How did your Unintentional Discharge happen?

[Browning]

I've had one AD/ND.

After I dropped the clip on a 1911 I racked it three times which is my usual routine when unloading guns. I assumed that any round in the chamber would have popped out when I racked it which is where I made my mistake. The extractor and ejector malfunctioned and I failed to look in the chamber to make sure by actually inspecting it.

I locked the slide back and started looking at it before I put on new grips. I let the slide go forward and squeezed the trigger as I was pointing at a wall that also had nothing behind it except for a wooden deck and then the backyard. I was extremely suprised when the gun went off and when it put a hole in that wall and went into the wooden railing outside. Fortunately I never pointed the gun at anything I wasn't willing to destroy and when it went of due to my negligence in not checking the chamber nobody was hurt as a result. No one was actually home except me either so no one was scared or startled except for me.

Since then I've never failed to check the chamber twice each time and I haven't ever again assumed that the firearm would eject the cartridge just because I racked it several times. I also continue to never let the muzzle cover anything that I'm not willing to put a hole in.

Racking the firearm several times turned out to not be a substitute for actually looking.

 

[MrDig]

Hate to admit it but........

I was cleaning and reassembling a Marlin 336. I had gun oil all over my hands and was checking the action and seeing if it cycled properly. Went to set the hammer to the "half cocked" position and it slipped from my greezey thumb and went off. My poor sleeping cat did close to a ten foot verticle leap and was p/o'd at me for days.

 

[U.S.SFC_RET]

Automatic squeeze trigger reflex. Young. Pointing the gun in a safe direction took care of the rest. Stupid is stupid does. Look at my signature and ask to of my relatives who didn't make it.

 

[The Grand Pooh-Bah]

Mine is one I'll never forget. I'm reminded every day with a partially disabled left hand.

Here is my story

My Accidental Discharge

 

[Torque]

Mine is one I'll never forget. I'm reminded every day with a partially disabled left hand.

Man, that is so unfortunate. I read your story. Stinks that you had to learn the hard way. Surprised something like that didn't make you put it down forever, i mean because you were just a beginner and all. Well nice to hear it wasn't worse. I admire you strength and dedication. Take care and pat your wife and daughter on the back for not panicing that day!

P.S. looks like that sh*t hurts!!

 

[jsebens]

Like someone else mentioned, mine was a double while shooting at the range...it was weird, and I was never able to recreate it. My first time shooting a Glock, too. Go figure.

 

[Red Dragon]

Ruger P89. Slide locked back. magazine was empty. Live round, still in chamber, misfired. Extractor didn't remove it. I hit the slide release and the round discharged into the dirt about 15 feet down range.

That's all I'm gonna say about that.

 

[CWL]

Mine was pure stupidity, pulled the trigger on a pistol I thought was empty -never bothered to check the chamber...killed a carpet in my friend's apt. -good thing they had a concrete slab floor. Their cats never liked me much after that.

 

[Remontoire]

Someone elses mistake

Not actually mine... but I now know what not to do now. It's best to learn from other people's mistakes... that's why I'm reading this thread

My friend went to buy a guitar, carrying ~ 750$ or so in cash. Decide to take one of his pistols, a Cz-50. Chambered a round, safety was on (though that means it was not cocked). No problems there.

Next day, he went with his girlfriend to a pub, but forgot to take the gun out from his jacket. They were getting ready to leave, she was giving him the jacket, when the gun fell out, dropped to the floor and then fired. Bullet went right through his calf, hit no bones.

He says he's very lucky. If the bullet hit anyone else, he would be in really deep ****, unintentional discharge in public, bodily harm .. this way, it looks like he got off only with a 200$ fine. (and three weeks with his leg in a splint)

I'm sure he'll refrain from carrying guns with rounds chambered from now on..

 

[Alphazulu6]

OK after reading these posts I'm scared to go to the range with you guys..........

 

[Spieler]

In over twenty years of active shooting and military service I have yet to have an AD/ND. Here's to hoping my luck and good practices continue.

 

[gyvel]

I had my AD when I was test firing my Webley & Scott .38 Automatic.

When I inserted the loaded magazine, the slide went forward (as it is designed to do) and fired the round.

As I was testing it in the back of the shop where I worked, the muzzle was pointed at the bullet trap, so there was no harm, no foul.

I examined the lockwork very carefully after that, but I could find no signs of worn parts, weak springs, etc. Just a basic jar-off, I guess.

As a result, I have always been very distrustful of ANY autoloader that automatically loads a round when the magazine is inserted, such as the larger Webley autos, Mauser 1910 designs, HK4s, etc.. Granted, these are older guns, but it's not written that gun accidents always occur with modern firearms.

It also taught me that NO gun is truly safe unless its laying in parts on my bench.

 

[DeathByCactus]

Was talking with my buddy at the range while shooting down range and a bee flew right in front of my face and scared the crap out of me... yeah... I shot again...

The bullet hit about 15 feet in front of me and bounced off toward the target~

I am allergic to bee stings

 

[DAVIDSDIVAD]

There should be a "I'm smarter than the rest of you" option


Just kidding

 

[Publius1688]

When I was about fourteen, while hunting.
I was walking out from my stand, and heard something walking through the woods ahead of me, about to cross the dirt road I was on. I'd clicked off the safety in anticipation.
Nothing crossed, and somehow (yes, there's that word), when I moved my hand to engage the safety again, the rifle fired.
My mistake: finger on the trigger before I was ready to fire. And: it was too dark, really, for a shot, even if it had been a nice buck.
I've thought about it every hunting trip in the past twenty five years.

It's my only AD.

 

[wally]

Hang fire is missing from the poll. I had one with a .22LR. Got a click and as I was reaching to do tap-rack-bang it fired. Was pointed down range but I can only hope it hit the berm since I was looking at the gun and not the target.

Did have a 1911 trigger double from a weak sear spring, easily fixed.

--wally.

 

[danbrew]

A "pal" (really!) was drinking and practicing his quick draw McGraw. BOOM! Blasted through the front of the fridge, a gallon of milk, and then some oranges. Looks like the oranges actually redirected the path of the bullet as it went in the front of the fridge, right through the milk, hit the oranges, took a 90' turn and existed through the side of the fridge. Go figure.

 

[wyohome]

Years ago I was hunting with my hand-loaded (Lee Loader) paper shotgun shells. Some had got wet and didn't fire leaving a wad and the powder in the barrel. I carried a wooden dowel just for these occasions. Some of the powder got onto the action of my Fox BSE 12 gauge and the next round fired when I closed the action.

 

[orbitup]

This is a great thread! I plan on having my 15 yr old son read this before we go shooting again. Gun safety is as serious as it gets, but we all make mistakes. He needs to understand that.

The only AD I've had was with a friend's modified 1911. I had never fired a gun with such a light trigger and it went off twice before I knew it. We were in the AZ desert so the second shot went over the hill we were using as a backstop.

 

[chevyforlife21]

never none!

 

[MinnMooney]

Sitting in my deer stand, loading cartridges into my rifle in pitch, black darkness. The bolt wouldn't close so I unloaded and tried again. This time - after the 4 were in the blind mag and one in the pipe - I closed the bolt and "B-O-O-M" !

Hasn't happened since even when I've tried to repeat what I did.

The rifle was pointed at the ground so no damage - except to the pristine solitude of the predawn darkness.

 

[Nick5182]

I've had one and only one. I was about 12 and I was out hunting with some friends. The gun I was using was a NEF Pardner single shot 20Ga. with external hammer. After walking around for hours and not even seeing anything we decided to pack it in. On my gun, if the hammer is cocked, you cannot break open the action. So I pointed the gun at the ground and slow started to decock it and BAM! I'm glad my Dad taught me to always point my firearms in a safe direction.

 

[MountainBear]

Stupidity. There are no "accidental" discharges. There are malfunctions and there are NEGLIGENT discharges. Unless your gun broke and caused it to go off, then you were doing something wrong when it happened. I, of course, include my own ND in this group. Just stupid, complacent, negligence...

 

[jimmyraythomason]

I'm 56 years old and have hunted and shot guns since I was big enough to follow my dad around through the timber hunting grey squirrels. I have never experienced an ND nor has my brother. I credit our dad with pounding gun safety and awareness in handling firearms into us. I have tried to pass that on to my daughters who,as yet, have never had an ND.

 

[tkopp]

Bought a Rock Island Officer Model 1911 at a pawn shop. Took it to the range. Bang! Hammer's back at half cock. Only other pistol I'd owned to that point was a Ruger MKII and I was excited about the .45, so while I knew something was wrong I didn't know how wrong. I cocked the pistol and fired again. Bang! Half cock. By now I'm grousing that I just bought this pistol and waited through the 5-day period, and now I have to return it. I figure one more for the road.

Full auto.

I stopped grousing and returned it.