Let’s Talk About Safety Rule Number 1…
Rule #1: Treat every gun as though it were loaded.
If you’ve spent enough times around firearms, you should be able to recite this in your sleep. There is a reason why this is always rule number 1: It is the most important rule. This rule can prevent more accidents than any other rule on the list. The other rules on the list? Those are there to cover you in case you don’t follow this rule.
What does it really mean, though? What is involved in following rule number one?
First off, it means never taking someone else’s word when they say “don’t worry, it’s not loaded.” It doesn’t matter if it’s a gun store clerk or a cop, you check the gun yourself. If it’s a semi-auto, lock the slide back and look inside the gun. Make sure there isn’t a round lodged in the barrel. Same with revolvers, rifles and shotguns. Inspect the chamber itself. If you can angle the gun right to see inside, stick your finger inside and feel the chamber. Try to get your finger up the ramps and into the barrel itself. If you feel a hole, you’re good to go.
I say this because I once handled a gun where the cartridge was expanded. The brass had lodged itself into the chamber and the extractor could not pull it out. Had I not actually inspected the chamber itself, I would never have known that the gun with no magazine and had the slide cycled two or three times by people before I picked it up had a live round in it. Thank goodness everyone was also following rule #2…but that’s my next post. You should have seen the looks on everyone’s faces when I pointed it out. No one argued with me when I said “and that’s why we visually inspect the chamber as well”.
I’ve also gone over another scenario a number of times: emptying/checking the gun then walking away from it. If the gun is ever out of your sight, check it again when you next pick it up. As stated in last week’s post, never trust your memory and never trust your “habits”. Ever heard the phrase “To err is human”? We are human. We err. We err a lot. Just do a Google search for “negligent discharge new story” to see how many times we err on a regular basis.
Also, just because you’re in a gun store doesn’t mean you can relax on the rules. At my local store, the clerks always check the gun before they hand it to a customer. Every time, they hand one to me, I inspect it myself. Not once have I ever gotten flak for it. If I’m ever in a store where someone does give me a hard time, I will set the gun on the counter, say “thanks but no thanks” and walk out because that’s not a store you want to do business with. If they encourage a customer to be unsafe, what other safety methods are they skipping. It’s those kinds of places you hear about a gun “going off” in a shop.
Ultimately, Rule 1 is about accepting responsibility for your own safety. The way you do that is to inspect, inspect, inspect. It doesn’t take long. I type between 80 and 100 words a minute. It takes less time to check a gun than it took me to write this sentence. You have no excuse not to. Keep in mind, once you’ve verified it’s unloaded, that doesn’t mean you can relax. Oh no, reader, we’re just getting started with the rules…
Like what you read? GunNoob is now part of Pew Pew Tactical. Check out the rest of our awesome resources:
Leave a Reply