Dry Firing?

[DJSpradley]

I hear alot you guys talking about dry firing your rifles to practice trigger control, but some of the people that I learned to shoot from (mostly family) always said to keep dry fires to a bare minimum because it can do damage to your trigger mechanism. Is this true or am I just being to careful with my equipment.

I have mostly bolt action rifles and one AR-15, would there be more damage done to the trigger of one over the other.

If it is not going to hurt my rifles I am going to begin practicing more trigger control with dry firing.

 

[BlackSS]

Pick up some snap caps if you're concerned, but in general dry firing will not damage modern day firearms if kept within reason.

 

[Fiftydriver]

As said, if your concerned get a snap cap.

The truth is that dry firing is perfectly safe for most modern rifle designs but there are some that should not be dry fired because the firing pin designs are not designed to handle the unsprung stress of dry firing. Those that come to mind are the:

Win M70
Mauser (most models)
Springfield 1903

This is mostly because of the firing pin design more then anything else. I have not heard to many problems with the AR platforms but a 223 snap cap is pretty cheap insurance.

 

[dragman]

IMHO, most rifles are fine the general rule of thumb is NEVER a rim-fire and NEVER a double rifle.

 

[Fiftydriver]

Yes while they were not mentioned by the original poster, NEVER DF a rimfire or anything with an external hammers or side by sides as mentioned. You can really screw up a RF chamber QUICKLY by dryfiring.

 

[DJSpradley]

Thanks for the info... Cleared up a bunch of misconceptions i had

 

[WildRose]

I hear alot you guys talking about dry firing your rifles to practice trigger control, but some of the people that I learned to shoot from (mostly family) always said to keep dry fires to a bare minimum because it can do damage to your trigger mechanism. Is this true or am I just being to careful with my equipment.

I have mostly bolt action rifles and one AR-15, would there be more damage done to the trigger of one over the other.

If it is not going to hurt my rifles I am going to begin practicing more trigger control with dry firing.

Use a snap cap and you'll be fine.

It's great practice to learn better technique, and to establish the muscle memory necessary for consistent shooting.

 

[Zep]

I had asked a manufacturer a number of years back and they said it was not an issue but they did add "keep in mind, it will put wear on the mechanism just as much as actual firing will". I forgot who I asked but it was a big name company.

Of note, I had read years ago about an older man who could not get out anymore and he practically wore out a revolver dry firing it while sitting in his easy chair.

I think dry firing has its place.

 

[WildRose]

I had asked a manufacturer a number of years back and they said it was not an issue but they did add "keep in mind, it will put wear on the mechanism just as much as actual firing will". I forgot who I asked but it was a big name company.

Of note, I had read years ago about an older man who could not get out anymore and he practically wore out a revolver dry firing it while sitting in his easy chair.

I think dry firing has its place.

Snap caps though are cheap, much cheaper than replacing bent and broken firing pins.

 

[Greyfox]

AR's are no problem with the upper attached. Never fire them without the upper attached unless a pad or buffer is used to protect the receiver from being hit by the hammer.

 

[rscott5028]

...and, never dry fire a loaded gun.

That can cause a lot of damage.

Be safe!

 

[codyjoe1128]

AR's are no problem with the upper attached. Never fire them without the upper attached unless a pad or buffer is used to protect the receiver from being hit by the hammer.

And don't stick your finger in there.....