ammunition resilience

[Walzmyn]

I un-chamber my pistol when I put it away and re-chamber it to carry. Since I have fortunately not had to use it, this means two shells get cycled between the chamber and the top slot in the magazine. I've noticed on these two shells a slight dent forming. It is right where the ring on the back of a new shell being put into the magazine presses on the one below it.

The dent is very slight, but it got me to wondering if this is something I should be concerned about long term.

Toss the ammo? Just rotate them down the mag and get a different pair cycling though the chamber? other?

Thanks for your input.

 

[Etkini]

Assuming you have some spare ammo on hand and tactical reload, when you clear the weapon at night put the one that was chambered back in the box, then reload the magazine with a fresh one. It'll keep you from chambering the same 2 rounds 50 times. It's not bad that I know of to keep doing it your way, but I've never chambered and cleared the same round over and over.

Or you could keep it loaded 24/7, but that may not be an option for you.

 

[Rick246]

Rumor has it that if you continually re-chamber the same round that you can start forcing the bullet further into the case. Too much and you can create an over pressure problem when the round if finally fired. Can anyone verify this info?

 

[Stan45]

Yes that is true. The bullet is hitting the feed ramp over and over the bullet may start to move back.
I keep my gun loaded.

 

[Etkini]

Rumor has it that if you continually re-chamber the same round that you can start forcing the bullet further into the case. Too much and you can create an over pressure problem when the round if finally fired. Can anyone verify this info?

As a reloader I should have been smart enough to remember the issues with bullet setback and why crimping is important.. Yes, continually chambering a round CAN cause bullet setback, which can cause a kaboom.

To the OP, I stick with what I said before.. keep it loaded or rotate stock.

 

[coldwater]

I shoot out my carry rounds every 4 months and replace with fresh ones. My wife and I are alone in the house, so my weapon is always loaded and ready. I'f it's not on me, it's at the ready in my nightstand next to me.

 

[fudo]

Why do you unload every night? My street guns are ready to rock 24/7. Define "put it away"

 

[Deserteagle]

Chambering the same round over and over again is dangerous. It gradually pushes the bullet further into the casing, increasing the pressure when you fire it and leading to an explosion. Either leave it chambered, or cycle different rounds through it.

 

[cluznar]

Keep the gun loaded and in a holster or a safe place. Why keep chambering and un-chambering? Every 3 months shoot your carry ammo and buy more.

:dance3:

 

[1funvet]

Why do you unload every night? My street guns are ready to rock 24/7. Define "put it away"

I was wondering the same thing.

 

[Walzmyn]

I live in a house with 2 small children and a wife that was raised by someone who didn't want guns in her house or anyone else's. My first pistol she had no choice, I was going to be able to defend my family. Getting a second (smaller one) that could be concealed carried was a major victory around here. One of the things that keeps my wife sleeping soundly at night is the assurance that the guns are not, in fact, chambered and that the kids cannot chamber them.

Before they are big enough to rack a round, I will teach them safety.

If it were up to me, I would just put this gun in a safe place and leave it chambered, but I really like her cooking

I've got most of this box of hollow points left, I'll just cycle though the entire box instead of 2 rounds.

Thanks for the information.

 

[SGB]

I'm sorry friend but IMO you're laboring under some seriously flawed thinking.

“Owning a handgun doesn't make you armed any more than owning a guitar makes you a musician.” Jeff Cooper

 

[Stan45]

I live in a house with 2 small children and a wife that was raised by someone who didn't want guns in her house or anyone else's. My first pistol she had no choice, I was going to be able to defend my family. Getting a second (smaller one) that could be concealed carried was a major victory around here. One of the things that keeps my wife sleeping soundly at night is the assurance that the guns are not, in fact, chambered and that the kids cannot chamber them.

Before they are big enough to rack a round, I will teach them safety.

If it were up to me, I would just put this gun in a safe place and leave it chambered, but I really like her cooking

I've got most of this box of hollow points left, I'll just cycle though the entire box instead of 2 rounds.

Thanks for the information.

Do you think George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Sam Houston, or even General Patton would have had a wife that questioned how he carried a gun? Or can you imagine what the response that might have been given if they had a wife that would have questioned them?
Women by nature are nourishing, holding a crying baby, kissing a finger on a child that was hurt. Men by nature are protectors and providers. Need some more examples? Women like men to hold the door for them. Now your front door was kicked in and the bad guy may still be in there just watch your wife step aside and want you to go in first. Again it is then the nature of things.
So if they are going to step aside how dare they question how you carry a gun, unless they feel you are not competent with said firearm. Now that is a whole new question.

 

[Etkini]

Give the poor guy a break.. not everyone is as accepting of firearms as the next person. My old lady hates them, but knows why I have them and knows that each and everyone I have is always loaded. We don't have any kids, just pets though. She knows enough to know this is my hobby and life, and doesn't interfere with it. And you know, that's good enough for me. But not everyone is that lucky; some people are spoon-fed to just give in and let police sort it out, ie the sheep mentality.

Baby steps.. she'll warm up to the idea of keeping it ready to roll 24/7. I absolutely understand the concept of not having the kids able to access them.. have you considered keeping it in a level III retention holster on one of those between-the-mattress holders? They're damned near impossible to use unless you're actually on the bed and know how to operate it. Or there's biometric cases.

 

[Walzmyn]

Thanks for the marital advice guys. I was pretty sure I was just here for tactical info. The .45, with the de-cocking safety and the REALLY strong return spring, is beside the bed. We've got an alarm and 2 dogs. Not worried about things at night.

My carry weapon (Walther PPS in .40) would be much easier for the girls to actually chamber/fire, so I keep it up high in the closet. I always kept the .45 unchambered so the kids had to pull that really stiff slide before they could hurt themselves - and they aren't strong enough to do that yet. I just kept the same practice with the new one.

The wife is coming around. I think alot of these shootings in the news are changing her mind. She has said she likes knowing I've got one on me when we travel and she's started re-posting pro-second amendment stuff on facebook. Gimme another few years and she'll be on her asking about holsters

 

[kelcarry]

I shoot out my carry rounds every 4 months and replace with fresh ones. My wife and I are alone in the house, so my weapon is always loaded and ready. I'f it's not on me, it's at the ready in my nightstand next to me.

Certainly cannot fault this option but, in reality, the cartridges sitting in the mag are safe and cozy just as they are in the original box they came in and can stay warm and cozy for years. That first cartridge in the chamber ( I always have a cartridge in the chamber--if I have a defensive situation, the last thing I need to worry about is racking a slide and, in my house, having that noise alert a BG) that must be ejected if you switch to practice ammo is the real problem as indicated in this thread. I check that cartridge with a magnifier and will reuse the first time I reload after practice shooting, and replace it in the mag that remains loaded all the time (I use 2 other mags for practice) but for that second time, I will replace with a new cartridge regardless of the magnifier exam. Whatever you do, whether it is every time and all the cartridges in the mag, this is a real problem that can be a very bad problem if you ignore the potential for setback.

 

[coldwater]

Certainly cannot fault this option but, in reality, the cartridges sitting in the mag are safe and cozy just as they are in the original box they came in and can stay warm and cozy for years. That first cartridge in the chamber ( I always have a cartridge in the chamber--if I have a defensive situation, the last thing I need to worry about is racking a slide and, in my house, having that noise alert a BG) that must be ejected if you switch to practice ammo is the real problem as indicated in this thread. I check that cartridge with a magnifier and will reuse the first time I reload after practice shooting, and replace it in the mag that remains loaded all the time (I use 2 other mags for practice) but for that second time, I will replace with a new cartridge regardless of the magnifier exam. Whatever you do, whether it is every time and all the cartridges in the mag, this is a real problem that can be a very bad problem if you ignore the potential for setback.

I reload every round I fire. I have been doing it for just over 30 years now, and I don't allow self defense ammunition to live past 4 months under any circumstances. I sit down to load a handful of rounds specifically for carry, and purge them every 4 months. Either they go directly to the range, or get dumped into the sealed ammo cans as range fodder. In those 30 years of reloading, I have not once had any round come out of spec. I use a Dillon RL 500 press. The dies are the best in the industry, are painstakingly set, and every round is firmly crimped, and I check random rounds throughout the press run. I don't do typical practice rounds. Every round I load is the same critical use round. That applies to pistol and rifle both. The defense rounds in my pistol right now, are the very same as the 4,000 others sitting in cans right next to the + 8,000 canned rounds of 5.56. I, LOVE, to load ammo, and do it like it's my job. I usually set aside the funds from one small job a month to buy reloading supplies, and never bother to sit at the bench unless at least 500 rounds drop into the bucket. It's like a religion that I follow fervently. But with all the care and quality I put into every round I load, not one of them stays in my pistol over 4 months.

 

[coldwater]

Thanks for the marital advice guys. I was pretty sure I was just here for tactical info. The .45, with the de-cocking safety and the REALLY strong return spring, is beside the bed. We've got an alarm and 2 dogs. Not worried about things at night.

My carry weapon (Walther PPS in .40) would be much easier for the girls to actually chamber/fire, so I keep it up high in the closet. I always kept the .45 unchambered so the kids had to pull that really stiff slide before they could hurt themselves - and they aren't strong enough to do that yet. I just kept the same practice with the new one.

The wife is coming around. I think alot of these shootings in the news are changing her mind. She has said she likes knowing I've got one on me when we travel and she's started re-posting pro-second amendment stuff on facebook. Gimme another few years and she'll be on her asking about holsters

It's tough to win over anyone that has been raised to fear a firearm, or anything else. When you're young and have anything drilled into your head, it almost becomes a part of your DNA. All you can do is use a positive reinforcement to ease those fears, keep those NRA magazines in plain sight at all times, show the best possible common sense and proper training when handling or discussing firearms in general, and talk to her about having the kids learn safety and respect for firearms and the shooting sports. I have a good friend in the same situation. He actually had to hide his coming over to my home so I could give him instruction and bring him to the range. One day last summer, he mentioned to her that he would like to learn to shoot, and she went bananas on him. If you ask me, she has a mental issue far beyond just fear of firearms, so judging by her, it looks like you're way ahead of the curve with your wife!

 

[Walzmyn]

It's tough to win over anyone that has been raised to fear a firearm, or anything else. When you're young and have anything drilled into your head, it almost becomes a part of your DNA.

Yeah. Our story is, mom had a friend shot by her father when they were kids. The little girl was hiding in the closet to scare her daddy, he heard the noise and shot though the door. So now all guns are evil and all gun owners are potential death to anybody within range.

My response: That guy was a dumbass. I'm not.
Never shoot at a target you're not sure of.

 

[Iam2Taz]

My friend. Buy a safe. (about $100) Keep it loaded in the safe when not carrying. The kids can't get it. Plus, if the kids can't get, neither can their nosey friends. Just sayin.

My wife was very similar to yours for the first 20 years. Now, she is almost ready to go to the range. Maybe for her 50th birthday?
Good luck!