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Dry Firing...

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XD40EZO

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I'm sure someone had already asked about this, but I'm still confused about "DRY FIRING".

Is it SAFE or is it NOT? Should I use a practice ammo? I've always supported the hammer when I drop it (of course when its empty).

Peace,
 
Well, I've dry fired the pee pee out of most of my centerfire pistols and I've never personally had anything break because of it. On the other hand, certain parts will of course wear out or possibly break more quickly with dry firing.

Of course, you aren't supposed to dry fire most rimfire guns.
 
I think the generic term is snap caps. But there are at least three different manufacturers of them.
 
Depends on the gun. I know that USP-series guns have a known issue with possible firing pin damage if you don't use a snap cap. 1911's are fine. Glocks are fine.

I've dry-fired my Springfield probably tens of thousands of times. Dont sweat it.

- Gabe
 
As for safety, drop the mag, rack the slide. Rack it again. Pull it back, check the chamber visually and stick your pinky in it. Close slide. Rack it once more. Check again. Then dry fire.
 
With a highquality snapcap that costs so little, why not use a snapcap to not risk overstressing your firing pin? They are easy to optain and load. A lot more advantage to using them then not.
 
There's dryfiring and there's dryfiring.

If dryfiring means snapping the gun occasionally after cleaning it, or occasionally practicing for a few minutes, or snapping a couple of times at the range to get the feel of the trigger, then by all means, dryfire away, and don't bother with snap caps.

If dryfiring means an hour of practice several days a week then I recommend you get some snap caps. (Yes, I have actually seen people claim to dryfire this much.)

Of course, if the manual says no--it means no.
 
Depends on the firearm.

The manual you receive with your firearm should explain this.

Generally most firearms will tolerate moderate dry-firing.

Glocks on the other hand encourage dry-firing.

If you have any questions, follow the previous advice, and use snap-caps.
 
i have always been told that is was bad so i bought some A-ZOOM snap caps for my .30-06 to practice trigger pull with. the A-ZOOM ones are billet aluminum and very nice.
 
I asked a gunsmith friend about this. Don't remember what other brands he referenced but he said it never fails that every week somebody would bring in an older style Smith and Wesson (where the firing pin was attached to the hammer) with the firing pin broken from dry firing.

I don't know if the newer Smiths still use this style or not. Personally, I don't dry fire my guns except maybe a few times after cleaning.
 
Funny, I have always been told that the hammer mounted firing pins were fine for dry firing , and it was the frame mounted pins that were subject to damage due t excess dry firing. Also was taught that dry firing of highly tuned 1911s was a no-no At any rate, if you don't have snap caps, at least use fired cases to cushion the impact.
 
I prefer to use snap caps fir dry firing. I just feels better.

However the main reason I use snap caps is because it is then easy to see that the weapon is safe. The snapcaps are a bight red colour and can easily be seen through the ejection port when you pull back the slide to check the condition of the firearm.

wildehond.
 
I dry fire every morning before work, about 40 minutes, except for the break I take in Jan-Feb. I don't bother with snap caps in my 1911 style guns, but I use a snap cap in my CZ 75B. I have never had a problem, other than a Wolff firing pin spring broke from fatigue after being horribly neglected.
 
My view only:

A firearm that is prone to damage from dry-firing, even lots of dry-firing, has an unacceptable design flaw.

I dryfire 3-400 times every day, so this makes a difference to me..."
Click to expand...

Lots of guns are prone to damage from dry-firing. Especially rimfire weapons.

Some very highly-regarded guns made by good firms can be damaged by dry-firing, if you don't use snap caps.

Its not a design flaw. Its a design feature. You either attend to it or you break firing pins or roll pins, etc.
 
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It's OK in a 1911, but in a Star the firing pin will break. I do not like to do it to revolvers of any kind. Snap caps may help. I only use them for 12 gauge road rage practice. Level six, that is.
 
Lots of guns are prone to damage from dry-firing. Especially rimfire weapons.
Click to expand...
I should have prefaced that statement by saying, "...any centerfire firearm..." My Pardini doesn't get dry-fired without a plug in the chamber.

Centerfire guns, I stand by my statement. If it can't be dry-fired without damage, then it is not a good design.

- Chris
 
Save yourself some money anf make your own snap caps. Punch out the spent primer on a case and cut out a piece of pencil eraser to fill the primer pocket. It'll last a LONG time and you can always pop in a new eraser when needed.
 
Centerfire guns, I stand by my statement. If it can't be dry-fired without damage, then it is not a good design.
Click to expand...
There are very few modern centerfire guns that will be harmed by dryfiring.

On the other hand, there is no such thing as indestructible. You're talking about dryfiring over a million times a year. PLUS whatever wear the gun gets from actual shooting. Do you really think that manufacturers design their firing pins, hammers, breechfaces and other internal parts to stand up to several MILLION hammer strikes?

If you want to wear your guns out dryfiring them that's your prerogative. But calling a gun poorly designed because it breaks after a few million hammer strikes seems a bit severe.
 
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