I'm going to reply to the list because this is a valid topic as far as I am concerned if you don't like the topic delete now.
If I were to have a gun on board (I'm not saying I don't) I would construct a hiding place for it such that it were perfectly concealed, and sealed. The way I would build this hiding place, is in the cockpit I would construct a fiberglass cabinet, cut a hole in the cockpit combing underneath a large winch (to foil any attempt at metal detection), and glass the cabinet in place. Next I would oil and wrap the weapon in foam and insert it and an extra magazine or ammo into the cabinet such that It would be firmly secured so as not to move around. Next I would replace the piece of fiberglass that resulted from the cockpit hole, and carefully 'glue' it back into place using a small amount of thickened gelcoat. Then I would fair and blend the area so that the joint was completely invisible. A swift kick to the area will shatter the weak gelcoat exposing the firearm. Another similar installation within the cabin would also be useful in case it were needed before one arrived to the cockpit. With such an installation I would have no qualms about cruising loaded anywhere in the usa (including California), and probably in the world. It would be a fair risk to do so anyway- probably less than or at least equal to the risk of cruising without a weapon. In the USA the coast guard has to have a special permit (with probable cause) in order to perform a search which results in deliberate damage to the vessel. Eg. If they suspected there was a secret compartment... or if you answered 'yes' to whether you had firearms aboard but refused to disclose their location. In my mind the right to use deadly force against a threat of deadly force is inalienable and worth dying and lying for. 'are you armed' is a ridiculous question and deserves a ridiculous answer. On to your other question- it is my understanding that any place with qualifying features (usually defined legally as a bathroom, sink, and stove) is a place (regardless of type) that he can store his weapons be it a boat or an RV if he can prove he is living there. This is especially true if the individual has no other place of residence. Please feel free to dispute this. I would also steer one away from handguns to a more effective (although larger) type of gun like a shotgun. I am also aware of a case where a person went to court for carrying a black powder 6 shot revolver onto a school premisis and won the case since black powder guns are not legally considered firearms. If you stored such a weapon in a sealed enclosure like I described above and included dessicant (a good idea in any case) the powder and primer would probably remain intact for years. -Merrill _______________________________________________ Liveaboard mailing list [email protected] To adjust your membership settings over the web http://www.liveaboardnow.org/mailman/listinfo/liveaboard To subscribe send an email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] To unsubscribe send an email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] The archives are at http://www.liveaboardnow.org/pipermail/liveaboard/ To search the archives http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] The Mailman Users Guide can be found here http://www.gnu.org/software/mailman/mailman-member/index.html
