The Press Check a disscusion

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I'm not saying everyone should be doing press checks, but nobody should be saying anyone shouldn't either.
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I'm not either, what I am getting at is "religious" gun handling. I thought that was mildly clear, but maybe not ... again. Any procedure, whether it has to do with guns, cars, spam cans or whatever, you ought to know *why* you are doing the procedure, *how* it affects what you're doing and how to do it. Anything less than that is acting on faith, whether it is faith in Col. Cooper, the guy who invented the spam can or the car dealer who told you to push the pedal to go.
 
"Always know the status of your weapon system." Rule 1 for LE/Mil/those carrying a weapon for self defense. If you are not 100% certain that it is in the correct condition verify.

A little example of why I am a firm believer in the press check:

I attended a tac rifle/tac pistol class several years ago hosted by a neighboring agency. In attendance were a bunch of HSLD type operators. After the big four the next rule was a "Dead Mans Gun" (DMG - a weapon that is thought to be loaded that when presented to the target results in a "click" rather then a bang) meant a run to the helo pad and back (1/4 mile out and 1/4 mile back) as well as 50 push ups. The instructor advised that the penalty was intentionaly harsh to ensure we took it seriously. On the first day about half the class did a DMG "run and push." Day two about 15% of the class went for extra PT at least once. Day three no one did, and we were all press checking fools. To this day I don't step to the line if possible without verifying:

1) Chamber is loaded
2) Magazine is full (or loaded to the proscribed round count)
3) Magazine is fully seated and locked

I do this to shoot a paper target that isn't going to assault me or try to kill me. Your dang straight I do this before I set foot out into the world every day, or go to work at night. Every gun, every time. If I have a chance I'll do a quick check before I go through a door just for my own piece of mind.


-Jenrick
 
It's impossible to do too many press checks. If done correctly, it takes about 1 second and never comes close to violating rule #2.

It's very easy to do too few, and get a click when you need a bang or a bang when you need a click.

A little distraction at the wrong time, a sticking extractor or loaded chamber indicator giving a wrong indication, or miscounting rounds in a magazine will easily give you the wrong impression of the status of your weapon if you don't do a press check. Nobody and no mechanical device is perfect.

I'm with Snowblazer2 and Derek Zeanah and Jenrick, I press check my weapon each time before it goes into the holster, and any other time I pick it up.

I've been to a good many weapons training classes, and press checking is ALWAYS one of the items emphasized. Even so, as Jenrick pointed out, you'll still see LOTS of situations where students get a "click" instead of a bang.

I've only seen one "bang" instead of a click because a weapon wasn't press checked. That was after a nightfire class (which was after a long hot day on the range) where a student (a very experienced officer) was talking and putting away his weapon. I watched him rack the slide then drop the mag, instead of the other way around. As he started to put it in his bag I told him it was loaded. He swore it wasn't, he had cleared it. I had him point it downrange and pull the trigger. The "bang" got his attention.
 
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Nushif said:
I'm not either, what I am getting at is "religious" gun handling. I thought that was mildly clear, but maybe not ... again. Any procedure, whether it has to do with guns, cars, spam cans or whatever, you ought to know *why* you are doing the procedure, *how* it affects what you're doing and how to do it. Anything less than that is acting on faith, whether it is faith in Col. Cooper, the guy who invented the spam can or the car dealer who told you to push the pedal to go.
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I don't think anyone would argue with that. I also don't do things without knowing why. Sometimes as a Marine that can be a bit abrasive, but it's who I am.

I thought I provided reasons why I would in certain situations, but perhaps not.

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Many successful IPSC competitors press check as part of their 'load and make ready' routine - even after topping off their mag. At first this seemed a bit compulsive to me, until the day my HG went 'click' after the start buzzer. I'd been distracted, forgotten to chamber a round and started on empty.

btw, another thing that you see happening at matches is mags falling out after the 1st shot - always a source of hilarity. ;-) Making sure the mag is fully seated is another good habit to have.



The thing about the action gun games is that many stages repeatedly test the competitor's routine, gun handling, accuracy, ability to make a plan and adapt. All of this happens on the move. Sure, its not a 2-way range, but the clock is running and points must be scored. Start on empty or with a loose mag and you will lose.

edit for loose & lose spelling.
 
I make it a habit to "rack the slide twice"... to verify the gun is empty. Of course, the mag is removed first. Then there's the visual check. And I also check by feel.

The purpose of "racking the slide twice" is.... if for any reason, I forget to remove a loaded mag first....(hasn't happened yet...).. then the double racking of the slide will ensure that I will see a round being ejected out, warning me that the gun is loaded.
 
I have a very foolproof way of knowing if my guns are loaded, and by loaded I mean ready to fire......If it's on my waist, it's loaded....If it's in a holster not on my waist, its loaded.....If it's in a drawer not in a holster, it's loaded....If it's in my gun safe, it's not loaded. I guess I should have said, if it's not in my safe, it's loaded:D

No press check needed;)
 
JDGray said:
I have a very foolproof way of knowing if my guns are loaded, and by loaded I mean ready to fire......If it's on my waist, it's loaded....If it's in a holster not on my waist, its loaded.....If it's in a drawer not in a holster, it's loaded....If it's in my gun safe, it's not loaded. I guess I should have said, if it's not in my safe, it's loaded:D

No press check needed;)
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You clean your guns while they are loaded? You're braver than I am. ;)

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until the day my HG went 'click' after the start buzzer.
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We all seem very comfortable with Rule 1. If you take a gun out of a safe, even if you "always" unload guns before putting them in, that gun is is assumed loaded, so you check it.

But fewer of us accept the converse: if you're taking a gun out of your holster and you're getting ready to shoot it, even if you "always" keep holstered guns loaded, that gun is assumed empty, so you check it.

Both just point to human fallibility, and the wisdom of double-checks. And both might save your life one day.

(I agree, in an unexpected emergency, you may have to find out the gun's unloaded by hearing a "click." But if you've got a moment to check it before heading downstairs to investigate that noise, maybe check it.)
 
I do press checks occasionally, but my routine is to ascertain the gun has a chambered round when placed in the holster for carry. I usually carry a revolver, but the most favored semi for CC is a 1911, so I know from a tactile inspection immediately whether there is a round chambered...if the safety is on, the hammer is cocked-if the hammer is cocked, there is a chambered round. I absolutely never manually cock the hammer as part of the routine (no need to, racking the slide chambers the round, and cocks the hammer), so if it's cocked, it's loaded. Topping off the magazine confirms that the round is indeed in the gun, and a quick visual confirms the slide is fully closed. Works for me.

I have seen reports that multiple chamberings and ejections of loaded rounds can cause problems by pushing the bullet farther into the case. I try to clean carry guns every week or two (OK I'm a little anal about cleaning, I freely admit it), so why not shoot a couple of mags and make the cleaning more worthwhile? So I'll step out in the back yard and go through 2-3 (or 5-10 heh), making sure the two bullets that have been cycled through the gun as part of the loading and unloading process are two of the rounds that get fired.
 
My SR9c has a "blatantly" obvious "LOADED" indicator that I can feel easily in the dark. I do load a round in the chamber and pop an extra in the mag and reinsert it when I carry.
 
My XD-40 is always loaded unless i'm cleaning it or taking it apart for fun. ALWAYS after I'm done and I go to reholster it, I reload it with the same 13 rounds, one loose and 12 in the magazine.

Just like having a part left over, if I have an extra round, I did something wrong.

Plus theres that LCI that makes it obvious if it's loaded or not.
 
easyg said:
Why?

Do you have other people in your home who mess around with your pistol whenever you take it off and put it down?

Gremlins perhaps?

Doing a press check every time you pick up your pistol, or put down your pistol, or take off your pistol, or put on your pistol just seems kind of neurotic.



I load the magazine, chamber a round, top off the magazine, and place the loaded pistol on the nightstand.
I know that there is a round in the chamber because I was able to top off the magazine after chamber a round (and my Glock has a "loaded chamber indicator").
The next morning I wake up, get dressed, clip on my holster, and then holster my pistol.
I don't need to press check because I know I loaded it the night before.
The only other person in my home is my wife, and she doesn't mess around with my pistols.
Nor does my dog.
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There have been police officers who were killed because they left their service pistol loaded. Their wife came along and found it loaded, and kindly unloaded it. The officer went to work the next day without checking it.
 
I think the press check is more suited to the professinals who load and unload their duty weapons each shift. The occasional shooter, ccw holder, home protection weapon is more likely to be always loaded, and press checks really not needed. By all means do what makes you comfortable, in knowing your loaded and topped off;)
 
JDGray said:
I think the press check is more suited to the professinals who load and unload their duty weapons each shift. The occasional shooter, ccw holder, home protection weapon is more likely to be always loaded, and press checks really not needed. By all means do what makes you comfortable, in knowing your loaded and topped off;)
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I think you have this backwards.

Anyone worthy of the title "professional" damn well better keep their primary gun loaded at all times.
 
The LCI, loaded chamber indicator on the Glocks suffice. If its a habit for some, let it be...There is no right/wrong here.
 
I'm with David E my duty pistol is unloaded under two circumstances

1) Clearing it before going onto our range as per policy
2) When I clean the sucker

That's it. However I still religiously check my pistol every time I go out, go on duty, and before I go into something hot (or potentially hot) if I have the chance.

Think of it this way. I offer you $1k to walk up to the 3 yd line and fire one round onto a target, but if you miss or have an empty gun you have to pay me $1k. I think every person here would check their weapon before they shot just in case. How much is your life worth?

-Jenrick
 
David E said:
I think you have this backwards.

Anyone worthy of the title "professional" damn well better keep their primary gun loaded at all times.
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You're joking right? Maybe we have different ideas of what the title "professional" means.

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No need for this guy to do a press check, he's like the rest of you guys who "know" when his gun is unloaded ......

Todd Johnston, 27, had, some time earlier, returned home from the shooting range. Thursday evening after 8:30 p.m., he was at the kitchen table, at 12, Belvedere Lane in Palm Coast, cleaning his Glock 19 while talking to his girlfriend.

Johnston began the field stripping process, which requires the trigger to be pulled in order to remove the slide for cleaning. He assumed the weapon had been unloaded by the time he’d left the range. It wasn’t. The gun fired. Johnston’s mother, Jody Johnston, 53, was nearby. She was hit in the hip.
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http://flaglerlive.com/29528/shooting-burglary
 
Anyone worthy of the title "professional" damn well better keep their primary gun loaded at all times.
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Unless you're in a classroom with a Glock 40 :eek:

No need for this guy to do a press check, he's like the rest of you guys who "know" when his gun is unloaded ......
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My gun doesn't magically unload itself and it never gets reholstered unloaded either. ALWAYS when you clear a gun or whatever, you check at least twice that its unloaded either way and you keep it pointed in a safe direction.
 
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