Fire Arms and RVing

[Madathlon]

I was wondering. As a hunter (Both Rifle and Bow) I like to be able to travel with my firearms. So the question is. Do you travel with your firearms and what laws cover RVers with firearms across state lines?

[fgutie35]

It varies from state to state. I would check their laws first If I were you. Not just the destination state, but every state you are going to go tru.

[DaveVA78Chieftain]

Never, never, never bring a gun to Washington DC.

[LJ-TJ]

Don't even think of bringing them to Canada. Can it be done yes...is it worth the aggravation not a chance. 

[Madathlon]

Ya, I had a feeling that this subject would be a hard one to answer. So first, when you do travel and carry, what do you do with your firearms. Im am planning on installing a safe under the rear bunk.

[4winds]

I carry mine anywhere I go.  That said won't be going anywhere near DC or New York or Canada.  I'm old and cranky,don't tell me I can't. W%

[RV Mech Tech]

Here is a guide to the firearms laws in the USA and Canada - it is updated every year - www.gunlaws.com/travel.htm   

[Madathlon]

Oh That awesome!

[ClydesdaleKevin]

Alrighty then...I know this one!!!

Here's the deal:  If you have a long gun, there are only a couple of places in the whole country where you can get in trouble with it, since the RV is your domicile.  DC, NYC, and a few other places restrict even long guns, but again, its your domicile, so unless they search you...and they have to have a good reason to do so, even with homeland security laws...then you are fine.

Handguns are the tricky one.  Again, its your domicile, and a lot of states even reciprocate pistol permits...but if you leave it in the house and don't give smokey a reason to board and search you, then chances are you'll never get in trouble.

A lot of RVers, myself included, carry onboard blackpowder revolvers.  Just as accurate and deadly as any modern revolver, they just take a lot longer to load and are considered primitive firearms.  Which means at the MOST, and this is even in DC and Jersey, its a misdemeanor weapons charge, not a felony.  The reason I mention this is because, as fulltimers, I want at least one gun onboard for defense.  If I happen to be in NYC or DC or Jersey and I HAVE to use it, I'd really rather not go to prison, even if it was self defense, for a felony weapons charge. 

So we carry  blackpowder revolvers onboard...I'm actually starting to collect them!

Kev

[BigSarge]

So we carry  blackpowder revolvers onboard...I'm actually starting to collect them!

Kev

Smart way around the law and still be able to protect yourself! Im going to start looking into these revolvers.

[Madathlon]

black power guns, now that is an idea.

[ClydesdaleKevin]

Yep...blackpowder revolvers give you six powerful and accurate rounds.  Ruger used to make one called the Old Army, which is my personal favorite, and Pietta, Traditions, Dixie Gunworks, Uberti, and some others make very beautiful and usable models.  This is my latest baby...gotta love how you can switch out cylinders in a heartbeat and use them like speedloaders!

They are also great if you have kids...not too many kids would even have the first clue as to how to load it, and you can store bullets, powder, and caps separately...it won't fire with any of these elements missing...and you can use a trigger lock as well.  Safest gun around kids on the planet.

We leave ours loaded cuz our furry kids don't have thumbs...lol!

Kev

[Madathlon]

That does sound like a good plan as to RV protecting on the road

[GulfCoastFighter0]

Black powder, that's innovative!  Great idea.

[George-47]

Would a maritime flare pistol pass the primitive weapon test?? when I was driving semis I saw the havoc it caused a robbery in progress at a truck stop...cleared the parking area and as far as I know the driver  just got an bum chewing from the police..it was in the south Chicago truck stop .

[Madathlon]

Usage of a Marine Flare gun on land and NOT during a emergency is a federal offence that carries a heavy fine and Jail time.

[vincewarde]

As an experienced gun guy (Federally Licensed Collector, NRA Instructor) I would add the following advice:

1) Hollow base bullets are to be preferred for both accuracy and knockdown power over round balls.

2) Unlike cartridge firearms, the powder in a cap and ball revolver can draw moisture from the air.  This can cause the pistol to fail to fire when you need it.  Wild Bill Hickok, who used a pair of Colt Navy Revolvers well into the cartridge era, unloaded them and replaced the powder every morning.  Modern black powder substitutes ***may*** be less prone to this problem, and Hickok may have been over cautious, but this is an issue I would find an answer to before I depended upon one of these revolvers to work in a life or death situation.


Outside of IL, DC, CA, NJ and NY (esp. NYC) most jurisdictions allow non-residents to possess just about any gun legal under federal law.  There will be transportation rules, but unloaded and locked up will probably cover most of them.  Even here in CA, the two laws non-residents are most likely to get caught up in are the so called "assault weapon" ban and the 10 round limit in magazine capacity.  Comply with those laws and you are 100% legal to possess say a 9mm Glock handgun.  Just obey the storage and transportation laws (which are exactly the same for a black powder pistol) an you will be fine.

[ClydesdaleKevin]

Regarding black powder revolvers, yes blackpowder is very sensitive to moisture.  The way around this to keep the power fresh at all times, since the steel cylinder walls themselves are impermiable to moisture, is to do the following things:

First, after loading the cylinders and before putting primers on the nipples, take a heavy grease like Thompson Center Bore Butter, or even vaseline will work, and totally fill up the front of the cylinder with it, covering the ball and its seams completely...this seals the front.  It will also prevent a chain fire accident.  Now, making sure you've already put your blackpowder away, remove the loaded cylinder from the gun and set it on a table with the nipples pointing up, and carefully add a primer to each nipple.  Take a candle and light it, and then drip melted wax on each primer, making sure it is completely coated and sealed all the way around the nipple.  You have now just completely sealed all the moisture out of the cylinder and the rounds will stay fresh...I've done it and fired the weapon a year later with no misfires.  That said, take care on two things...the cylinder is now primed, so be careful and don't drop it!  Put it back in the gun frame and put the gun away.  The second thing is to spend the money and get good primers...at last use, I kept getting misfires from CCI primers, but was having no problems with other brands like Remington.

Now onto the main topic.  Since establishing my permanent residence as Arizona, and getting an Arizona concealed weapons permit (who by the way will issue non residents concealed weapons permits, through the mail, and all you have to do is pass the federal background checks and have a valid firearms training card or proof of taking a class up to their pretty rigid standards), I have sold and traded in my blackpowder weapons and now have cartridge firearms, including a .357 Ruger Blackhawk, western holster rig and all, a Bersa .380, a very reliable concealed carry piece great for hot weather carry in the smallest self defense caliber I would ever recommend, a Henry Big Boy also chambered in .357, and my favorite, a tuned up, polished, and very accurate Ruger Security Six in .357, my favorite carry piece with a Galco Fletch holster that keeps it so well hidden and tight you can wear a very light shirt over it and no one would ever know you were carrying.

All of this said, the reason I went for the Arizona concealed carry permit (even non residents can carry in Arizona without a permit, concealed or open carry), is that it reciprocates to almost every state we travel in, camp in, or travel through.  Which means I can carry in almost every state we are ever in, with the exception of New York and Jersey, where they stay locked up in the RV, and passing through Maryland and Illinois.

Your RV is your domicile and you are allowed to carry firearms in them...however, some laws vary state to state, so some states if you are traveling on public roads, the weapons are to be secured, locked up with ammo in a separate location.  Also, since Homeland Security, while law enforcement needs a warrant to search your parked RV, if operated on a highway they can search you for just probable cause, so don't give them any!  Obey the traffic laws, make sure all your lights work, and avoid inflamatory political bumperstickers and the like.

Vince is right in saying you should really make sure you are not only well trained in the handling of any firearm you possess, but you should also make sure you practice with it at least a few times a year.  I go to shooting ranges in NC, AZ, and OK whenever we are there.  Good thing too, because the safety location on the Bersa is in a counterintuitive location, and it took me a while to get used to flipping it up with my thumb while drawing from the holster so it would be ready to fire when presented to the target.

In any event, I am a gun advocate, and we do travel in the boonies a lot, sometimes pretty darn close to the Mexican border.  Not a lot of law enforcement out there, there are rattle snakes and coyotes (not many snakes the time of year we are there), javalinas, etc, and we are often alone and miles from the nearest town.  I carry.  Period.  Except NY and NJ. 


Kev

[vincewarde]

Kev......excellent advice.   

[mtennison]

 Find the right fitting percussion cap and use real black powder with an oversized "ringcutting" ball and you could be good for decades loaded. Ringcutting means loading a slightly oversize ball into the cylinder chamber which cuts off a ring of lead when the ball is pressed into the cylinder. A little grease on top of the ball wouldn't hurt either. I've owned and used these things for decades, and would use one for self defense if needed but the exploded caps can jam up the action, and I would opt for more modern firearms if possible.

[ClydesdaleKevin]

A proper sized ball will always shave a ring of lead off the ball, but you should still always grease the ball to prevent chainfire, always.  And besides, a good grease like Thompson Center Bore Butter keeps the bore clean between shots (you never want to use petroleum products with blackpower, except gun oil on the outside of the gun...it forms tar and thus fouls the bore...a problem they never had back in the glory days of the frontier when they greased the guns with animal fats and greases).

The caps are the reliability issue.  I've had the best luck with Remington caps...too many misfires from CCI lately...must be bad quality control.  My candle wax solution keeps them fresh.

If you can get a pistol permit, I suggest you do and get a modern cartridge firearm.  If not, perhaps because of a stupid indiscretion in your youth or you live in an idiot state like Illinois, then the blackpowder revolver is the next best thing, and the most you can get hit with legally is a misdemeanor weapons charge, not a felony firearms rap.

My favorite blackpowder revolver of all time is the Ruger Old Army.  Because of the way the back of the cylinder is designed, its almost impossible for a spent primer to jam the cylinder.  The gearing of the cylinder is so strong it almost always unjams itself, shearing through the primer housing like wire cutters.  They sadly don't make the Old Army anymore, but you can get them used in blued and stainless at good prices, from 200 bucks to 300 bucks. 

I'd have one if cleanup wasn't such a pain in the butt.  You have to use a lot of soap and hot water to clean them up every time you shoot them, and since we fulltime it in an RV, we decided to go exclusively with modern firearms.

Kev

[GONMAD]

Hello All,   I have to agree with the black powder approach, however I used to carry two loaded & primed navy revolvers. The way I was taught was to only load five chambers leaving one for the hammer to reside in without danger of setting one off by accident. I had a period where it was necessary to carry protection & these units were no trouble at all prepping them as described in earlier articles here. a bit bulky but worth it. I used to experiment firing BOTH at one time creating a 'white noise' effect & producing almost no sound in the process. pretty weird when firing only one is loud as all hell. I like the "primitive  weapon" aspect but it gets the job done. I also carried a 12 gauge home defender as well. Give them no reasons to take notice of you & you'll have no troubles. 
be safe everyone, the world is changing & it pays to be careful.... GONMAD

[bluebird]

I carry mine anywhere I go.  That said won't be going anywhere near DC or New York or Canada.  I'm old and cranky,don't tell me I can't. W%

I agree!! When I go out of town, I carry 2 handguns, a 9mm and a pocket 380. I keep them both loaded too.  I've carried for the last 20 years. Never had any problems yet, but I don't give the man a reason to search either. I have considered getting a cc permit, but it would only be good for my state only. And if you have to use the weapon, you will still have to face the consequences. I don't do a lot of traveling, but when I do I carry.

[LJ-TJ]

 

[Rickf1985]

Here is something for you to think about. Bluebird, I am with you but this is serious stuff you are doing.
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2015/02/18/flintlock-from-1700s-could-land-elderly-nj-man-in-prison/