Arizona CCW Permit: My Experience

W00t! CCW permit here I come! That's right folks, I finally got off my ass and went to get my CCW certification. Though I live in AZ, where open carry is permitted, I want to carry concealed every once in a while. Now I'm not saying that I don't still carry dual chrome .45s with ivory grips to a wedding or bar mitzvah, but now if I want to tone it down a little... I can.

So I chose to go to Scottsdale Gun Club for my certification. Now, it's a bit... "snooty" for some, but I like it. The range is always clean, the people are friendly, and it's in town(not 20 miles out... *cough* Ben Avery *cough*).

In Arizona you are now required to take an 8 hour class to receive your CCW permit. My class was scheduled for 8AM-5:30PM, with and hour break for lunch. So it's more of an 8ish hours of instruction. I arrived about 10-15 minutes early (as instructed) and still had to wait until 8AM to be let in the doors. The parking lot was relatively packed with people waiting to get inside. I wish I had taken a picture, because the cross section of people was rather amusing. Of course you had the older guys wearing military BDUs and black berets... and then you had the ultra redneck types, sporting the shooting vests and flannel clothing. There were a few of the stereotypical "independent and self empowered" women in the class, and a few college-aged douche bags. What category did I fall into? I did forget my kevlar tac-vest and ghillie suit at home, so I couldn't be grouped with the mall-ninjas... I guess douche bag? I don't know.

The instructor's name is Kevin Neal, he is a practicing attorney and judge for the city of Scottsdale. The lawyer/judge combo couldn't be a more perfect person to explain Arizona gun laws and how fucking lawyers can twist them. He's a personable guy, funny and made the class really interesting. He was also more than willing to answer ALL the stupid questions that people were asking. They say there are no stupid questions... that's not true at all. There ARE stupid questions, and very stupid people that ask them.

We started the morning out with basic stuff, signing the liability waiver and going over safety instructions. After all the prerequisite legal stuff was out of the way, we were instructed to head out the range for qualification. This part is probably what most people are worried about, and as it turns out it's the easiest part of the entire process. You are presented with a humanoid target, within the target are a rings labeled 10, 9, 8, etc. You are required to fire 10 rounds at the target (you must hit 5 shots at 15 feet and 5 at 30 feet) while keeping 70% rounds fired within the 8 ring. The 8 ring on the target we used measures 13" x13", a pretty large surface area. You can literally throw the gun and hit the 8 ring at 15 feet. If you can get the first 5 in the 8 ring, you are only required to get 2 more shots in at 30... most will get all 10. If you, by some chance, fail to do this on your first try the instructors will come by and personally ensure that you pass the test. That may involve some instruction or some tips on shooting. If you know how to handle a weapon this should not prove difficult.


The rest of the day was filled with legal speak and "what if" scenarios. SCG uses a power point presentation during the class to show videos, pictures, and various laws and regulations. I found that the videos were a very powerful way to show certain techniques or mistakes executed by real people. This part was very informative. Basically going over carry laws and when it's legal to use deadly force. It was very interesting stuff and I think that the class should be longer, just to thoroughly cover all the legal aspects.

Towards the end of the day, we had to do a fair amount paperwork. Filling out the application and fingerprint card took a long time. There are certain codes and ways to write things on those forms, and they have to be filled out perfectly. Luckily, the instructor will go through all this with you. Of course, you must be fingerprinted to acquire a CCW permit. If you've never been fingerprinted before, it's kind of weird.

The very last thing we did was take the written exam. It's a short test, 20 questions, all in multiple choice. Throughout the day, the instructor would note when a subject he covered was a test question. You could make mental note, or actual notes. All of the questions are either common sense, or very specific answers. You must get 100% on your test to pass, but if you do fail you can review and retest... immediately. You will pass this test, everyone in the class did on the first try.

I learned a lot about gun laws during this class. What I've taken away most from this class is that most laws fall into a "gray area" when it comes to interpretation. Ultimately every action you take will be decided by a jury of your peers... most of which will probably not own guns. Then again, they always say that it's better to be judged by 12 then carried by 6.