JavaScript is disabled
Our website requires JavaScript to function properly. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser settings before proceeding.
He brings them home, paints the heads with nail polish to identify them and proceeds to use them as snap caps.
Oh man ! I almost shuddered when I read this !

A while back I had a 9mm FTF in my PCC multiple times and later after pulling it I decided to put the empty in my CZ and pull the trigger - and it went pop!

A dud is a LIVE round until broken down!
 
Keep your booger hook outside of the trigger guard until ready to fire.

Shoot with me, and you will be constantly reminded of this. By the end of the day if you have not mastered this simple skill, you won't be shooting with me again. It took a grandson more than one day to master this. Now he is an expert and often reminds others.

Start young and it will become a life long good habit.
 
Last Edited:
Ok, one more 'that was a bad idea' post here for safety's sake.
'Don't shoot reloads out of your Glock'
I say do whatever you want (it is America). I reload for my Glocks, but never again on the progressive press.
As most people here would acknowledge, the wonderful Glock has a 'slightly' unsupported chamber (look up 'Glock belly bulge').
All I'm going to say is that you need to inspect your brass and ensure that after you finish reloading you size up the finished cartridge and ensure it's up to spec.
This picture shows what happens when a loaded cartridge doesn't completely allow the Glock to fire in battery. The spent/ruptured case in the picture was placed back into the chamber and through our knuckle-dragging/not-so-semi-scientific forensics we determined is was a few 0.010"/'s from fully seating.
4.5 grains (1/1555th of a pound) of smokeless powder blowing out the bottom of the case created the damage to the bullet of the next cartridge in the magazine. It also snapped the magazine release in two as it jettisoned the magazine downward. A millisecond later I dropped the 'loaded' handgun onto the ground because of the powder burns and the force from the magazine release exploding into my hands. I really tried to remember 'Firearm safety', but even kids won't leave their hand on a hot stove.


So, what's the 'safety' takeaway from this?Mistakes with firearms can be fatal. This mistake just hurt like a 'son-of-a-gun'.

E667AB6A-96C1-4D7A-96C3-6EC42A631595.jpeg
 
Lots of good advice here, I'll add one more bit that I've found helpful.

1. Remember that the latest, greatest 'tactical' Comp, CQB, hot-rod firearm will not improve your abilities any more than buying a Steinway will make you a concert pianist.. Buy a better gun when YOU are better than the gun you have.

2. Buy a good, quality .22, similar to your carry weapon. Shoot it often while perfecting sight picture and trigger pull. The hand-eye coordination will stick, your mind will remember what you learned and your skills will improve. Also, make it fun... chase a rolling target, golf balls, balloons.

Welcome to a wonderful sport.
 
Just in case you decide to try muzzle loading.

Never use smokeless powder , always use Black Powder , or if you must , a BP substitute like PYRODEX etc...

No smoking when loading or shooting...

Always load Powder , Patch , then ball....otherwise , you will improve your swear word vocabulary...:D

Make sure to remove and replace the ramrod , before shooting...

Bust a few caps prior to loading , if you have percussion gun...this will drive out any oil that could cause a hangfire or not firing at all....

If you store your rifle loaded in hunting camp...it is wise to not store it capped or primed...
A red piece of cloth , placed between the barrel and ramrod near the muzzle , is a good way to remember that the rifle is loaded.

Replace the plug on your powder horn or cap on the powder can , before shooting...
Always use a powder measure to load , never load directly from the horn or can.
Andy
 
Clean your guns when you first purchase it.
Clean your guns after each trip to the range.
It will help the longevity and give you a chance for inspection and familiarity.
 
Lots of good advice here, I'll add one more bit that I've found helpful.

1. Remember that the latest, greatest 'tactical' Comp, CQB, hot-rod firearm will not improve your abilities any more than buying a Steinway will make you a concert pianist.. Buy a better gun when YOU are better than the gun you have.
1A. Just because the "experts" use a piece of equipment it does not mean that your performance will improve if you use it, that you will magically gain more skill, or that you will look like an expert. "Expert" or "Pro" firearms and accessories aren't necessarily for everyone. Sometimes a "pro" or "expert" piece of equipment makes sense only if you are actually a pro or expert doing things that other folks rarely do.

Think about how often you get into a gunfight versus how often a law enforcement officer might. Is the trade-off of having no external, manual safety worth it for them? Probably. Is it worth it for you? Arguably not. It's your choice, but consider the differences in application.

It's like a 5 point harness for a NASCAR driver. The NASCAR driver absolutely and demonstrably needs the 5 point Simpson harness, and a helmet and HANS device. Do you need all of that in your family car? Would the trade-off be worth it? Do you want to spend 5 minutes getting strapped in every time you get into your Toyota Corolla?
 
Two words, negligent discharge.

I never had one, (knocks on wood), but I have witnessed 3.

Two happened at Johnson Creek Gun Club
One at my friends house when he "cleared" his Glock 19. The floor took a JHP.
 
When it comes to what handguns to buy, I suggest that the newcomer to guns stick with well known widely used makes, models, and calibers. Not the just out gun being touted by all the gun mags which will probably have bugs. The tried and true and widely used guns will usually have grips, accessories, sights, and many different holster options available. There will be YouTube videos and much on line info about any peculiarities. Including that it jams on every mag. Or the customer service is imaginary. Or that quality control stinks and some are good and plenty aren't. You may also be able to buy the gun used, too. Gun mags are supported by gun advertising and will normally not tell you the downside in articles about guns. Every gun I regretted buying I bought because of a gun magazine. You need feedback from people who are familiar with the gun and not supported by gun advertising. When in doubt ask on this forum.

Ideally you start with a .22. Then second handgun is a 9mm semi auto or a .357mag revolver. Third is the other of those two. If you have the money get one of each. (.357mags also shoot the much less powerful .38sp, which is cheaper and easier to learn on.). I recommend getting a .22 that is designed to be a .22 rather than as a mimic of a larger caliber. A .22 doesn't recoil anything like a larger caliber mimic, so its usefulness as a mimic is limited. And a .22 that is a mimic of a gun of a heavier caliber will be way heavier than necessary for a .22. But YMMV. And familiarity with different guns and calibers is useful. I suggest guns for beginners should be full size guns with real sights and decent trigger pulls. Learning to shoot well is the first goal. Tiny guns are unpleasant to fire and even many experienced shooters can't shoot them well. Learn and get good on a full size gun; try out smaller guns only later, after you are confident in your abilities with standard size guns. (I turned out to be someone who can't shoot small or light guns well at all. Good thing I started with full size guns.) Don't assume you will love the semi autos or shoot them best. You may or may not. I dislike loading magazines but enjoy reloading revolvers. There is a sort of contemplative Zen aspect to it. High capacity semiautomatics can encourage a spray and pray approach. Revolvers encourage making every shot count. Single shot rifles even more so.

It takes lots of shooting to get good. Shooting takes ammo. Great calibers to learn on, unless you're rich, need to be affordable to shoot. .22 is cheapest to shoot. Then 9mm and .38sp. .45ACP is also pretty cheap, but I would recommend it only after getting good with a 9mm. Recoil of .45ACP is much heavier than 9mm. Likewise, move up to .357 in your .38/.357 only after getting good with .38sp. Proficient Marksman, our own @oremike , sells bulk ammo by mail or at gun shows at excellent prices, at least when components are available, which they may not be right now. Check out his website for prices. Considerably better than buying over the counter.
 
Last Edited:
Think about how often you get into a gunfight versus how often a law enforcement officer might. Is the trade-off of having no external, manual safety worth it for them? Probably. Is it worth it for you? Arguably not. It's your choice, but consider the differences in application.
Yes, it is my choice and, arguably, it is worth it for me. But I will argue that it depends upon one's level of training and experience. I would posit that my level of training (considering that which is/was professionally acquired, from my own regular practices, and from numerous pistol competitions) is light years beyond many in the LEO community. Not dissin' on LEOs at all (I love 'em), but it's a fact that many, many officers only fire their weapon(s) during their annual qualification. By way of comparison, prior to my botched knee surgery last December, I would pay for about 30-40 hours of professional training/instruction per year, every year. Some of these trainings were singular all-day classes, others were all-weekend trainings, and still others were multiple-day series events that stretched all through the summer months and well into the fall. In addition to the couple thousand rounds fired during those many trainings, I would regularly send about 3,000-4,000 rds downrange per year (on average) during my personal practice sessions and competitions. All tolled, I think that's a lot more firearms training and practice than many LEOs in active service have...

As it regards the OP, I couldn't agree more with your above statement. Once he/she "graduates" with much more training and experience, perhaps losing the manual safety will make sense for him/her. But it needs to be a conscious decision for him/her, not just "cuz someone at the range said" it's better that way...
 
Last Edited:
I am a bit confused as to what happened with the OPs revolver. If it really is a SA nothing at all would have happened when pulling the trigger with the hammer down no matter how much he-man strength you apply.

if it did actually cock and loose the hammer but was horrendously gritty and or make noises then it likely needs break in and grease...or you purchased an extremely sub par revolver.
 
Hard to add to all this good advice above, but I will add my .02 cents.

In today's market of difficult to find ammo no matter how tempting NEVER PURCHASE ANOTHERS RELOADS!!!!!

Remanufactured ammo is good to go IMO and not the same as what I'm referring to here. but some joe blow off the interwebs without proper licensing is a recipe for disaster.
 
Think about how often you get into a gunfight versus how often a law enforcement officer might. Is the trade-off of having no external, manual safety worth it for them? Probably. Is it worth it for you? Arguably not. It's your choice, but consider the differences in application.
You're considering the SA semiautomatic with its external safety such as the 1911 as the default, and everything without such safety as less safe or trickier to use safely. However, if you forget to take safety off in SD situation, that style of gun can get you killed. When I was a kiddie and had experience with just two handguns, I didn't seem to forget to take safety off before shooting the SA semiauto. Later, with more guns of my own of mixed types, I very often found myself forgetting to take safety off when practicing with the SA semiautomatic. Too often to be sure I would remember in a crisis. Not unless I went to just SA semi autos and gave up all other types of semi autos and all revolvers.

I consider the DA revolver -- designed to be safe without an external safety -- as the default. Any safety between me and shooting the gun makes the gun trickier for me to use in SD. If/when I ever get a high capacity plastic wonder I'll go for something like a CZ P07, something with a SA/DA design with an external hammer and decocker, with no external safety. I at one point owned a striker fired semiautomatic, a Glock 23. It was a dream to carry but I couldn't shoot it well. That's when I learned I couldn't shoot even full size guns well if they were too light. I found the trigger-placed safety a bit ridiculous too. Anything that would fire the gun accidentally would have to engage the trigger so would automatically also take the gun off safety. And it takes just a small motion to both take safety ogg and fire gun. I also prefer having the option of choice of DA and SA on every shot, as you do with SA/DA revolver or semi auto.
 
Last Edited:
Target style SA semi autos can be a bit treacherous in a self defense situation. When under attack, adrenaline courses through your body. Your muscles become stronger. Target quality semi autos have light triggers. The first time I had to point a gun at someone (at a guy coming in through the window) I was vividly aware of the fact that the relationship between the trigger and action of the gun and my trigger finger muscles was totally different, and I had to be somewhat distracted by focusing on keeping my finger as light as possible on the trigger. And the gun was closer to a Saturday Night Special than a target gun. SD guns usually have heavy trigger pulls because of these considerations. But the heavy triggers limit how well you can shoot the guns, making them less useful for hunting or plinking.

Good quality revolvers usually have light crisp SA triggers. SA triggers way too light and nice to use in SD situations lest the greater strength of your adrenaline-stoked finger cause you to fire without intending to . Revolvers are normally shot DA in SD situations or practice for SD. The DA revolver gives you the advantage of the very long heavy DA trigger pull for close-range self defense and the gloriously light crisp SA for hunting or greater accuracy or longer distance SD.
 
Last Edited:
You're considering the SA semiautomatic with its external safety such as the 1911 as the default, and everything without such safety as less safe or trickier to use safely. However, if you forget to take safety off in SD situation, that style of gun can get you killed. When I was a kiddie and had experience with just two handguns, I didn't seem to forget to take safety off before shooting the SA semiauto. Later, with more guns of my own of mixed types, I very often found myself forgetting to take safety off when practicing with the SA semiautomatic. Too often to be sure I would remember in a crisis. Not unless I went to just SA semi autos and gave up all other types of semi autos and all revolvers.

I consider the DA revolver -- designed to be safe without an external safety -- as the default. Any safety between me and shooting the gun makes the gun trickier for me to use in SD. If/when I ever get a high capacity plastic wonder I'll go for something like a CZ P07, something with a SA/DA design with an external hammer and decocker, with no external safety. I at one point owned a striker fired semiautomatic, a Glock 23. It was a dream to carry but I couldn't shoot it well. That's when I learned I couldn't shoot even full size guns well if they were too light. I found the trigger-placed safety a bit ridiculous too. Anything that would fire the gun accidentally would have to engage the trigger so would automatically also take the gun off safety. And it takes just a small motion to both take safety ogg and fire gun. I also prefer having the option of choice of DA and SA on every shot, as you do with SA/DA revolver or semi auto.
This is why every semi-automatic pistol I own has the same controls in exactly the same places. When I take it out of the holster to fire the safety goes off. I don't even have to think about it. This is the same with EVERY firearm I own. They all have a safety and it is automatic after 70 years or so not to miss that step.

For *ME* [important qualifier here], the chance of snagging something on a Glock style trigger and having a ND outweighs the slight chance that an external safety is going to make a difference in a vanishingly rare SD situation.
 
When shooting firearms of different calibers never have all of the ammo available on the bench. Only have the ammo for the particular rifle/handgun that you are currently firing open and available.
When I was a younger 'dad', I took the kids to the range to go shooting. I had one son on the bench to the left of me and my other son to the bench to the right of me. While helping them get setup with their 22's I mistakenly grabbed a 30/30 round and chambered it into a 7.62x54. It fit, it locked, and it went boom. That wasn't a good day. Lol
YEP!!! As my eyes have gotten older the indoor range seems more like a damn cave to me. Touched off a 10mm round in a .45 caliber PCC one day there. I kept the blown case for a good while to remind me. Only put one caliber on the bench at a time :D
 
YEP!!! As my eyes have gotten older the indoor range seems more like a damn cave to me.

Last summer I had cataract surgery. They do one eye at a time, two weeks apart, so I had ample time to appreciate just how bad my eyes had gotten comparing my one restored eye to the unrestored one for two weeks. I could not believe how dark and yellow the world had gotten for my untreated eye. The world was brilliantly bright and very blue for the treated eye. Now I use glasses only for reading and have 20/20 vision otherwise. But the difference in brightness and colors truly outweighs the improvement in resolution from 20/40 to 20/20.
 
I could not believe how dark and yellow the world had gotten for my untreated eye. The world was brilliantly bright and very blue for the treated eye.
YEP ! Ain't it amazing ?

I hit a pine cone today just short of 125 yards with a 26" Winchester .30-30 with a William's rear peep sight and a Lyman globe front with my 'cataract' corrected right eye.

Since my surgery it has been fantastic!
 
Last Edited:
This is why every semi-automatic pistol I own has the same controls in exactly the same places. When I take it out of the holster to fire the safety goes off. I don't even have to think about it. This is the same with EVERY firearm I own. They all have a safety and it is automatic after 70 years or so not to miss that step.

For *ME* [important qualifier here], the chance of snagging something on a Glock style trigger and having a ND outweighs the slight chance that an external safety is going to make a difference in a vanishingly rare SD situation.
I agree that the Glock style trigger can represent a danger of snagging and firing if the gun is carried in a pocket or without a holster that covers the trigger and trigger guard completely. I was comfortable with the Glock only carried in an appropriate holster. By contrast, I'm willing to carry a DA snubby revolver (Buddy, a SW 686 .357mag) in a coat pocket. Though only in a pocket in which I never carry anything else. Or in the middle pouch of my fanny pack, which I wear in front as a purse substitute. But the fanny pack is actually a camera bag, and heavy padding separates the middle from the other compartments. And nothing else is ever carried in the central compartment except the gun. The compartments have separate zippers, so there's no chance of someone accidentally seeing the gun when I'm trying to get to my wallet. Yes I know its better to carry a gun on your person. But in hot weather in gardening or doing plant breeding work with lots of bending over, I can't conceal a gun any other way.
 

Upcoming Events

Tillamook Gun & Knife Show
Tillamook, OR
"The Original" Kalispell Gun Show
Kalispell, MT
Teen Rifle 1 Class
Springfield, OR
Kids Firearm Safety 2 Class
Springfield, OR

New Resource Reviews

New Classified Ads

Back Top