New to gun ownership

[Tibbar110]

I purchased a gun today and am about to go under a background check. I have no reason to believe that I will have any problems obtaining a license. (My record is clean.). Presuming that I am permitted to take ownership of my firearm, would my wife be permitted to use it in the event of an emergency and I am unavailable. I am not a lawyer but can understand legal code if I am pointed in the right direction. For that matter, are other people like my parents or other relatives permitted to use my gun at a range, under my supervision?

 

[dblas]

I purchased a gun today and am about to go under a background check. I have no reason to believe that I will have any problems obtaining a license. (My record is clean.). Presuming that I am permitted to take ownership of my firearm, would my wife be permitted to use it in the event of an emergency and I am unavailable.

Yes

I am not a lawyer but can understand legal code if I am pointed in the right direction. For that matter, are other people like my parents or other relatives permitted to use my gun at a range, under my supervision?

Yes and Yes.

 

[Tibbar110]

Thank you. Do you have the legal code that I can view for future reference?

 

[dblas]

Thank you. Do you have the legal code that I can view for future reference?

Google Maryland Annotated Code, public safety statutes, for 90% of the laws concerning firearms.

If you want to know what the new bill will do come October 1, then start with this thread: http://www.mdshooters.com/showthread.php?t=114585 and read the very first post.

 

[sajidakh]

Thank you. Do you have the legal code that I can view for future reference?

Yes, it's a long standing legal code. "Better to be trialed by 12 than carried by 6." All kidding aside, there are numerous documented occasions with fathers loaning guns to daugters, boyfriends to girlfriends, blood and nonblood relationships where guns were used by someone other than the original purchaser for justified self-defense. As long as it's justified you should have no issue. I don't think there is a specific law regarding the specific issue.

 

[Mdeng]

Welcome to the forum, you will find a wealth of knowledge here.

Since you and your faimily are new to firearms you may want to consider getting some training. What part of Maryland do you live in? Based on your location I would like to suggest a few instructors that may be convenient to you.

 

[gamer_jim]

I purchased a gun today and am about to go under a background check. I have no reason to believe that I will have any problems obtaining a license. (My record is clean.). Presuming that I am permitted to take ownership of my firearm, would my wife be permitted to use it in the event of an emergency and I am unavailable. I am not a lawyer but can understand legal code if I am pointed in the right direction. For that matter, are other people like my parents or other relatives permitted to use my gun at a range, under my supervision?

Welcome and congrats on your new purchase.

I'm not a lawyer either so take my advice for what you paid for it.

Is your wife a prohibited person? If she meets any of the qualifications for being prohibited there might be an issue. It is my understanding that as long as you the owner do not know of any reason they may be prohibited they may shoot it with you.

Do you have kids under 15? I might be wrong but I believe MD law requires all firearms to be under lock if kids can get to them 14 and under. That means if you are using this firearm for home defense you will need to get a safe that is secure enough but quick to get into. The biometric safes are popular for that.

 

[Vile Shadow]

Well, somebody had to do it. BTW, we like it when you share your toys with us too. At least tell us what you bought.

 

[Tibbar110]

Welcome and congrats on your new purchase.

I'm not a lawyer either so take my advice for what you paid for it.

Is your wife a prohibited person? If she meets any of the qualifications for being prohibited there might be an issue. It is my understanding that as long as you the owner do not know of any reason they may be prohibited they may shoot it with you.

Do you have kids under 15? I might be wrong but I believe MD law requires all firearms to be under lock if kids can get to them 14 and under. That means if you are using this firearm for home defense you will need to get a safe that is secure enough but quick to get into. The biometric safes are popular for that.

No my wife is not prohibited. She is a legal-resident but a non-citizen. I don't know if that will cause any problems. (I'm a citizen as is my child, who is under 15.) Should my wife's status be a problem?

I do intend to buy a safe but I need ideas on the type. Apparently all modern firearms are required to have an internal keyed lock (something I saw on the training video) but I want it in a safe to insure that curious little fingers can't access it. The question is: how many locks do I want to put on the firearm. I saw the built-in type, the corded type and then the safe in general. What is the general consensus?

I do plan to take it to the range fairly often. How often should the gun be cleaned? The video said after every use, which seems fairly high, especially considering, I have to first learn how to do that. The range that I plan to become a member of, has five (ultrasonic???) cleanings per year as part of the membership.

Ideas?

 

[gamer_jim]

No my wife is not prohibited. She is a legal-resident but a non-citizen. I don't know if that will cause any problems. (I'm a citizen as is my child, who is under 15.) Should my wife's status be a problem?

No. All that is required is that someone have at least their permanent residency card. If she is not otherwise prohibited then your good to go. Only other obvious thing that would make her prohibited is if she were a drug or alcohol abuser, convicted felon, fugitive of justice, etc.

I do intend to buy a safe but I need ideas on the type. Apparently all modern firearms are required to have an internal keyed lock (something I saw on the training video) but I want it in a safe to insure that curious little fingers can't access it. The question is: how many locks do I want to put on the firearm. I saw the built-in type, the corded type and then the safe in general. What is the general consensus?

There's a few good threads on this forum regarding safes. From what I have read the bio-safes are a double edged sword: If there is ever a problem with the electronics (EMP, surge, battery failure, etc...) then your safe, and thus your firearm, are an expensive paperweight. It depends on how coherent you think you will be in the middle of the night. Or, can successfully dial the numbers to a combination in a stressful situation.

Also, I'm not sure what you mean by "Apparently all modern firearms are required to have an internal keyed lock". There are in fact, some modern firearms sold with a literal lock in them (Glock has one I think) or some such manner. There is no law that I'm aware of that requires that level of security. Currently in MD the only thing is required is that each regulated firearm be sold with an internal lock. This is a lock mechanism that may be added to the chamber to prevent the firing action from occuring. Dealers are required by law to sell you this lock, and some will buy it back from you after you walk out the door. Just ask your dealer and they will take care of you.

I do plan to take it to the range fairly often. How often should the gun be cleaned? The video said after every use, which seems fairly high, especially considering, I have to first learn how to do that. The range that I plan to become a member of, has five (ultrasonic???) cleanings per year as part of the membership.

Ideas?

Recently I asked a member of MDS here that question. I also believed the hype that you should clean after every trip to the range. The person that responded to my question said that this is overhyped for most modern firearms. He said that he doesn't clean his nightstand pistol but after many hundred rounds of use. In fact he showed it to me and it looked pretty gross to me but this guy helps train LEOs and is ex-military himself. I trust his opinion and not going to worry about it as much as I used to. Still, if I'm bored on a Sunday afternoon with the wife napping, i'll break out the cleaning kit and show the Springfield XD some love. But i'm not going to be as concerned about it as before. Again, your mileage may very, depending on the firearm, ammo quality, volume, etc. It can't hurt to clean it un-necessarily, but may not reduce it's effectiveness if you dont.

I don't know about the ultrasonic cleanings, hopefully someone else will chime in and give you some advice on that. I asked my trainer about how clean is clean and he said you don't have to scrape every bit of carbon off of it. Again, because of this guys background and credentials I put a lot of stock in his opinion. From what I have read proper lube is more important than a clean gun.

Good luck and please ask questions. I am not a lawyer, my advice is given as-is. Consult someone who is a professional. The only bad question is the one not asked.

 

[Infantry23]

Welcome, and congrats on the new purchase!

 

[ProShooter]

Congratulations on joining the fold. Now, get some good training, and practice, practice, practice.

 

[Garet Jax]

I purchased a gun today and am about to go under a background check. I have no reason to believe that I will have any problems obtaining a license. (My record is clean.). Presuming that I am permitted to take ownership of my firearm, would my wife be permitted to use it in the event of an emergency and I am unavailable. I am not a lawyer but can understand legal code if I am pointed in the right direction. For that matter, are other people like my parents or other relatives permitted to use my gun at a range, under my supervision?

Yes - really the only thing to worry about is someone who is unauthorized getting their hands on it.

 

[Biggfoot44]

The requirement to keep firearms inaccesable to "children" is not applicable if they succuesfully take Hunter Saftey course (specifically) .

 

[rmiddle]

I do intend to buy a safe but I need ideas on the type. Apparently all modern firearms are required to have an internal keyed lock (something I saw on the training video) but I want it in a safe to insure that curious little fingers can't access it. The question is: how many locks do I want to put on the firearm. I saw the built-in type, the corded type and then the safe in general. What is the general consensus?

Depends on who you want to keep out. If you are just talking about the kinds then a Gun Cabinet or Handgun Safe should be fine you can find them for under a hundred bucks no problem. If you want a safe designed for fire and to keep a safe cracker out be prepared to pay and pay allot. As far as I can tell MD law doesn't outline any safe requires only the vague secure from Children getting access. As for the gun locks you are only required to buy then not use them. If you don't have a safe then using a bore lock would be safe enough to keep the kids out. There is no requirement that you gun must use that lock.

I do plan to take it to the range fairly often. How often should the gun be cleaned? The video said after every use, which seems fairly high, especially considering, I have to first learn how to do that. The range that I plan to become a member of, has five (ultrasonic???) cleanings per year as part of the membership.

Ideas?

How often you have to clean a gun in many respects depends on the Gun, Ammo, and you. If you use really cheap ammo you need to clean more frequently. If you are using .22lr plan to clean a lot it is generally more dirty then centerfire ammo. Also how pretty you want to keep your gun. We have all seen that guy who keeps his car spotless. Then again you can see my car that only see a drive though car wash after I get a ton of salt on the car after it snows. Well that is true about a gun firing them will get them dirty. If you want the gun to stay pretty you will need to clean it. With all of that said this is what I do and this can be called "at the min"

1) Most new guns really need to be cleaned before you shot with them. Why most come with shiping / storage oil on them and the gunpowder sticks to that like crazy.

2) I clean after every 2000 rounds or if the gun starts to stick when I manually cycle the gun or I start getting Failure's to Fire.

3) Most guns only need a few spots cleaned and lobed. Get the FFL to show you how to clean the gun. Most FFL will take a few min to show you how to take it apart and what needs to be cleaned. Assuming you are buying a common gun. My FFL had no clue how to take apart my Walther G22.

Thanks
Robert

 

[hvymax]

You should take the hunter safety course as a family and then maybe specific training as well. If all you have is a handgun a small safe will keep small hands safe. If you want to secure a small collection start with a 72 gun safe bolted into concrete with 1/2" quick bolts.

 

[flyingblind]

If you live near glen burnie, I would be happy to meet you at a range, teach you some fundamentals including cleaning.

 

[blacklab25]

As far as safes, I didn't like the biometric. I saw too many reports of people saying they had to put their fingers on it repeatedly. Also from what I have found the biometric are small table top or inside drawer safes. Too easy to steal the whole safe in my eyes. I wish they had a biometric wall safe but haven't found one yet. I purchased a stack on wall safe. You choose the code. I can get in in less than a second. Also I figure they are harder to steal. They are not fireproof though. Walmart did have them last year for $70. I got mine at cabelas on clearance for $90. I can keep the pistol loaded(without one in the pipe) and don't have to worry about my young kids getting to it. If I need it in an emergency I can have it out and loaded in under 2 seconds.

 

[Tibbar110]

If I didn't mention it already, I bought a Beretta M91. My wife and I both had good experience with it at the range. She is a tiny woman and the kick was not too bad for her. She was literally in pain using other 9mm that we tried (Glock, I'm looking at you) and the larger calibers. All of this stuff is moot for the next three months (apparently there is a backlog) but I want to be prepared.

 

[ankrklankr]

Congratulations on the new purchase...have a lot of patience w/the system cuz it's going to work only at its (state approved) pace to return your "not disapproved" paperwork.
(I'm in my 40th day of the 7 days waiting period.)