Are We Allowed to have a gun in an RV for protection?

[fdwarren]

Is it legal to carry a firearm in an RV. I am not paranoid, but I like to be prepared.

[RV_daytrader]

If you stay only in campgrounds I see no reason to have a gun. Dirtbags are less likely to do their evil deeds with a lot of RVs around...I stay mostly in isolated places and often am the only RV in the area, so I always have a gun with me....I dont want to hear whispering outside my RV in the middle of the night, NOT have a gun and hope nothing is going to happen! Having a Mossburg pistolgrip 12 gauge pump with me just makes me feel better!

[kgragert]

DutchmenSport wrote:

fdwarren wrote:
... With so much of the world going to the dogs, I want to feel safe while I camp.

Maybe a bit off-topic, but maybe right on-topic.... actually, a dog is a good thing to have when traveling and camping and really no need for a firearm. A good, well behaved dog, and one that barks when there is really a need to bark is a priceless companion and protector. More than likely, you'll never be bothered by any ("rif-raff") if you have a good dog that likes to bark at strangers and anyone appearing to invade his turf. Our dog is our best protection, even if he is only a long hair miniature dachshund. He definitely let's the world know he's there ... so you know ... maybe the world HAS gone to the dogs!

My Rotty is the sweetest dog in the neighborhood, until someone knocks on the door or sticks there head up to look into a window. When she barks no one sticks around. Even people who know her step back and away.

Campgrounds always ask if I have an aggressive breed. I alway reply, You mean a Chihuahua?

[DutchmenSport]

fdwarren wrote:
... With so much of the world going to the dogs, I want to feel safe while I camp.

Maybe a bit off-topic, but maybe right on-topic.... actually, a dog is a good thing to have when traveling and camping and really no need for a firearm. A good, well behaved dog, and one that barks when there is really a need to bark is a priceless companion and protector. More than likely, you'll never be bothered by any ("rif-raff") if you have a good dog that likes to bark at strangers and anyone appearing to invade his turf. Our dog is our best protection, even if he is only a long hair miniature dachshund. He definitely let's the world know he's there ... so you know ... maybe the world HAS gone to the dogs!

[kgragert]

Don't forget Canada if you're heading north.
They have a No gun policy, even if locked in a gun safe.
You will be arrested if found with a firearm regardless of type.
They even arrested an American tourist that got on the wrong road and just tried to make a U-turn on the Canadian side of the border.

Bear pepper spray is a great idea, 30'-50' range, you can sweep a large area in a fraction of a second, and if you make a mistake it's non fatal.

[Bob_Olallawa]

Bear spray...Small bear's droppings have berries in them. Large bears droppings have bells in them and smell like pepper.

If you want to know where it is legal to have the firearm and where it is not, this is not the place to ask the question. If you want to take a chance and carry either on your person or in the RV, You need to be the only person that knows that and if you ever really need to use it, sort it out then. Sad to say there are just so many laws in each state, I don't think you could ever be legal every where you go. Unless you are retired law enforcement, they have special rights.

[Old-Biscuit]

Long term residents at CGs may look like rif raf but majority are really good, hard working folks

Most rif raf boondock at Walmarts

I still believe in 2nd Amendment

[intheburbs]

fdwarren wrote:
Thank you all for very good info. What a great forum this is. With so much of the world going to the dogs, I want to feel safe while I camp. I like the bear spray idea.
Do you find that the riff raff stays away from RV campgrounds?

At the real touristy spots, like Yellowstone and Grand Canyon, yes, you don't see a lot of shady types.

But in some of the closer-in campgrounds, near large cities, you have that possibility, especially in campgrounds that have a lot of long-term RVs.

I always have a firearm with me when we travel. Just like I have two fire extinguishers in my truck. I hope to never need them.

I've stayed at a few, shall we say, sub-optimal campgrounds. I've never had any concerns about the safety and well-being of my family at any of them.

[fdwarren]

Thank you all for very good info. What a great forum this is. With so much of the world going to the dogs, I want to feel safe while I camp. I like the bear spray idea.
Do you find that the riff raff stays away from RV campgrounds?

[Tom_Barb]

fdwarren wrote:
Is it legal to carry a firearm in an RV. I am not paranoid, but I like to be prepared.

He said "FIREARM" why does every one assume hand gun. ????

A little shot gun works best. The knock down power of a 12 gauge slug is 100 times better than a hand gun. It's easier to control and the state to state laws are not as strict.

[D_E_Bishop]

In my experience there is a huge variation in data provided by the sources suggested and that includes LEOs. I would check with any State where there may be a question on legality on you part. What I'm saying is, don't believe everything you read or little if anything given on here as absolute fact.

I used to carry back in the days of tent camping with my DW and DDs, today however, I only transport, never carry, if we are going to our desert home or someplace where we can shoot safely.

There is just too much going on with nervous LEOs and over zealous gun owners and I have never needed a gun for protection while traveling. That's just my opinion and I know it is not popular in many places. I am a gun owner and my children and grandchildren a well schooled in the proper use of handguns, long rifles and shotguns and I support the Second Amendment, I just don't find the need to carry while in my RV.

[derh20]

There certainly is misinformation here, but keep in mind, the web has information, not necessarily facts. Here is a chart that maybe helpful when traveling with a concealed weapons permit.
http://www.handgunlaw.us/documents/USReciprocity.pdf

[DutchmenSport]

I cannot answer for every state, but I do know in Indiana you do not need permits for shot-guns or powder guns (old fashioned that use powder you pour in yourself).

I do not always carry my shotgun with me, but when I do, I usually leave the shells at home. Regardless of what's going on, I absolutely do not want to have any kind of accident happen. I just want the "click-click" sound as a deterrent, and my dachshund (who thinks he's part basset hound), barks and howls at anything that moves.

Like I said, I don't normally bring my shot-gun along, but sometimes I have an unsettled feeling about leaving the house empty. As far as it goes, I can recover from a television theft, or even a computer theft, but if my shotgun was stolen, I think I'd be rather upset. It's an older one, so old it doesn't even have a serial number. So I'll bring it along sometimes, just so I feel better. Sometimes we have possessions that are irreplaceable. This is one of them. And I really do like that 'click-click'!

[donandmax]

Tom/Barb wrote:
Guns come with responsibilities be safe with it and never give reason for any LEO to search your trailer, require a legal warrant to search.
Never display it with out reason. keep it out of sight, and out of reach of children.
Never take a life over material things only when you or your family's lives are in danger.

And remember if you have to shoot someone you will be poor for the rest of your life..(lawyers)

[intheburbs]

3oaks wrote:

i5trucker wrote:
Not only do the laws vary from state to state, but also from city to city. New York, Chicago, Detroit and other cities have law very strict laws that the states of those cities do not have.

Now that's the best answer. You and a few others actually tried to answer the question.

It always amazes me as to how many people make comments without answering the original question. :R

What's worse, there is even a comment or two that could put a person on the wrong side of the law if they did as suggested. :E

Well, except for the fact that there are some wrong answers in there.

For some reason, a lot of people believe Detroit has very strict gun laws; maybe it's because it's such a sewer and folks automatically equate high crime cities to strict gun laws.

Michigan has a preemption law, meaning counties/cities/towns cannot pass stricter gun laws that preempt state law. In Detroit, you can carry concealed with a license. If you don't have one, you can open carry a holstered handgun, or even open carry a rifle slung over your back.

There's also a big difference between having a handgun in your RV, and a pump-action shotgun or hunting rifle.

The best advice on this thread is to check with a gun law lawyer.

Oh, and my Michigan Concealed Pistol License is recognized by 40 states. 😉 The 10 states that don't honor it don't get any of my money.

ETA - if you choose to have one in your RV, please have a method of securing it. The nightstand drawer or a cabinet is not secure. Hiding is not the same as securing it.

[PSW]

Many people only feel "safe" with a gun. Personally, we carry bear spray in our RV and feel it will stop anybody if it will stop a bear. These are the big sixteen ounce sprays we belt carry for back country hiking. Some people carry wasp spray as an alternative to a hand gun.

I have owned guns for over sixty years so I am not a "no gun" guy. Just our preference.