Oh my god, it’s still loaded.

[kb58]

Sort of related...

So it's "casual Friday" at work and I'm wearing my Levi's, paying for a cup of coffee and pull out a handful of change... oops. Managed to get the live .22LR round back in my pocket without anyone noticing - where it was placed because it was a FTF and I wanted to examine it later for hammer hits...

[FX-05 Xiuhcoatl]

OMG...! BOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMmmmmmm.........!!!

follow by, WTF........ I should have check if it was loaded.

[Oldnoob]

One thing I'm proud of my girl was I get her drill into her head that whenever I (or anyone else) hand her a gun, she will always eject the mag and clear the chamber.

[Snoopy47]

The gun is over 50 years old. The feeding magazine is not the most reliable. So pulling the bolt and showing a clear chamber doesn’t mean there isn’t one in the tube still jammed up in there because the spring follower isn’t feeding it correctly. That’s how the second round go in there.

It’s been sitting in a closet for 30 years without any care.

I Just finished cleaning it, and lubing it. It works fine now. I validated clear by shoving a cleaning rod all the way down the barrel, and all the way down the magazine tube.

For some of you younger lads you will be curious to know that the following is standard on this model.

1) The charging handle is OPTIONAL. When I buy the part it will do nothing more than what the screw driver is doing. It will have to be put in there only to CHARGE it, and it will come out once charged. The only difference is it fits the slot perfectly, but nothing HOLDS IT IN PLACE permanently.
2) There is NO SERIAL NUMBER. This is a 50+ year old .22 rifle bought out of a Sears catalog.
3) The magazine holds WAY more than 10. It’s the entire length of the barrel.
4) It does not lock back when empty, and it’s kind of a pain to hold the bolt open with check.

This thing basically needs to be treated like a musket.

Yes, it does have a safety, and it works. I'm sure it will fire this afternoon.

[JTROKS]

Yup! Always keep that gray matter working for you.


I. The Fundamentals of Firearm Safety

The three basic general rules of safe gun handling.

Always point the muzzle in a safe direction; never point a firearm at anyone or anything you don't want to shoot.
Keep your finger off the trigger and outside the trigger guard until you are ready to shoot.
Keep the action open and the gun unloaded until you are ready to use it.
II. Additional specific rules of safe gun handling

Safety Rules Related to the Shooter and His Behavior.

Treat every firearm as if it were loaded.
Never pass a firearm to another person, or accept a firearm from another person, until the cylinder or action is open and you've personally checked that the weapon is completely unloaded.
Before handling any firearm, understand its operation.
Never rely on any mechanical device for safety.
Think before shooting: once you pull the trigger you can't take back the shot you've just fired!
Never joke around or engage in horseplay while handling or using firearms.
Be alert at all times; never shoot if you're tired, cold or impaired in any way. Don't mix alcohol or drugs with shooting.
Don't sleep with a loaded firearm in your bedroom if you sleepwalk, have nightmares, sleep restlessly or have other sleep problems.
Safeguard your sight, hearing and health. Always wear eye and ear protection. Endeavor to limit your exposure to heavy metal particulates and gases, and minimize your contact with aromatic organic solvents (such as those commonly used in gun cleaning products).
If you see unsafe behavior any time when firearms are being handled or used, speak up and take action to correct the unsafe behavior at once.
Receive competent instruction from a qualified person before beginning to shoot. If questions arise later, after you've been shooting for a period of time, get answers to those questions from a competent authority.

[Snoopy47]

[JTROKS]

One thing I'm proud of my girl was I get her drill into her head that whenever I (or anyone else) hand her a gun, she will always eject the mag and clear the chamber.

I taught my boy the same thing until we moved back to California. I was cleaning a couple of guns and had an AR with bullet button on the table calling out to my boy. My boy asked if he can handle it and I said yes. He sets it down after a minute and said it's broken the magazine won't come out like it used to. I told him that this state made it that way with lots of broken thinking.

[Fishslayer]

So you "considered" dry firing a weapon you just pulled out of a closet?

If checking the chamber was an afterthought...

Lesson learned. Checking the chamber/magazine/cylinder should be the absolute first thing you do every time. EVERY time.

[MossbergMan]

Just shows to go ya...Always assume guns are loaded before you handle them and treat them as if they are loaded. Snoopy, good catch. Just one miscue,skip one little rule and the damage is done. Check, check and recheck before dry practice....
And in 1997 (pre-9/11 airport security) my duty gun, competition gunand I flew to Alaska for a USPSA match. Oh I signed my affidavid that they were unloaded (no inspection) and away we went. When I arrived at a range to varify zero..I went to clear my duty gun and lo and behold a winchester black talon plopped out of my duty gun and onto the ground...OMG I committed a federal felony....argh! WTF over. Talk about a come to Jesus moment.

[The Gleam]

I went to borrow my dad’s .22 rifle (a JC Higgins from the Sears Roebuck catalog). I don’t think it’s seen the light if day since I last shot it (30 years ago). And yep, it was loaded.

More eye opening was I was JUST ABOUT to dry fire (well it wouldn’t have been dry now would it),

Good thing you checked, but you should never "dry fire" anything in .22LR, especially that old.

It's fine to dry-fire an infinite number of times on most any centerfire firearms, as the more fragile part of the pin hits nothing if the primer is not there; but on a rimfire gun, if the rim is not there you are often hitting something other than soft brass, and you may mar, mash, or break the firing pin. And with old guns, firing pins may be more scarce to find if you ruin them.

[ZirconJohn]

About ten years ago when I worked at Diamond Jim's here in Ukiah - the following did happen...

We sold consignment and used guns for resale.

Guy walks in with gun box (hand gun), places it on the gun counter. I open the box, point the open box (with gun in it) in a safe direction, then pick it up - being careful to NOT touch the trigger. The guy says "I dunno why you being so cautious, I wouldn't bring a loaded gun in here!" I keep my mouth shut, and continue to safety check the pistol.

I rack the slide back, and OMG out pops a live round... and just that exact time here comes Jim (store owner) and the ejected live round hits the floor and goes bouncing right to Jim's feet...!

Well... for those of you up in these parts who knew Jim Tsarnas... hhahahahaha.... Ole Jim lit into that guy like a Marine Corps Drill Sergeant...! I just stood back and enjoyed the show...

Hhahahahah... the proverbial "its not loaded"

[fighterpilot562]

And thats why i ALWAYS check my guns or anyone else guns before do anything with it. You never no, and i dont wanna shoot anyone or anything.

[Turbinator]

Handgun forum, dude.

Yup. Moved to General Gun Discussions now.

Turby

[FourLoko]

Rule #1