Accidentally Dry-Fired SR-22 Rifle

[Scrod314]

Hello... So I took my children shooting this evening. I told them how many rounds I loaded in the magazine. They lost count 4 times and pressed the trigger with no round in the chamber. I know you're not supposed to dry fire rimfire guns, right? I didn't see any visible damage. If there was damage done, what do I look for? It's a Ruger SR-22 rifle. Thanks.

 

[Tommygunn]

You probably didn't harm it, but it would be wise not to make a practice of it.

 

[Bfh_auto]

There is damage. It would be a peened spot where the firing pin strikes the face of the barrel. In extreme cases it will bulge into the chamber and not allow a cartridge to chamber.
Ruger says sr22 is safe to dry fire. I wouldn't do it purposely. But I wouldn't bite a new shooter's head of for doing it.
Maybe stress that counting your shots fired can be life or death.

 

[earlthegoat2]

It is never a good idea....

However, there are many rimfire guns out there that have no last shot fired “warning” (bolt hold open, slide lock, etc.) and have been subjected to dry fires many hundreds of times because of it.

I don’t worry about it with my Remington 552 and 572 and I won’t be worrying about it with my Marlin Model 60 I just acquired.

Many zillions of Ruger 10/22s out there as well that get fired until click many, many, times.

 

[BLACKHAWKNJ]

I use the 4-6-8 drywall anchors for dry firing and storage. $5 for 100. Bright yellow, easy to see, good for 10-12 shots, rotate them of course.

 

[film495]

I have an old winchester that was my dad's when he was a kid, no last round indicator, so - it has probably been dry fired a thousand times, and still seems to keep shooting just fine when it comes out of the gun cabinet from time to time. We don't dry fire it on purpose, but everyone loses count of the rounds and it happens.

 

[carsten1911]

Hi Scrod314,

great to read you take your kids shooting!
A grat way to keep up the tradition, to strengthen your relations and to plain ensure everyone has enough fun!

Your rifle is safe to dry fire, no matter what repeaters of old (and in many cases just wrong) mantras might tell you.
(Please, all answering guys and gurls, verify information before making absolute statements...after all this is the HIGH ROAD!)

Dont just take my word, read it yourself from the best source there is on the subject whether YOUR rifle is safe to dry fire:
https://ruger-docs.s3.amazonaws.com/_manuals/sr22Rifle.pdf
Page 17, point 8.

You all be safe!

Carsten

 

[792mauser]

The firing pin is "pinned" in place. It can travel only so far forward. The 10/22 is probably one of the few 22lr that I don't seriously worry about dry firing.

Try not to make a habit out of it but if it happens usually (there's always an exception or something outta spec) no harm no foul.

 

[carsten1911]

Again a general statement that has limited merit...there are manufacturers that even RECOMMEND dry firing for practise....yes, they print it in their manuals for all the world, at least the owners/ users of their guns, to read and understand.

Please please please read manuals instead of passing on old hearsay that might have been true 80 years ago.

Carsten

 

[jmr40]

Most modern centerfire guns can be dry fired. Some 22's can, others can't, Ruger 22's can be dry fired.

 

[Deus Machina]

Don't worry about it.
The damage to look for would be where the firing pin would impact the back of the barrel. This will be peened, like Bfh_auto said--it will be a mark that deforms and bulges the metal around it.
Many modern guns actually have a little slot cut in that spot to prevent it, or have a firing pin that is recessed so it either can't protrude beyond the bolt or would impact well away from any any spot that would cause issues.
Ruger has been at the forefront of preventing these problems with their rimfires. Nothing to worry about. Even on old guns that aren't designed that way, it takes many dozens of impacts to begin to be an issue.
This is just a good opportunity to teach the kids to understand their particular guns, not to rely on old 'common wisdoms'.

 

[wiscoaster]

Go with what the manufacturer advises in the owner's manual. Ruger says it's OK to dry-fire so don't worry about it.

I remember the very first pistol I purchased was a Beretta 92-FS. My beginning pistol course instructor wanted me to dry-fire it, and said it was OK because it's a center-fire pistol. I advised him that the owner's manual specifically advised to NOT dry-fire it. I responded to him that I was going to follow the owner's manual.

As said above:

...teach the kids to understand their particular guns, not to rely on old 'common wisdoms

and:

read manuals instead of passing on old hearsay

I've owned several Ruger .22 LR caliber firearms over the intervening period, and if I remember correctly, they're all cleared by the owner's manuals to be OK to dry-fire.

 

[Scott.M]

Oh my

 

[someguy2800]

Don't worry about it, everyone with a 10/22 had dry fired it about 2000 times. It does not damage anything and never has. The firing pin cannot reach the chamber face.

 

[doubleh]

Ruger built it and says it's OK to do so I wouldn't worry in the least about it. They say the same about the 10/22 and they are right as I've been doing it to my two for years and years without any problem. Isn't the SR-22 basically a 10/22 wearing a different dress? I've never actually seen one, just pictures.

 

[wiscoaster]

This is a Ruger SR22 pistol, which conflicts w/ the OP's description of a rifle, to which I can find no reference on Ruger's website, so it may be a typo.

View media item 3320

 

[Ignition Override]

Scrod34:
This might not help, but my newish Ruger Mark IV Standard (all-original, 'stock') gets dry-fired regularly,

* simply to avoid leaving the striker etc cocked, after the gun locks open when finished at the range. Living just 12 min. from the nice club, it often sees action.

>>> It shows No ill-effects. <<<
Much of that fear about dry-firing, reportedly (I don't know which person claimed this-but he named the specific gun type(s)) is based on one or two Different guns, designed & manufactured decades ago.

 

[JJFitch]

The firing pin is "pinned" in place. It can travel only so far forward. The 10/22 is probably one of the few 22lr that I don't seriously worry about dry firing.

Try not to make a habit out of it but if it happens usually (there's always an exception or something outta spec) no harm no foul.

Rugers may be fired without a round in the chamber and have a pin as mentioned above that prevents the pin from peening the chamber wall. This pin takes the shock of the firing pin but adds stress to the firing pin. I have a broken firing pin in a MKII Pistol from dry firing and firing a zillion times in Gallery Bulls-eye!

Smiles,

 

[Mosin77]

Is it a great idea to dry fire your uncle’s old circa 1900 Winchester or equivalent old gun? No. Most of these old guns had a design that allows the firing pin to strike the chamber edge when there’s no round. Do it a few hundred or few thousand times and the chamber gets a little dent that can mean a trip to the gunsmith.

Is it ok to do it a few dozen times by accident or a few hundred times on purpose with a modern firearm? Generally yes. They’re made with this in mind. Don’t worry about it.

 

[Scrod314]

This is a Ruger SR22 pistol, which conflicts w/ the OP's description of a rifle, to which I can find no reference on Ruger's website, so it may be a typo.

View media item 3320

It is the SR-22 rifle. I think Ruger quit making them. Mine was shipped in 2017 and I just bought it 2 weeks ago. Buccheit's didn't even know they had them in stock. Actually listed as an air rifle on their website. You guys are awesome! Thanks for everything you teach me.

 

[Varminterror]

This is a Ruger SR22 pistol, which conflicts w/ the OP's description of a rifle, to which I can find no reference on Ruger's website, so it may be a typo.

View media item 3320

Google better

 

[wiscoaster]

Thanks for the pics. Always good to learn something new!!

 

[Carl N. Brown]

Whether a rimfire is safe to dryfire or not depends on the design of the firing mechanism.
When in doubt, I use a fired empty case to absorb the firing pin impact.* Rimfire or centerfire.

If a rimfire design allows over-travel of the firing pin, protrusion past the face of the bolt, the firing pin will impact the edge of the chamber if there is no cartridge in the chamber.
If a design stops the firing pin before it impacts the edge of the chamber, it is safe to dry fire. Many target guns are deliberately designed to be safe to dry fire for trigger pull/sight alignment practice.

I have checked several of my .22 bolts to see how far the firing pin is allowed to go.
Many (not all) are designed to prevent the firing pin from protruding from the bolt more than the thickness of a rimfire cartridge rim.
Some of the older single shot bolt actions are really bad about having excess protrusion, but operating a single shot bolt action means you are usually aware of whether there is a round in the chamber or not.

wisecoaster post #12 My beginning pistol course instructor wanted me to dry-fire it, and said it was OK because it's a center-fire pistol. I advised him that the [Beretta 92-FS] owner's manual specifically advised to NOT dry-fire it.
I have a centerfire CZ52 pistol and the manual advises against dryfiring it. If the firing pin is not cushioned by striking a primer the shock can be too much for the cast steel firing pin. The Czech Army field repair kits for the CZ52 are mostly spare firing pins and the spring clips that retain the grip stock halves.

Ruger usually has good ideas. Marketing the SR22 pistol (no hyphen) and the totally different SR-22 rifle (hyphen) is just confusing to me and not a well thought idea. CZ (factory) made vz52 (Model 1952) pistols and rifles. The rifles were imported first and sold in the US as "vz52". When the pistols were imported later, they were sold in the US as CZ52 to distinguish them from the rifle.

______________________________
* There are rimfire snap caps to absorb the firing pin impact. BLACKHAWKNJ post #5 recommended bright yellow 4-6-8 drywall anchors for dry firing. They have the advantage of being clean, not leaving old primer and powder residue in the barrel like spendt casings do, and are almost as economical as spendt casings. Plus CMP safety flags are bright yellow.

 

[wiscoaster]

I have a centerfire CZ52 pistol and the manual advises against dryfiring it. If the firing pin is not cushioned by striking a primer the shock can be too much for the cast steel firing pin. The Czech Army field repair kits for the CZ52 are mostly spare firing pins and the spring clips that retain the grip stock halves.

Oh heavens, yes, buying a spare firing pin was the first thing I did after aquiring mine!! They're notorious for fragile firing pins. I guess the army field kits also contain a spare grip clip because they tend to launch themselves into sub-orbit when removing - not a problem at home, but out in the field you don't want your troops scattered around in the bushes and marsh reeds looking for parts.

(cool gun and fun to shoot, though, and usually draws attention & comment at the range)

 

[film495]

as a general rule of thumb, I just don't dry fire any gun that has a hammer than can be simply lowered. just seems like a good best practice. if I'm doing dry fire practice I just put a snap cap in.