Now What?

[dmazur]

For instance, after I have "slowly squeezed the trigger to allow the hammer to move forward is it important when I release the hammer? If so, when?

It is good that you are doing this with snap caps, and I don't mean that as a sarcastic remark. (It can be a lot more exciting if someone tries to figure this out with loaded rounds...)

The idea is that you are trying to allow the hammer to move forward to the "at rest position" under control. Slowly. You should not release the hammer. If you do, it will hit whatever is in that chamber with almost full force.

After it is resting on the round in the chamber, you can pull it back to the "safety notch" or to the "loading position", depending on what you want to do.

In the scenario you describe, with a loaded round under the hammer, if you can't safely lower the hammer on this round you really can't "back yourself" out of the situation and get an empty chamber under the hammer again.

If the hammer "gets away" from you and drops, you can classify that as a ND. (If you had been using live rounds.) You want to be able to do this smoothly, consistently, and without trepidation. Then you get to change to live rounds.

 

[rWt]

Thanks.

And, when is the trigger released?

Again, I squeeze the trigger and safely lower the hammer all the way. When do I release the trigger?

 

[dmazur]

After the hammer is down, releasing the trigger won't interfere with the "works".

When pulling the hammer back to other positions, do not squeeze the trigger (except for firing from the "full cock" position, of course.)

It's a non-reversible cycle.

The instructions for SA revolvers with transfer bars (or similar mechanisms) are completely different, and potentially confusing. They say to squeeze the trigger to release the hammer, then allow the hammer to move forward slightly, release the trigger and allow the hammer to travel to its "at rest" position. As it does this, the transfer bar drops out of the way and prevents ND, even on a loaded chamber. The practice required to do this safely is to be able to get your finger off the trigger at the correct time. (If you keep it pulled back, you keep the transfer bar raised and you are doing the same thing as an old-fashioned SA, lowering the firing pin onto a loaded round.)

So, for your information, all SA revolvers aren't set up the same. You have an "original Colt" type lockwork.

 

[Ed Ames]

With modern guns you usually want to release the trigger as soon as the hammer has moved forward at all. That way the transfer bar or whatever else can get out of the way and make the rest of the decocking process a little safer.

With the "classic" single action revolvers I've used, if you release the trigger before the hammer is all the way down it'll land on the half-cock notch with the cylinder locked. You need to hold the trigger all the way down until you are past the half-cock position at least. Once the hammer is down, the trigger should be released.

 

[LightningMan]

Another way to de-cock a traditional SAA if you are to nervous about lowering the hammer, is to remove the cylinder pin, open the loading gate & remove the cylinder. Now to can rest at ease and not worry about loosing hold of the hammer and have a accidental discharge. LM

 

[dmazur]

While it is certainly possible to remove the cylinder from a cocked (original pattern) SA revolver, it may not be wise to do so.

With practice, lowering the hammer on a live round doesn't have to be considered dangerous, as part of a procedure to re-index the cylinder. Carrying a SA revolver with the hammer on a live round is dangerous, as a blow to the hammer can cause a ND.

IMO, cylinder removal is not something to suggest to a neophyte as an alternative to a reindexing procedure. Remember, the shooter is going to be juggling a loaded and cocked revolver while he tries to disassemble it. Is he really going to have the knowledge and dexterity to bring it off safely?

Perhaps an option for one who is familiar with revolvers...but then, that person knows how to reindex.

 

[rWt]

Thanks, again!

And, now to be sure that I have the reindexing down correctly.

I have now safely lowered the hammer and released the trigger. Now, I'll raise the hammer to the half cocked position and rotate the cylinder. I'll stop the cylinder one chamber before the empty chamber, raise the hammer to full cock (I'm now over the empty cylinder), squeeze the trigger and lower the hammer fully and release the trigger. Now the hammer is resting over an empty chamber.

Was the sequence described above correct?

Do I presume correctly that this sequence of fully cocking the hammer and squeezing the trigger followed by fully lowering the hammer and then releasing the trigger is the preferred sequence to prevent parts clashing when handling double action revolvers also? Thanks.

 

[1911Tuner]

Can't understand all the fright over lowering a hammer on a loaded chamber...even in a gun like the '73 SAa or faithful clone. Just do it gently. Primers aren't all that fragile and they require a certain level of striking energy in order to light'em off.

We often hear of revolvers that produce light strikes and misfires, and the cause is most often a worn out or overly lightened mainspring, or a bobbed hammer...and this is when the hammer falls normally after pulling the trigger.

Keep the gun pointed in a safe direction, and lower the hammer slowly and gently. When the hammer nose...the firing pin...comes to rest, bring it back to half-cock, and re-index the empty chamber. If you practice it, you can learn to release the trigger between the half-cock position and the "safety" position, where the notch stops the hammer about 1/8th inch off the frame...then recock and index.

Be careful. Pasy attention to what you're doing. Don't point the gunj at anything that you don't want to shoot a hole in, and you'll be fine.

Note that the "safety" notch isn't a safe carry position with a loaded chamber under the hammer. It's tiny, and will shear off easily if the gun is dropped onto the hammer. The safety notch is there to enable the gun to be topped off...or as J.B. Books put it: "If your insides tell ya to load six...load six."
as a temporary means of adding the sixth round whenever the situation was dire and the time to do so was available...but it was not meant to carry the gun fully loaded with the hammer in that position.

 

[Ed Ames]

Do I presume correctly that this sequence of fully cocking the hammer and squeezing the trigger followed by fully lowering the hammer and then releasing the trigger is the preferred sequence to prevent parts clashing when handling double action revolvers also?

No. Modern handguns should have the trigger released as soon as possible in the decock cycle to allow the safety mechanisms (transfer bars etc) to do their jobs. It's not that you can't decock safely with the trigger all the way pulled, but if the trigger ISN'T pulled and your thumb slips, it's a LOT less likely to go off.

Any theoretical extra wear that may come from releasing the trigger is offset by the safety margin you gain.

Be careful. Pasy attention to what you're doing. Don't point the gunj at anything that you don't want to shoot a hole in, and you'll be fine.