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Keeping a "truck" long gun

  • I keep a long gun in my car/suv/truck - out of view, but not locked up in a safe.

    Votes: 12 15.0%
  • I keep a long gun in my car/suv/truck in a safe.

    Votes: 1 1.3%
  • I am tinkering with the idea. Not decided yet.

    Votes: 16 20.0%
  • Too risky.

    Votes: 13 16.3%
  • Chances I will ever need a rifle unexpectedly are very slim. Not worth the trouble.

    Votes: 12 15.0%
  • Best choice would be/is: AR15

    Votes: 10 12.5%
  • Best choice would be/is: AK47

    Votes: 4 5.0%
  • Best choice would be/is Shotgun (can't be loaded in WA)

    Votes: 6 7.5%
  • Best choice would be/is a long range sniper type (like a Ruger Precision Rifle)

    Votes: 1 1.3%
  • Best choice would be/is an AR pistol (legal to keep loaded in vehicle with CPL)

    Votes: 30 37.5%

  • Total voters
    80
Messages
1,208
Reactions
1,380
I have been tinkering with the idea of keeping a rifle in my vehicle. For daily carry, there is no need to keep your pistol in the car for extended periods of time, but you cannot really carry a rifle, for all practical intents and purposes. There may be occasions when your EDC won't suffice but a long gun would be very helpful. Pretty much for the same reasons that many cops have a patrol rifle. Of course, as an ordinary citizen, you will not be exposed nearly as often, if ever, so the question is, is the benefit worth the risk? The risk being that someone breaks into your car & safe storage device and steals the rifle, or maybe the car altogether. Note, in WA you cannot have a loaded long gun in your vehicle, so that limits your choice to magazine fed rifles. Curious what the thinking is on this board. The poll is optional. Multiple selections enabled. Thanks for your input.
 
There have been a lot of news stories lately of homeowners being alerted to a break-in by their alarm company or surveillance cameras, who then make it to the scene before the police. I wouldn't want to only have a single stack EDC in that case. My vote is for an AR pistol in 300Blk.
 
It totally depends on where and when I'm going.

I don't keep a long gun or anything in the car regularly.

Normally for trips out of town or further then an hour away from home.

I can load a shotgun satisfactorily quickly and fire without much hassle. So sometimes I'll take one.
 
There may be occasions when your EDC won't suffice but a long gun would be very helpful. Pretty much for the same reasons that many cops have a patrol rifle. Of course, as an ordinary citizen, you will not be exposed nearly as often, if ever, so the question is, is the benefit worth the risk?

still not certain when the last time anyone needed to confront bank robbers or something but this year there have already been 137 car break in's in Seattle.
here is a link to a crime map for this: Story Map Series

here is a screenshot of the crime map filtered by vehicle break in's...
seattle car breakins.jpg
 
actually the above data may not be accurate, those were 911 calls for property theft including vehicles...

filter by police reports and the incidents jump majorly, 810 property crimes this year... not certain how many are vehicular.
here is a screenshot...
seattle police reports property crime.jpg

anyways, you decide if its worth the risk.
 
Had a shotgun in the rack, stolen by a neighbor I trusted, in less than thirty seconds. Later found out he started using crank. I am still asking people if they know him due to his fleeing to Alaska and my hope is he may return home some day.
Don't do it. Things have only gotten worse since the 1980s.
 
I carry daily, if I felt my car was a secure enough location to regularly keep a firearm, I would keep a rifle in the car, however, when weighing the probability that I will ever need / be able to retrieve a rifle from my car in a self defense scenario compared with the probability of my car getting stolen / broken into and my rifle being stolen. I decide that I am better off spending 1000 rounds training to be a good shot with a pistol at longer distances and keep my pistol on my person where it is unlikely to be stolen.

I have seen some cool safe options for cars, but I drive a small car, and at this time am not interested in dedicating most of my entire hatchback trunk space to a rifle. I need that space for rifle bags to take to the range :s0048:
 
It totally depends on where and when I'm going.

I don't keep a long gun or anything in the car regularly.

Normally for trips out of town or further then an hour away from home.

I can load a shotgun satisfactorily quickly and fire without much hassle. So sometimes I'll take one.

AR/AK "pistol" and a CPL is the solution for that pesky RCW loaded long-gun restriction. ;)

I think about it a lot and would do basically just what these two suggested. Pistol sized AR/AK in the vehicle loaded. Take it out when you are not in it. Big reason why I take everyone shopping and wait outside in the car. That way I don't have to worry about it. If and this is a HUGE IF we go to the mall, I just carry two or three concealed firearms. Not to mention knives and all kinds of stuff. Reasons why to get multiple sizes of Glocks or Sig P250 or P320.

SAME MAGAZINES!!! :s0139:
 
I think about it a lot and would do basically just what these two suggested. Pistol sized AR/AK in the vehicle loaded. Take it out when you are not in it. Big reason why I take everyone shopping and wait outside in the car. That way I don't have to worry about it. If and this is a HUGE IF we go to the mall, I just carry two or three concealed firearms. Not to mention knives and all kinds of stuff. Reasons why to get multiple sizes of Glocks or Sig P250 or P320.

SAME MAGAZINES!!! :s0139:

Entirely too much operating going on.

I dont worry about my car being broke in to at my home(dead end road in rural clackamas county), but worry when I leave a firearm in my vehicle in towns like Portland. Where depending on the breeze someone might break-in to your car just to pop the hood and steal your 1994 honda civic battery and vehichle registration(bastards). I hate thieves.
Ya so when I do its a UZI or streetsweeper. Something that holds fifty rounds standard or can cut a door down in a few shots. Otherwise carry a pistol with a few mags, Rambo.
 
The only real con I see is the risk of theft. So if you're going to do it, try to figure out a good solid means of securing it.

And if you're going to do it, the only reason I would do an AR pistol instead of a full blown rifle, is if space was an issue.

I don't keep a rifle in my rig as a standing practice but I will toss one in on certain occasions. Like any time I'm going to be riding the ferries.

BTW...it's worth noting...in the event that you ever had to deploy a rifle...understand that to a lot of people you are going to look like the bad guy with a gun...including the police. A pistol is easily concealable and you can get it back in your holster under a cover garment pretty quickly. There's no hiding a rifle. Keep that in mind when the cops roll up...or you meet another CCW holder who is trying to figure out if your a good guy or a bad guy. Things have to be ENORMOUSLY bad before I would deploy a rifle as a civilian.
 
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Durning the summer I often carry a rifle in my truck... Because during lunch break I can often shoot a dozen rockchucks while I have my sandwich sitting on a grassy knoll overlooking the Snake River canyon.

I doubt my $1200 12 pound bolt action .22 would be of much use for what you guys are talking about packing a rifle around for though.

Now for months at a time, I might carry a AR15 around... If I am working where the coyotes are thick. Hasn't been the case lately though.

I never carried a rifle when I lived in Seattle and very seldom carried a pistol honestly. I always figured I had a far greater chance of being a victim of some crazy far left wacko who glimpsed my weapon and called in to say I just pointed my piece at them and screamed: "Die you granola socks with sandals panda hugger"! (or something a less PC) in the hopes of getting the fuzz to show up and drag me off to jail. I saw that as a real risk. Getting mugged or robbed? Not so much. Being a 220 pound 6 foot tattooed blacksmith I don't exactly scream "victim" so as long as I used some common sense about where and when I was out and about I did not feel like I had much risk of being mugged or harassed. In the 17 years I lived in Seattle I never once wished I had a gun on me when I didnt.. Maybe I was lucky, Maybe I just look like a poor target and was left alone.

Now I live in a town of 4000 people in the middle of the desert, Rockchucks and coyotes are a far bigger concern than mass casualty events or "active shooters"

I carry a gun far more often here than I ever did in Seattle, and many of the folks here do as well. However, I would venture that the reasons are far different. Today I often carry several hundred rounds in my truck and several handguns... Because I might get a chance to throw out a few targets with a friend and get in some trigger time.
 
Last Edited:
still not certain when the last time anyone needed to confront bank robbers or something but this year there have already been 137 car break in's in Seattle.
here is a link to a crime map for this: Story Map Series

here is a screenshot of the crime map filtered by vehicle break in's...
View attachment 398699


That was my argument in my thread on the topic where I called truck guns overrated. Logic seems to be non existent in some, so I got flamed.:rolleyes:
 
No unattended firearms in my vehicles. Just personal preference. If there's firearms in the vehicle It's probably because I'm headed somewhere to play with them.
My situation is very similar to IronMonster's. Pretty slim chance of a mass casualty event in my town of 890. Besides that, I'd lay odds that in any given locale within my county there's probably more guns than people. I never EVER feel exposed to bad-doers when I'm close to home. I'm not much of a worrier in that regard anyway. I'm told I give off a pretty solid "not a victim" vibe, although I'd certainly never consider myself a badass. It'd probably do me some good to shift more toward gray man persona.
 

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