. They had the sign posted in the back at the little bar, but not at the front door. What good is that? How am I supposed to know that the 51% rule applies here, for not every restaurant with a bar will post a sign.

3. It takes a long time to finally get a holster to fit and stay right. Comfort is a big thing when carrying all day. Little adjustments go a long way. And yes, I am still working on getting my CTAC/Glock 26 combination right.

4. Carrying a weapon makes you respect the law more. This is not to say that I am no longer speeding on the freeway, but I am not nearly as bad as before. I guess I don't want to have the uncomfortable meeting with a LEO while armed.

5. I am much more observant when I am carrying. It is almost like a radar turns on in my head the second I put on the gun.

6. My wife has become a lot more supportive of me carrying when she found out just how much I have been carrying without her noticing. I think she had a misconception of what CHL is all about. Because I have not gone Rambo, vigilante, or made a big deal out of it, she has gotten more comfortable. She is even thinking about learning to shoot once her health gets better. The main thing is that I have not made a huge deal about the gun. Hopefully, this will continue to work with her. I would love for her to get her CHL.

[Charles L. Cotton]

Excellent observations, thanks.

Chas.

[thankGod]

Nice info. I'm glad it's working for you. I should have less than 3 months until I can share your experiences.

[Mike1951]

2. Most places don't have a clue as to how to post a 30.06 or 51%. I can't begin to tell you how many times I actually walked into a place armed because they did not have the sign posted at the front door. This mainly happened in restaurants. They had the sign posted in the back at the little bar, but not at the front door.

If you are in a restaurant that has a bar and you see a sign in the bar, it is probably "The Unlicensed Possession.....".

This is a proper sign required by TABC and does not apply to licensed carry.

How am I supposed to know that the 51% rule applies here, for not every restaurant with a bar will post a sign.

You can't rely on '51' signs , anyway. Your responsibility isn't affected by whether '51' signs are correctly posted. Common sense goes a long way here. It would be unusual for a restaurant with a bar to ever be '51'. Some movie theatres that have alcohol sales might require more checking. Bars will be the majority of '51' businesses.

It has been discussed here that the color of ink on the license indicates whether TABC considers the business to be '51', based on reports made to TABC. IIRC, red=51%, blue=not.

[newbie06]

2. Most places don't have a clue as to how to post a 30.06 or 51%. I can't begin to tell you how many times I actually walked into a place armed because they did not have the sign posted at the front door. This mainly happened in restaurants. They had the sign posted in the back at the little bar, but not at the front door.

If you are in a restaurant that has a bar and you see a sign in the bar, it is probably "The Unlicensed Possession.....".

This is a proper sign required by TABC and does not apply to licensed carry.

How am I supposed to know that the 51% rule applies here, for not every restaurant with a bar will post a sign.

You can't rely on '51' signs , anyway. Your responsibility isn't affected by whether '51' signs are correctly posted. Common sense goes a long way here. It would be unusual for a restaurant with a bar to ever be '51'. Some movie theatres that have alcohol sales might require more checking. Bars will be the majority of '51' businesses.

It has been discussed here that the color of ink on the license indicates whether TABC considers the business to be '51', based on reports made to TABC. IIRC, red=51%, blue=not.

I don't drink, so I will won't be in too many bars. That being said, restaurants do concern me. So what does the blue mean? I have seen the red in liquor store windows. For me, this is the biggest gray area in the law. Oh, BTW, can you carry in church without a posted sign? I never really got a straight answer on that one.

[Mike1951]

I didn't want to continue posting from memory, so I found this previous post:

by srothstein on Thu Jul 12, 2007 8:33 pm

LedJedi wrote:
someone posted on here somewhere to look at their liquor license that has to be posted visibly. If it's Red they're 51%, if blue you're ok... but i still wouldnt carry in a bar.

Almost, but not quite right. The color of the license makes no difference. On the license will be a line saying "Sign=Red" or "Sign=Blue". This is saying whether they need the red 51% sign or the blue "No unlicensed carrying" sign.

And the rule is not just if it is a bar. Many clubs are not 51% because of the income from admission and cover charges. Sell nothing but alcohol, but charge for the privilege of overpaying for the alcohol, so they are not 51%.

Mr. Rothstein is a TABC employee very knowledgeable about Texas law. So trust his statement, not mine.

Oh, BTW, can you carry in church without a posted sign?

Churches and hospitals must be posted per 30.06 to prohibit carry by licensed persons.

[newbie06]

I didn't want to continue posting from memory, so I found this previous post:

by srothstein on Thu Jul 12, 2007 8:33 pm

LedJedi wrote:
someone posted on here somewhere to look at their liquor license that has to be posted visibly. If it's Red they're 51%, if blue you're ok... but i still wouldnt carry in a bar.

Almost, but not quite right. The color of the license makes no difference. On the license will be a line saying "Sign=Red" or "Sign=Blue". This is saying whether they need the red 51% sign or the blue "No unlicensed carrying" sign.

And the rule is not just if it is a bar. Many clubs are not 51% because of the income from admission and cover charges. Sell nothing but alcohol, but charge for the privilege of overpaying for the alcohol, so they are not 51%.

Mr. Rothstein is a TABC employee very knowledgeable about Texas law. So trust his statement, not mine.

Oh, BTW, can you carry in church without a posted sign?

Churches and hospitals must be posted per 30.06 to prohibit carry by licensed persons.

So if I read you right. Blue=we can carry because we do have a license to carry. That is if you have a CHL. Also, if there is no post at church, we are good to go. Right?

[Mike1951]

So if I read you right. Blue=we can carry because we do have a license to carry. That is if you have a CHL.

Yes

Also, if there is no post at church, we are good to go. Right?

Yes

[thejtrain]

Congrats newbie06, very good stuff - looking forward to feeling what you're feeling in about 60 days!

6. My wife has become a lot more supportive of me carrying when she found out just how much I have been carrying without her noticing. I think she had a misconception of what CHL is all about. Because I have not gone Rambo, vigilante, or made a big deal out of it, she has gotten more comfortable. She is even thinking about learning to shoot once her health gets better. The main thing is that I have not made a huge deal about the gun. Hopefully, this will continue to work with her. I would love for her to get her CHL.

I'm really hoping for this as well. She was very uncomfortable at just owning one at first, but after a while she even reminded me to grab it once when something went Bump in the night. She was ambivalent-to-comfortable, if not exactly cheerfully supportive about getting my CHL, so I'm very hopeful that when I get the plastic and start carrying around her & our boys and I don't go off the deep end, that she'll get more and more comfortable, hopefully to the point where she'll let me get her started in getting comfortable shooting.

[mondo2000]

2. Most places don't have a clue as to how to post a 30.06 or 51%. I can't begin to tell you how many times I actually walked into a place armed because they did not have the sign posted at the front door. This mainly happened in restaurants. They had the sign posted in the back at the little bar, but not at the front door. What good is that? How am I supposed to know that the 51% rule applies here, for not every restaurant with a bar will post a sign.

If you are at a restaurant and they have a 51% sign up then you are either eating really cheap food or the liquor is very expensive. Most restaurants make a good amount of money off the liquor but not enough to break 51%. What I was told by my CHL instructor was that if you go into the restaurant and eat at a table you are fine, but if you go sit at the bar or table and start to drink then that is bad.

The Palace Lane bowling ally in West University (a small city within Houston) has a blue "unlawful possession of a firearm" sign at the door but then has a 51% sign at the bar. I assume that the bowling ally is fine but the bar is off limits. Of course it is very hard to bowl with a 45 strapped to your side.

[longtooth]

Mondo2000 wrote
Of course it is very hard to bowl with a 45 strapped to your side.

I confess that I am NO bowler. I have bowled w/ my son who is a bowler w/ my Kimber Pro in a Comp-Tac Infidel covered w/ a polo shirt. No problem & not a hint of anyone knowing.
Quality gear will hold it still & tight in virtually any activity. I even went through all my rehab after knee replacement & never worried about my carry. Regular vest cover. Most of the time in my OWB Tucker HF1.

[newbie06]

Mondo2000 wrote
Of course it is very hard to bowl with a 45 strapped to your side.

I confess that I am NO bowler. I have bowled w/ my son who is a bowler w/ my Kimber Pro in a Comp-Tac Infidel covered w/ a polo shirt. No problem & not a hint of anyone knowing.
Quality gear will hold it still & tight in virtually any activity. I even went through all my rehab after knee replacement & never worried about my carry. Regular vest cover. Most of the time in my OWB Tucker HF1.

Yes, I am starting to realize the value of spending your money up front on good gear. My first holster for the Glock 26 was a CTAC. Because I have been able to make so many adjustments on it, I have almost got it to the point where it is right. The gun hardly moves at all, and I hardly know it is there.

[Deborah]

I'm glad to see another law abiding citizen get their CHL. If I stilled lived in the Houston area, I'd love to work with your wife.

Deborah

[bevans]

Mondo I frequent Palace all the time and I carry and bowl , wearing OWB and shoulder holster . On the other hand the managment at palace will call the police if they suspect you are carrying,(one mngr in particular),but since concealed is concealed the last time they called the miscreant turned out to be a FBI agent out with his kids.