Monday, 16 February 2026

Open Carry Texas At ＂Come And Take It Fest＂ Gonzales Texas Oct 5th 2013 [n5EnH0hAUkc]

Gun rights advocates in Gonzales leverage a historical loophole to carry black powder revolvers in public while local law enforcement reports a significant decline in emergency calls.

Black powder loophole Gonzales Texas Open Carry Texas Walker revolver Antique firearms Drew Knighty National Pawn

By Mike Hanson Archives | 10m listen | 5 chapters

RSS Transcript

Open Carry Texas At ＂Come And Take It Fest＂ Gonzales Texas Oct 5th 2013 [n5EnH0hAUkc] cover

About this episode

Texas gun rights advocates gathered in Gonzales for the Come and Take It Fest to demonstrate the legal loophole surrounding pre-1899 black powder revolvers. These antique relics bypass standard background checks and 4473 forms, allowing participants to normalize public sidearm carry through historical hardware. National Pawn provided a staging ground for activists to engage with local citizens and test the limits of municipal firearm ordinances.

Sergeant Drew Knighty of the local police force confirmed that dispatch received only one call regarding visible rifles despite a crowd of six thousand people. Knighty detailed the ballistics of the .44 Black Powder and the 1847 Walker revolver, noting that these weapons fall outside traditional firearm regulations within city limits. The event highlighted a shift in law enforcement tactics as police response to open carry demonstrations moved from high-alert interventions to passive observation. National Pawn offered air conditioning and supplies to the group as they navigated the extreme Texas heat while carrying long guns through the streets.

Sergeant Drew Knighty shared his perspective on citizens assisting officers during dangerous traffic stops, emphasizing that intent defines the distinction between a threat and an ally. The day concluded with a technical breakdown of horseback-range ballistics and an invitation for law enforcement to join the activists at a firing range for future testing of historical black powder replicas.

CHAPTER 01 / 5 Discussion

Texas Open Carry Movement and Black Powder Legal Loophole

Texas gun rights advocates are utilizing a legal loophole that classifies pre-1899 black powder revolvers as antique relics rather than regulated firearms. These weapons do not require background checks or 4473 forms and can be legally carried openly. This strategy aims to normalize the presence of sidearms in public by using less intimidating, historical firearms to interact positively with the public and law enforcement.

texas· open carry· black powder· pre-1899· antique firearms

00:00 I haven't shot it yet. You got it, you ain't shot it? Not even close. Black powder? I've never shot black powder. I always wanted to know what happened. Let me know how she does it. Definitely will do!

00:51 So obviously one of the things we're working towards in Texas right now is open carry of handguns, but we've all found out that the black powder guns are legal to carry? Correct. Yeah they're not classified by law as a firearm, they're classified as an antique relic any pre-1899 black powder revolver it's completely legal and unregulated. You don't have to fill out a 4473 on it, there's no background checks you can order one and have it shipped to your house And its completely legal to carry them openly That's kind of our phase two, our next step as far as getting open carry of a sidearm pushed forearm movement It's less intimidating to the sheeple out there

01:44 are scared of black guns or rifles. It's kind of a less aggressive way that we're approaching to push for that, but it's obviously completely legal and its fine. We have positive interactions with the police force out here they want to know how it shoots and stuff so I mean other Police departments take note of this, you know? I mean, realize what's going on and support us on this. You carry all day long too like why shouldn't we? Right well there you go showing again from here in Texas the way the rest of the country should be reacting to gun conversations that are happening obviously were carrying our guns interacting with police at same time

CHAPTER 02 / 5 Discussion

Come and Take It Fest Hospitality at National Pawn

Participants at the Come and Take It Fest in Gonzales, Texas, received hospitality from National Pawn, which provided air conditioning and water during extreme heat. Despite walking through the streets with rifles, the group reported positive interactions with local citizens. A local police officer noted that dispatch received only one call regarding subjects with rifles near the old jail during the entire event.

gonzales· come and take it fest· national pawn· texas· community engagement

02:36 and getting a great response from everybody. Until next time, YouTube... I'm out! Welcome back YouTube. We have been walking around the Come and Take It Fest for a couple hours now, getting really hot and sweaty The people at National Pond invited us to come in and use their air conditioner And it's great the response we've had from everybody down here I just wanted to throw them out of link there so that everyone could know how well these people treated us Thank You National Pond for the water and the AC

03:34 Can I ask what you guys thought when you saw us walking down the street with our rifles today? It was great. That was great? You know, it's... Just be aware. Hey look there are our people! Right?! Our kind of crowd. This is a darn quiet country. But they're just here. They've been working for so long. They're on the road breeding. Yep. You know that cousin about right there and... See you later buddy. Thanks for having us in Gonzales Just got my first call on y'all I think did you really the first one we got were y'all just around the jail yeah? I was just about to ask if this was the first one really I'm recording it right now

04:24 He's already recording. What did they say to you? I just want, uh, I didn't talk to him so I don't know what they said all I know is dispatch shows because at least two subjects in the old jail with rifles on. No Well we had a good time. We had a great time at your festival today. Yeah it was good. Thanks for having us. Great crowd, it was very laid back no crazy drunks running around or anything It really is a pretty good celebration. Yeah, it was pretty awesome. This is my first time down here today. Just too hot! Well there's supposed to be cold front coming in at 830. Oh its going to drop 5 degrees. I don't know how much... Anything else? It'll be cold at night but that doesn't matter

CHAPTER 03 / 5 Discussion

Sergeant Drew Knighty on Black Powder Ballistics

Sergeant Drew Knighty discusses the technical accuracy and legal status of black powder weapons within city limits. He notes that because these are not legally considered firearms, discharging them may not violate specific city ordinances, though it could cause public alarm. The conversation highlights the ballistics of the .44 Black Powder and the historical design of the Walker revolver, which was intended for use from horseback at 100 yards.

drew knighty· black powder· ballistics· walker revolver· city ordinances

05:17 Well, yeah. Appreciate your hospitality. Anytime you all come back to town y'all let me know okay? Yes thank you. Will do! Thanks for your hospitality. What was your name again? Sergeant Drew Knighty Nice to meet ya. They should they shoot very well. Hey, do y'all the police range around here? We'll go find out real quick Yes we do but I don't have authority to go out there and take civilians with me These are not considered firearms so if you discharge them in town your not breaking any city ordinances I have a loaded one In the truck if you want to try it out Well what time do you get off That might cause alarm actually About 3 o clock

06:01 They actually shoot very well, very accurately. The .44 BlackPow is actually the thermal ballistics of verified CQBs. Really? Well the whole Walker was designed to be able to shoot a man from horseback from 100 yards away I mean for that arrow and for a pistol... Wow! Yeah they're extremely accurate. I've always wanted to shoot one but never had the chance I never had the opportunity. Well, my wife shut me down a while back... You were there too huh? Yeah. Careful now this is being recorded! She knows the story. I used to buy about a gun a month and then she got to a point where she told me no more guns so... You stole it out of friends house? No, no. I actually bought a German Mauser K98

CHAPTER 04 / 5 Discussion

Law Enforcement Perspectives on Open Carry Legislation

Sergeant Drew Knighty expresses his personal support for law-abiding citizens carrying firearms, suggesting that a broad ownership of guns benefits public safety. The discussion explores the hypothetical scenario of a citizen assisting an officer during a dangerous traffic stop. The participants conclude that the primary distinction between a "good guy" and a "bad guy" is the intent and the direction in which the weapon is pointed.

open carry· second amendment· law enforcement· gun rights· traffic stops

06:57 I took it and showed her the bayonet. And said, I paid more than I should have for this. And she looked at the bayonet and liked it. And I told her how much I paid for it and she was okay with that. Then I told her you oughta see what y'all can pay me for. Let me ask you a million dollar question here. What do you think about open carry for citizens if we get it passed in this next season? As long as you're law-abiding citizens, I personally think everybody should have a gun. That's personal opinion and I don't know if that is an environmental opinion or not but it is my personal view. Now on personal would you agree that say if your in trouble at a traffic stop do want somebody to pull up and have to call another person with a gun? To come help you or would rather somebody can help? As long as the persons who has got the guns are willing to help me rather than

07:46 help the bad guy. Like I said, every law abiding citizen should struggle with that. You know how to tell who's a live bond or hiding citizen? Well if you catch them violating the law... My favorite one is the good guys aren't pointing their guns at you and the bad guys are pointing theirs So out of the six to seven hours we've been here today, you've only had one call about us walking around with guns. And it just happened amongst thousands of people? How many people do you think are here? The crowd was pretty good this morning and then course with the heat it died off a lot It'll be a bigger crowd

CHAPTER 05 / 5 Discussion

Declining Police Response Rates to Open Carry Activities

Gun rights advocates observe that police responses to open carry demonstrations are becoming less aggressive over time, moving from "red alert" status to simple observation. During the festival in Gonzales, which saw crowds of five to six thousand people, only one call was placed to dispatch regarding the visible rifles. Sergeant Drew Knighty concludes the interaction by expressing interest in testing black powder weapons at a range during a future visit.

police response· open carry· public perception· gonzales· drew knighty

08:31 8, 9 o'clock this evening it'll probably be... I guess it will be just a couple thousand. How many do you think are here all day today? Probably two or three thousand? I would bet starting at the parade time, I would bet five to six. But we were here at the parade. There was a lot of people here. That's really great that we're here all day and there have been people, you only got one call. Yeah It's super. You know I'm noticing...you know me and Robert have been from the beginning with this, we're noticing as time goes by the amounts of calls are getting lower and lower One of the best things too is to notice police response has changed a lot instead

09:08 The immediate, you know go to red alert. It's well are they doing anything? Are they pointing the gun at anybody okay? Okay Well, we'll send somebody out take a look instead of you know straight There's no Immediate threat yeah I mean if y'all would be walking around You know like this My response will be a little bit. Yeah that'd be irresponsible though. Yeah as a gunner Well, you know the cold reality of it is we're not the only one here with guns. There's people all over this place walking around with loaded guns in their pockets and the only difference is that you can't see theirs versus when they can see ours so... You know? It's almost ridiculous that you can't help but hear about me in Texas But you can hide from me here Who hides guns? Criminals Say I don't

10:02 Well, you're lucky sir. Yeah we like to let y'all know We can't guarantee that all of our members will do that, but yeah. And maybe next time y'all come down if anybody has any black powder they bring out and I'll get approved and we can set a time like last night. That'd be awesome! That would really like to fire. I've never fired. Could I have your name for the record? Drew Knighty. Drew Knighty. Sergeant Thank you lot Drew Knighty for having us down here at your festival today appreciate it