DRY FIRING. EVER DAMAGE A GUN BY DOING SO?

Fast Draw

I HAVE A BERETTA 96 AND DRY FIRED IT SEVERAL TIMES . DO YOU BELIEVE IT COULD HAVE BEEN DAMAGED? HAVE YOU EVER HEARD OF DAMAGE BEING DONE BY DRY FIRING? DO YOU THINK 3OR 4 TIMES WILL DAMAGE A GUN ?

Iconoclast

This topic has been raised several times. The consensus seems to be: (1) that it can, especially on weapons in RF calibers and (2) it's best best to use snap caps, which are very inexpensive. Personally, yes, I lost a firing pin on an older revolver. It's good practice - but snap caps are cheap insurance.[This message has been edited by Iconoclast (edited 12-21-2001).]

MORGCL

YES BENT THE FIRING PIN ON 22 PISTOL

Smokewagon

I just sold a Lone Eagle pistol to a customer and when he got it, he and his dealer were playing with it( dry firing) to get a feel for the trigger. Guess what, they broke the firing pin after about the 4 try. The manual with the gun specifically says not to do it.

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Sgt.J.Kysela/Oklahoma City Police Dept. F/A Instructor.

ED P

.22 LR Rimfire dryfiring is almost always a bad idea.Each gun design is different.S&W says everything but their .22LR guns are safe to dry fire.I have a Ruger SP-101 in .22LR, which the manual says is safe to dry fire.

boeboe

It depends on the firearm. Have you ever tried to return a Glock to its factory box without dry firing it? I sure haven't figured out a way to do it. Other firearms, such as the CZ52 are expecially prone to firing pin damage on dry firing. My guess is a few dry fires to a Beretta 92/96 won't hurt the gun. I wouldn't recommend making a habit of it. I've seen field replacement parts kits available for the Beretta with spare firing pin, extractor, barrel and springs which were taken out of new police department guns to retrofit lazer training devices. They are very reasonable when they pop up. You might keep an eye open for one, just in case.[This message has been edited by boeboe (edited 12-21-2001).]

Fast Draw

You guys are cool! Thank You for your advise and comments.

gruntled

On a rimfire you cannot only damage the firing pin but also the chamber mouth. This is because the firing pin hits where the rim of the case would be & not empty space like a centerfire. Most semi-autosn Without external hammers) & bolt action arms can be decocked by holding them slightly open & pulling the trigger thereby lessening the impact of the hammer or firing pin. This includes my Sigma & I would assume the Glock. (Just tried it on the Sigma & holding the breach just slightly open & pulling the trigger results in a small "click" & the trigger is unset.)

Xracer

As you can see from the above posts, when in doubt, DON'T.....and certainly NEVER with any rimfire firearm.If you feel you must dryfire a rimfire, put a piece of spent brass in there. With all others, buy or make some snapcaps.

v35

Yup, on a Baby Browning 25acp. I broke a firing pin several times. It's unavoidable in a single action semi auto with concealed hammer or striker when you have to unload it.The beauty of military firearms is that they are designed for greater abuse and can take more dry firing.

JudgeColt

Gruntled is right about the Sigma and Glock being decocked as described. The same technique works on most doubles and bolt actions. Most quality rimfires are not damaged by dry firing because they are designed so the firing pin does not hit anything when it falls on an empty chamber. However, it probably does put extra stress on the firing pin to hit the hard stop instead of the relatively soft rim of a fresh cartridge. Snap caps are still a good idea with any firearm.