There’s more to gun safety than just the four rules. This may shock you, but these aren’t Barbie dolls we’re playing with.
There’s also more to gun safety than just making sure you’re safe, you want your gun to be safe too. I say this only because I’ve seen it too often lately: a small mistake the could (or does) greatly damage a firearm and cause risk to the user.
It’s everything from using the ammo you found in grandpa’s garage to banana peel your shotgun to leaving your laser bore sight in your Sig rifle and blowing up the barrel to not quite having the primer seated on your .45 long colt reloads.
You’re probably not going to die or even end up seriously injured from these things. Some will be a bad day, some will result in a destroyed gun, some will even hurt your hands and arms pretty badly. But you’re not shot and in this industry that’s a good start.
However, where does our line as responsible gun owners end? Is it just after the four rules or is it over behind “I don’t shoot other people’s reloads.” Obviously I think there are people who go overboard – bringing your gun in a safe and only taking it out once on the range isn’t a bad thing, it’s just more hassle than I’m willing to deal with. I also think there are people who aren’t serious enough, because trust me I’ve seen grandpa’s garage ammo do bad things to expensive guns.
While it’s all personal preference and everyone has a different definition of what it means to be a responsible gun owner there is a certain level of due diligence we owe ourselves and our firearms. To know that we are acting in a safe manner and keeping our firearms in a safe condition is the most important aspect of gun ownership. It’s easy to forget to pay attention but it’s important to remember to do so.
Recent Comments