IMO this is not a good practice to get into even with a spent primer. I could find no where in the Savage Owners Manual that says this is OK, or recommends this.The cocking piece pin on the side of the bolt takes more of the force when dry-firing. I'm sure the firing pin is of a rebounding style.
There are times this becomes necessary when a primer sticks in the primer carrier on the bolt face, but I would not advocate doing it otherwise.
My 10ML-II AT was showing signs of the cocking piece pin starting to bend from repeated dry-firing cycles to remove stuck primer in primer carrier, and this is exactly why I was so intent on finding a cure for that issue, which I did in my particular gun's breech plug(s).
You should never dry-fire any gun unless it is designed to do so, and is the reason they make snap caps for almost all centerfire/shotgun applications. A Ruger Old Army is specifically made to do this with, and states so in the owners manual. I am not aware of any others, but they may exist i'm not saying they don't.
What if you remove or drill a hole in the anvil cup from a spent primer(s) and replace it with silicone and let it set up, then trim the end flush after it sets up, and you should be ok. This way you have made your own snap caps and have a material (silicone) to help absorb some of the blow, and then I can't see a problem with doing this (dry-firing). Just rotate them or make new ones when they start to show signs of wear or failure.
This is just my opinion and a possible solution to help prevent any damage from occuring to firing pin or cocking piece pin, although you may disagree.
Pocampo
There are times this becomes necessary when a primer sticks in the primer carrier on the bolt face, but I would not advocate doing it otherwise.
My 10ML-II AT was showing signs of the cocking piece pin starting to bend from repeated dry-firing cycles to remove stuck primer in primer carrier, and this is exactly why I was so intent on finding a cure for that issue, which I did in my particular gun's breech plug(s).
You should never dry-fire any gun unless it is designed to do so, and is the reason they make snap caps for almost all centerfire/shotgun applications. A Ruger Old Army is specifically made to do this with, and states so in the owners manual. I am not aware of any others, but they may exist i'm not saying they don't.
What if you remove or drill a hole in the anvil cup from a spent primer(s) and replace it with silicone and let it set up, then trim the end flush after it sets up, and you should be ok. This way you have made your own snap caps and have a material (silicone) to help absorb some of the blow, and then I can't see a problem with doing this (dry-firing). Just rotate them or make new ones when they start to show signs of wear or failure.
This is just my opinion and a possible solution to help prevent any damage from occuring to firing pin or cocking piece pin, although you may disagree.
Pocampo
