Friends Don't Let Friends Drop A 1911 Slide On An Empty Chamber...

[eb in oregon]

Apparently many people seem to ignore that the function of stripping a round out of the magazine and it being pushed into the chamber acts like a shock absorber, slows the slide down, and prevents battering the locking lugs on the firearm. To continually drop the slide of any pistol on an empty chamber isn't a good idea. And it's not good for a semi-auto rifle either. This isn't "babying" a firearm, it's insuring that it's always 100% reliable and functional without cracks in the parts.

 

[Sandaholic]

Apparently many people seem to ignore that the function of stripping a round out of the magazine and it being pushed into the chamber acts like a shock absorber, slows the slide down, and prevents battering the locking lugs on the firearm. To continually drop the slide of any pistol on an empty chamber isn't a good idea. And it's not good for a semi-auto rifle either. This isn't "babying" a firearm, it's insuring that it's always 100% reliable and functional without cracks in the parts.

 

[Mica]

First world problems
Like getting a scratch on my new scope

That's no joke. Bugs the heck outa me.

 

[eb in oregon]

View attachment 585623

Yea, an opinion spent shooting, repairing, actually studying the mechanics of firearms, and working as a gunsmith and journeyman machinist making mechanical devices since before you were born. Really, I don't care, you do what you want to your firearms and that means nothing to me. Remember, ignorance is remedied by education, there is no remedy for stupidity.

 

[Sandaholic]

Yea, an opinion spent shooting, repairing, actually studying the mechanics of firearms, and working as a gunsmith and journeyman machinist making mechanical devices since before you were born. Really, I don't care, you do what you want to your firearms and that means nothing to me. Remember, ignorance is remedied by education, there is no remedy for stupidity.

Are we talking about my stupidity or yours?

ETA: I posted the meme up there as a joke. It does not matter to me if you do or don't drop the slide on an empty chamber. I just found this thread kind of amusing as there were such strong opinions. You really kinda jumped the gun with your insinuation there.

Here is another one that I think fits here


View attachment 585734

 

[gmerkt]

My friend Mark used to say, "Whattya mean, I'm wasting food that starving people in (name the country) could use? Let them come here and get it if they want." He could not at the time foresee that he was being somewhat prophetic.

Anyway, the subject at hand. Releasing the slide on an empty chamber.

When you chamber a live round, the ramping action of the cartridge into the chamber may cause a small measure of slowing the momentum of the slide. However, firing a live round is greatly more violent than any hand action that may be made on the device. So it seems to me that dropping a slide on an empty chamber is no more violent than the firing of a live round. When self-loading a new cartridge into the chamber upon firing, the ramping of same will have virtually no slowing effect on the momentum of the slide in these circumstances.

Just my opinion, the danger from dropping the slide on an empty chamber is overstated. I've seen well-used GI 1911's that have had the inside of the slide peened down simply from pushing the hammer back over and over thousands of times, they still worked.