Dry Firing?

[byford80]

basically it is for the pin hammered revolvers because dry firing them could damage the pin

 

[Xamor 101]

Yeah snap caps are absolutely great for helping train anyone who's new to shooting firearms. I had been taught long ago as well that dry firing is harmfull to firearms, whether they be rimfire or not, and I still can't stand to dry fire my own or when others dry fire mine lol

 

[keenshooter]

Modern firearms you shouldnt have to worry.

 

[Jake46184]

An Ounce of Prevention.....

The answer really depends on the make/model of gun. But, in general:

Will dry firing damage my firing pin or anything else? No.
Does it make sense to dry fire when snap caps are so cheap? No.

 

[Koukalaka]

FWIW, I do dry fire some of my centerfire handguns for practice. But I always check the owner's manual first. Some manufacturers (even including centerfire pistols) specifically say NOT to dry fire (the Beretta tip-ups, for example), and I follow that advice.

Beretta in particular recommends placing a spent casing in the pistol if you want to dry fire. Although this isn't quite as nice as having a reusable snap cap, it should protect the firing pin, and costs nothing if you've live-fired the pistol already. It is worth checking that spent brass first to make sure it hasn't picked up any grit from being ejected on to the ground, of course.

 

[Mad Anthony Wayne]

I'm sure it was probably already posted, but sometimes it depends on the gun. Also there are snap caps you can buy that help with dry fire training.

 

[mongo404]

Is it ok to dry fire? And how much is too much?

It was recommended for me to do some dry fire drills. Particularly learning to draw from holster, both standing and seated -draw, aim, shoot. I am worried that doing too much dry firing will harm our guns. Any advice on this? Obviously, safety first. Check 35 times to make sure its unloaded, keep ammo in a seperate room, only aim at a safe place with sufficient backstop (is that what its called?)

Any and all practice is good as long as your fundementals are correct. You dont want to practice something the wrong way! Dryfire will help with draw times alot it will also help with your index and transitions. But dont forget that no matter how much you dryfire you really need to confirm what you have learned from it in live fire. I try to dryfire at least twice a week for about an hour then get to the range once or twice a week for practice. Then shoot a match on Sunday... And I either use dummy rounds mostly for weight or I dont use anything during dryfire practice. Also Steve Anderson put out a book that has alot of good dryfire drills in it that help alot. You can find it on Enos

 

[jason conley]

If you don't dry fire, you are really missing out on easy cheap training, does anybody know any world class shooters who don't dry fire? I don't.

 

[burningtwowheels]

wow....awesome information here. I didnt know some things about dry firing. And never thought about mixing in snap caps with standard ammo to see how you are anticipating recoil.

 

[cendsley87]

Can you dry fire a 1911 without it being harmful? I have a Springfield 1911-A1

 

[SSGSAD]

I resize, my brass, and dry fire .....

 

[GaryTX]

Anyone recommend a good snap cap for a 9 mm and 45 acp? I have read some reviews about some brands don't eject properly.

 

[abnk]

I'll probably catch flak for this, but I don't like to dry fire too much. Not because it does harm to the firearm, but it hurts recoil management.

 

[Jay]

Anyone recommend a good snap cap for a 9 mm and 45 acp? I have read some reviews about some brands don't eject properly.

Snap caps are designed to absorb impact from the firing pin. Dummy rounds are designed to have the same profile, and weight as a live cartridge, and are intended to prove the feed/ejection processes. All snap-caps may not have the same weight and profiles to accurately simulate feed/ejection processes of a real cartridge.

The name has worn off mine, but I've used the red plastic snap caps, with a brass base, that have spring-loaded "primer" areas, with good results. "A-zoom" makes dummy rounds that I've also used with success, but there are likely other companies out there just as good.

 

[obijohn]

+1 See, it didn't take long before we had good info on snap caps.

Now, would someone that train and teaches advocate the use of snap caps at the range mixed in with live ammo ? I know some who will use someone else and have them load them randomly in mags with live ammo. All this so the person see's their tendency to flinch. For some unknown reason I cannot explain, it just doesn't feel right for myself to be doing this with let's say, my wife or son... I guess it has just something to do with mixing live ammo with something that wont fire... Is this a tool that a trained instructor would use ?

We do this to artificially induce malfunctions. Modern firearms, in good condition, are reliable to the point of boredom. By using the the dummies, and having shooting partners load the magazines, the shooter must react to the malfunction and move on. I do this for myself on random, and rare, opportunities I am able to get some range time for myself. Reaction to malfunctions must be automatic. That requires training and practice.

As to snap caps for dry firing: Use them or do not. Makes little difference.

 

[JSeroka]

You will ALWAYS want to check your user manual. I have a brand new Beretta that specificity says NOT to dry fire, and a new S&W that says you can't. If you can't find it in your owners manual error on the side of safety and use SnapCaps.

 

[IndyGunSafety]

Dry firing should be fine with modern centerfire firearms. I'd use snap caps as well. Most gun shops carry them. Another useful tool is the SIRT gun described here:

https://www.indianagunowners.com/fo...g/116731-the_sirt_training_guns_are_here.html

The SIRT gun gives you real time feedback and lets you see any flinching, hold control and trigger control problems that dry firing alone will not.

 

[RobbLG]

I'm sure it was probably already posted, but sometimes it depends on the gun. Also there are snap caps you can buy that help with dry fire training.

Good Luck in the Classifieds...