My First Accidental Discharge, I am Freaked Out.. Learning Lesson... Need Advice

[AKAR32]

Okay, I will give my two cents worth...Is an AR the best home defense weapon ?
I prefer a 12Ga, and a handgun, but in many homes firing an AR or any rifle round in anger is likely to result in hitting a neighbor or family room...Then you are dealing with several law suits !
AKAR32

 

[Firesweep]

Aiming the gun at the ceiling is not a safe direction.

safetyrules

RULE I: ALL GUNS ARE ALWAYS LOADED

RULE II: NEVER LET THE MUZZLE COVER ANYTHING YOU ARE NOT WILLING TO DESTROY

RULE III: KEEP YOUR FINGER OFF THE TRIGGER UNTIL YOUR SIGHTS ARE ON THE TARGET

RULE IV: BE SURE OF YOUR TARGET

Thanks for sharing your story. We all need a safety refresher course.

Forgot rule FIVE.... Be sure what's behind your target!
Way too many people forget that most bullets travel through most targets.

 

[SavageMessiah]

I am surprised that you can still sleep next to your rifle.... I can't sleep next to my rifles for some reason. I have never had a miss hap like this but I am too afraid that i will shoot someone while in a dream.

 

[zerooption]

Unless you are living in a warzone, there is no reason why you have a need to have a loaded weapon of that type next to your bed. When you weigh the chance that something like this could happen versus taking a little bit of time to load your weapon when you need it safety is always first.

I applaud you for sharing your story so I will share mine that taught me never ever assume a weapon is never load.

I triggered a M203 training grenade in a enclosed command track and survived that experience with only the loss of boot and rain boot and most certainly a lesson in humility for a Lieutenant.

The Rifle Grenade Launcher was in a weapons rack and beng bored I was playing with the safety. As I was clicking the safety back and forth I finally decided to squeeze the the trigger. You can only imagine the shock that I realized that I had just launched a grenade inside a vehicle that contain a new computer system ($$$$)

I certainly wasn't going to pick the grenade up off the floor of the vehicle so I tried to kick it out of the vehicle, well I ended up pinning the grenade to the floor of the vehicle. It exploded underneath my foot (right leg) and hurled me back into the track. I never ever felt so much pain in my life, I had to be evacuated to a German Hospital ER,where they took xrays of my foot.

Luckily for me I had just purchased a brand new pair of thick soled boots and was wearing some rain boots. The boots protected my foot. When I later saw the vehicle floor there was a 3 inch (bowl) dent in the floor plates and this was with a training grenade that was essentially a 1/4 stick of dynamite.

I don't have damage to my foot nor to my hearing but I have always from that time forward respected the fact that a weapon is always loaded no matter what and that it is not worth to keep a weapon loaded in the house.

So I ask you please consider is it worth it to you to keep your weapons loaded when inserting a magazine and racking a round could be enough to deter whatever you are trying to protect your family and home?

 

[Father of four]

Aiming the gun at the ceiling is not a safe direction.

safetyrules

RULE I: ALL GUNS ARE ALWAYS LOADED

RULE II: NEVER LET THE MUZZLE COVER ANYTHING YOU ARE NOT WILLING TO DESTROY

RULE III: KEEP YOUR FINGER OFF THE TRIGGER UNTIL YOUR SIGHTS ARE ON THE TARGET

RULE IV: BE SURE OF YOUR TARGET

Thanks for sharing your story. We all need a safety refresher course.

Good post!

 

[Father of four]

Forgot rule FIVE.... Be sure what's behind your target!
Way too many people forget that most bullets travel through most targets.

You too are right sir! Always plan on where your bullets will travel!

 

[zerooption]

Unless you are living in a warzone, there is no reason why you have a need to have a loaded weapon of that type next to your bed. When you weigh the chance that something like this could happen versus taking a little bit of time to load your weapon when you need it safety is always first.

I applaud you for sharing your story so I will share mine that taught me never ever assume a weapon is never load.

I triggered a M203 training grenade in a enclosed command track and survived that experience with only the loss of boot and rain boot and most certainly a lesson in humility for a Lieutenant.

The Rifle Grenade Launcher was in a weapons rack and beng bored I was playing with the safety. As I was clicking the safety back and forth I finally decided to squeeze the the trigger. You can only imagine the shock that I realized that I had just launched a grenade inside a vehicle that contain a new computer system ($$$$)

I certainly wasn't going to pick the grenade up off the floor of the vehicle so I tried to kick it out of the vehicle, well I ended up pinning the grenade to the floor of the vehicle. It exploded underneath my foot (right leg) and hurled me back into the track. I never ever felt so much pain in my life, I had to be evacuated to a German Hospital ER,where they took xrays of my foot.

Luckily for me I had just purchased a brand new pair of thick soled boots and was wearing some rain boots. The boots protected my foot. When I later saw the vehicle floor there was a 3 inch (bowl) dent in the floor plates and this was with a training grenade that was essentially a 1/4 stick of dynamite.

I don't have damage to my foot nor to my hearing but I have always from that time forward respected the fact that a weapon is always loaded no matter what and that it is not worth to keep a weapon loaded in the house.

So I ask you please consider is it worth it to you to keep your weapons loaded when inserting a magazine and racking a round could be enough to deter whatever you are trying to protect your family and home?

 

[batcat6]

I had a 1911 built by Thompson I bought from an Air Force sergaent some years back. I was checking the grip safety one day, pulling the trigger without the safety pressed. I had removed the mag, but forgot to check the chamber. As laws would have it, there's a round in there. It went into the kitchen floor while the wife was sitting at the table. We were both surprised at the noise. I couldn't find it at first. Then I chased it with a chopstick into the floor an found it buried there about 4" deep. I got rid of that .45 fast as I could. Now I have another one that is much tighter, a Colt.
It is not a good way to learn discipline, better to train for it.

 

[Celtic Armory]

My one and only ND was when I was 3 and shot my dad's service revolver when he was an LA cop. I have been fortunate that I haven't had any more in the nearly 40 years since.

I'm so glad no one was hurt. Please be sure to be more diligent about the 4 safety rules. One thing you could do is set up a type of bullet trap that would be a safe place to put the muzzle and drop the hammer. That way if some how you missed something the bullet would be caught. When I was a teen and was living with my mom in the summers, she had a Weatherby .257mag rifle (along with her little .38) and we would set up a large cardboard box packed full of 2x4s so that we would have about a 2'x2'x2' block of wood to "shoot" at. That way if something happened the round would be caught and not pass through any walls.

 

[PBinWA]

Canada has some good guidelines they teach (not that I advocate Canada's gun laws) with two useful acronyms:

ACTS & PROVE - A Method to Make Firearms Safe

During the Canadian Firearms Safety Course(s) the following method is used to reinforce safe gun handling. Every time someone picks up or unloads a gun, he/she will be expected to perform ACTS & PROVE. Students are trained to perform ACTS & PROVE on hinge, bolt, pump, lever and semi-automatic action long guns in the CFSC and on semi-automatic pistols as well as single and double action revolvers in the CRFSC.
THE VITAL FOUR ACTS OF FIREARMS SAFETY

* Assume every firearm is loaded.
* Control the muzzle direction at all times.
* Trigger finger must be kept off the trigger and out of the trigger guard.
* See that the firearm is unloaded - PROVE it safe.

PROVE

* Point the firearm in the safest available direction.
* Remove all cartridges.
* Observe the chamber.
* Verify the feeding path.
* Examine the bore.

 

[coyote223]

Okay, I will give my two cents worth...Is an AR the best home defense weapon ?
I prefer a 12Ga, and a handgun, but in many homes firing an AR or any rifle round in anger is likely to result in hitting a neighbor or family room...Then you are dealing with several law suits !
AKAR32

Unless you live in a mansion, with multiple walls. I think you will have to worry about that with just about any gun.








I was surprised at how many of my co-workers have had negligent discharges. Pretty scary,,,

Havn't had one yet, knock on wood.

 

[Keane]

Unless you are living in a warzone, there is no reason why you have a need to have a loaded weapon of that type next to your bed. When you weigh the chance that something like this could happen versus taking a little bit of time to load your weapon when you need it safety is always first.

I applaud you for sharing your story so I will share mine that taught me never ever assume a weapon is never load.

I triggered a M203 training grenade in a enclosed command track and survived that experience with only the loss of boot and rain boot and most certainly a lesson in humility for a Lieutenant.

The Rifle Grenade Launcher was in a weapons rack and beng bored I was playing with the safety. As I was clicking the safety back and forth I finally decided to squeeze the the trigger. You can only imagine the shock that I realized that I had just launched a grenade inside a vehicle that contain a new computer system ($$$$)

I certainly wasn't going to pick the grenade up off the floor of the vehicle so I tried to kick it out of the vehicle, well I ended up pinning the grenade to the floor of the vehicle. It exploded underneath my foot (right leg) and hurled me back into the track. I never ever felt so much pain in my life, I had to be evacuated to a German Hospital ER,where they took xrays of my foot.

Luckily for me I had just purchased a brand new pair of thick soled boots and was wearing some rain boots. The boots protected my foot. When I later saw the vehicle floor there was a 3 inch (bowl) dent in the floor plates and this was with a training grenade that was essentially a 1/4 stick of dynamite.

I don't have damage to my foot nor to my hearing but I have always from that time forward respected the fact that a weapon is always loaded no matter what and that it is not worth to keep a weapon loaded in the house.

So I ask you please consider is it worth it to you to keep your weapons loaded when inserting a magazine and racking a round could be enough to deter whatever you are trying to protect your family and home?

So just because you were a fool who almost blew your foot off, the rest of us shouldn't own ARs or keep them loaded?

 

[oasis618]

To the OP...

Thanks for honestly sharing the story. It CAN happen to anyone though there are those who will always claim they aren't one of those people.

 

[cootim20]

Wow. Is there such a thing as dry firing an AR with a mag inserted If only we had the video...

 

[huntpotter]

I shot through a bedroom door and out the window one time. I had to get some spackle, and run the window down to the glass shop, before my wife got home. It was a learning experience.

 

[TANSTAAFL]

I applaud the humility to post this, you could just let ego take over and tell no one. A great reminder, especially for those of us in large apartment buildings in the inner city. Not many terribly great directions a firearm can go off (though I'm on the roof near a cement stairwell is slightly better). And then you have to wonder what your neighbors are doing!

 

[sheepdip]

had a 12 guage go off on me once. was sure it was unloaded, luckily no one was hurt. which rule in gun safety is that #1

 

[MarkAd]

I had an stupid discharge recently, scared me so I suffered from mild schock. Never again. Luckily the 45 was as is my habit pointed down and away from me.
i now know how to put half inches holes in the floor without a drill

 

[zerooption]

So just because you were a fool who almost blew your foot off, the rest of us shouldn't own ARs or keep them loaded?

It not a question of being a fool. I assumed some elses weapon was not loaded, it wasn't. You want to be responsible for one of your family members or friends to trust the weapons you own aren't loaded. It is a matter of applying common sense. It is not worth the risk and as you can read from the other postings that it does happen (a loaded weapon going off in the house accidentally) and in some cases the discharge has resulted in the owner having to fix the situation.
My error was trusting in someone else to do the right thing and the bottom line is that you can't. I have seen the results of negligent weapon discharges in over 30 years of service and watched Soldiers in this current war get article 15's in Iraq and Afghanistan for negligent weapons discharges.

This isn't an attack on anyone owning anything it is about being safe so get real.

 

[RVTECH]

I will not pass judgment on your AD - heck we all have had them - but this is a good argument for ALWAYS keeping the muzzle pointed at the floor away from your legs, etc. when checking, dry firing whatever - keep the muzzle end down!