Asking to pull the trigger in the gun shop

I always ask. I don’t dry fire normally unless I am actually thinking on buying the gun.

I was in a gun shop I rarely darken the door of a few years back and I was wanting to buy a Ruger 10/22 as they had them on sale. The owner there was assisting me. He refused to allow me to dry fire to check the trigger. I told him I for sure wanted to buy one and I just wanted to make sure it was atleast decent. He refused. I bought it anyways and the trigger sucked. I should have left it, but... Traded it off promptly. Those folks are jerks a lot of times unless they see intent to purchase something.

They asked me what I was looking for once and I wanted something kinda obscure. I told them and the guy looks up on the computer to see if they had one. No, As soon as he seen no sale, he went back to his phone while I was still talking.

The other gun store, heck they tell ya to check the trigger when handing you one if they think you’ll like it. They know I’m a revolver guy so they often prompt me to check a trigger.

On the 10/22, if they wouldn't let you try the trigger in situ, it's not hard to pop the trigger group out of the action and try it that way. (Of course, sounds like they wouldn't do that, or let you do it.)
 
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Yes... I always ask "is it OK if I dry fire it" and then (observing rules #1 and 2) I'm sure to only do so the minimum number of times needed to asses the trigger.

The stores I visit always open the slide, check the action and then display the empty action to the customer, before handing the gun over. So rule #1 is already covered, but I do it again myself, just to show I'm not a dweeb.
 
Guy at Sportsmans Warehouse refused to let me feel the trigger and action on a new Colt Python. I wouldn't buy a new car I didn't at least sit in either.
 
You won't be doing that at academy sports- they refuse to remove locks for any reason.

Guy at Sportsmans Warehouse refused to let me feel the trigger and action on a new Colt Python. I wouldn't buy a new car I didn't at least sit in either.

Again, Spats has summed it up best.

At that point, it's still their gun. Their gun, their rules.

Don't like it, go somewhere else. I'd bet they know very well it's costing them a sale or two and they have weighed that fact against what they do not want to expose their property and their other customers to. Can't tell you the amount of times I have been swept by a gun at a LGS, and even tho I trust the guns are unloaded, it still bothers me. Folks with SFBs not only pullin' triggers, but flippin' the cylinders of revolvers open and slamming them shut while they are still spinning. Racking pump actions just to hear the sound. Letting semi-auto bolts slam home on a empty chamber. Some situations just warrant more control. Like with most things in life, it just takes a few to ruin it for everybody.
 
I have always asked first if I can try the trigger. Same as asking a table holder at a gun show if I can pick up and look over a gun on their table. If they say "no" (this rarely happens), then I just move on to the next table.
 
Anyone that knows anything about a 10/22 knows they are dryfire safe. Ruger even tells you in the owner's manual they are.


......yeah, and Ruger also tells you not to use reloads in their other guns too. Browning is another manufacturer that claims their rimfires are safe to dry fire. But as I said in my first post, those working behind the counter do not always know the particulars on every model they sell, new and used.

While the 10/22 may be safe to dry fire, there are some rimfires out there that are not. I would be very hesitant to drop the firing pin on an older model rimfire, where parts may not be readily available. With the 10/22, factory and aftermarket parts are a dime a dozen.
 
i always ask and i usually just hear a yes. one clerk when i mentioned not too worry that i was not going to dry fire a 617 revolver told me to go ahead and do it( which i didn't do).
when i was looking for a 1911 a clerk in Sportsman warehouse huffed and looked irritated as he pulled a snap cap for me to try the trigger. with all the dramatic posturing i would just rather have him said no. an ed brown was available in another shop and they wouldn't let me try the trigger.heck if i couldn't try the trigger then i just ordered a les baer online.
 
Yup. A casual "Mind if I dry fire?" (sounding like I expect a "yes"). Only denied once, a fairly nice blued custom shop revolver - the shop guy gave me an apologetic "you know how some guys are about turn lines, so unless you're really serious..." I wasn't, so I completed the rest of my purchase, and no one had any hard feelings.
 
I always ask first, even if I know the gun can safely be dry fired. It just helps put the sales person at ease, and clarify if the store does/doesn't have any policies regarding it that I may not be aware of.

One time I was denied this at a Dunham's gun counter, where they refused to even remove the trigger lock! I don't consider big box sporting good store 'gun sections' to be real gun stores anyway, so I wasn't surprised by this asinine policy. I believe the underlying reason is so that I can't quickly drop a live round in there and try to rob them, or blow my brains out onto the gun counter... at least that's what I assume the people behind the counter are expecting with every interested customer who comes along, they all looked terrified of their own merchandise. :confused: The fact that I already had a fully loaded handgun riding safely on my hip makes those worries moot anyway.
 
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You won't be doing that at academy sports- they refuse to remove locks for any reason.
Not exactly so. My academy, I asked specifically and they said they would allow me to inspect the gun without the lock if I was serious about purchasing one. He said if I happened to dry fire it during the inspection, well, accidents happen. So it must depend on the crew manning the counter.

I don’t think I’ve ever purchased one there. I’m more interested in used guns. But I do check out the new models there regularly.
 
I’d be more inclined to buy a used gun without checking the trigger than a new one. A used gun is more likely to have a smooth trigger.

I hear ya, but a new one is probably going to at least be safe, whereas a used one might be a bit too smooth if you know what I mean.
 
How many customers want to dry fire a bunch of guns, but then when buying only want a fresh gun from the back?

I won’t buy a gun that I can’t test the trigger on first. Like others have said, it’s their gun so I ask first. I’ve never been told no.

So far as your question, if I buy the gun it’s always the one I just tested. I don’t see any harm from dry firing and I know that one has a trigger that I like…
 
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