Marlin60Man
Member
So I went out to my girlfriend's place this new year's to do some shooting. I finally got back a day ago and decided to clean my guns now. So I go over to grab my rifle and I think, "Okay, this gun is loaded.... Guns are always loaded," while in the back in my mind going, "But it's not really." So I switch the safety on and pull the bolt back going, "Okay, now time to unload it, even though I know it's not really..." AND there you go, a nice jacked hollow point sitting there ready to be chambered.
So somewhere along the line I screwed up. I noticed the rim of another cartridge underneath the one inline to be chambered in the feed-throat... So I began cycling the bolt. I left 8 of them in my Glenfield 60!
Took me a while to figure out what happened and I feel even worse about it. We kept getting jams with the rifle, and so I decided there was too many people around to keep having to clear the jam and worry about the muzzle direction, so I put it up. Problem is I had locked the bolt back to clear a jammed round, and only visually checked that there were no more shells in it and I must just not have seen the rim of the next shell in the feed-throat, so I just closed the bolt before putting it up, didn't cycle it or do a "magazine dump" or anything, just relied on the visual check.
It makes me feel really stupid and unsafe. I'm glad that I've made a habit of following the "four rules" though, but I'd rather not have to be saved by them--it's kind of like when you get the guard rail on the highway, you're glad it's there but not glad you messed up enough to slam into it.. I think I might start cycling the bolt handle to make sure it's unloaded from now on, not just a quick visual check....
Anyway, I know that this is the kind of thing the rules are meant for, and that mistakes happen, and the rules allow you to continue on living to learn from them... But I just can't help but feel like a major idiot. I don't know if I really want to go shooting with other people anymore now too, I think it was too distracting and also just increases the potential for accidents that much more.
So somewhere along the line I screwed up. I noticed the rim of another cartridge underneath the one inline to be chambered in the feed-throat... So I began cycling the bolt. I left 8 of them in my Glenfield 60!
Took me a while to figure out what happened and I feel even worse about it. We kept getting jams with the rifle, and so I decided there was too many people around to keep having to clear the jam and worry about the muzzle direction, so I put it up. Problem is I had locked the bolt back to clear a jammed round, and only visually checked that there were no more shells in it and I must just not have seen the rim of the next shell in the feed-throat, so I just closed the bolt before putting it up, didn't cycle it or do a "magazine dump" or anything, just relied on the visual check.
It makes me feel really stupid and unsafe. I'm glad that I've made a habit of following the "four rules" though, but I'd rather not have to be saved by them--it's kind of like when you get the guard rail on the highway, you're glad it's there but not glad you messed up enough to slam into it.. I think I might start cycling the bolt handle to make sure it's unloaded from now on, not just a quick visual check....
Anyway, I know that this is the kind of thing the rules are meant for, and that mistakes happen, and the rules allow you to continue on living to learn from them... But I just can't help but feel like a major idiot. I don't know if I really want to go shooting with other people anymore now too, I think it was too distracting and also just increases the potential for accidents that much more.