Muzzle Awareness & General Safety Tips

[wolf_fire]

What the hell for he watched you clear the gun he was now holding. What a bullet magically got back in side of the cleared gun?
How was pointed an unloaded gun looking down the barrel crazy? I ask cause I am sure I am not the only one who looks down the barrel to make sure I got it clean after cleaning the gun, rifle or shotgun.

Now I will agree with you on it being crazy to look down the barrel of a gun you did not see get cleared before clearing it yourself. All this treat every gun as it is loaded is BS when I know that the gun is unloaded because I or someone else unloaded it in front of me. I can see the point that was trying to be made but it was only made to keep idiots from shooting someone else or themselves. Because we have all heard the "I thought it was unloaded" line of BS when the said owner of the firearm shoots someone. If you know the firearm is unloaded that means you are saying that there is nothing left in the firearm that can be ejected from it. To say you thought it was unloaded means you did not bother to check or confirm that it is unloaded.

As I have said before If I do not get to see you clear the firearm I do not want it pointed in my direction. And agree with the rule that you should always point your gun in a safe direction (at the ground) when clearing it or placing your finger on the trigger.

Personally, and this is only my opinion on the matter, I will never look down the barrel of a firearm nor point it at anyone even if I cleared it. The only time I will look down the barrel is if I have field stripped it first. If it isn't field stripped I will not look down it.

Reason... we are human, we can make a mistake. I would love a nickel every time I thought I had my keys in my hand before I left the house and then POOF, no keys. Is it possible I made a mistake clearing my firearm? Is it possible I dropped the magazine and thought I racked the chambered round out but it didn't come out? I double and triple check every one of my actions when clearing a gun to prevent these from happening, but I still won't look down the barrel of a firearm unless it is off the gun.

Again, this is me... others feel differently.

 

[gunnerbob]

Would it be any different if the slide was locked to the rear, then would you look down the barrel?

 

[pmb61]

What the hell for he watched you clear the gun he was now holding. What a bullet magically got back in side of the cleared gun?
How was pointed an unloaded gun looking down the barrel crazy? I ask cause I am sure I am not the only one who looks down the barrel to make sure I got it clean after cleaning the gun, rifle or shotgun.

Now I will agree with you on it being crazy to look down the barrel of a gun you did not see get cleared before clearing it yourself. All this treat every gun as it is loaded is BS when I know that the gun is unloaded because I or someone else unloaded it in front of me. I can see the point that was trying to be made but it was only made to keep idiots from shooting someone else or themselves. Because we have all heard the "I thought it was unloaded" line of BS when the said owner of the firearm shoots someone. If you know the firearm is unloaded that means you are saying that there is nothing left in the firearm that can be ejected from it. To say you thought it was unloaded means you did not bother to check or confirm that it is unloaded.

As I have said before If I do not get to see you clear the firearm I do not want it pointed in my direction. And agree with the rule that you should always point your gun in a safe direction (at the ground) when clearing it or placing your finger on the trigger.

I don't trust ANYONE enough to have them hand me a handgun and point it at my face even if I saw them clear it. I will still check it myself to ensure it is clear. In my class I always tell students to drop the magazine and rack the slide 3 times while looking down the barrel from the breech to make sure it is clear. I explain it's just like baseball, 3 strikes and you're out. I would rather do it to excess , rather then have one mistake that could turn fatal. There were photos on here a year or so ago of someone who was practicing taking down a Springfield XD40 I believe. Well at one point one was in the chamber and when he pulled the trigger, he shot himself thru his arm, then thru his leg. So he had 4 bullet holes from one bullet. I would rather be overly cautious than injured or dead!

 

[wolf_fire]

Would it be any different if the slide was locked to the rear, then would you look down the barrel?

No it wouldn't. If I get lackadaisical and look down the barrel even if it is locked to the rear, I may get complacent and look at it when it isn't. Therefore, I won't do that. It's a personal thing. I know in my mind if I've cleared it and I've locked it to the rear, it cannot go off. But mentally, I'm looking down the barrel that is on the gun. I don't want to get into a habit where I feel that is OK to do that, and then do it inadvertently when it isn't safe to do so.

Many folk have said that the only real safe handling rule we need is too keep our finger off the trigger. From a mechanical sense I agree with this assessment. The same thing can be said for rule #2 as well. As long as you never cross over anyone with the muzzle or point it at something you don't want to destroy, no one will inadvertently get shot that way either. So, one could say, I can keep my finger on the trigger, as long as I follow rule #2. My question, why do we have four rules? They are back ups for when we do make mistakes and to keep us in a frame of mind to promote safe gun handling.

If I treat every gun (loaded or not) as if it is loaded, then I will never make the mistake of looking down a barrel of a gun (loaded or not). In all honesty, I'm not sure why people argue this. YMMV.






"A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds"
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

 

[dogshawred]

OCD can be good.

I was taught many years ago that you NEVER give a gun to another in a live condition (fire able), always cylinder open, action locked open, basically in an inoperable state.
~
I believe this is one of the most important lessons I learned about firearms.
~
That said, if YOU want to look down the barrel of a gun, have at it. It is your purgative and you have my blessing, just don't expect me to stand around and watch you do it. I have no intention of witnessing any accidental discharge, I've seen enough in my lifetime and that is 2 too many.
~
I've been told that I have OCD regarding gun safety and that's OK it has helped be live long and prosper as Spock would say.
~
But for someone to tell me that what I am doing is not necessary, that I should trust someone else with my life, NO that is unacceptable. I don't care if I saw the person clear the weapon right before they handed it to me, I am going to check it and clear it for myself so that in my mind I am sure the weapon is safe to handle. Even then I am going to treat the weapon like is loaded. OCD maybe, safe absolutely.
~
PS. I was once asked by an OSP (Ohio State Patrol) to surrender my weapon during a traffic stop (required if requested under ORC), so I cleared the weapon and handed the weapon to the officer butt end first in a locked open position. Upon accepting the weapon the officer released the slide and then opened it to a lock position to check that the weapon was clear. Not saying whose right or whose wrong, just saying I am going to play it safe.

 

[telpinaro]

For myself, I will always keep it pointed in a safe direction, even if it's disassembled. The one time I don't, my son will walk in on me! I make him keep his toys pointed in a safe direction, and I will follow the rules at all times because it's not just my safety I'm protecting, it's my kid's. He's intelligent, creative, and a bit devious... if he thinks there are any rules he can bend even a tiny bit, he will! He's six, and in a "what can I get away with?" stage... don't tell him, but I'm actually quite proud that he's trying so hard! Kid's got a mind of his own (Obviously, I'm a couple steps ahead of him, and insist he stays honest and respectful - which he does.)

 

[Nightmare45]

Muzzle is never pointed at anything you do not intend to kill.

 

[Itstjs]

Before I handle any weapon, I always make sure the safety is on, whether its loaded or not, especially my own weapons. My weapon is always pointed at the ground, and away from peoples feet if I can help it. I always rack the weapon after dropping the magazine, or clearing the cylinder. You can never be too safe. Racking the slide 3 times is a good way to ensure, both visually, then touch the inside of the barrel to make sure the weapon is completely empty.
While I was in the Army, a Soldier racked his weapon after dropping the mag, then attempted to do a dry fire, thank god it was pointed down the range, apparently when he was racking the slide [1 time] he did not allow the bolt to go completely forward and it did not extract the live round, he had a Negligent Discharge, no one was hurt, but it scared the s*** out of him. Lesson for me was learned there, they give safety lessons for a reason.
The basic steps I follow are
-Never point the weapon at anything you dont intend to shoot.
-When cleaning the weapon, make sure the weapon is always empty.
3 Point Safety Check
-Drop the mag
- Pull the slide back
-Observe chambered round fall out of the chamber
-visually inspect the chamber
- physically inspect the chamber
Keep the weapon pointed away from all persons and disassemble the weapon. Safety is #1 and we should all make sure we do not give the media any more fuel to use against RESPONSIBLE GUN OWNERS. When allowing another person to see your weapon, always make sure it is empty for safety reasons. Just because youre safe doesnt mean theyre going to be just as safe.

Im glad this has become an active thread and a great reminder to us all that the weapons we carry, purchase or own can be deadly. Theyre meant to kill things, thats the sole purpose of a firearm. What you intend to kill should be the only thing your weapon is pointed at.

 

[Gallstones]

He had just been crossed over with the muzzle of a loaded gun twice.... he informed the perpetrator of this stupid act once already that he needed to holster the weapon and was ignored. His second attempt to get the perpetrator to holster his weapon was more aggressive. Just out of curiosity, how many times would you have politely asked him to put it away?

No, no, no. One is supposed to remain passive and not say anything to an idiot that might upset the idiot, even if the idiot is dangerous. Hurt feelings just make them more dangerous.

 

[Gallstones]

What the hell for he watched you clear the gun he was now holding. What a bullet magically got back in side of the cleared gun?
How was pointed an unloaded gun looking down the barrel crazy? I ask cause I am sure I am not the only one who looks down the barrel to make sure I got it clean after cleaning the gun, rifle or shotgun.

Now I will agree with you on it being crazy to look down the barrel of a gun you did not see get cleared before clearing it yourself. All this treat every gun as it is loaded is BS when I know that the gun is unloaded because I or someone else unloaded it in front of me. I can see the point that was trying to be made but it was only made to keep idiots from shooting someone else or themselves. Because we have all heard the "I thought it was unloaded" line of BS when the said owner of the firearm shoots someone. If you know the firearm is unloaded that means you are saying that there is nothing left in the firearm that can be ejected from it. To say you thought it was unloaded means you did not bother to check or confirm that it is unloaded.

As I have said before If I do not get to see you clear the firearm I do not want it pointed in my direction. And agree with the rule that you should always point your gun in a safe direction (at the ground) when clearing it or placing your finger on the trigger.

I always look through whatever openings there are at the back of the open slide and down the open chamber into the barrel from behind. No need to point the front of the muzzle at yourself to look. Doesn't matter if you are CERTAIN the gun is unloaded. That kind of practice coupled with the complacency of certainty might get you killed. And it sets a very bad example for the less well trained and practiced to follow as you show them that doing this must be OK.