PCP rifle safety

[JimD]

It's only me and my doggie in my house. I store the Prod on a screw next to the back door ready to go. Pellet in the chamber, safety on. No issues. When the grandkids visit, it gets put away. Sometimes I discharge it and leave it uncocked and unloaded (but magazine is usually still in it). But normally it is loaded.

My Avenger leaked when I first got it and AV recommended a dry fire or two before putting it away. So my normal practice for it is to remove the magazine and dry fire it at least once before putting it away. Loaded magazine is nearby but not in the gun. It is usually out, however, and wouldn't take long to get into service.

I have a gun safe on the way right now. I will probably put the guns in it, at least the Avenger, after it arrives. Biggest "need" is curious grandkids. But some occasional visitors may be more comfortable without out guns obviously visible.

If I had more visitors, I would not leave a pellet in the Prod. Pretty easy to cock it and load a pellet if a need arises.

 

[Emu]

Also, be aware of where you discharge that loaded pellet into the "ground".

About 20 years ago, I was a little too cavalier about clearing my .22 Rapid. Removed the magazine and fired downward just in case there was a pellet in the chamber. There was. Unfortunately, my foot was in the way. Pellet went through my boot and through my foot about an inch below the junction between my big and second toes. It stopped under the skin at the bottom of my left foot. OUCH! Blood welled up, My wife came out of the house to see why I was cursing so loudly. Then she started screaming - at me. 

There was a trip to the ER followed by surgical removal the next day. My bride hid the Rapid for about two weeks until I got off crutches. Lesson learned. Keep the flattened pellet in a small bottle on the workbench to remind me of my gross negligence and stupidity.

Yes, we all have to be sure that "dirt" is not the same than a dirt shoe.

 

[GunshipGuy]

I can't thank you guys enough for sharing your mishaps. My wife tells me that, "Confession is good for the soul, but hard on the reputation." I agree with the first part. I'm not so sure about the second. 

Those stories make me more aware of the need for safety with an air rifle. It's easy for me to become complacent with these things since they don't burn any powder and don't make much noise. Thank you for reminding me of the potential they have for doing great harm.

 

[Scotty1]

Kinda off topic, but I nailed my sneaker to my foot with a finish nail gun, right through the first knuckle of my big toe….surgically removed and a night in the hospital and three weeks at home. Trigger awareness is very important, regardless of gun type. 

 

[TDK]

When I started doing a lot more tinkering and dry fire with firearms I implemented a rule I follow hard and fast - NEVER dry-fire unless the gun is pointed at a dedicated bullet trap.

For firearms, this is a 2gal bucket of sand or an old wooden box pellet trap that I converted and filled with sand to serve as dry fire target holder. I tested the 2 gal bucket of sand and it will stop a 7.62x39mm at point blank.

For airguns, the bucket of sand obviously works, but also could be any of the pellet traps I have.



Any airgun - once I pull the magazine out, I de-cock it. When I'm wanting to confirm 'safe' of an airgun, I check for decock status, rather than looking at the chamber like you would on a firearm. Orion's protocol of discharging every single time you load and don't take a shot is probably the ultimate safety in this regard.

 

[GunshipGuy]

 

[mtndragon]

I use to keep my Marauder loaded with the safety on, pointing up toward the ceiling, thinking I was following The Four Rules and was all good. No kids, no wife, bachelor guy. Then, I put a Jefferson State Air Rifle (JSAR) valve in my Marauder. Their early valves had A LOT of problems. One night the valve failed and discharged the pellet hitting one of my light fixtures and sending glass everywhere in my room.

That experienced changed protocols. No more loaded air guns in the house. Also a great learning lesson about JSAR.

Gun Safety is super important with PCP's. I now almost never load a pcp in anticipation of a shot, and consequently rarely use the safety. My sequence is almost always like Orion's, minus the camera step, unless a target has stepped behind cover and I believe it will step back out.

 

[elh0102]

Yep, if the hammer spring is compressed, the rifle is dangerous. I never use safeties, always decock. 

 

[Emu]

I can't thank you guys enough for sharing your mishaps. My wife tells me that, "Confession is good for the soul, but hard on the reputation." I agree with the first part. I'm not so sure about the second. 

Those stories make me more aware of the need for safety with an air rifle. It's easy for me to become complacent with these things since they don't burn any powder and don't make much noise. Thank you for reminding me of the potential they have for doing great harm.

Confession implies humility.

Humility is a requirement to improve behavior.

For me, humility is a plus not a minus.

 

[MileHighAirGunner]

I fail to see how the five basic safety tips of firearms do not apply airguns as some have mentioned above. Clearly the OP violated Rule #2 and received quite a wake-up call. Whether or not you can clear a weapon (powder or air) in the same manner you still need to treat it as loaded all the time. The worst accidents happen when we "think" the gun has been made safe. Regardless I'm sure we've all experienced an AD to some extent or another - whether the firearms fault or our own. 

1. ALWAYS KEEP YOUR FIREARM POINTED IN A SAFE DIRECTION.


2. TREAT ALL FIREARMS AS IF THEY WERE LOADED.


3. KEEP YOUR TRIGGER FINGER OUTSIDE THE GUARD AND OFF OF THE TRIGGER UNTIL YOU ARE READY TO FIRE.


4. BE CERTAIN OF YOUR TARGET, YOUR LINE OF FIRE, AND WHAT LIES BEYOND YOUR TARGET.


5. ALWAYS WEAR APPROPRIATE EYE AND EAR PROTECTION WHEN SHOOTING AND MAINTAINING YOUR FIREARM.

I agree with you and your list of safety rules but you missed some rules that are on my list.

I don’t know about you, but when I pick up a firearm, the first thing I do is always look in the chamber to verify whether the gun is unloaded or not. And before I hand someone a firearm, I always show them the chamber so that they can see that it is not loaded before I hand it over.

You can’t do either of these things with the vast majority of PCPs because you can’t see into the chamber to physically see that it’s not loaded and this is what I mean when I said that not all safety rules cross over from firearms to PCPs. 

If I hand someone a loaded gun for some reason, I always tell them that it is loaded and I do not relinquish control of it until I’ve made eye contact with them and they make some kind of acknowledgment that they understood it was loaded. If someone hands me a firearm and doesn’t show me that it’s unloaded, I don’t take it without asking them if it’s loaded and to open it and show me it’s not loaded if they say no. I will not be friends with anyone for very long and I will not hang out with anyone if they demonstrate unsafe gun handling around me or are in a habit of handing over loaded weapons without at least informing me that it’s loaded.

Because you can’t see inside the chamber of most PCPs I will demonstrate to the person I’m going to hand it to that the gun is not cocked before I hand them my PCP. If I don't know if the person is familiar with PCPs or not I will explain to them that I can not show them that the gun is unloaded and why and I will explain that a safe PCP is a de-cocked PCP. I will also explain that if they cock it, they just loaded it regardless if there is a pellet in it or not. I will also show them where the safety is located and that the trigger is safe or disengaged before handing it over. I will even demonstrate how to de-cock the gun before handing it to them.

As I said, a cocked PCP in my mind is a loaded PCP because they can shoot anything that is in the barrel (like a small piece of rubber from a torn up transfer port seal in a used 1720T as I exampled in my story) not just pellets. Even the air blast from an accidentally discharged PCP can cause harm if it went across exposed skin or was directed toward the eyes at close range. The only safe PCP in my mind is a de-cocked PCP.

I’ll also add for those that say they do not use safeties. While I agree that one should never rely on a safety, I will not be friends with and I will not hunt with anyone who hunts with their safety off in the field. I had a high school buddy that I pheasant hunted with for many years. One day in the field I noticed the safety was off on his Ruger Red Label and I pointed it out to him. He told me he always hunted with the safety off because he was quicker that way. I don't know when he started that practice but I gave him exactly one chance to change his mind and to hunt with his safety on when he hunted with me. We never hunted together again and we are no longer friends.

 

[elh0102]

MileHigh, my comment that I don't use safeties was specific to PCP air rifles. I don't use them because I'm never holding a cocked PCP unless I'm ready to shoot. If I'm moving, as in a hunting situation, the rifle is decocked, spring decompressed, it cannot fire. I totally agree with your aversion to pheasant hunting with a nitwit who doesn't use the shotgun safety.