Renyold Studler, head gunsmith at Honolulu Firearms & Range on Queen Street, wears a Sig Sauer 1911 .45-caliber ACP semi-automatic pistol in a holster while he’s in the shop to protect merchandise, customers and his co-workers.

On Monday, Studler said it clearly would have been illegal for him to walk outside the store with the pistol he nicknamed “Cherlene” in plain sight.

And even on Tuesday — following a ruling by a three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in favor of carrying a firearm in public for self-defense — Studler said he still does not feel comfortable displaying his Sig Sauer in the open just yet.

“I don’t want to create any commotion with my weapon on my hip,” Studler said.

While he expects Tuesday’s ruling to go through several appeals, Studler said he expects one day that law-abiding citizens across the islands will be able to carry pistols and rifles in the open.

“I’m hopeful for an open-carry state,” Studler said. “I’m still not going to do it until everything’s technically official.”

But Studler found plenty of reason to celebrate Tuesday’s ruling.

“Today’s a good day,” he said. “Today’s a good step in the right direction.”

Harvey Gerwig, president of the Hawaii Rifle Association, said, “It’s about time.”

“What it does is it forces the state of Hawaii, as it stands right now, to honor our rights under the Constitution to self-defense,” Gerwig said. “Most other states in the United States honor that right, hands down.”

Gerwig noted that implementation wouldn’t mean that “everybody can run out and buy a gun. If they are a criminal or if they are a mental defective or they have any spousal abuse or domestic violence — all of those are (disqualifiers). You can’t have a gun to begin with, much less a concealed carry or open carry permit.”

Gerwig said he won’t predict what will happen next, but he offered a range of possibilities.

“The state and the city could just decide, ‘OK, we give up,’ and accept (the ruling) and start issuing permits,” he said.

Hawaii officials could ask the full 9th Circuit court to rule on the case, and that “could take six months to two years,” Gerwig said.

The issue could go to the U.S. Supreme Court.

“So there are a lot of options,” Gerwig said.

Gerwig said his personal opinion — and not that of the association — is that concealed carry is a much better option.

“No. 1, open carry tends to unnerve those that are not involved with the firearms industry and (don’t) understand that it isn’t any Joe Blow out there that can strap a gun on him and walk around town — that it takes a certain level of requirements that you have to meet,” he said.

Concealed carry also leaves criminals wondering, “Oh, man, does this person look like they may have a gun? I don’t know. Well, maybe I won’t commit a crime today,” Gerwig said.

To carry a firearm in some states, such as Florida, individuals must first have mandatory training, he said.

Vermont, meanwhile, is a “constitutional carry” state, “meaning as long as you are not a criminal or don’t have a mental defective thing on your record, you can just carry — and that’s concealed carry in Vermont,” Gerwig said.

Gerwig said he doesn’t think there should be a training mandate to open carry in Hawaii because he sees it as a constitutional right.

“Do I personally favor having some training? Yes, and I’m a firearms trainer. That’s one of the things I do,” he said. “I think the more training people get, the better off they are are in terms of their own safety.”

Jonathan Aguirre, a salesman at Honolulu Firearms & Range, also wears his Glock 19 semi-automatic pistol in a holster while at work.

“Everybody has the right to defend ourselves and arm ourselves, as long you’re not threatening people,” he said.

Aguirre expects that allowing people to carry firearms in public will deter shootings, rather than cause an increase.

“Criminals don’t like armed citizens,” he said. “They like soft targets.”

Lloyd Bell of Kakaako previously bought a Remington pump-action shotgun at Honolulu Firearms & Range. On Tuesday, after a mandatory 14-day waiting period, Bell returned to pick up nearly identical Glock 19 9-millimeter semi-automatic handguns for himself and his wife, Pauletta.

Bell paid $600 for each pistol, plus another $150 for a system that allows him to attach a red dot sight on his.

Asked whether he hopes to one day be able to wear his Glock on his hip out in the open, Bell said, “If this does go through, I do plan to possibly file the paperwork to carry an open firearm.”