When do you chamber a round while hunting?

spdrman said:

So for the countless days, hundreds of hours in the field you're basing how you carry your gun on a 3 second scenario you witnessed? Is it worth having one in the chamber all the other thousands of seconds you spend in the field that you dont need it in the chamber?

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Valid response, but if you look at the poll the majority by a large margin carry one in the pipe with the safety on. You are singling him out, but if you read back through the thread responses like his are common.

I'll put this conversation to rest. Now accepting donations to purchase a cheap Remington 700 for drop testing performing option "C". Obviously I'd use a cartridge without a projectile, but am willing to test this theory.

gjbugtosser said:

I chose B. Especially when on public land. Game can show up in an instant, and by the time your chambering a round, and making noise doing so, there's a higher chance you'll miss your very short window of opportunity. I've seen a buddy of mine miss an opportunity at a cow elk because he was fumbling with his bolt, while his adrenaline was pumping, when the cow was trotting 25 yards broadside in front of us (I didn't have a cow tag). The shot opportunity was only about 3 seconds before she disappeared into thick cover.

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Sorry by no means was I trying to single you out, and probably came across like I was attacking you, was just trying to get you to think about the bigger picture and who rare that happens

ophious said:

I'll put this conversation to rest. Now accepting donations to purchase a cheap Remington 700 for drop testing performing option "C". Obviously I'd use a cartridge without a projectile, but am willing to test this theory.

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I already put a couple of mine through the ringer testing this a couple years ago - I am out, but am anxious to hear your findings. The one thing I did not do was jackhammer the gun, muzzle first into the anything...that is what some are saying would need to happen to cause a discharge with option C.

FIGJAM said:

Valid response, but if you look at the poll the majority by a large margin carry one in the pipe with the safety on. You are singling him out, but if you read back through the thread responses like his are common.

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That wasn't my intentions, just trying to give people something to think about

For me, when hiking to my high spot to glass, never a round in the chamber. Sensitive triggers can be touched off by me or by brush I'm traveling thru. It's happened....click...no bang, face and ear saved.
When I sit and glass, round chambered, on bi pod, within reach, gun on safety.
Before I call it a day, unload round, pick up rifle, back to camp secured in my gun case in vehicle.
It's the safest I can be in MY scenario hunting in desert scrub or high country elk, antelope.

Muzzle drop on option C doesn't make any sense in physics. If the firing pin is already resting on the primer there isn't enough mass in the firing pin to set it off from a drop. You'd have to accelerate the drop much quicker than terminal velocity to transfer that much energy from the firing pin to the primer. The only logical explanation for a "C" scenario discharge, would be to drop the rifle on the stock as parallel to the firing pin as possible. Problem there is that the firing pin spring isn't "storing" as much energy if it's bouncing as opposed to being held by a sear etc. Check out this firing pin impact study by SSSinc. to get a better idea of the physics behind igniting a large rifle primer on a typical bolt action rifle.

FIGJAM said:

Valid response, but if you look at the poll the majority by a large margin carry one in the pipe with the safety on. You are singling him out, but if you read back through the thread responses like his are common.

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Out of that poll I would like to know how many if any voted for one in the chamber safety have any first hand experience or know somebody where a firearm effected their lives or a close friend or even had a close call.
Here's my stories from close call, to bad to worse case scenario
My personal close call had a 300wm go off within inches of me. With the percussion and muzzle blast I thought for sure I was hit and was feeling all around myself looking for a hole in me. Best guess is walking through brush flipped the safety off at some point and then something snagged the trigger. Since that day I will never walk with one in the chamber nor hunt with anyone that does. I have buddies that hunt with one in the chamber when I'm not with them but they know I dont like it so they dont around me
A friend of mine has a brother that is missing a leg. I dont know all the details on that but I know my buddy doesnt carry one in the chamber since that.
Have a coworker that lost his brother. Nobody was there but their best guess the gun fell out of the treestand and went off when it hit the ground.

FIGJAM said:

Did the accidental discharge happen during the decocking process, or after it was decocked?

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It happened as the bolt was slowly closed almost all the way down. Scared the *%$# out of me, and I was glad nothing worse happened. I am also glad it was a .223 and not a .270 with high recoil to rip my fingers off that were holding the bolt.

ophious said:

I'll put this conversation to rest. Now accepting donations to purchase a cheap Remington 700 for drop testing performing option "C". Obviously I'd use a cartridge without a projectile, but am willing to test this theory.

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Have to have a loaded round since just a case and primer reduces the weight the the loaded round has and will effect the force the case has in a down drop.

After seeing the video on Facebook, I am going to re-think chambering a round even in timber. I would rather miss out on a chance for any animal than lose a family member or friend from an accident, especially knowing I could have prevented it by being safer with a firearm. Even the biggest bull to ever live would not be worth that kind of loss.
May I suggest only having a round in the chamber if your life depended on having one there, (like hunting a bear in thick brush or you are in a war) or it is now safe to do so because you are on target and it is safe to shoot.

bigngreen said:

Have to have a loaded round since just a case and primer reduces the weight the the loaded round has and will effect the force the case has in a down drop.

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Even muzzle first? Muzzle first you are driving the firing pin into the cartridge. Buttstock down, you are driving the cartridge into the firing pin.

All you guys that like option C please think about the very similar option I posted earlier. Only used when the rifle is in your hands, not slung. Round in the chamber, bolt up, unlocked, hand around stock under bolt, thumb on bolt shroud. Rifle cannot fire even if you fall. Almost as fast to get into action as hot with safety on. Very QUIET to make hot. Big advantage over uncocked. I do this when in uneven terrain, or when not alone. Like I said, sounds cumbersome and strange, but it is not at all. A really good western guide taught me this. When he first showed it to me in the field, I thought he was nuts, until I really thought about it.

bigngreen said:

Have to have a loaded round since just a case and primer reduces the weight the the loaded round has and will effect the force the case has in a down drop.

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That makes zero sense