Anyone have experience with Florida?

[hyooz2004]

oh yea i forgot about that stuff, my buddy loves yuengling. thanks a lot for all the very useful information GSG I really appreciate it

 

[garandman]

What part of Florida? My wife is from St Augustine: for people in Miami that's like Presque Isle.

 

[waltherppk]

I live in SW FL and have lived there for the past 11 years. Before that, I lived in Cohasset and commuted to Boston every day. We love New England so we spend summers here mooching off our kids(we're in Boston now for the holidays) and have the best of both worlds. GSG did a great job of selling FL. I'd add a few comments. The cost of living isn't much different from MA, in general. Houses are cheaper but you usually don't get basements or attics. In most areas you have to have hurricane insurance and probably flood insurance plus your homeowners. There is no state income tax which is a nice savings. Car insurance is half what it is in MA. Sales tax is essentially the same.

The gun laws are great! The gun shows are great! Gun prices,surprisingly, are not much different than MA, but you can buy almost anything legal. One bummer is shooting ranges and gun clubs. In MA, nearly every town has a gun club and/or range. Not so in most of FL. Most ranges are commercial and tend to be expensive compared to a MA gun club. I have 2 choices, each a half hour drive. The one I use most is $25 an hour, although inside and with A/C. If you have a choice in location, be sure to check this out.

Back to weather. It's 400 miles from the GA border to Miami with big differences in weather. Frost is common in the border areas. Almost never in Miami. Summers are hot and humid but not much different than most of the east coast up through VA. If you fish, you'll have more good days in the Gulf than in the Atlantic. You will miss the MA bay striper fishing!

The west coast is more laid-back than the east coast. Crime is higher in the bigger cities, like everywhere else. All the old folk driving around 10 MPH under the speed limit in the left lane will drive you crazy. The good news is that most of them go north after Easter!

Visit the www.flaguns.com forum to get a good feel for different areas of the state. Visit www.floridaguntrader.com to get a feel for gun prices. Good luck making your decision!!

 

[hyooz2004]

thanks again for the info. i have been trying to narrow down some areas im interested in. I need to be near the coast for fishing/spearfishing and boating in general. id like to be within an hour of a large city, similar to my location now to boston. I think im leaning towards the Gulf side, is that oil still screwing up the water?

 

[GSG]

oh yeah, car insurance in Florida is more expensive. Because they dont require you to have it.

They do require you to have it. My area has the highest in the country IIRC because of all the recent insurance fraud, but obviously it's lower in others because of fewer claims. Free market. However like Mass. they'll revoke your registration if you let your insurance lapse. Driver's licenses are good for nine years, and available at multiple locations. There's also something like 120 different types of specialty license plate to support whatever cause you choose.

I wonder if the summer insect population is also a problem.

Varies by area in my experience.

thanks a lot for all the very useful information GSG I really appreciate it

Not a problem. No state's perfect, but the pros definitely outweigh the cons for me here.

The cost of living isn't much different from MA, in general. Houses are cheaper but you usually don't get basements or attics.

I think that depends on where you are. The southern part of the state tends to be more expensive from what I've seen, but there's recent construction 2-3 bedroom homes with garages around here for under $100,000.

Sales tax is essentially the same.

Yup. The good news is it's different in every county. County government is strong here, unlike MA where it was dissolved in 1998.

One bummer is shooting ranges and gun clubs. In MA, nearly every town has a gun club and/or range. Not so in most of FL. Most ranges are commercial and tend to be expensive compared to a MA gun club. I have 2 choices, each a half hour drive. The one I use most is $25 an hour, although inside and with A/C. If you have a choice in location, be sure to check this out.

I used to drive about 30 minutes to the range I liked in MA, so I'm used to a little bit of driving. There's a handful of rental ranges like you described in my area down here. I don't like going to them because they seem to attract a lot of dummies, so they have a lot of stupid range rules, like no drawing from a holster. Most also have "no concealed firearms" rules, which is foolish IMO when you're walking around with thousands of dollars worth of guns (Platt and Matix anyone?). There's a Fudd trap club nearby and a gun club similar to what I was used to in Mass. more than an hour away, but I never looked into joining.

I shoot at my friend's place for the most part, although there's a rental range nearby with decent prices that I'll stop in at from time to time. No one messes with you for shooting on your own land, unlike Mass. where you're facing lifetime LTC DQ's for the most part if you do anything outdoors. I hear people shooting out by my house all the time, but I don't like going back there because I can hear the gators. There's a detail from the Sheriff's Office in my neighborhood hired by the HOA who doesn't blink when he hears it either. I prefer shooting with my friend because it's private, it's free, there's a lot of room, and I don't have to worry about some dummy accidentally shooting me. We can also do interesting stuff like shooting on the move, from vehicles, transitions, or whatever else we want.

I think im leaning towards the Gulf side, is that oil still screwing up the water?

I don't really know. I haven't heard much about it on the news lately other than the BP lawsuit. I hear it's ruined some lives up farther north in Lousianna and such, but there isn't much career fishing in my area. I know a guy who's been taking recreational fishing trips into the Gulf since it happened without problems, I could ask him.

Definitely take some trips to scout out potential areas to live before moving, preferably at different times of the year. Some areas are endless farmland, others dirty cities, and lots in between. Unemployment is pretty high in this state right now, almost 12% in my area last I heard, so you might have trouble finding work depending on what field you're in. If you like what you see come on down, you'll get a chance to vote in a state where politicians hand out business cards at gunshows with CCW reciprocity maps on the back.

 

[meth0d]

I spent some time in Orlando and can't wait to get back there. I've had enough of the snow up here, all politics and gun laws aside.

 

[OCB]

I thought Yuengling was brewed in PA?

Sorry, I misread the website...the PA brewery is the oldest in the US, not the Tampa one.

 

[OCB]

.

 

[cekim]

FL is goodtogo with gun laws (for the most part, as mentioned there are some odd gotchas here and there "places of nuisance" for instance).

GSG whatchutalkin' bout willis WRT to concealed carry w/o a permit? Not in "public" so far as I am aware...

Harder to find a good gun range in free America, but that's because you have friends or your own land to do it, but if you don't you'll be in for a drive depending on where you live...

 

[ochmude]

Sorry, I misread the website...the PA brewery is the oldest in the US, not the Tampa one.

Hey, no need to apologize. I didn't even know there was a Tampa brewery. I just thought Yuengling was available in a very small radius around PA. If it's available in Florida as well, Florida just got more awesome in my eyes.

 

[GSG]

GSG whatchutalkin' bout willis WRT to concealed carry w/o a permit? Not in "public" so far as I am aware...

I've done a lot of writing in this thread and I'm too busy too look back and check, but I know that I phrased it carefully. It is not generally legal to CCW in Florida without a CWP outside of the home or business. But it is allowed in some circumstances.

790.25

http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes...ing=&URL=0700-0799/0790/Sections/0790.25.html

(3)LAWFUL USES.—The provisions of ss. 790.053 and 790.06 do not apply in the following instances, and, despite such sections, it is lawful for the following persons to own, possess, and lawfully use firearms and other weapons, ammunition, and supplies for lawful purposes:

<snip>

(g)Regularly enrolled members of any organization duly authorized to purchase or receive weapons from the United States or from this state, or regularly enrolled members of clubs organized for target, skeet, or trap shooting, while at or going to or from shooting practice; or regularly enrolled members of clubs organized for modern or antique firearms collecting, while such members are at or going to or from their collectors’ gun shows, conventions, or exhibits;

(h)A person engaged in fishing, camping, or lawful hunting or going to or returning from a fishing, camping, or lawful hunting expedition;

(i)A person engaged in the business of manufacturing, repairing, or dealing in firearms, or the agent or representative of any such person while engaged in the lawful course of such business;

(j)A person firing weapons for testing or target practice under safe conditions and in a safe place not prohibited by law or going to or from such place;

(k)A person firing weapons in a safe and secure indoor range for testing and target practice;

(l)A person traveling by private conveyance when the weapon is securely encased or in a public conveyance when the weapon is securely encased and not in the person’s manual possession;

(m)A person while carrying a pistol unloaded and in a secure wrapper, concealed or otherwise, from the place of purchase to his or her home or place of business or to a place of repair or back to his or her home or place of business;

(n)A person possessing arms at his or her home or place of business;

When engaged in those activities (and others listed in the rest of that law) open or concealed carry is legal, as well as travel to and from some of them. I think (g) and (h) were written in to protect people sporting with guns from random robbery like the ones done by Platt and Matix (of the FBI Miami shootout). It also allows people too poor to drive a car to still travel to and from the range with guns, and with a means to defend themselves.

I know a CWP holder who open carries to and from the range just because he can under the law, and he's never gotten so much as an odd glance while doing it. In busy areas too. I wouldn't do it, and I wouldn't generally advocate relying on this particular section of law because there's always a chance that you might run into the cop who was distracted by the hot chick sitting in front of him during the gun law portion of the academy, but I know there's a lot of people who rely on it. There was just an open carry rally recently on a pier in Florida where attendees were all told that they had to bring a copy of their fishing license with them to demonstrate compliance with the law. I could personally care less about open carry rights (except where they protect me if the wind blows my shirt up or something) but a lot of people do.

I'm rambling, but that's generally what I meant.

 

[Broc]

best thing about Florida, its full of invasive species of reptiles, you can just shoot. Specially those nice 10+ foot Burmese Pythons, they are not as tough as the Discovery channel makes it look. (i know, i have snakes) and dealt with a Burmese before.

 

[cekim]

I've done a lot of writing in this thread and I'm too busy too look back and check, but I know that I phrased it carefully. It is not generally legal to CCW in Florida without a CWP outside of the home or business. But it is allowed in some circumstances.

So, basically a DL in FL is equivalent to an LTC-A T&H in MA...

Idiots (Mass that is)...

Interesting... Didn't know that...

 

[GSG]

I think im leaning towards the Gulf side, is that oil still screwing up the water?

Just talked to my buddy about this. He said he thinks the oil is screwing up the fishing locally, the last time he went out it was about 30 miles into the Gulf...he caught a huge barracuda.

best thing about Florida, its full of invasive species of reptiles, you can just shoot. Specially those nice 10+ foot Burmese Pythons, they are not as tough as the Discovery channel makes it look. (i know, i have snakes) and dealt with a Burmese before.

I'm not a hunter, and aside from badly injured/sick animals, I don't plan on killing anything that isn't threatening me. Because of this I'm not particularly familiar with FL laws and regulations on shooting animals. I know that there was a special season opened on snakes (after a toddler was killed inside the home by her dad's pet snake ) last year, but I don't know if it's still in effect or what the limits are on it. It's also illegal to discharge firearms in many public places (790.15), and FWC doesn't seem to agree with you:

http://myfwc.com/License/permits_nuiswild.htm

Nuisance wildlife is wildlife that...

causes (or is about to cause) property damage,
presents a threat to public safety, or
causes an annoyance within, under or upon a building.

then

How can nuisance wildlife be taken?

Nuisance wildlife may be taken using live traps or snares, or, where allowed, firearms during daylight hours. All traps and snares must be inspected at least once every 24 hours. The discharge of a firearm is prohibited in most cities and residential areas, check with local law enforcement. BB guns and pellet rifles are not allowed for taking wildlife. A permit issued by the FWC regional offices is required to use steel traps to take destructive mammals (excluding species prohibited by the FWC). A Gun and Light at Night Permit and a hunting license are required to use a firearm and a light at night to remove nuisance armadillo, beaver, bobcat, coyote, fox, opossum, rabbit, raccoon, skunk, or hog causing destruction of crops and/or livestock.

http://myfwc.com/WILDLIFEHABITATS/SpeciesInfo_Snakes.htm

There is no good reason to kill a snake except in the unlikely situation of a poisonous snake posing immediate danger to people or pets. Snakes usually bite people only if they are molested; it's their only means of self-defense. Even a poisonous snake in the woods or crossing the road poses no threat and should be left alone. Also, most larger snakes travel in large areas, so one you see in your yard today may be far away tomorrow.

If you do not like snakes in or around your dwellings or out-buildings, they can be removed from buildings without harm to either you or the snake through the use of glueboards or funnel traps.

Definitely doesn't seem to be legal.

So, basically a DL in FL is equivalent to an LTC-A T&H in MA...

Pretty much. Although if we want to stay technical, you don't even need a DL to buy or possess a gun in the state, as long as the seller knows your age and residency (such as a family member). What's really interesting is that it means someone aged 18-20 can concealed carry on the way to the range, even though they're too young to be eligible for a CWP.

Like a T&H LTC in Mass., I think it's probably not the best idea to try to push the limits of it, because there's always going to be cops without the handle on the law that they should have. Thankfully Gutmacher's book is more widely recognized here than Glidden's is in MA, and if you can't get your hands on one for some reason, the state publishes copies of the gun and use of force laws that you can request online for free. They don't have the caselaw cites, explanations and reputation of Gutmacher's book, but they could help get you out of a jam.

Covered by law or not, I recommend that people get the CWP anyway, even if all they plan on doing is "securely encased" car carry which is perfectly legal (even with the gun fully loaded) sans CWP. The license just removes any doubt from the equation. It also will save you some headache, because if someone lives in an apartment building or condo type setup where they have to leave their private property to access their car, they can't legally walk their gun to the car without a CWP or 790.25 exemption. Common sense says that "securely encased" should cover someone to and from, but again, it's a crack in the law the non-gun owning legislature didn't think of, but one that a CWP covers.

 

[Broc]

I know that there was a special season opened on snakes

yeah, i know that.

There is no good reason to kill a snake except in the unlikely situation of a poisonous snake posing immediate danger to people or pets. Snakes usually bite people only if they are molested; it's their only means of self-defense. Even a poisonous snake in the woods or crossing the road poses no threat and should be left alone. Also, most larger snakes travel in large areas, so one you see in your yard today may be far away tomorrow.

If you do not like snakes in or around your dwellings or out-buildings, they can be removed from buildings without harm to either you or the snake through the use of glueboards or funnel traps.

actually, Burmese pythons are invasive. they have no natural predators. they were introduced by man. they are killing native birds, reptiles, rodents...
invasive reptile and mammal species are one of floridas problem, thats why you shouldnt get in trouble if you kill one.

Now, dont get me wrong. I love snakes. I have a few. But i dont keep snakes that can kill me. All my snakes can grow to a maximum of 7 feet (sounds big, but it really isnt).

The other problem they have is chickens. YES< CHICKENS. something like 50K wild chickens in one of their cities (i think it was miami). they have a group of volunteers that hunt them down. It was on dirty jobs. Pretty funny.

 

[GSG]

I just remembered an addition to the downsides I listed in post #23.

At noon today I reset the clocks on the microwave and stove because the power had gone out sometime earlier in the day. About an hour later the power went out again and set the clocks blinking. This state is the lightning strike capital of the world, I'm guessing that has something to do with it. Whatever the reason, the power goes out regularly, at least a few times a month, although in 1.5 years the longest I've seen it out for is a few minutes. Something to keep in mind, you might find clothes half washed or half dried in the machine from time to time.

 

[cekim]

I just remembered an addition to the downsides I listed in post #23.

At noon today I reset the clocks on the microwave and stove because the power had gone out sometime earlier in the day. About an hour later the power went out again and set the clocks blinking. This state is the lightning strike capital of the world, I'm guessing that has something to do with it. Whatever the reason, the power goes out regularly, at least a few times a month, although in 1.5 years the longest I've seen it out for is a few minutes. Something to keep in mind, you might find clothes half washed or half dried in the machine from time to time.

"Florida Flicker and Flash" (aka the power company)... Been that way for a long time...

 

[italianppf2]

haha beer is also a concern, hows the beer in florida?

If the company doesn't have a water softner it will suck! Same with coffee, soda etc...

 

[MA_Shooter]

Hey, no need to apologize. I didn't even know there was a Tampa brewery. I just thought Yuengling was available in a very small radius around PA. If it's available in Florida as well, Florida just got more awesome in my eyes.

I purchased Yuengling in a Key West convenience store but we can't get it here. Go figure.

 

[GSG]

"Florida Flicker and Flash" (aka the power company)... Been that way for a long time...

Irony. I posted this yesterday:

in 1.5 years the longest I've seen it out for is a few minutes.

and it went out for more than an hour today, 2 minutes after I plunked down in front of the TV with dinner.

 

[fencer]

Great thread. I did not know how cool the gunlaws in Florida are.

Don't forget the Babes. Florida enjoys some of the most beautiful, scantily clad, sun worshipping girls in the country. And, they come from all over the world in the winter to hang in the sun. Many years ago, before I met my wife and was fresh out of the Marine Corp, I spent a month in the Keys, staying in this cheapo motel with a little kitchenette.

I met these two girls from Montreal, only one of which spoke broken English. I have convinced myself that if I am good in life, when I die that is where I will go. Back on the beach in the Keys, Dolphins swimming by, with Bridgette and what ever that other girls name was. Damn, it sucks getting old

 

[Jose]

Miami latinas in thongs.....YUM YUM