So I'm swallowing my pride here and admitting I stupidly injured my thumb while doing a little target practice. I was checking out my moms new handgun, an extremely compact one because she has small hands. I was finding my hands shaky while aiming and had read somewhere that among other things, crossing your thumbs behind the grip will help with steadying your aim. Pulled the trigger (super long pull, hated that) and the gun had an unexpectedly amazing amount of kick which caused to gun to elevate upon firing and the rack slammed back into the base knuckle of my left (offhand) thumb. It's well bruised if not sprained (or even broken to some degree) and of course it was also cut pretty good by the rack. So my question is, has anything like this ever happened to you?
Injured while shooting...
- Thread starter jrodrf2
- Start date
Shoobee
Banned
Crossing your thumbs is a technique sometimes required to control very high power magnum revolvers.
Obviously a revolver has no slide, and so it is appropriate to do so with a revolver if needed.
It should however never be done with a semiauto pistol. Guess you found out the hard way, by experience.
Experience is a cruel teacher. She gives the test before she gives the lesson.
But now you know, and through experience you will probably never forget. So you are better off.
Another thought to remember is that a small gun too small for your own hands is dangerous to you also, although not obviously so, since everyone erroneously assumes that smaller is safer.
Just as a big gun too big for your own hands is obviously dangerous to you, which no one doubts.
I think you had a good day, albeit with the cruel teacher of Experience.
Obviously a revolver has no slide, and so it is appropriate to do so with a revolver if needed.
It should however never be done with a semiauto pistol. Guess you found out the hard way, by experience.
Experience is a cruel teacher. She gives the test before she gives the lesson.
But now you know, and through experience you will probably never forget. So you are better off.
Another thought to remember is that a small gun too small for your own hands is dangerous to you also, although not obviously so, since everyone erroneously assumes that smaller is safer.
Just as a big gun too big for your own hands is obviously dangerous to you, which no one doubts.
I think you had a good day, albeit with the cruel teacher of Experience.
Eactly Shobee, learned my lesson. I rather enjoy trying new guns out so if someone offers (and of course shows me the ins and outs of their gun) I will take the opportunity. Actually, my brother brought along his new AR15 and so that was also a first for me. (It was AMAZING by the way. So want one) I now know that that makes more sense with a revolver and have learned from this experience.
Shoobee
Banned
Before you go for an AR-15 take a look at the Ruger Mini's. They have a 5.56 and a 7.62. In my experience and opinion the Ruger Mini's are superior battle rifles for semi auto firing.
I was zeroing-in my scoped hunting rifle at the range last Saturday when a young man showed up alone with his own new AR-15 which he had never fired before. I spent much of the next 4 hours teaching him how to shoot it. We zeroed-in his rifle until it was shooting dead center with about a 1.5 MOA spread. I guess he will remember me for the rest of his life. I asked him about his father, and he told me his dad was not a shooter.
I asked him why he got the AR-15 and he said he did not feel safe in his neighborhood without it, and now that he knew how to shoot it, and now that it was dead on accurate, he actually felt safe for the first time in his life.
Different people have different reasons for buying different guns. Essentially it all boils down to Samuel Colt making all men equal.
I once had a Ruger Super Blackhawk in 44 magnum. Obviously it was a large handgun and one time I didnt hold it right and the hammer split my thumb open . Blood everywhere. And yes it hurt &%^$##$%%%! But smal can also bite you. I let a friend fire my North American Arms 22 magnum mini-revolver and the hammer on it cut his thumb open too. He also said *&^%%%^^%^$%&&*!
Wanda McMillion Cadwell
New member
I did this a few wks ago with my DB9.. talk about hurting it still has not healed completely.. and yes definately a lessoned learned the hard way ..
I have been shooting for 50 years and yes I have done the same thing that you have. (more than once) the worst was when I shot a daringer 22 mag. There was no way I could have properly held it, and I doubt than any one over 4 years old could have held it tight, Riped the webbing between my thumb and index finger badly. That one only took once to learn my lesson
The_Outlaw
~The Dude Abides~
Yes, It happened to me once when I was around 10 years old.
I was out target shooting with my dad's Beretta .25 auto and I got 'bit' real bad in my right thumb joint.
It hurt like hell and bled quite a bit, but at least I learned a vary valuable lesson about the importance of proper pistol grip on that day.
My thumbjoint had a slight 'clicking' to it for a few years if I remember correctly.
My thumb feels and works just fine now, but I still have the scar on my thumb to remind me.
eagleeyes
New member
i was shooting my sons shotgun at the range sunday and the connection for the sight scraped my trigger finger when it recoiled.....he insisted i shoot it so i did a few times but when my finger got scraped i was done with that gun......went back to my own which is what i'd rather practice with anyways being it's my carry piece ..but i do like his luger and pk380 as far as shooting
Cowbilly32
New member
I have "sinned" also. Several years ago I shot my son's brand new semi-auto. I shot a semi many years earlier but didn't think about the slide activation when shooting my son's. I gripped the pistol with my right thumb touching the back of the slide and squeezed the trigger. I knew immediately that something was terribly wrong but took a couple of seconds to figure out that the slide had taken a chunk of meat out of my thumb. Needless to say, I have perfected my grip since then. I'm not a trained instructor but anytime I'm teaching a newby how to shoot a semi-auto, I emphasize hand placement and tell my story!
I've seen this happen more than once during training. The point is made early on that you place your off hand BELOW your shooting hand on the pistol to avoid this very thing. Everyone gets it, and things proceed smoothly.
Then, it's time for weak hand practice. At this point, it's all too easy for a shooter to, even though their weak hand is holding the weapon, place the thumb of their STRONG hand ABOVE their weak one. Yep, back comes the slide taking a bunch of skin and flesh with it in the process. I've seen this happen to shooters with years of experience, so don't feel bad.
Oh, I'll bet it's not something that you'll do again!
Ruger does have a 5.56x45mm, a 7.62x39mm, and a 6.8SPC.. but they're incredibly overpriced for what they are like most of Ruger's line. I bought a 5.56 about 5 years ago (581 series Ranch Model) for $800 - and a year later "built" an AR-15 for a total of $650.. I could never get the Mini to shoot half as well as the AR15 and after it taking up space and not being shot for 4 years I finally sold it for $480 on Gunbroker to a guy that lived two hours from me. If you can find one in great shape for a deal like that, take it; otherwise, $700+ is just way too much for one.
To the OP, as others have said it's call slide-bite. I still have a mark on my strong hand thumb knuckle where a Glock 22 bit me the first time I ever fired one; and I wasn't the only one in the academy who got bit either. I can't say I've ever heard of crossing your thumbs as a good idea with a semi, but now we both know it is not. :yes4:
Nightmare45
NRA LIFE MEMBER
If you shot 1911 long enough you may have been bit, high rise beaver tail on all mine now.
Yup, I have been nicked by the slide too. My notable injury tho happened when I was a kid and I was racking a Beretta .22 pistol. Somehow, I got the webbing between my left thumb and forefinger caught in between the slide and the chamber. I wasn't holding the pistol out and pulling back on the slide when this happened, I was pushing the slide when my hand slipped and bingo. I was caught. Took me forever to get the pistol off of me.
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