Does using the slide release on a empty gun damage it?

[choochboost]

I'm surprised that it took so many posts for someone to finally mention this. HK, for ex., won't warranty their slide stops or their slides if it's evident that the user had continually used the slide stop to release the slide rather than racking the slide back to chamber the next round.

That is not true. HK calls the part a slide release and will certainly replace it if necessary.