Alaskan Woodsman
Member
- Joined
- Aug 1, 2016
- Messages
- 10
- Reaction score
- 0
Gun safety should be our personal responsibility and we shouldn't require manufacturers to be "responsible" for making a "safe" firearm.
Recently it has been claimed that a TV personality suffered an injury to his little finger when his muzzleloader went off while carrying it through the brush with the gun over his shoulder muzzle forward, at it was capped.... My thoughts on safe muzzleloader and firearm handling in this situation are as follows:
This unfortunate accident was due to firearm mishandling. The discussion could be on how to carry a capped gun or whether to cap or prime a muzzle loader gun until you are ready to take the shot. So here goes from my perspective, knowledge and training so far....
The 3 main NRA Gun Safety Rules are as follows:
1. Always keep your gun pointed in a safe direction.
2. Always keep your finger off the trigger until ready to shoot.
3. Always keep your gun unloaded (round unchambered I read it as) until ready to use.
It seems to me that in an instance when for what ever reason the situation becomes unmanageable, having an unloaded gun or a gun where the round is unchambered, or the gun is unprimed would help alleviate an accident entirely. Rule 3 was breached and so was rule 1 in this instance. Fortunately nothing worse occurred in this preventable instance.
Grouse hunting, pheasant hunting, etc.seem to demand a hunter have a shell in the chamber. Hammer guns with a shell in the chamber or a cap on the nipple or a primed pan are ready to shoot. Slipped safeties may also cause deadly problems SO back to rule 3.
As a professional big game hunting guide for 18 years our camp rule was never chamber a round until ready to shoot. Double guns were carried w/no shell in the chamber or the action broke open. Some guide/hunters keep their bolt in the up position meaning the action is not fully closed and the gun can't fire even with a shell in the chamber. There are all kinds of variations to this given the guns action type. The idea is, the gun can't shoot.
In my opinion the parts of a second it takes to chamber a round (in a bolt, lever or pump gun) is worth it in terms of safety even compared to maybe not being able to make the shot. Safety trumps the inability to make the shot in every situation.
There are all sorts of situations in the field where I may chamber a round or cap my gun and when those situations change, I will uncap or unchamber the round in my gun. A capped or primed gun is ready to shoot. Safeties, hammer covers, tethers etc. do not negate the fact that the round is chambered or in the case of the muzzleloader that the nipple or pan are primed i.e. the rule 3 situation.
As our TV personality has shown, hunting and gun handling is far more than the readiness implied by carrying a chambered or primed gun. What say you?
Recently it has been claimed that a TV personality suffered an injury to his little finger when his muzzleloader went off while carrying it through the brush with the gun over his shoulder muzzle forward, at it was capped.... My thoughts on safe muzzleloader and firearm handling in this situation are as follows:
This unfortunate accident was due to firearm mishandling. The discussion could be on how to carry a capped gun or whether to cap or prime a muzzle loader gun until you are ready to take the shot. So here goes from my perspective, knowledge and training so far....
The 3 main NRA Gun Safety Rules are as follows:
1. Always keep your gun pointed in a safe direction.
2. Always keep your finger off the trigger until ready to shoot.
3. Always keep your gun unloaded (round unchambered I read it as) until ready to use.
It seems to me that in an instance when for what ever reason the situation becomes unmanageable, having an unloaded gun or a gun where the round is unchambered, or the gun is unprimed would help alleviate an accident entirely. Rule 3 was breached and so was rule 1 in this instance. Fortunately nothing worse occurred in this preventable instance.
Grouse hunting, pheasant hunting, etc.seem to demand a hunter have a shell in the chamber. Hammer guns with a shell in the chamber or a cap on the nipple or a primed pan are ready to shoot. Slipped safeties may also cause deadly problems SO back to rule 3.
As a professional big game hunting guide for 18 years our camp rule was never chamber a round until ready to shoot. Double guns were carried w/no shell in the chamber or the action broke open. Some guide/hunters keep their bolt in the up position meaning the action is not fully closed and the gun can't fire even with a shell in the chamber. There are all kinds of variations to this given the guns action type. The idea is, the gun can't shoot.
In my opinion the parts of a second it takes to chamber a round (in a bolt, lever or pump gun) is worth it in terms of safety even compared to maybe not being able to make the shot. Safety trumps the inability to make the shot in every situation.
There are all sorts of situations in the field where I may chamber a round or cap my gun and when those situations change, I will uncap or unchamber the round in my gun. A capped or primed gun is ready to shoot. Safeties, hammer covers, tethers etc. do not negate the fact that the round is chambered or in the case of the muzzleloader that the nipple or pan are primed i.e. the rule 3 situation.
As our TV personality has shown, hunting and gun handling is far more than the readiness implied by carrying a chambered or primed gun. What say you?
