Leave hammer cocked after unloading?

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dlau

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I just got the 870 Express, and finished reading the manual. I have a question about what state the shotgun is in after Unloading.

The situation is I have racked a live shell into the chamber, and there are shells in the mag. At this point, the hammer is cocked.

To unload:
1) engage safety
2) push action bar up
3) pull pump partially back, remove shell from ejection port
4) remove shells from mag, close action (slide fully forward)
5) finish proving firearm safe, apply trigger lock.

At this point, the hammer is still cocked, and will be unless I dry fire it. Is it a bad practise to dry-fire a shotgun? Can I store it will the hammer still cocked? I'm thinking it's unsafe to do so.
 
Storing with the hammer cocked unsafe? False (unless you have a shell in the chamber). Bad for the hammer spring? Maybe and I wouldn't.

I dry fire my stuff all the time - I don't think you need to worry about dry-firing the 870, it will handle it.

I've never actually read a Remington manual (bad I know) but I am sure they don't mention to dry fire it for legal reasons:
"The manual said to pull the trigger... I was confused!!"
 
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Whether a firearm is safe to dry fire depends upon the design of the action. Dry fire some of the old doubles, and you'll hear the sound of the firing pin skittering down the barrel. In my opinion, you can safely dry fire an 870 and I do to unload the main spring. If you are nervous about it, glue a piece of eraser on an old cleaning rod, run it down the barrel, and use it like a snap cap.

Sharptail
 
Once it's Proved safe, dry fire to remove spring tension from the fireing pin. Pop in a snap cap if your worried about damaging your guns, but it's always better for long tern storage to dry fire b4 putting the gun away.
 
I dry fire my 870 repeatedly. As it is my predator control/house gun I leave it with the action open for ease of loading and don't worry about leaving it cocked. It's a coil spring system and leaving them under pressure isn't a concern.
 
I know that 870 firing pins are very tough but in two occasions, I had to replace 870 firing pins on shotguns that had been dry-fired extensively.
They broke by metal fatigue at the same exact point: the thinnest part nearest the firing pin stop. When the firing pin is launched and abruptly stopped, all the firing pin inertia is pulling at this point.
Eventually, with maybe some roughness in the finish of some firing pins, a crack begins to appear and eventually, it breaks.
Use some form of snap caps, it pays in the long run.
PP.
 
I use to dry fire my 870 but try not to anymore. I leave it cocked in my safe. Also, whenever I go to lebaron's, their guns are handled all the time and they always leave them cocked. They say it's ok and won't really hurt the firearm. I took their word for it...
 
What's all this about manually removing the shell from the ejection port? and how do they propose to remove shells easily from the mag without cycling the action?

I crouch down close to the ground, point in a safe direction, apply safety (it should already be on), and cycle the gun till it's empty.

I double check that it's empty by cycling the action a couple more times after all the shells come out, look in the chamber and verify it's empty and then drop the hammer.

Done. And much faster than that weird method from the manual... I think their lawyers just cringed thinking of some dude standing tall, ratcheting the gun empty over crushed stone and a primer of a falling shell hitting a protruding point of stone or something...
 
Suspect187 said:
I use to dry fire my 870 but try not to anymore. I leave it cocked in my safe. Also, whenever I go to lebaron's, their guns are handled all the time and they always leave them cocked. They say it's ok and won't really hurt the firearm. I took their word for it...
Click to expand...

Assuming ANYONE working at leBaron's knows or understands ANY firearm is a generous assumption. Ask a gunsmith, not a part-time highschooler!
 
Claven2 said:
Assuming ANYONE working at leBaron's knows or understands ANY firearm is a generous assumption. Ask a gunsmith, not a part-time highschooler!
Click to expand...

At the Lebaron's in Markham, there are no highschoolers working in the gun shop. They are all 40 years + and they seem to know what they're talking about.
 
Claven2 said:
What's all this about manually removing the shell from the ejection port? and how do they propose to remove shells easily from the mag without cycling the action?

I crouch down close to the ground, point in a safe direction, apply safety (it should already be on), and cycle the gun till it's empty.

I double check that it's empty by cycling the action a couple more times after all the shells come out, look in the chamber and verify it's empty and then drop the hammer.

Done. And much faster than that weird method from the manual... I think their lawyers just cringed thinking of some dude standing tall, ratcheting the gun empty over crushed stone and a primer of a falling shell hitting a protruding point of stone or something...
Click to expand...


You remove the rounds from the mag by depressing the shell stop. Then you get all the shells in your hand instead of ejecting them all over the place. It is easy to do with some practice.

Also springs don't wear if they are static. Leaving the hammer cocked will not cause problems, everytime you cycle the hammer spring does bring it closer to failure. So if you want things to last the longest follow the manual. In practice it doesn't really amtter.
 
Have been "dry firing" my 870 for about the last 20 years to "de-####" it.

Store all my guns, including rifles that way. Some don't get used from one season to the next.

Good doubles - use good quality snap caps after cleaning.
 
Everything I've ever read or been told says that leaving springs under tension doesn't hurt them. Still, I don't like to do it. Some actions can be closed with the trigger pulled, and don't remain cocked. For the rest, I use snap caps.

I don't really believe that leaving the spring under tension will make much of a difference, except perhaps for extended periods of time. I've heard warnings about leaving snap caps in for long periods of time, too. Theory is that the snap cap promotes collection of moisture in the chamber and can result in pitting (particularly metal caps, if they're not painted, or so I've heard).

The bottom line is there's no easy answer. The best policy is to clean and inspect all of your guns on a regular basis. Try not to store them for long stretches without periodic inspection and cleaning. Wipe them down with a silicone cloth or lightly oiled rag (with the emphasis on lightly) to protect from skin oils and moisture.

SS
 
There is actually a very easy way to decock without dry firing. I do it with several guns (garand, m1 carbine, vz52 and my pump shotties) all you have to do is bring the action back far enough so that the bolt/bolt carrier is touching or almost touching the hammer. Then you just pull the trigger and let the hammer ride the carrier to its forward position. No harm done!
 
Thanks for the information. For my rifle and pistol, I always store uncocked... it just seemed odd to store the 870 in this state. I'll try the nifty decocking procedure. I guess I'll have to experiment to see where the pump has to be for the carrier to touch the hammer? I tried holding down the trigger and cycling the pump, but that still leaves the hammer cocked.
 
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