Another Gun Range Story

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skers69

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Went to the range this Saturday afternoon....to cold out to do much of anything outside. I have read of many stoires on this site of bad situations going down at the range. I have not always watched those around me...I have been to focused on what I was there to do. But during a reload break I happend to glance down the line and see a guy looking down the barrel of a gun three lanes down. The slide was locked back and it was not loaded...but dang. So I watch for a minute and see guy two of the group take the gun from look down barrel guy and do the same thing.

I wanted to say something to the two guys but decided not to. Finished my business and went home. Looking back on it I should have stepped up and told them about the four rules. Next time I will.

Take care and be safe.
 
And you're saying the guy did something wrong?

Maybe he had a bad load and was checking to see if the bore was blocked. I've done the same thing myself.
 
I only go to the range these days to shoot competitions. It keeps the gangbangers and clowns out, and if you are not serious about your gunhandling, you will quickly be asked to leave. Makes for much better peace of mind, and you associate with people you share a common interest with, instead of people you want to shoot. Makes for much better practise as well.
 
As a habit, I look down the bore of any weapon prior to shooting on the odd chance something is lodged in the bore. If the slide was locked that speaks that it is (probably) nothing.

Or maybe the guys raving bats*it crazy!
 
I see nothing wrong with what you described. Perhaps he had a squib load and was checking to make sure a bullet wasn't lodged in the barrel. Perhaps he was unhappy with the gun's accuracy and was checking to see if there was copper/lead buildup in the grooves. Nothing wrong with a quick bore check if the gun is unloaded and the slide is locked back.
 
You can verify that there is nothing in the chamber before you look down the barrel.

I wouldn't make a habit of looking down the barrel, but you can only take the "gun is allows loaded" so far. As several others have posted, there are legitimate reasons to need to look down the barrel.
However, there are stupid people who will look down the barrel of a loaded weapon. They are taking their chances with Darwin there.
 
My father taught me years ago how to open the action, check the receiver, and then look down the barrel while reflecting light off a well placed thumbnail to check for obstructions. It only takes a little bit of the wrong stuff stuck in the barrel to ruin your day and maybe the rest of your life. Checking the barrel visually is a good way to avoid that.
 
I lock back or remove the bolt (depending on weapon), and look down the barrel from the most accesiable end while holding a flashlight at the other end if I need to check the barrel.

Its the people who suddenly stop shooting and look down the barrel without clearing and verifying that are the Darwin canidates.
 
Well, how else do you find out if the gun is loaded or not? :uhoh: Seriously, ever hear of a bore light? Its OK to look into the barrel as long as you know what you are doing. I do it with my DA revolvers when cleaning. with my auto, the barrel is removed from the slide. No worries until brain matter sprays the folks in the other lanes.
 
You said reload break, is it a RSO called cease fire where there are people down range and checking targets? If this is the case then yes gun handling is not permitted. If it is a regular shooting string and no one is down range, then it is fine.
 
Reminds me of my 1911. Once, before I was about to shoot, I decided to check the muzzle. Of course, the slide was back and there wasn't a magazine in the pistol. Want to know what I found inside the bore? A big ol' cleaning patch halfway in. I'm glad I checked... :uhoh:

I now make a habit of making sure the bores of my guns are clear...
 
Bore Light

I always have a bore light (or a 'J'-light) for "peering down the barrel" moments.

Never needed one at the range.

Guess I should buy an extra bore light for my standard range bag, to go with the J-light that's already in there.

(BTW, does anyone know what Otis calls those little orange plastic "J" light thingies? I've always called them J-lights.)
 
Before leaving the range I always run a bore snake through the barrel a few times until relatively clean. The only way to check to see if I have to do more cleaning when I get home is to shine a bore light up through the chamber and look down the barrel.

Nothing wrong with looking down the barrel to check the rifleing as long as it's empty and action is open. Also a good Idea to check for obstructions like a forgotten cleaning patch.
 
My Otis "j thingie" is called a Bore Reflector/ Flag Safety. An extra for the range bag would be a good idea.
 
For semi handguns, whenever I've felt that a look down the barrel was necessary to ensure nothing was out of the ordinary or check it's wear, I've always disassembled the gun and pulled the barrel to look through it. For other guns like revolvers or rifles like AKs where the bore is not able to be looked through from the breech end, I've had no problem looking down the bore from the muzzle end when the gun has been diabled. No other way around it except getting a borescope and I don't look down bores enough to warrant the expense of one.
 
I guess I did not think of the obstruciton angle. It appeared that maybe he was checking the rifiling of the barrel. Not sure....they appeared to be new shooters.
 
Wow, I must screw up ALOT, 'cause I do things like check for barrel obstruction, look for bulges, check how clean the barrel is, check the conditioning of the rifling, etc, by LOCKING open the action and peering down the bore ALL the time...
 
You say the slide was racked back and the gun was unloaded. If it happened during a firing period when guns could be handled, I don't understand your safety objection. What bad thing could happen?:confused:

I'm a range safety officer...and would have observed, but not prevented it...
 
Pheww, when I read the post I thought, "Am I an idiot too?!?" Just this past weekend I fired my first reloads and paranoia had me continually looking to be sure there were no squibs backing up - action locked back on auto / cylinder open on rev. only when line was live.

PennsyPlinker, I use the well placed fingernail too. Learned it way back in basic. Great squirrel story too!
 
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