Dry firing

thumper1

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So I was looking at a rifle the other day and I asked if I could test the trigger well the guy behind the counter got all this attitude and snotty with me and said "No dry firing any of the rifles". I dry fire mine and I've never had any problems and in the military you dry fire them all the time also without any problems. So i thought I'd ask is it good or bad in your eyes.
 
If I was selling new firearms I wouldn't let them be dry fired, either.
One of the strange little quirks of nature, of people and guns, is that, on the average and nothing personal here, those who spend the most time looking at and testing a new rifle, are the ones who are least likely to buy it!
 
It is all what the owner wants... but he should not have been snotty about it, you asked rather than did it... it bothers some guys but harmless with the vast majority of firearms.

I have to ask though, how serious about purchasing it were you. I know from past retail experience many tire kickers just want to function everything with no intention of purchasing anything and if that is what he gets all day , maybe that's the cause of his attitude.
 
No dry firing is a standard policy in many gun shops, even some of the best.
Dry firing is safe with almost all centerfire rifle designs but will damage almost all rimfire rifles designs and is a huge safety/liability issue for gun shops.

Alex
 
I dry fire my guns constantly and don't worry about it. Even a properly set up rimfire can be dry fired.

One thing is, if a new gun has had the action worked and dry fired 1000 times is it still a new gun?

Sales-staff that get snooty with me get written off pretty quick and the store might too. Good ones seem to pick up on who is serious and who isn't. I won't buy a gun at a store without testing the trigger and action, new or not. I'll tell them first.
 
I never dry fire. Some guns made today might have steel to withstand the snap, or springs that are lighter? But as a rule I just don't do it. I understand many people say they dry fire their guns all the time, and never have a problem. But the thing is you won't have a problem until the nose of the firing pin breaks, and there's no measure of time which can indicate how many dry fires it would take. What people need to understand is it can be an expensive fix if the parts are rare, and a gunsmith needs to make a firing pin. Could be $100 or so? So I can understand if a seller said no to dry firing his gun.

They make snap caps which have a spring pressure plate to allow the nose of the firing pin to hit it, and move forward, safely.

Also, if the gun is a rim fire, dry firing a lot can put a crimp on the edge of the chamber over time, and can cause problems that will need fixing.
 
I would not buy (and have not bought) a firearm without dry firing it and getting a feel for the trigger. But I always ask before I do, and if they say no I understand. If they say no, I can stop looking at guns in that shop and move on.

I don't want or need to fire it 100X or anything -- just once or twice is plenty.
 
I was tire ticking (to be honest) at a local store a few months ago and the owner was helping me out (store wasn't real busy). He told me he really liked the trigger on the X-bolt. I didn't even ask to try it out when all of a sudden he says "I'll let you try it out," takes the gun from me, pulls the trigger lock off and says give it a go. So I did:D
 
Some designs are simply not ment for it.

Case in point never dry fire an H&R handi rifle.
It warns about it right in the manual.

It may forgive You a few times but sooner or later you will have to replace the firing pin.

Overall I think it's rude to do so in a store setting with a rifle that is not yours.
 
why dont they just put a snap cap in it and let you dry fire it as much as you want?
big deal.

Like said above, how many times can you work the action and pull the trigger and still call it a new gun?
If you are buying a new rifle, do you want a new in the box rifle?
Or do you want the one that has been handled and dry fired many times by many tire kickers?
 
Or the "1D10T" who removed the magazine, then inserted it a little off kilter and pounded it in with the palm of his hand. Required a gunsmith to remove it. He will be "person worthy of refusal" if he returns. Or there should be more dollars signs in his "Nom" A$$$$$$HOLE!
 
but if you have a snap cap in the chamber it simulates a live round and therefore no damage can be done.
am i right here or??
so again how do you buy it without trying it first?
and could you actualy tell if its been fired before if it had a snap cap in it??
dont think so.
 
Like said above, how many times can you work the action and pull the trigger and still call it a new gun?
If you are buying a new rifle, do you want a new in the box rifle?
Or do you want the one that has been handled and dry fired many times by many tire kickers?

Understandable, but I am not dishing out $1000 + and not working the action at least once.
 
I've never bought a gun from a gunshop (one was mail order, one was EE, two were inherited), but are you not handling a 'demo model' and buying a 'new in box' from stock?
 
If I am definately buying a gun and not deciding on which to buy I will ask to work the action and test fire with snap caps. For example I recently purchases an O/U and tested the ejectors and selective trigger before purchasing. I wouldn't buy a car without a test drive nor a gun without testing function. I let the seller/clerk know I am buying the gun before I test it.
 
If I am definately buying a gun and not deciding on which to buy I will ask to work the action and test fire with snap caps. For example I recently purchases an O/U and tested the ejectors and selective trigger before purchasing. I wouldn't buy a car without a test drive nor a gun without testing function. I let the seller/clerk know I am buying the gun before I test it.

Well.........what if it fails your test?
 
I don't allow dry firing on my stuff! Got a rookie friend that seemed to be in the habit of doing it, he got a few warnings, it didn't seem to stop him totally, then he got a severe s**t shave, he has now stopped doing it, with my stuff anyway! Bradley, you do remember that, don't you?
 
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